Best gaming CPU deals available this side of the holidays

AMD Ryzen 9 5950X | 16-core, 32-thread | AM4 |  4.9GHz | 105W | $799.00 $709.99 at Amazon (save $89.01)
If you need true CPU power, then this is the processor you want. It's still a big pile of cash for a processor, but if you're a gamer that also has a creative bent, then this will pay for itself quickly enough. 3D rendering, video encoding, and raw number-crunching all benefit from the huge amount of cores on offer here. That it's an awesome gaming chip as well is just the icing on the cake.

AMD Ryzen 7 5800X | 8-Core, 16-thread | AM4 | 3.8GHz | 105W | $449.99 $369.99 at Micro Center (save $80)
$150 off makes this the cheapest we've ever spied the 8-core AMD Ryzen 7 5800X, so if you're in the market, definitely jump on this while you can. Even without such a hefty discount, this chip is a seriously good deal for gaming and content creation. No cooler included here, however.

AMD Ryzen 7 5700G | 8-core, 16-thread | AM4 |  4.6GHz | 65W | $359 $329 at Best Buy (save $30)
This isn't a massive saving, to be fair, but given you don't need a graphics card with this capable APU for some light gaming, it's still a decent bargain. You get a full-fat eight-core, 16-thread chip that will handle serious tasks every bit as well as more expensive offerings. We liked this chip a lot when we reviewed it. It comes with a cooler too.

Intel Core i5 12600K | 10-core, 16-thread | LGA 1700 | 4.9 GHz | 125W | $319.99 $299.99 at Newegg (save $20)
This chip is brand new, but Newegg has already slashed $20 off its retail price. Stunning. This is a seriously impressive chip too—it runs circles around even the 11th Gen Core i9, so you don't want to spend too much on one of those while this chip is available. The only downside here is a higher platform cost, as only the more premium Z690 chipset is currently available to purchase.

Intel Core i5 11600K | 6-core, 12-thread | LGA 1200 |  4.9GHz | 125W | $299.99 $259.99 at Newegg (save $40)
Of all the 11th Gen chips, it was the Core i5 11600K that stood out to us as a good deal for gamers. That said, it's recently been replaced by the more capable Core i5 12600K, though you can't find that for anywhere near as cheap. The bonus here is you can also save cash on a cheaper motherboard, so it's all-around a great pick for a budget PC.

Intel Core i3 10100F | 4-core, 8-thread | LGA 1200 |  4.3 GHz | 65W | $129 $90 at Amazon (save $39)
There was once a time when a four-core/eight-thread CPU such as this would've ruled the lineup as the top Core i7. Those days are over, and have been for a while, and now you can find a chip that's equally as good for gaming under $100. Pick up a cheaper 400-series chipset and you'll be able to build a more than capable gaming PC with this at its heart. Just bear in mind you will need a discrete GPU for this, as there's no iGPU on the chip.

Intel Core i5 11400 | 6-core, 12-thread | LGA 1200  | 4.4GHz | 65W | $219.99 $189.98 at Newegg (save $30.01)
If your budget won't stretch to dropping $300 on a cutting-edge CPU and a new platform, then this six-core, 12-thread Rocket Lake chip still packs a mighty punch for the money. With a max clock speed of 4.4GHz and a pleasingly low TDP of 65W, you can drop this chip into a mid-range B500 motherboard to make for a great foundation for a gaming rig.