Intel Core i5-12600KF

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Intel Core i5-12600KF Specifications and Performance Analysis

The Intel Core i5-12600KF 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. H670, B660, H610 chipsets and supports PCIe Gen 4, 20 Lanes (CPU only), as well as DDR4, DDR5 memory with speeds of up to 4800 MT/s across Dual-channel memory. This processor features a hybrid core configuration with 6 performance cores operating at a base clock of 3.70 GHz and boosting up to 4.90 GHz, alongside 4 efficiency cores running at a base clock of 2.80 GHz and boosting up to 3.60 GHz, for a total of 16 threads. It is equipped with 80 kB of L1 cache, 1280 kB of L2 cache, and 20 MB of L3 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 i5-12600KF has a base TDP of 125 W and a moderate maximum TDP of 150 W. Most mid-range aftermarket air coolers are sufficient for thermal control. This processor is also suitable for small form factor builds, which often have limited airflow.

This CPU does not include integrated graphics. A discrete graphics card is required for display output.

Application Performance

Intel Core i5-12600KF is an entry-level CPU, achieving a relative application performance score of 40.35% of the best possible desktop CPU performance. This CPU handles daily computing, coding, light gaming, productivity, and basic multitasking. Not recommended for heavy workloads or professional-grade applications.

Intel Core i5-12600KF delivers a balanced application performance-per-price ratio of 63.4%. It provides good value for users looking for a practical balance between cost and performance.

Gaming Performance

Intel Core i5-12600KF is an entry-level gaming CPU, achieving a relative gaming performance score at 1080p resolution of 68.30% compared to the best possible desktop CPU gaming performance. While gaming performance is limited when paired with top-tier graphics cards, such pairings are uncommon in this category. When combined with an appropriate entry-level GPU, this CPU does not cause significant performance loss, as the GPU generally becomes the primary limiting factor.

For gamers, Intel Core i5-12600KF offers exceptional value, scoring 70.5% in gaming performance per dollar. It's ideal for budget-conscious gamers looking to pair this CPU with a cost-effective graphics card without significantly sacrificing performance.

General Information

CPU Name	Intel Core i5-12600KF
Release Price	$264.00
Current Price on Amazon	$191
Amazon Price Updated	3 hours, 44 minutes ago.
Launch Date	4 years, 8 months ago.
CPU Available	True

Architecture

Architecture	Alder Lake-S
Foundry	Intel
Process	10 nm
Socket	LGA 1700
Chipsets	Z690. H670, B660, H610
Die Size	215 mm²
PCIe Version	Gen 4, 20 Lanes (CPU only)

Core Configuration

Cores / Threads	10 / 16
Performance Cores / Small Cores	6 / 4
Perf. Cores Base / Boost Clock	3.70 GHz / 4.90 GHz
Small Cores Base / Boost Clock	2.80 GHz / 3.60 GHz

RAM Support

Memory Support / Max Speed	DDR4, DDR5 / 4800 MT/s
Memory Channels	Dual-channel

Cache Configuration

L1 Cache (per core)	80 kB
L2 Cache (per core)	1280 kB
L3 Cache (shared)	20 MB

TDP Configuration

Base TDP	125 W
Max Turbo Power	150 W
PL1 (Long Duration Power)	150 W

Integrated Graphics

Integrated Graphics	False

Cinebench R24 Performance

Cinebench R24 Multi-core	966
Cinebench R24 Single-core	109

CPU Normalized Performance Chart

Intel Core i5-12600KF 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 i7-12700F Intel Core i7-12700F View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$327 Intel Core i7-12700F Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| ↓ -2.7% Intel Core i7-12700F Price Change Price decreased from the last update.	43.0%	72.7%	57.9%	39.5%	43.9%	44.3%
Intel Core i7-12700 Intel Core i7-12700 View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$448 Intel Core i7-12700 Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| ↓ -0.3% Intel Core i7-12700 Price Change Price decreased from the last update.	43.0%	72.7%	57.9%	28.8%	32.0%	32.3%
AMD Ryzen 5 9500F AMD Ryzen 5 9500F View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$0 AMD Ryzen 5 9500F No Amazon Link This CPU has no link to an Amazon product page. \| 0.0% AMD Ryzen 5 9500F Price Change No significant price change detected.	41.0%	77.9%	59.4%	N/A	N/A	N/A
Intel Core i5-12600KF Intel Core i5-12600KF View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$191 Intel Core i5-12600KF Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| ↓ -5.4% Intel Core i5-12600KF Price Change Price decreased from the last update.	40.4%	68.3%	54.3%	63.4%	70.5%	71.2%
Intel Core i5-12600K Intel Core i5-12600K View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$203❗ Intel Core i5-12600K Price Not Available Last known price from Amazon. Currently unavailable. \| ↑ 13.4% Intel Core i5-12600K Price Change Price increased from the last update.	40.4%	68.3%	54.3%	59.6%	66.3%	66.9%
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X AMD Ryzen 5 7600X View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$169 AMD Ryzen 5 7600X Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| ↓ -0.6% AMD Ryzen 5 7600X Price Change Price decreased from the last update.	39.7%	76.8%	58.2%	70.5%	89.5%	86.2%
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$380 AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| ↓ -9.5% AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D Price Change Price decreased from the last update.	39.4%	76.2%	57.8%	31.1%	39.5%	38.0%
AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$219 AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| 0.0% AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT Price Change No significant price change detected.	39.2%	63.4%	51.3%	53.7%	57.0%	58.6%
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X AMD Ryzen 7 5800X View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	$218 AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| ↓ 0.0% AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Price Change Price decreased from the last update.	39.2%	63.4%	51.3%	53.9%	57.3%	58.8%

Processor Comparison and Detail Specifications Table

Specification	Intel Core i7-12700F Intel Core i7-12700F View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	Intel Core i7-12700 Intel Core i7-12700 View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	No image available AMD Ryzen 5 9500F AMD Ryzen 5 9500F View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	Intel Core i5-12600KF Intel Core i5-12600KF View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	Intel Core i5-12600K Intel Core i5-12600K View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	AMD Ryzen 5 7600X AMD Ryzen 5 7600X View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	AMD Ryzen 7 5800X AMD Ryzen 7 5800X View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.
Perf Chart
Price	$327 Intel Core i7-12700F Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| ↓ -2.7% Intel Core i7-12700F Price Change Price decreased from the last update.	$448 Intel Core i7-12700 Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| ↓ -0.3% Intel Core i7-12700 Price Change Price decreased from the last update.	$0 AMD Ryzen 5 9500F No Amazon Link This CPU has no link to an Amazon product page. \| 0.0% AMD Ryzen 5 9500F Price Change No significant price change detected.	$191 Intel Core i5-12600KF Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| ↓ -5.4% Intel Core i5-12600KF Price Change Price decreased from the last update.	$203❗ Intel Core i5-12600K Price Not Available Last known price from Amazon. Currently unavailable. \| ↑ 13.4% Intel Core i5-12600K Price Change Price increased from the last update.	$169 AMD Ryzen 5 7600X Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| ↓ -0.6% AMD Ryzen 5 7600X Price Change Price decreased from the last update.	$380 AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| ↓ -9.5% AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D Price Change Price decreased from the last update.	$219 AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| 0.0% AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT Price Change No significant price change detected.	$218 AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Current Amazon Price Click to view this CPU on Amazon. \| ↓ 0.0% AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Price Change Price decreased from the last update.
Manufacturer	Intel	Intel	AMD	Intel	Intel	AMD	AMD	AMD	AMD
C/SC/T	12 / 4 / 20	12 / 4 / 20	6 / 0 / 12	10 / 4 / 16	10 / 4 / 16	6 / 0 / 12	8 / 0 / 16	8 / 0 / 16	8 / 0 / 16
L2 / L3 Cache	1280.0 kB / 25.0 MB	1280.0 kB / 25.0 MB	1024.0 kB / 32.0 MB	1280.0 kB / 20.0 MB	1280.0 kB / 20.0 MB	1024.0 kB / 32.0 MB	512.0 kB / 96.0 MB	512.0 kB / 32.0 MB	512.0 kB / 32.0 MB
Base / Boost	2.10 GHz / 4.90 GHz	2.10 GHz / 4.90 GHz	3.80 GHz / 5.00 GHz	3.70 GHz / 4.90 GHz	3.70 GHz / 4.90 GHz	4.70 GHz / 5.30 GHz	3.40 GHz / 4.50 GHz	3.80 GHz / 4.80 GHz	3.80 GHz / 4.70 GHz
Memory	DDR4, DDR5 / 4800 MT/s	DDR4, DDR5 / 4800 MT/s	DDR5 / 5600 MT/s	DDR4, DDR5 / 4800 MT/s	DDR4, DDR5 / 4800 MT/s	DDR5 / 5200 MT/s	DDR4 / 3200 MT/s	DDR4 / 3200 MT/s	DDR4 / 3200 MT/s
Arch / Node	Alder Lake-S / 10 nm	Alder Lake-S / 10 nm	Granite Ridge / 4 nm	Alder Lake-S / 10 nm	Alder Lake-S / 10 nm	Raphael / 5 nm	Vermeer / 7 nm	Vermeer / 7 nm	Vermeer / 7 nm
TDP / Max	65 W / 180 W	65 W / 180 W	65 W / 88 W	125 W / 150 W	125 W / 150 W	105 W / 142 W	105 W / 142 W	105 W / 142 W	105 W / 142 W
Socket	LGA 1700	LGA 1700	AM5	LGA 1700	LGA 1700	AM5	AM4	AM4	AM4
Int. GPU	None	UHD Graphics 770	None	None	UHD Graphics 770	Radeon Graphics	None	None	None

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 i7-12700F Intel Core i7-12700F View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	1004	110	39.7%	38.5%	51.1%	51.0%	44.6%	33.3%	43.0%
Intel Core i7-12700 Intel Core i7-12700 View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	1004	110	39.7%	38.5%	51.1%	51.0%	44.6%	33.3%	43.0%
AMD Ryzen 5 9500F AMD Ryzen 5 9500F View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	870	115	34.4%	34.9%	55.3%	43.9%	41.8%	35.7%	41.0%
Intel Core i5-12600KF Intel Core i5-12600KF View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	966	109	38.2%	34.0%	52.2%	43.7%	41.4%	32.7%	40.4%
Intel Core i5-12600K Intel Core i5-12600K View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	966	109	38.2%	34.0%	52.2%	43.7%	41.4%	32.7%	40.4%
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X AMD Ryzen 5 7600X View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	885	117	35.0%	28.9%	52.3%	43.4%	42.3%	36.4%	39.7%
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	860	95	34.0%	30.4%	49.5%	39.8%	43.2%	39.8%	39.4%
AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT AMD Ryzen 7 5800XT View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	884	97	35.0%	31.2%	48.5%	39.0%	41.4%	40.1%	39.2%
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X AMD Ryzen 7 5800X View detailed specs, benchmarks, charts, and comparison for this CPU.	884	96	35.0%	31.2%	48.4%	38.9%	41.4%	40.1%	39.2%