Ryzen 3 1300X vs Core i3-7100

Gaming speed, cores and clocks

On our gaming index the Ryzen 3 1300X scores 23 and the Core i3-7100 scores 22, about 5% faster for gaming. That gap is small and mostly shows up at 1080p with a very fast graphics card.

The Ryzen 3 1300X has 4 cores and 4 threads, and the Core i3-7100 has 2 cores and 4 threads. The extra cores of the Ryzen 3 1300X help with video editing, streaming while you play and heavy multitasking more than with the game itself. Boost clocks are 3.7 GHz and 3.9 GHz.

Platform, power and price

The Ryzen 3 1300X uses the AM4 socket and the Core i3-7100 uses LGA1151, so they need different motherboards, and often different memory. When you compare prices, count the board as well as the chip.

Rated power is 65 W for the first and 51 W for the second. That is close enough that cooling needs will be similar.

At launch the Ryzen 3 1300X cost $129 and the Core i3-7100 $117, which gives 17.8 and 18.8 points of gaming performance per $100. Today's prices will differ.

Which graphics cards each one can feed, and which to buy

At 1080p the Ryzen 3 1300X can feed a card up to the Arc A580 before it holds the card back by more than 10 percent. The Core i3-7100 reaches the Arc A580. Both chips are in the same range for graphics card pairing.

Choose the Ryzen 3 1300X if you want the faster gaming chip and the same or more cores. Choose the Core i3-7100 if you would rather spend the difference on a graphics card, which does more for frame rates in most games.