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AMD Ryzen 5 5600X vs Intel Core i5-12600K: Comparison
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X and Intel Core i5-12600K separate most on l2 cache: AMD Ryzen 5 5600X at 3 MB, Intel Core i5-12600K at 9.5 MB, 68% in favour of Intel Core i5-12600K. L3 Cache splits them by another 38%, this time favouring AMD Ryzen 5 5600X. They match on 10 other specifications, including form factor, market segment and performance cores. In Blender Cycles (CPU) the Intel Core i5-12600K scores 222 against 151 for the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X, a lead of 32%.
Specs
| Specification |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Product Line | Ryzen | Core |
| Form Factor | Desktop | Desktop |
| Model Number | 5600X | i5-12600K |
| Codename | Vermeer | Alder Lake |
| Release Year | 2020 | 2022 |
| TDP | 65 W | 125 W |
| iGPU | None (CPU only) | Intel UHD Graphics 770 |
| Market Segment | Desktop | Desktop |
| Socket | AM4 | LGA 1700 |
| Socket Status | End of Life | Mature |
| Process Node | 7 nm | 10 nm |
| Performance Cores | 6 | 6 |
| Efficiency Cores | 0 | 4 |
| SMT Enabled | true | true |
| P-Core Base Clock | 3.7 | 3.7 |
| P-Core Boost Clock | 4.6 | 4.9 |
| Unlocked Multiplier | true | true |
| L2 Cache | 3 MB-68% | 9.5 MB |
| L3 Cache | 32 MB | 20 MB-37% |
| Base Power | 65 W | 125 W |
| Max Turbo Power | 88 | 150 |
| Memory Type | DDR4 | DDR5 or DDR4 |
| Max Memory Speed | 3200 | 4800 |
| Memory Channels | 2 | 2 |
| Max Memory Capacity | 128 | 128 |
| Integrated Graphics | No | Yes |
| Copilot Plus Certified | false | false |
| PCIe Generation | PCIe 4.0 | PCIe 5.0 |
| PCIe Lanes | 24 | 20-17% |
| Launch MSRP | 299 | 289 |
| Retail Availability | Boxed Retail | Boxed Retail |
| Architecture | Zen 3, Ryzen 5000 Series | Alder Lake |
| Cores | 6 | 10 |
| Threads | 12 | 16 |
Benchmarks
Measured results, not specifications. Percentages are the gap to the leading product in each test.
Blender Cycles (CPU)
Blender 4.5, Blender Open Data (CC0). Median of monster + junkshop + classroom, combined samples/min.
Blender renders 3D scenes by tracing light through them, which loads every core at once. The score measures sustained multi-core throughput, so a chip that wins here can still lose at gaming, where one or two fast cores matter more. Figures come from Blender's Open Data project, which places no restriction on reuse, and we publish the median of every submission for that chip on the same Blender version.
Verdict
Intel Core i5-12600K
7.9 / 10 Expert Rating
The Intel Core i5-12600K is an unlocked overclockable chip, well suited to enthusiast gaming and productivity builds.