Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus vs Ryzen 9 9900X
Short answer: which is best?
Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus is 9.2 % stronger than Ryzen 9 9900X. Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus ranks #2 of 108 measured processors at WhatFPS (15,558 CPU score in its best run — best of 2 rigs, 24 verified runs). Ryzen 9 9900X ranks #8 of 108 measured processors at WhatFPS (14,249 CPU score in its best run — best of 3 rigs, 4 verified runs). Each part is shown at its best run, picked from 28 verified WhatFPS runs — measured, not estimated, not self-reported.
Measured comparison
| Metric | Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus | Ryzen 9 9900X |
|---|---|---|
| CPU score, best run (the processor's own performance) | 15,558 | 14,249 |
| Best rig (GAMING — whole PC) | 10,383 | 15,624 |
| Integer (MT) | 14.6 Gop/s | 12.5 Gop/s |
| Single-thread (1T) | 0.94 Gop/s | 0.9 Gop/s |
| Draw calls/s (DX11) | 11,343,956 | 15,532,558 |
| Cores / threads | 24 / 24 | 12 / 24 |
| L3 cache | 36 MB | 64 MB |
Fragz' verdict
Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus has the higher CPU score, with a 9.2 % lead over Ryzen 9 9900X. This chip takes the lead in single-thread performance, which usually sets the FPS ceiling in games, and it also wins in integer tests which says more about streaming, compiling and background load. While the Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus has more cores, the Ryzen 9 9900X is still the right pick when you need more draw calls per second because it is higher on that metric, and it also does more in Supernova, which is useful when a lot is on screen.
Generated November 14, 2026 from the 28 verified runs available then. The verdict is never silently rewritten — new numbers get a new verdict.
What the numbers mean
The headline score is the part's best measured run, and the measurements under it come from that same run. It shows what the part has been proven to do — not what an average rig gets out of it. The CPU score is the processor's own performance — that is what we rank on. GAMING is the whole rig's score in the best PC we measured the processor in, and leans heavily on the graphics card. A strong processor in a weak PC gets a low GAMING score without being worse. We show both and never mix them.
All numbers come from our benchmark suite: four hand-built 3D scenes written directly against the graphics APIs in Rust, the same load on every PC. The methodology is open at https://whatfps.com/metodik
All measurements for Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus · All measurements for Ryzen 9 9900X