Intel Core i5-8260U vs Intel Core i5-9400

Processor comparisons   03-04-2021
   For example there are difficulties with the choice of a processor, you will solve them by reading the full tests Intel Core i5-8260U vs Intel Core i5-9400 and see which is better for games or simple use for programming, rendering, machine learning, streaming, video editing. Here you can find all information from many benchmarks or real video editing and streaming tests. A step-by-step analysis of all the technical characteristics, so that it can be easier to understand, is made by the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of joint testing in software tests like Dolphin Emulator, Furmark, Blender, GeekBench 6, 5.2, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), Gears 5, PassMark, WPrime, Handbrake, UserBenchmark, MATLAB, RealBench, AIDA64, SuperPi, DaVinci Resolve Studio, 3DMark, Prime95, Blender, PCMark 10, 7zip, VeraCrypt, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark.
   Gaming performance of processors in:

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

After reading the results of parallel benchmarks and videos, you can already make an informed decision about which CPU is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i5-9400 or Intel Core i5-8260U.

Summary benchmark results

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

Core i5-8260U

52%

Core i5-9400

52%

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

Core i5-8260U

52%

Core i5-9400

53%

The maximum result in this parameter is 100 percent, which is the performance of the most powerful processor currently available. 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 small game result, look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the final table below.
List of other games in which processors were compared: League of Legends (LOL), NBA 2K20, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Control, Half-Life: Alyx, Metro Exodus, Horizon Zero Dawn, Hitman 3, DOTA 2A, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Ghostrunner, Forza Horizon 4, Monster Hunter World, Battlefield V, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Shadow of the Tomb Raider.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	92.3	93.5
Valorant	104.9	106.3
Cyberpunk 2077	58.7	59.5
Apex Legends	98.6	99.9
Call of Duty Warzone	78.7	79.7
Overwatch	85.0	86.1
Red Dead Redemption 2	72.4	73.3
DOOM Eternal	52.4	53.1
Warzone	81.8	82.9
Assassin's Creed	88.1	89.3
Valheim	87.1	88.2

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 computers participating in the comparing not only were the equipped with different video cards and different amounts of RAM. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: 4K, 2K or FullHD. So 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 i5-8260U

221%

Core i5-9400

56%

To make a finishing choice on which processor is better, you should also consider the generation of its core. The newer the processor generation, the better its performance in games and benchmarks, as well as its energy efficiency. In this case the Core i5-8260U is more energy efficient than the Core i5-9400 since it has less power consumption: 15W vs. 65W. Power consumption is especially important for laptops. And TDP should be taken into account when choosing a processor cooling system. It is necessary to calculate so that the TDP data specified in the cooler specification is 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 streaming, machine learning, video rendering or video editing, programming, then the main parameter for you is its performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to reach maximum efficiency, the CPU turns on all threads and cores that it has. You will find out this data from the benchmark tables below. Before using the data from these tests, be sure to find out whether the software that you are going to use on your computer can work in multi-threaded mode. Since there are still many programs that use only one core to work, 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 i5-8260U	Intel Core i5-9400
Cinbench 15 Single-core	157	177
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	596	987
Cinbench 20 Single-core	409	403
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	2046	2284
Cinbench 23 Single-core	1029	1051
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	4033	5606

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

	Intel Core i5-8260U	Intel Core i5-9400
Single-Core	2385	2474
Multi-Core	7652	9515

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

	Intel Core i5-8260U	Intel Core i5-9400
Single-Core	997	1107
Multi-Core	4222	5420

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the processor release date and overclocking capability will be the most helpful. The later the processor is released, the longer it will last in your computer. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system in the future. The same can be said about overclocking. If the processor can be overclocked, thereby increasing its performance, then it will continue to maintain maximum FPS in new games. The economy are obvious! It turns out that there is no longer a need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer.

	Intel Core i5-8260U	Intel Core i5-9400
Announcement date	April 01, 2020	January 01, 2019
Type	Laptop	Desktop
Socket	FCBGA1528	FCLGA1151-2
Core name	Coffee Lake	Coffee Lake
Architecture	x86	x86
Generation	8	9
Turbo Frequency	3.9 MHz	4.1 MHz
Frequency	1.6 MHz	2.9 MHz
Cores	4	6
Threads	8	6
Bus rate	4 GT/s OPI	8 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	14 nm	14 nm
Transistors count	1900 millions	3600 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	15 W	65 W
Memory type	DDR4-2400, LPDDR3-2133	DDR4-2666
Max. Memory	64 Gb	128 Gb
Memory Frequency
Memory bandwidth	37.5 GB/s	41.6 GB/s
L1 cache
L2 cache
L3 cache	6 MB	9 MB
Overclocking	No	Yes
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 i5-9400 is 44% better than Core i5-8260U in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Core i5-9400 has 2 more core than Core i5-8260U. 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 i5-8260U is better: 4
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i5-9400 is better: 30
However, it should be realized that all the data in the table above do not mean that taking them into account you should completely trust a simple quantitative comparison. Better to watch benchmarks video and read the opinion of of people who bought Intel Core i5-8260U and Intel Core i5-9400 before making a selection which of the processors to buy for gaming.

Intel Core i5-8260U - all data

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

• Intel Core i5-8260U specs and review.

• Intel Core i5-9400 specs and review.