As far as the DIY PC building market goes, AMD’s Ryzen processors have proven to be miles more popular than Intel in the past couple of generations. We’d suggest that part of that stems from the popularity of Ryzen X3D CPUs among gamers, the longevity of AMD’s sockets, and the lack of significant performance uplift in Intel’s latest Core Ultra CPUs.

PC builders have another thing to praise AMD for – reliability. We can call back to the problems Intel had with 13th and 14th-gen chip instability, but even after this been resolved via several microcodes, statistics continue to show that Ryzen CPU owners are less likely to deal with defective chips or any other return-worthy problems. On top of that, the warranty turnaround is much quicker.

Intel CPUs are more likely to be defective and take longer to fix

These statistics are sourced from Digitec Galaxus, the largest online retailer in Switzerland. So, while this doesn’t represent global warranty & return rates, it’s still a valuable resource to compare the two rival brands. At the popular retailer, the warranty score favors AMD, as 0.8% fewer chips are rendered defective in the first 24 months of operation.

Return rates for AMD CPUs are 1% lower than Intel’s, and if something does go wrong, it will be resolved more than twice as quickly for Team Red. On average, warranty claims are processed in 3 working days – this jumps to 8 working days for Intel.

It isn’t all bad news for Intel, however, as the same statistics from earlier this year reveal that Team Blue has improved its warranty case duration and return rate stats – back in February, these values sat at 9 days and 4.2%, respectively.

We think it’s fair to say that Intel’s degradation problem in its 13th and 14th-gen chips set the brand back. Despite the fact that the issue was eventually resolved, the aftermath is still skewing the statistics. The latest Core Ultra CPUs have struggled to sell, too, especially as they require a motherboard upgrade. Sales stats over the Black Friday period make it clear that compatible LGA 1851 boards aren’t selling well, and even AMD’s older AM4 boards are faring much better.

About the Author

Jack Goodall

At PC Guide, Jack is mostly responsible for reporting on hardware deals. He also specializes in monitors, TVs, and headsets and can be found putting his findings together in a review or best-of guide.