Intel
IntelBX80623I52500K
$246
  

2 Cores, 4 Threads @2.4 GHz, Skylake.
Release date ≈ Q2 2015.

 $246 

4 Cores, 4 Threads @3.3GHz, Sandy Bridge.
Release date: Q1 2011.

Real World Speed
Performance profile from 202,626 user samples
59,619 User Benchmarks
Best Bench: 54% Base clock 2.5 GHz, turbo 2.9 GHz (avg)
Worst Bench: 16% Base clock 2.5 GHz, turbo 1.4 GHz (avg)
Poor: 16% Great: 54%
SPEED RANK: 1054th / 1442
Gaming
Gaming 40%
Speed boat
Desktop
Desktop 46%
Yacht
Workstation
Workstation 29%
Raft
143,007 User Benchmarks
Best Bench: 79% Base clock 3.3 GHz, turbo 4.6 GHz (avg)
Worst Bench: 44% Base clock 3.3 GHz, turbo 0.5 GHz (avg)
Poor: 44% Great: 79%
SPEED RANK: 484th / 1442
Gaming
Gaming 66%
Battle cruiser
Desktop
Desktop 72%
Battleship
Workstation
Workstation 49%
Yacht
Effective Speed
Effective CPU Speed
40.4 % 65.9 % Much faster effective speed.
+63%
Memory
Avg. Memory Latency
53.5 Pts 83.1 Pts Much lower memory latency.
+55%
1-Core
Avg. Single Core Speed
60.9 Pts 88.4 Pts Much faster single-core speed.
+45%
2-Core
Avg. Dual Core Speed
111 Pts 174 Pts Much faster dual-core speed.
+57%
4-Core
Avg. Quad Core Speed
158 Pts 281 Pts Much faster quad-core speed.
+78%
8-Core
Avg. Octa Core Speed
169 Pts 300 Pts Much faster octa-core speed.
+78%
Memory
OC Memory Latency
77.7 Pts 94.9 Pts Lower OC memory latency.
+22%
1-Core
OC Single Core Speed
79.5 Pts 114 Pts Much faster OC single-core speed.
+43%
2-Core
OC Dual Core Speed
143 Pts 227 Pts Much faster OC dual-core speed.
+59%
4-Core
OC Quad Core Speed
207 Pts 380 Pts Hugely faster OC quad-core speed.
+84%
8-Core
OC Octa Core Speed
208 Pts 399 Pts Hugely faster OC octa-core speed.
+92%
Market Share
Based on 67,718,108 CPUs tested
Market Share
Market Share (trailing 30 days)
0.18 % 0.21 % Higher market share.
+17%
User Rating
UBM User Rating
53 % 76 % Much more popular.
+43%
Age
Newest
107+ Months Much more recent.
+33%
159 Months
64-Core
OC Multi Core Speed
210 Pts 407 Pts Hugely faster OC 64-core speed.
+94%
64-Core
Avg. Multi Core Speed
168 Pts 304 Pts Hugely faster 64-core speed.
+81%
Launch Date
Launch Date
Q3'15 Q1'11
Cache
Cache
3 MB SmartCache 6 MB SmartCache
Instruction Set Extensions
Instruction Set Extensions
SSE4.1/4.2, AVX 2.0 SSE4.1/4.2, AVX
Embedded Options Available
Embedded Options Available
Yes No
Lithography
Lithography
14 nm 32 nm
Recommended Price
Recommended Customer Price
$281.00 N/A
Max Turbo Frequency
Max Turbo Frequency
3 GHz 3.7 GHz
Memory Types
Memory Types
DDR4-2133, LPDDR3-1866, DDR3L-1600 DDR3 1066/1333
Memory Bandwidth
Max Memory Bandwidth
34.1 GB/s 21 GB/s
Processor Graphics
Processor Graphics ‡
Intel® HD Graphics 520 Intel® HD Graphics 3000
Graphics Base Frequency
Graphics Base Frequency
300 MHz 850 MHz
Wireless Display
Intel® Wireless Display
Yes No
# of Displays Supported
# of Displays Supported ‡
3 2
Graphics Max Dynamic Frequency
Graphics Max Dynamic Frequency
1 GHz 1.1 GHz
Package Size
Package Size
42mm X 24mm 37.5mm x 37.5mm
Hyper-Threading Tech
Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology ‡
Yes No
Virtualization for Directed I/O (VT-d)
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d) ‡
Yes No
vPro Tech
Intel® vPro™ Technology ‡
Yes No
Trusted Execution Tech
Intel® Trusted Execution Technology ‡
Yes No
PCI Express Revision
PCI Express Revision
3.0 2.0
Max # of PCI Express Lanes
Max # of PCI Express Lanes
12 16

More specs » More specs »
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The i5-2500K is a second generation Sandy Bridge processor which is currently two generations old and nearly three years out of date. The many users that had the good sense to purchase this processor should feel in no hurry to upgrade as it's still no slouch, even by today's standards. The benchmark figures indicate that, even at stock clock rates, in terms of real-world performance this processor is approximately 20% slower than the best currently available, not bad considering its age. Given that the 2500K has an unlocked multiplier upping its performance by 10% with stock cooling should not pose much of a problem for the majority of owners. Here is a detailed performance comparison of the 2500K vs 4670K.  [Jul '13 CPUPro]

MORE DETAILS

Processor Rankings (Price vs Performance) April 2024 CPU Rankings

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]

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  • Best user rated - User sentiment trumps benchmarks for this comparison.
  • Best value for money - Value for money is based on real world performance.
  • Fastest real world speed - Real World Speed measures performance for typical consumers.
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How it works

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  • - Reports are generated and presented on userbenchmark.com
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 Frequently Asked Questions

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CPUGPUSSD
Intel Core i5-13600K $279Nvidia RTX 4060 $300Crucial MX500 250GB $40
Intel Core i5-12400F $133Nvidia RTX 4060-Ti $385Samsung 850 Evo 120GB $80
Intel Core i5-12600K $182Nvidia RTX 4070 $409Samsung 860 Evo 250GB $52
HDDRAMUSB
Seagate Barracuda 1TB (2016) $39Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 3200 C16 2x8GB $40SanDisk Extreme 64GB $72
WD Blue 1TB (2012) $30Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 3000 C15 2x8GB $43SanDisk Extreme 32GB $28
Seagate Barracuda 2TB (2016) $51G.SKILL Trident Z DDR4 3200 C14 4x16GB $351SanDisk Ultra Fit 32GB $16
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