Intel Core i3-12100 vs Intel Core i5-11600

Processor comparisons   11-01-2022
   You may have difficulties with the choice of a processor, you will solve them by reading the comprehensive tests Intel Core i3-12100 vs Intel Core i5-11600 and understand which is better for games or simple use for video editing, machine learning, programming, streaming, rendering. Here is useful information from real streaming and video editing tests or many benchmarks. A thorough analysis of all the specifications, to make it easier to understand, is summarized in the table.
   From the comparison video, you can get the results of joint testing in special test applications such as UserBenchmark, VeraCrypt, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, Gears 5, Dolphin Emulator, Prime95, GeekBench 6, 5.2, Blender, AIDA64, RealBench, DaVinci Resolve Studio, Blender, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), 3DMark, Furmark, MATLAB, PCMark 10, PassMark, SuperPi, WPrime, Handbrake, 7zip.
   Gaming performance of CPUs in:

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

After looking at the data of joint benchmarks and videos, you can already make an informed decision about which CPU is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i5-11600 or Intel Core i3-12100.

Summary benchmark results

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

Core i3-12100

56%

Core i5-11600

55%

The number of this parameter shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, Core i3-12100 is 1% better than Core i5-11600. The data source is several popular tests. More detailed information of the benchmarks is below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

Core i3-12100

54%

Core i5-11600

53%

The maximum result in this parameter is 100 percent, which is the performance of the most powerful processor at the moment. And of course, this is a server processor, on which no one will play games. Because this processor costs several tens of thousands of dollars. Therefore, if you think that the selected CPU has a small game result, just look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the summary table below.
List of other games in which processors were compared: Metro Exodus, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Battlefield V, DOTA 2A, Horizon Zero Dawn, Control, Half-Life: Alyx, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Hitman 3, Monster Hunter World, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Forza Horizon 4, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Ghostrunner, League of Legends (LOL), NBA 2K20, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	96.0	94.8
Valorant	109.1	107.7
Cyberpunk 2077	61.1	60.3
Apex Legends	102.6	101.3
Call of Duty Warzone	81.8	80.8
Overwatch	88.4	87.3
Red Dead Redemption 2	75.3	74.3
DOOM Eternal	54.6	53.9
Warzone	85.1	84.0
Assassin's Creed	91.7	90.5
Valheim	90.6	89.4

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 video cards and different amounts of RAM. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: 4K, 2K or FullHD. Therefore, the game benchmark data is approximate. But all video cards met the average system requirements of games. You will get more accurate information about how powerful 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

Core i3-12100

96%

Core i5-11600

41%

To make a final choice 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 Core i3-12100 is more energy efficient than the Core i5-11600 as it consumes less power: 60W vs. 125W. Power consumption is particularly important for laptops. Also, when choosing a processor cooling system, you must 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 machine learning, video editing or video rendering, streaming, programming, then the main parameter for you is its performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to reach maximum efficiency, the processor includes all cores and threads that it has. You will find out this data from the benchmark tables below. Before you take into account the data from these tests, be sure to find out whether the program that you are going to use on your computer can work in multi-threaded mode. Because there are still many programs that use only one core to run, and all the advantages of multi-core mode are unused.
Cinebench 23, 20 an 15
The results of this benchmark show Single-threaded and Multi-threaded CPU performance

	Intel Core i3-12100	Intel Core i5-11600
Cinbench 15 Single-core	267	189
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	1958	1811
Cinbench 20 Single-core	642	442
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	4447	4058
Cinbench 23 Single-core	1503	1153
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	14658	10741

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

	Intel Core i3-12100	Intel Core i5-11600
Single-Core	3516	2573
Multi-Core	20521	19594

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

	Intel Core i3-12100	Intel Core i5-11600
Single-Core	1740	1541
Multi-Core	7859	6664

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 in your computer. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system in the future. The same benefits from the presence of overclocking. When the processor can be overclocked, thereby increasing its performance, then it will continue to maintain maximum FPS in new games. The economy are obvious! Accordingly, you do not need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer.

	Intel Core i3-12100	Intel Core i5-11600
Announcement date	January 07, 2022	January 20, 2021
Type	Desktop	Desktop
Socket	FCBGA1744	FCLGA1200
Core name	Alder Lake-U	Rocket Lake
Architecture	x86	x86
Generation	12	11
Turbo Frequency	4.3 MHz	4.8 MHz
Frequency	1 MHz	2.8 MHz
Cores	4	6
Threads	8	12
Bus rate	8 GT/s	8 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	7 nm	14 nm
Transistors count	9800 millions	5400 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	60 W	125 W
Memory type	Up to DDR5 4800 MT/s Up to DDR4 3200 MT/s	DDR4-3200
Max. Memory	128 Gb	128 Gb
Memory Frequency		3200
Memory bandwidth	76.8 GB/s	50 GB/s
L1 cache
L2 cache	5 MB	3 MB
L3 cache	12 MB	12 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 Core i5-11600 is 64% better than Core i3-12100 in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Core i5-11600 has 2 more core than Core i3-12100. Also keep in mind that high CPU frequency affects battery life through power consumption (relevant for laptops).

Result:
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i3-12100 is better: 28
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i5-11600 is better: 5
However, it should be understood that all the figures in the table above do not mean that taking them into account you should totally trust a simple quantitative comparison. Be sure to watch benchmarks video and read the opinion of real owners of Intel Core i3-12100 and Intel Core i5-11600 before deciding which processor to buy for gaming and which not.

Intel Core i3-12100 - all data

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

• Intel Core i3-12100 specs and review.

Intel Core i5-11600 - all data

• Call of Duty: Warzone gaming benchmark
• Cinebench r15 score
• Cinebench r20 score
• Cinebench r23 score
• GeekBench 6, 5.2 score

• Intel Core i5-11600 specs and review.