Intel vs AMD for Home Servers in 2026

Quick Verdict

Intel wins for efficiency-focused home servers. AMD wins for raw performance. Most self-hosters should buy an Intel N100/N150 mini PC — 6W TDP, excellent QuickSync for Plex/Jellyfin transcoding, and $150 all-in. If you need serious compute (multiple VMs, heavy transcoding, compiling), AMD’s Ryzen 7 5800H or Ryzen 5 5600G gives you more cores per dollar.

The real answer: for 80% of self-hosting setups, the CPU barely matters. You’re running Docker containers that idle at 1–3% CPU usage. Pick by power consumption and platform cost, not benchmarks.

When the CPU Actually Matters

Most self-hosting workloads are I/O-bound (disk reads, network transfers, database queries), not CPU-bound. Here’s when the CPU matters:

Workload	CPU Intensity	What Matters
Running 20 Docker containers	Very low	RAM, not CPU
Plex/Jellyfin hardware transcoding	High (GPU/iGPU)	QuickSync/NVENC support
ZFS scrubs and resilver	Medium	Core count
Proxmox with multiple VMs	Medium-High	Core count, VT-x/VT-d
Compiling software	High	Core count + clock speed
AI/ML inference	Very high	GPU, not CPU
Pi-hole, AdGuard Home, Uptime Kuma	Negligible	Literally any CPU works

Intel Options for Home Servers

Intel N100 / N150 (Ultra-Efficient)

Cores/Threads: 4C/4T
TDP: 6W
Base/Boost Clock: 1.0–3.4 GHz (N100) / 1.0–3.6 GHz (N150)
iGPU: Intel UHD (24 EUs) — excellent QuickSync support
Typical system price: $130–180 (mini PC with case, PSU)
Idle power draw: 5–8W (whole system)

The N100 is the king of efficient self-hosting. It replaced the Celeron J4125 and left it in the dust — 2–3x the performance at the same power draw. The N150 is a minor refresh with slightly higher boost clocks.

Best for: Single-purpose home servers, NAS companions, Pi-hole + 10 containers, Plex with 1–2 hardware transcodes.

Intel N305 (Mid-Range Efficient)

Cores/Threads: 8C/8T
TDP: 15W
Base/Boost Clock: 1.8–3.8 GHz
iGPU: Intel UHD (32 EUs)
Typical system price: $280–400 (mini PC)
Idle power draw: 8–12W (whole system)

Double the cores of the N100 for multi-VM setups or heavier container loads. Still very power-efficient.

Best for: Proxmox with 3–4 VMs, 30+ containers, multiple Plex transcodes simultaneously.

Intel Core i3-1315U / i5-1340P (Desktop-Class in Mini PC)

Cores/Threads: 6C/8T (i3) / 12C/16T (i5)
TDP: 15–28W
iGPU: Intel UHD/Iris Xe — excellent QuickSync
Typical system price: $350–550 (mini PC)
Idle power draw: 10–18W (whole system)

For power users who want Intel’s platform but need more compute than the N-series. The i5-1340P with 12 cores in a mini PC form factor is serious hardware.

Best for: Heavy Proxmox users, multiple simultaneous 4K transcodes, mixed VM + container workloads.

AMD Options for Home Servers

AMD Ryzen 5 5600G / 5700G (AM4 Desktop)

Cores/Threads: 6C/12T (5600G) / 8C/16T (5700G)
TDP: 65W
Base/Boost Clock: 3.9–4.4 GHz (5600G) / 3.8–4.6 GHz (5700G)
iGPU: Radeon Vega 7/8 — decent transcoding via VAAPI
Typical system price: $200–350 (DIY build, used boards available)
Idle power draw: 25–45W (whole system)

The AM4 platform is mature, cheap (especially used), and capable. The 5600G gives you serious multi-threaded performance. The catch: much higher power consumption than Intel N-series.

Best for: DIY NAS builds, heavy Proxmox use, users who already have AM4 hardware, budget builds with used parts.

AMD Ryzen 5 5500U / 5800H (Mini PC)

Cores/Threads: 6C/12T (5500U) / 8C/16T (5800H)
TDP: 15W (5500U) / 35–45W (5800H)
iGPU: Radeon Vega/RDNA — VAAPI transcoding support
Typical system price: $250–450 (mini PC)
Idle power draw: 10–15W (5500U) / 15–25W (5800H)

AMD mini PCs like the Beelink SER5 (5500U) or SER5 Max (5800H) offer more raw CPU performance than Intel N-series at the cost of higher power draw.

Best for: Performance-focused mini PC builds, users who need more cores but want a small form factor.

AMD Ryzen 7 7735HS / 7840HS (Current Gen Mini PC)

Cores/Threads: 8C/16T
TDP: 35–54W
iGPU: Radeon 680M (RDNA 2) / 780M (RDNA 3) — strong iGPU
Typical system price: $400–600 (mini PC)
Idle power draw: 12–20W (whole system)

The current-gen AMD option. The 780M iGPU in the 7840HS is powerful enough for AI inference tasks (LLMs via llama.cpp with ROCm). Overkill for most self-hosting but future-proof.

Best for: AI/ML tinkering alongside self-hosting, maximum performance mini PC builds.

Head-to-Head Comparison

Metric	Intel N100	Intel N305	AMD 5600G	AMD 5800H
Cores/Threads	4/4	8/8	6/12	8/16
TDP	6W	15W	65W	45W
System idle watts	5–8W	8–12W	25–45W	15–25W
Passmark (single)	~1,800	~2,100	~3,000	~3,200
Passmark (multi)	~4,500	~8,000	~16,000	~20,000
QuickSync/HW transcode	Excellent	Excellent	Good (VAAPI)	Good (VAAPI)
System price	$130–180	$280–400	$200–350	$350–500
Annual electricity (idle)	$5–8	$8–13	$26–47	$16–26
ECC support	No	No	Yes (some boards)	No
PCIe lanes	9	9	24	16

Annual electricity calculated at $0.12/kWh, 24/7 operation.

Hardware Transcoding: Intel Wins

For Plex and Jellyfin hardware transcoding, Intel’s QuickSync is the clear winner:

Intel QuickSync (N100+) supports H.264, H.265 (HEVC), AV1 decode, and HDR tone mapping. It just works in both Plex and Jellyfin with minimal configuration.
AMD VAAPI works but requires more setup, has worse HDR tone mapping support, and some AMD iGPUs have limited encode quality compared to Intel.
NVIDIA NVENC is excellent but requires a discrete GPU — adds cost, power, and complexity.

If hardware transcoding is important to you, Intel is the safer bet.

Power Consumption: The Hidden Cost

Running a server 24/7 for a year adds up:

System	Idle Watts	Annual kWh	Annual Cost ($0.12/kWh)
Intel N100 mini PC	6W	52.6 kWh	$6.31
Intel N305 mini PC	10W	87.6 kWh	$10.51
AMD 5500U mini PC	12W	105.1 kWh	$12.61
AMD 5600G desktop build	35W	306.6 kWh	$36.79
AMD 5800H mini PC	18W	157.7 kWh	$18.92
Used Dell OptiPlex (i5-8500)	25W	219.0 kWh	$26.28

Over 5 years, the difference between an N100 (~~$32 electricity) and a Ryzen 5600G desktop (~~$184 electricity) is $152. That’s more than the N100 mini PC costs. Factor electricity into your total cost of ownership.

Which Should You Buy?

Choose Intel N100/N150 If…

You’re building your first home server
You run fewer than 20 containers
Power efficiency matters (or electricity is expensive)
You want Plex/Jellyfin hardware transcoding that just works
You want the lowest total cost of ownership

Choose Intel N305 If…

You want to run Proxmox with a few VMs alongside containers
You need more simultaneous Plex transcode streams
You want efficiency but need more cores than the N100

Choose AMD Ryzen (Desktop) If…

You’re building a DIY NAS and need PCIe lanes for HBA cards
You want ECC RAM support (select AM4 boards)
You need serious multi-threaded performance (ZFS, compiling)
You already have AM4 parts or can buy used

Choose AMD Ryzen (Mini PC) If…

You want maximum performance in a small form factor
You plan to experiment with AI/ML workloads
Raw CPU performance matters more than power efficiency

FAQ

Is an Intel N100 powerful enough for Proxmox?

Yes, but with limits. You can run 2–3 lightweight VMs (Ubuntu Server, Alpine) alongside containers. Don’t expect to run Windows VMs or resource-heavy workloads. For serious Proxmox use, get at least 8 cores.

Do I need a dedicated GPU for self-hosting?

Almost never. The integrated GPU in Intel and AMD processors handles hardware transcoding. You’d only need a dedicated GPU for heavy AI/ML workloads or 10+ simultaneous 4K Plex transcode streams.

Can I use a laptop CPU chip on a desktop board?

No. Laptop CPUs (ending in U, H, HS) use different sockets. They come pre-installed in mini PCs and laptops. Desktop CPUs (no suffix, ending in G/X) go in desktop boards.

Is Xeon worth it for home servers?

Rarely. Used Xeon systems are cheap but power-hungry (80–150W idle for a dual-socket system). The electricity cost negates the hardware savings within 1–2 years. Only consider Xeon if you need 64+ GB RAM or dozens of cores for heavy VM workloads.