Apple M2 Pro vs Intel Core i5-12500

Processor comparisons   22-10-2022
   If you are thinking about choosing a processor, you will be able to make a choice by looking at the Apple M2 Pro vs Intel Core i5-12500 tests and understand which is better for games or normal use for programming, rendering, machine learning, video editing, streaming. Here is all information from several benchmarks or real video editing and streaming tests. A careful review of all the technical characteristics, so that it can be easier to understand, is presented in the form of the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of joint testing in synthetic type tests like VeraCrypt, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, MATLAB, PassMark, Gears 5, Dolphin Emulator, SuperPi, 7zip, Prime95, Handbrake, DaVinci Resolve Studio, UserBenchmark, AIDA64, 3DMark, RealBench, GeekBench 6, 5.2, PCMark 10, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), WPrime, Blender, Blender, Furmark.
   And how good the processors are in games:

Rainbow Six Siege
Valheim
Cyberpunk 2077
Red Dead Redemption 2
DOOM: Eternal
Valorant
Watch Dogs Legion
Overwatch
Last Man Standing
Apex Legends
Fallout 76
Death Stranding
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Warzone
World of Warcraft: Shadowlands
Halo Infinite
Borderlands 3
Fortnite
Grand Theft Auto V
Assassin's Creed Valhalla

After reading the results of joint benchmarks and videos, you can already make an informed decision about which CPU is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i5-12500 or Apple M2 Pro.

Summary benchmark results

As a percentage of the maximum value based on a sample from the entire base of all processors
Processor Benchmark

M2 Pro

61%

Core i5-12500

56%

This parameter shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, M2 Pro is 8% better than Core i5-12500. The data source is several popular tests. Detailed information can be found below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

M2 Pro

59%

Core i5-12500

55%

For the maximum in this test, the results of the most powerful processor in the site database are taken. And it is clear that this is a server processor, on which no one will play games. Because this processor costs several tens of thousands of dollars. And if it seems to you that the selected CPU has a little game result, just look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the summary table below.
List of other games in which CPU comparisons were performed: Hitman 3, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Battlefield V, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Microsoft Flight Simulator, League of Legends (LOL), DOTA 2A, Monster Hunter World, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Forza Horizon 4, Horizon Zero Dawn, Half-Life: Alyx, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Ghostrunner, Metro Exodus, NBA 2K20, Control, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	104.8	97.2
Valorant	119.1	110.5
Cyberpunk 2077	66.7	61.9
Apex Legends	111.9	103.8
Call of Duty Warzone	89.3	82.8
Overwatch	96.5	89.5
Red Dead Redemption 2	82.2	76.2
DOOM Eternal	59.5	55.2
Warzone	92.9	86.2
Assassin's Creed	100.0	92.8
Valheim	98.8	91.7

The numbers in this table indicate the maximum FPS that was received on the device with the corresponding processor. Depending on the configuration of the computer (RAM size and Video Card) and graphics quality settings (Ultra, Medium, Normal), the results may differ quite significantly. We recommend that you better study the results of the Cinebench, GeekBench and Passmark becnmarks.
The tested computers not only did they have different amounts of RAM and different video cards. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: 2K, FullHD or 4K. So the game benchmark data is approximate. But all video cards met the average system requirements of games. To be sure exactly how much performance the processor will be in games, if you compare it in one assembly with the video card that is installed in your computer.

Power consumption

M2 Pro

496%

Core i5-12500

86%

To make a final decision on which processor is better, you should also consider the generation of its core. It is clear that the newer the generation, the better the performance of the processor in games and benchmarks, as well as its energy efficiency. In this case the M2 Pro is more energy efficient than the Core i5-12500 since it has less power consumption: 14W vs. 65W. Power consumption is especially important for laptops. Also, when choosing a processor cooling system, it will be useful to know its TDP. You need to buy a cooler that has the TDP data specified in the specification was greater than the TDP of the compared processor.

Software benchmarks

Let's say you plan to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for programming, streaming, machine learning, video editing or video rendering, then first of all you need to pay attention to the performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, the CPU turns on all threads and cores that it has to the maximum to achieve maximum efficiency. You will find out this data from the benchmark tables below. Before using the data from these tests, be sure to check whether the software you are going to use on your computer supports multi-threaded mode. Because there are still many programs that can use only one core to work, and all the benefit of multi-core mode are unused.
Cinebench 23, 20 an 15
The results of this benchmark show Single-threaded and Multi-threaded CPU performance

	Apple M2 Pro	Intel Core i5-12500
Cinbench 15 Single-core	366	298
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	2078	2182
Cinbench 20 Single-core	714	715
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	3555	4955
Cinbench 23 Single-core	2063	1672
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	16023	16334

Passmark
This popular benchmark displays Multi-threaded and Single-threaded processor performance

	Apple M2 Pro	Intel Core i5-12500
Single-Core	6111	3919
Multi-Core	39485	22868

GeekBench 6, 5.2
This benchmark shows Multi-threaded and Single-threaded processor performance

	Apple M2 Pro	Intel Core i5-12500
Single-Core	2085	1685
Multi-Core	16467	9016

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the processor release date and overclocking capability will be the most useful. The newer the processor, the longer it will last you. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system later. The same can be said about overclocking. If the processor can be overclocked, increasing its performance, then it will continue to maintain maximum FPS in new games. Accordingly, there is no longer a need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer. The savings are obvious!

	Apple M2 Pro	Intel Core i5-12500
Announcement date	October 20, 2022	January 07, 2022
Type	Desktop;Laptop	Desktop
Socket	M2	FCLGA1700
Core name	8x Avalanche and 4x Blizzard	Alder Lake
Architecture	hybrid (big.LITTLE)	x86
Generation	2	12
Turbo Frequency		4.6 MHz
Frequency	3.49 MHz	3.3 MHz
Cores	12	6
Threads	12	12
Bus rate		8 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	4 nm	7 nm
Transistors count	42000 millions	10200 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	14 W	65 W
Memory type	LPDDR5 - Up to 6400MHz	Up to DDR5 4800 MT/s Up to DDR4 3200 MT/s
Max. Memory	32 Gb	128 Gb
Memory Frequency	6400
Memory bandwidth	208 GByte/s	76.8 GB/s
L1 cache	4MB
L2 cache	24MB
L3 cache	36MB	18 MB
Overclocking	No	No
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here M2 Pro is 5% better than Core i5-12500 in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that M2 Pro has 6 more core than Core i5-12500. Also keep in mind that high CPU frequency affects battery life through power consumption (relevant for laptops).

Result:
The number of parameters for which Apple M2 Pro is better: 27
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i5-12500 is better: 9
Although it should be realized that the summary data that you have looked at here do not mean that taking them into account you should fully trust a simple quantitative comparison. Better to watch benchmarks video and read the opinion of real owners of Apple M2 Pro and Intel Core i5-12500 before deciding which processor to buy for gaming and which not.

Apple M2 Pro - all data

• Cinebench r15 score
• Cinebench r20 score
• Cinebench r23 score
• GeekBench 6, 5.2 score

• Apple M2 Pro specs and review.

Intel Core i5-12500 - all data

• Cinebench r15 score
• Cinebench r20 score
• Cinebench r23 score
• GeekBench 6, 5.2 score

• Intel Core i5-12500 specs and review.