IntelBX80619I73960X
IntelBX8071512400

6 Cores, 12 Threads @3.3GHz, Sandy Bridge-E.
Release date: Q3 2011.

6 Cores, 12 Threads @2.5GHz, Alder Lake.
Release date: Q1 2022.

Real World Speed
Performance profile from 19,517 user samples
2,165 User Benchmarks
Best Bench: 89% Base clock 3.3 GHz
Worst Bench: 66% Base clock 3.3 GHz, turbo 0.85 GHz (avg)
Poor: 66% Great: 89%
SPEED RANK: 270th / 1442
Gaming
Gaming 78%
Battleship
Desktop
Desktop 79%
Battleship
Workstation
Workstation 67%
Battle cruiser
17,352 User Benchmarks
Best Bench: 106% Base clock 2.5 GHz, turbo 4 GHz (avg)
Worst Bench: 91% Base clock 2.5 GHz, turbo 4 GHz (avg)
Poor: 91% Great: 106%
SPEED RANK: 84th / 1442
Gaming
Gaming 98%
Nuclear submarine
Desktop
Desktop 101%
UFO
Workstation
Workstation 92%
Nuclear submarine
Effective Speed
Effective CPU Speed
77.7 % 98.2 % Faster effective speed.
+26%
Memory
Avg. Memory Latency
87.1 Pts Slightly lower memory latency.
+8%
80.7 Pts
1-Core
Avg. Single Core Speed
96.7 Pts 173 Pts Much faster single-core speed.
+79%
2-Core
Avg. Dual Core Speed
192 Pts 331 Pts Much faster dual-core speed.
+72%
4-Core
Avg. Quad Core Speed
369 Pts 621 Pts Much faster quad-core speed.
+68%
8-Core
Avg. Octa Core Speed
585 Pts 973 Pts Much faster octa-core speed.
+66%
Memory
OC Memory Latency
95.3 Pts Slightly lower OC memory latency.
+5%
90.4 Pts
1-Core
OC Single Core Speed
118 Pts 182 Pts Much faster OC single-core speed.
+54%
2-Core
OC Dual Core Speed
233 Pts 353 Pts Much faster OC dual-core speed.
+52%
4-Core
OC Quad Core Speed
457 Pts 673 Pts Much faster OC quad-core speed.
+47%
8-Core
OC Octa Core Speed
715 Pts 1039 Pts Much faster OC octa-core speed.
+45%
Market Share
Based on 67,719,312 CPUs tested
Market Share
Market Share (trailing 30 days)
0 % 0.39 % Insanely higher market share.
+∞%
Value
Value For Money
78.7 % 116 % Much better value.
+47%
User Rating
UBM User Rating
53 % 92 % Much more popular.
+74%
Price
Price (score)
$265 $152 Much cheaper.
+43%
Age
Newest
151 Months 27 Months Hugely more recent.
+82%
TDP
Thermal Design Power (TDP)
130 Watts 65 Watts Much more energy efficient.
+50%
Cores
CPU Processing Cores
6 cores 6 cores
Threads
CPU Processing Threads
12 threads 12 threads
Lithography
Manufacturing process
32 nm 10 nm Much newer manufacturing.
+69%
Base Clock
Base Clock Speed
3.3 GHz Much faster base frequency.
+32%
2.5 GHz
Turbo Clock
Turbo Clock Speed
3.9 GHz 4.4 GHz Faster turbo frequency.
+13%
64-Core
OC Multi Core Speed
888 Pts 1221 Pts Much faster OC 64-core speed.
+38%
64-Core
Avg. Multi Core Speed
728 Pts 1176 Pts Much faster 64-core speed.
+62%
Series
CPU Architecture
Sandy Bridge-E Alder Lake
Socket
Motherboard Socket
FCLGA2011 FCLGA1700
Graphics
Integrated Graphics
None UHD 730
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The fact that the near three year old Intel i7-3960X still tops the speed charts reflects just how little competition there is in the CPU market. Intel have dominated for so long that there is simply no economic incentive to push the speed boundaries at anywhere nearly the pace of improvement we saw in previous years. The i7-3960X has 6 cores and 12 threads which is two cores more than the vast majority of Intel's other top end processors. The extra two cores explain why the 3960X still performs so well compared to the majority of the 3960X's newer siblings. This processor will offer little more than a far cheaper i3 to regular desktop users but for server orientated workloads it is still one of the best processors available. [Mar '14 CPUPro]

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I originally wanted an i5-12600 but unfortunately, it was not available so I settled for a 12400. It's really affordable and the performance is great. [Nov '22 arvinjason]

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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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Group Test Results

  • 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.
How Fast Is Your CPU? (Bench your build) Size up your PC in less than a minute

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.

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How it works

  • - Download and run UserBenchmark
  • - CPU tests include: integer, floating and string
  • - GPU tests include: six 3D game simulations
  • - Drive tests include: read, write, sustained write and mixed IO
  • - RAM tests include: single/multi core bandwidth and latency
  • - SkillBench (space shooter) tests user input accuracy
  • - Reports are generated and presented on userbenchmark.com
  • - Identify the strongest components in your PC
  • - See speed test results from other users
  • - Compare your components to the current market leaders
  • - Explore your best upgrade options with a virtual PC build
  • - Compare your in-game FPS to other users with your hardware

 Frequently Asked Questions

 Best User Rated

The Best.
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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