A new AM4 processor in 2026 sounds like a product arriving several years late. Current memory pricing makes it considerably less absurd.

AMD's Ryzen 5 5500F is a six-core, twelve-thread Zen 3 processor with a $99 official price. It runs at a 3 GHz base clock and boosts to 4.4 GHz, carries a 65 W TDP and supports DDR4-3200. AMD also includes a Wraith Stealth cooler with the boxed version.

There is no integrated GPU, so a discrete graphics card is required.

AM4 is old, but old can be cheap

The attraction is not simply a two-digit CPU price. AM4 owners may already have the motherboard and memory required to use it. AMD lists compatibility across chipsets including B350, B450, B550, X370, X470 and X570, subject to the appropriate motherboard firmware and manufacturer support.

The 5500F also exposes 20 usable PCIe 4.0 lanes. That gives it an important platform advantage over the older Ryzen 5 5500, which is limited to PCIe 3.0.

AMD has not turned it into a discounted Ryzen 5 5600, however. The new chip has only 16 MB of L3 cache, versus 32 MB on the 5600. Its official specification identifies the processor as a Vermeer design, an unusual combination with that cache configuration.

The $189 Ryzen 5 7500 takes the opposite route

AMD's second September 10 launch belongs to AM5. The Ryzen 5 7500 uses six Zen 4 cores and twelve threads, with a 3.7 GHz base clock and a 5.0 GHz maximum boost. It gets 6 MB of L2 cache, 32 MB of L3 and the same 65 W default TDP.

Memory support moves to DDR5-5200, while the platform provides 24 usable PCIe 5.0 lanes. This is the technically cleaner foundation for a new machine, particularly for anyone who expects to upgrade the CPU later without replacing the rest of the platform.

Unlike the Ryzen 5 7500F, the non-F model also includes Radeon graphics. It is a tiny two-compute-unit block running at up to 2.2 GHz, primarily useful for display output and systems that do not need a discrete GPU.

The 7500's problem is everything around its $189 price

A processor does not exist in a vacuum. The Ryzen 5 7500 costs $189 officially, then requires an AM5 motherboard and DDR5. Current retail pricing can also place other Ryzen chips close enough to it that a nominally higher-tier processor becomes worth checking before buying.

The 5500F has the opposite advantage. Its platform has been around for years, motherboards are abundant, and inexpensive DDR4 may already be sitting inside the PC being upgraded.

Tom's Hardware listed the Ryzen 5 5600 at roughly $159 when AMD introduced the 5500F. That makes the new chip cheaper, but buyers give up half of the 5600's L3 cache. The decision is not quite as simple as comparing the numbers printed on the box.

AMD is now selling two definitions of budget

The Ryzen 5 7500 is the budget route into AMD's current ecosystem. It buys a modern socket, DDR5, PCIe 5.0 and a basic integrated GPU.

The Ryzen 5 5500F is budget in the more literal sense: keep the motherboard, keep the DDR4, install a $99 processor and avoid rebuilding half the computer.

Both officially launched on September 10, 2026. Ten years after AM4 first appeared, AMD is still finding reasons to put new CPUs into it.