Intel Core i9-12900

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Intel Core i9-12900 Specifications and Performance Analysis

The Intel Core i9-12900 is based on the Alder Lake-S architecture and is manufactured using the 10 nm process at the Intel foundry. It is compatible with the LGA 1700 socket used by Z690, W680, H670, Q670, B660, H610, H610E, Z790, H770, B760 chipsets and supports PCIe Gen 5, 16 Lanes (CPU only), as well as DDR4, DDR5 memory with speeds of up to 3200 MT/s across Dual-channel memory. This processor features a hybrid core configuration with 8 performance cores operating at a base clock of 2.40 GHz and boosting up to 5.10 GHz, alongside 8 efficiency cores running at a base clock of 1.80 GHz and boosting up to 3.80 GHz, for a total of 24 threads. It is equipped with 80 kB of L1 cache, 1280 kB of L2 cache, and 30 MB of L3 cache. The efficiency cores feature 96 kB of L1 cache and 2048 kB of L2 cache.

This CPU is designed for a mainstream desktop platform. It supports consumer-grade memory configurations and modern expansion standards, making it suitable for everyday computing, gaming, and productivity workloads.

The Intel Core i9-12900 has a base TDP of 65 W and a very high maximum TDP of 202 W. A high-performance air cooler is the bare minimum, but a premium liquid cooling solution is strongly recommended. Additionally, a PC case with excellent airflow and a high-quality power supply are essential for stable operation.

For users who require integrated graphics, this CPU includes the UHD Graphics 770, which features 32 GPU cores. It operates at a base clock of 0.30 GHz and boosts up to 1.55 GHz. This makes it suitable for systems without a dedicated GPU, capable of handling everyday tasks and running older or less demanding games. Integrated graphics can also accelerate specific workloads even when a discrete GPU is installed.

Application Performance

Intel Core i9-12900 is a mid-range CPU, achieving a relative application performance score of 54.10% of the best possible desktop CPU performance. This CPU is ideal for daily computing, productivity tasks, and multitasking. While it can handle professional applications like 3D rendering and video editing, it may exhibit slower execution and reduced responsiveness under heavy workloads.

The application performance-per-price ratio of Intel Core i9-12900 is 23.3%, indicating lower value in this category. This CPU does not offer high application performance and has a low performance-to-price ratio, making it a poor value proposition. Better alternatives exist at this price point.

Gaming Performance

Intel Core i9-12900 is a mid-range gaming CPU, achieving a relative gaming performance score at 1080p resolution of 72.37% compared to the best possible desktop CPU gaming performance. This CPU provides solid mid-level gaming, performance and is best paired with corresponding mid-range graphics cards. Note that CPU-related performance limitations decrease as GPU performance lowers—particularly at higher resolutions—since the GPU becomes the bottleneck.

The gaming performance-per-price score of 20.5%, this CPU does not offer strong value in this category. As this CPU does not deliver top-tier gaming performance and also has a low gaming performance-to-price ratio, it represents poor value. More competitive options are available at a similar price point.

General Information

CPU Name	Intel Core i9-12900
Release Price	$519.00
Current Price on Amazon	$696
Amazon Price Updated	2 hours, 46 minutes ago.
Launch Date	4 years, 6 months ago.
CPU Available	True

Architecture

Architecture	Alder Lake-S
Foundry	Intel
Process	10 nm
Socket	LGA 1700
Chipsets	Z690, W680, H670, Q670, B660, H610, H610E, Z790, H770, B760
Die Size	215 mm²
PCIe Version	Gen 5, 16 Lanes (CPU only)
Secondary PCIe	Gen 4, 4 Lanes

Core Configuration

Cores / Threads	16 / 24
Performance Cores / Small Cores	8 / 8
Perf. Cores Base / Boost Clock	2.40 GHz / 5.10 GHz
Small Cores Base / Boost Clock	1.80 GHz / 3.80 GHz

RAM Support

Memory Support / Max Speed	DDR4, DDR5 / 3200 MT/s
Memory Bandwidth	76.8 GB/s
Memory Channels	Dual-channel
ECC Support	True

Cache Configuration

L1 Cache (per core)	80 kB
L2 Cache (per core)	1280 kB
L3 Cache (shared)	30 MB
E-Core L1 Cache (per core)	96 kB
E-Core L2 Cache (per module)	2048 MB

TDP Configuration

Base TDP	65 W
Max Turbo Power	202 W
PL1 (Long Duration Power)	65 W
PL2 / Tau	28 s

Integrated Graphics

Integrated Graphics	True
GPU Name	UHD Graphics 770
GPU Cores	32
GPU Base / Boost Clock	0.30 GHz / 1.55 GHz

Cinebench R24 Performance

Cinebench R24 Multi-core	1457
Cinebench R24 Single-core	119

CPU Normalized Performance Chart

Intel Core i9-12900 Compared to Similar Performance CPUs

CPU Price / Performance Table

CPU (Desc) CPU Name Sorts CPUs alphabetically. Click to change order (ascending/descending).	Price (Desc) Price (Amazon) Sorts CPUs by their current Amazon price. Click to toggle ascending/descending.	Performance (Desc) General Performance Based on multi-purpose workloads like rendering, encoding and compression. Click to sort.	Game_Perf (Desc) Gaming Performance (1080p) Measures relative gaming performance in modern games at 1080p. Click to sort by gaming power.	Combined (Desc) Combined Performance Average of general and gaming performance. Use for balanced evaluation. Click to sort.	Perf/Price (Desc) Performance per Dollar Shows how much performance you get for the price. Higher is better. Click to sort.	Game/Price (Desc) Gaming per Dollar Game performance divided by current price. Click to find best gaming deals.	Combined/Price (Desc) Combined per Dollar Overall value score (performance and gaming) per dollar spent. Click to find best overall CPU deals.
Intel Core i5-14600K Intel Core i5-14600K View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$262❗ Intel Core i5-14600K Price Not Available Last known price from Amazon. Currently unavailable. \| ↑ 5.6% Intel Core i5-14600K Price Change Price increased from the last update.	55.4%	78.9%	67.1%	63.5%	59.4%	64.1%
Intel Core i5-14600KF Intel Core i5-14600KF View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$250❗ Intel Core i5-14600KF Price Not Available Last known price from Amazon. Currently unavailable. \| ↓ -1.0% Intel Core i5-14600KF Price Change Price decreased from the last update.	55.4%	78.9%	67.1%	66.6%	62.3%	67.3%
AMD Ryzen 9 5900X AMD Ryzen 9 5900X View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$309 AMD Ryzen 9 5900X Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| 0.0% AMD Ryzen 9 5900X Price Change No significant price change detected.	54.5%	66.9%	60.7%	52.9%	42.6%	49.1%
Intel Core i9-12900 Intel Core i9-12900 View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$696 Intel Core i9-12900 Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| 0.0% Intel Core i9-12900 Price Change No significant price change detected.	54.1%	72.4%	63.2%	23.3%	20.5%	22.7%
Intel Core i9-12900F Intel Core i9-12900F View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$380❗ Intel Core i9-12900F Price Not Available Last known price from Amazon. Currently unavailable. \| ↓ -10.6% Intel Core i9-12900F Price Change Price decreased from the last update.	54.1%	72.4%	63.2%	42.7%	37.5%	41.6%
Intel Core i5-13600K Intel Core i5-13600K View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$268 Intel Core i5-13600K Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| 0.0% Intel Core i5-13600K Price Change No significant price change detected.	52.3%	76.8%	64.5%	58.6%	56.4%	60.2%
Intel Core i5-13600KF Intel Core i5-13600KF View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$268 Intel Core i5-13600KF Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| 0.0% Intel Core i5-13600KF Price Change No significant price change detected.	52.3%	76.8%	64.5%	58.6%	56.4%	60.2%
Intel Core Ultra 5 245 Intel Core Ultra 5 245 View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$0 Intel Core Ultra 5 245 No Amazon Link This CPU has no link to an Amazon product page. \| 0.0% Intel Core Ultra 5 245 Price Change No significant price change detected.	52.1%	74.9%	63.5%	N/A	N/A	N/A
AMD Ryzen 7 9700X AMD Ryzen 7 9700X View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$303 AMD Ryzen 7 9700X Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| 0.0% AMD Ryzen 7 9700X Price Change No significant price change detected.	51.9%	80.9%	66.4%	51.4%	52.6%	54.8%

Processor Comparison and Detail Specifications Table

Specification	Intel Core i5-14600K Intel Core i5-14600K View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	Intel Core i5-14600KF Intel Core i5-14600KF View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	AMD Ryzen 9 5900X AMD Ryzen 9 5900X View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	Intel Core i9-12900 Intel Core i9-12900 View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	Intel Core i9-12900F Intel Core i9-12900F View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	Intel Core i5-13600K Intel Core i5-13600K View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	Intel Core i5-13600KF Intel Core i5-13600KF View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	No image available Intel Core Ultra 5 245 Intel Core Ultra 5 245 View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	AMD Ryzen 7 9700X AMD Ryzen 7 9700X View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.
Perf Chart
Price	$262❗ Intel Core i5-14600K Price Not Available Last known price from Amazon. Currently unavailable. \| ↑ 5.6% Intel Core i5-14600K Price Change Price increased from the last update.	$250❗ Intel Core i5-14600KF Price Not Available Last known price from Amazon. Currently unavailable. \| ↓ -1.0% Intel Core i5-14600KF Price Change Price decreased from the last update.	$309 AMD Ryzen 9 5900X Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| 0.0% AMD Ryzen 9 5900X Price Change No significant price change detected.	$696 Intel Core i9-12900 Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| 0.0% Intel Core i9-12900 Price Change No significant price change detected.	$380❗ Intel Core i9-12900F Price Not Available Last known price from Amazon. Currently unavailable. \| ↓ -10.6% Intel Core i9-12900F Price Change Price decreased from the last update.	$268 Intel Core i5-13600K Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| 0.0% Intel Core i5-13600K Price Change No significant price change detected.	$268 Intel Core i5-13600KF Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| 0.0% Intel Core i5-13600KF Price Change No significant price change detected.	$0 Intel Core Ultra 5 245 No Amazon Link This CPU has no link to an Amazon product page. \| 0.0% Intel Core Ultra 5 245 Price Change No significant price change detected.	$303 AMD Ryzen 7 9700X Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| 0.0% AMD Ryzen 7 9700X Price Change No significant price change detected.
Manufacturer	Intel	Intel	AMD	Intel	Intel	Intel	Intel	Intel	AMD
C/SC/T	14 / 8 / 20	14 / 8 / 20	12 / 0 / 24	16 / 8 / 24	16 / 8 / 24	14 / 8 / 20	14 / 8 / 20	14 / 8 / 14	8 / 0 / 16
L2 / L3 Cache	2048.0 kB / 24.0 MB	2048.0 kB / 24.0 MB	512.0 kB / 64.0 MB	1280.0 kB / 30.0 MB	1280.0 kB / 30.0 MB	2048.0 kB / 24.0 MB	2048.0 kB / 24.0 MB	3072.0 kB / 24.0 MB	1024.0 kB / 32.0 MB
Base / Boost	3.50 GHz / 5.30 GHz	3.50 GHz / 5.30 GHz	3.70 GHz / 4.80 GHz	2.40 GHz / 5.10 GHz	2.40 GHz / 5.10 GHz	3.50 GHz / 5.10 GHz	3.50 GHz / 5.10 GHz	3.50 GHz / 5.10 GHz	3.80 GHz / 5.50 GHz
Memory	DDR4, DDR5 / 5600 MT/s	DDR4, DDR5 / 5600 MT/s	DDR4 / 3200 MT/s	DDR4, DDR5 / 3200 MT/s	DDR4, DDR5 / 3200 MT/s	DDR4, DDR5 / 5600 MT/s	DDR4, DDR5 / 5600 MT/s	DDR5 / 6400 MT/s	DDR5 / 5600 MT/s
Arch / Node	Raptor Lake-R / 10 nm	Raptor Lake-R / 10 nm	Vermeer / 7 nm	Alder Lake-S / 10 nm	Alder Lake-S / 10 nm	Raptor Lake-S / 10 nm	Raptor Lake-S / 10 nm	Arrow Lake-S / 3 nm	Granite Ridge / 4 nm
TDP / Max	125 W / 181 W	125 W / 181 W	105 W / 142 W	65 W / 202 W	65 W / 202 W	125 W / 181 W	125 W / 181 W	65 W / 121 W	65 W / 88 W
Socket	LGA 1700	LGA 1700	AM4	LGA 1700	LGA 1700	LGA 1700	LGA 1700	LGA 1851	AM5
Int. GPU	UHD Graphics 770	None	None	UHD Graphics 770	None	UHD Graphics 770	None	Arc Xe-LPG Graphics 64EU	Radeon Graphics

CPU Performance in Rendering, Encoding and Compression-Decompression

CPU (Desc) CPU Name Click to sort alphabetically (ascending or descending).	CB24_MC (Desc) Cinebench 2024 Multi-Core Measured score (higher is better) from CB24 multi-core benchmark.	CB24_SC (Desc) Cinebench 2024 Single-Core Measured score (higher is better) from CB24 single-core benchmark.	CB24_rel (Desc) Cinebench 2024 Relative Normalized score relative to a reference CPU (100% baseline).	Blender (Desc) Blender Rendering (Relative) Normalized score based on rendering performance in Blender.	Encoding_AV1 (Desc) AV1 Encoding (Relative) Relative encoding performance for AV1 video codec.	Encoding_h265 (Desc) H.265 Encoding (Relative) Relative encoding performance for H.265/HEVC codec.	7-zip_Pack (Desc) 7-Zip Compression Relative speed for compressing files using 7-Zip.	7-zip_Unpack (Desc) 7-Zip Decompression Relative speed for unpacking files using 7-Zip.	Performance (Desc) Total Performance Index Average across all benchmarks.
Intel Core i5-14600K Intel Core i5-14600K View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	1399	123	55.3%	49.5%	61.8%	59.7%	58.6%	47.3%	55.4%
Intel Core i5-14600KF Intel Core i5-14600KF View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	1399	123	55.3%	49.5%	61.8%	59.7%	58.6%	47.3%	55.4%
AMD Ryzen 9 5900X AMD Ryzen 9 5900X View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	1223	98	48.4%	45.6%	59.2%	56.8%	56.4%	60.5%	54.5%
Intel Core i9-12900 Intel Core i9-12900 View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	1457	119	57.6%	52.9%	64.4%	58.5%	50.0%	41.2%	54.1%
Intel Core i9-12900F Intel Core i9-12900F View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	1457	119	57.6%	52.9%	64.4%	58.5%	50.0%	41.2%	54.1%
Intel Core i5-13600K Intel Core i5-13600K View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	1302	117	51.5%	46.2%	58.0%	56.5%	56.4%	45.2%	52.3%
Intel Core i5-13600KF Intel Core i5-13600KF View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	1302	117	51.5%	46.2%	58.0%	56.5%	56.4%	45.2%	52.3%
Intel Core Ultra 5 245 Intel Core Ultra 5 245 View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	1390	130	55.0%	50.4%	69.1%	50.2%	50.0%	37.8%	52.1%
AMD Ryzen 7 9700X AMD Ryzen 7 9700X View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	1231	134	48.7%	45.8%	67.9%	48.4%	54.1%	46.6%	51.9%