Consumercarts is reader-supported. Learn more
AMD Ryzen 5 230 vs Intel Core Ultra 5 235U: Comparison
AMD Ryzen 5 230 vs Intel Core Ultra 5 235U total cores compared
These two are close on paper, and total cores is the only measure that separates them at all: AMD Ryzen 5 230 6 against Intel Core Ultra 5 235U 12. L3 cache runs the same way, 16 MB on the AMD Ryzen 5 230 versus 12 MB on the Intel Core Ultra 5 235U, another win for AMD Ryzen 5 230. Socket is not the same on both, FP8, FP7, FP7r2 on the AMD Ryzen 5 230 versus FCBGA2049 on the Intel Core Ultra 5 235U.
Who each one is for
Buy the AMD Ryzen 5 230 for budget and midrange thin-and-light laptops and office work, browsing and video calls, though it is not the pick for modern games at high settings without a dedicated GPU and copilot+ PC AI features, which need a 40+ TOPS NPU. It is not the one for heavy video rendering or 3D work, where 8-core chips finish much sooner. The Intel Core Ultra 5 235U suits business and student thin-and-light laptops and office work, browsing, video calls and streaming, though it is not built for gaming beyond older or light titles at low settings and copilot+ PC AI features, which need a 40+ TOPS NPU. Avoid it for heavy video rendering or code compiling, where H-series chips finish sooner.
What AMD Ryzen 5 230 and Intel Core Ultra 5 235U have in common
Everything else lines up. Integrated graphics, form factor, release year, market segment and smt enabled read the same on both, so those are not worth weighing. They match on 2 further specifications as well.
Do the AMD Ryzen 5 230 and Intel Core Ultra 5 235U differ on performance cores?
Yes. Performance Cores reads 6 on the AMD Ryzen 5 230 versus 2 on the Intel Core Ultra 5 235U.
Is the Unlocked Multiplier the same on the AMD Ryzen 5 230 and Intel Core Ultra 5 235U?
It is. Both are listed at No, so it is not a reason to pick one over the other.
Specs and benchmarks
Form Factor
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- Laptop
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- Laptop
Codename
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- Hawk Point
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- Arrow Lake
Release Year
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- 2025
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- 2025
TDP
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- 28 W
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- 15 W
iGPU
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- AMD Radeon 760M (8 cores, up to 2600 MHz)
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- Intel Graphics
Market Segment
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- Laptop
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- Laptop
Socket
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- FP8, FP7, FP7r2
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- FCBGA2049
Process Node
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- 4 nm
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- 3 nm
Total Cores
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- 6
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- 12Best
Performance Cores
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- 6Best
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- 2
Efficiency Cores
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- 0
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- 10Best
Total Threads
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- 12
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- 14Best
SMT Enabled
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- Yes
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- Yes
P-Core Base Clock
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- 3.5 GHz
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- 2.0 GHz
P-Core Boost Clock
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- Up to 4.9 GHz
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- 4.9 GHz
Unlocked Multiplier
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- No
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- No
L3 Cache
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- 16 MBBest
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- 12 MB-25%
Base Power
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- 15-30W
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- 15 W
Memory Type
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- DDR5 (FP8) , LPDDR5X (FP8) , DDR5 (FP7r2) , LPDDR5X (FP7), 2-Channel
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- LPDDR5/x up to 8400 MT/s, DDR5 up to 6400 MT/s
Integrated Graphics
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- Yes
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- Yes
PCIe Generation
- AMD Ryzen 5 230
- PCIe 4.0
- Intel Core Ultra 5 235U
- PCIe 4.0
Which one should you pick?
Choose AMD Ryzen 5 230 if you want the higher L3 cache (16 MB vs 12 MB).
Choose Intel Core Ultra 5 235U if you already have it on hand or find it at a lower price.