The quad core and octa threaded Ryzen 1500X is a sub-$200 chip based on AMD's latest Zen architecture. It is released this month as part of the Ryzen 5 launch – a mid-market range specced out to challenge Intel's i5 series and yield considerably better multi-threaded performance at budget prices. Comparing the i5-7600K shows that the 7600K is 20% faster for single and quad core workloads but looses by 20% for multi-core workloads. The Ryzen 5 line-up also includes the 6 core 12 threaded 1600X. By comparison, the 1500X is 24% less expensive, comes with a Wraith Spire cooler and impressively yields very similar single and quad core performance, but multi-core performance lags 50% behind the 1600X. Both chips can be overclocked, but out the box, the base and boost clock speeds are 3.5GHz and 3.7GHz for the 1500X and 3.6GHz and 4.0GHz for the 1600X. The 1500X is a very reasonable CPU for the money, which thanks to AMD's recent IPC improvements, punches far above its weight for multi-threaded performance by Intel's standards. [Apr '17CPUPro]
The hex-core i5-8500 hails from Intel’s eighth generation of Coffee Lake processors, known for featuring a higher number of cores at each SKU than in previous generations and their refinement of the 14nm architecture as seen in 6th and 7th generation processors. At an estimated price of $184 it offers good multi-core value for money. Its quad core performance nearly rivals the more expensive i7-7700K (the 2017 CPU of choice for many top-end gamers). However based on preliminary benchmarks, the i5-8500 is only marginally faster (2% greater effective speed) than the i5-8400 which is also a recent and competitively priced hex-core Coffee Lake processor. Also, like the i5-8400, the 8500 features 9MB of L3 cache and a frugal TDP of 65W, leaving not much to choose between them. As is the case of all Coffee Lake processors, currently the only motherboards that the 8500 can be paired with feature Intel’s high-end Z370 chipset for overclocking. However, alternative and more suitable 300 series motherboards are long overdue and expected to be available soon. [Mar '18CPUPro]
We calculate effective speed which measures real world performance for typical users. Effective speed is adjusted by current prices to yield a value for money rating. Our calculated values are checked against thousands of individual user ratings. The customizable table below combines these factors to bring you the definitive list of top CPUs. [CPUPro]
Welcome to our PC speed test tool. UserBenchmark will test your PC and compare the results to other users with the same components. You can quickly size up your PC, identify hardware problems and explore the best value for money upgrades.