Finding the best AMD CPUs under £150 is genuinely tricky right now. The market is split between older AM4 chips that offer cheap entry points and newer AM5 processors that cost a bit more upfront but give you a platform worth sticking with. Throw in integrated graphics options, varying cache sizes, and wildly different real-world performance levels, and it's easy to make an expensive mistake. We've pulled together seven AMD processors that all sit at or below the £150 mark and ranked them honestly, so you can pick the right chip for your build without second-guessing yourself.
Buying Guide: What to Look For in the Best AMD CPUs Under £150
Picking a CPU at this price range involves more trade-offs than most buyers expect. Here's what actually matters.
AM4 vs AM5: Platform Matters More Than the Chip
This is the single biggest decision. AM4 is AMD's older socket, used by Ryzen 3000, 4000, and 5000 series chips. Motherboards are cheap, DDR4 memory is affordable, and there's a huge second-hand market. But AMD has confirmed no new CPUs for AM4, so you're buying into a dead end. AM5 is the current platform, supporting Ryzen 7000 and 8000 series chips. Boards cost more and you'll need DDR5 memory, but you get a proper upgrade path. If you're building from scratch and plan to keep the system for several years, AM5 is worth the extra upfront cost.
Cache Size: The Spec Most People Ignore
Cache is the fast memory built into the CPU itself. More cache means the processor can store more frequently used data close to hand, which reduces latency and improves performance in gaming and other workloads. The Ryzen 5 7600's 38MB is excellent for this price range. The Ryzen 5 4500's 11MB is a real limitation. Don't overlook this number when comparing chips.
Boost Clock vs Base Clock
The boost clock is the maximum speed the CPU will hit under load. The base clock is what it runs at constantly. For gaming and single-threaded tasks, boost clock matters most. For sustained workloads like video rendering, the base clock and core count matter more. All chips in this roundup have 6 cores and 12 threads (except the 3200G), so focus on boost clock and architecture generation when comparing them.
Integrated Graphics: Do You Need Them?
If you're buying a dedicated GPU, integrated graphics are mostly irrelevant. But they're useful for troubleshooting during a build, and essential if you're building a system without a discrete card. The 8600G has the best iGPU here. The 7600 has basic integrated graphics for display output only. The 3200G's Vega 8 sits in between. The 3600, 5600X, 4500, and 8400F have no iGPU at all.
Don't Overpay for Old Architecture
The Ryzen 5 3600 and 4500 are both priced close to newer, faster chips in this roundup. Zen 2 chips from 2019 to 2020 shouldn't cost the same as Zen 4 chips from 2023 to 2024. Always check what architecture you're buying and compare it against newer alternatives at the same price before committing.
