Pair your NVIDIA RTX 3080 with one of these great CPUs for best result

The best processor (CPU) for NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 3080 is one that won't bottleneck the absolutely monstrous power coming from the card. In this case, AMD Ryzen 5000 series CPUs are a great match, but Intel isn't far behind with its 10th Gen "Comet Lake" and 11th Gen "Rocket Lake" Core chips. We've rounded up the best CPUs right here if you have an RTX 3080 that needs a partner.



Best overall AMD

AMD Ryzen 9 5950X



Editor's choice

The AMD Ryzen 9 5950X is a killer CPU that will have no issues keeping up with the RTX 3080. You get a whopping 16 cores, 32 threads, and a boost speed up to 4.9GHz with 105W TDP. You're going to be able to crush QHD and UHD gaming with this chip, but expect to pay dearly for all that power. Check out the best motherboards for AMD Ryzen 9 5950X for the right pairing.

$1,020 at Amazon

$830 at Newegg

$799 at B&H

Best overall Intel

Intel Core i9-10900K



Staff pick

The Intel Core i9-10900K brings 10 cores and 20 threads and is unlocked for overc...