Intel Core i5-9400 vs Intel Core i7-6700

Processor comparisons 17-03-2021

   Let's say you have difficulties with the choice of a processor, you will solve them by reading the full tests Intel Core i5-9400 vs Intel Core i7-6700 and see which is better for games or normal use for programming, machine learning, video editing, rendering, streaming. Here you can find useful information from real streaming and video editing tests or many benchmarks. A thorough review of all the specifications, to make it easier to understand, is presented in the form of the table.
   From the comparison video, you can get the results of joint testing in synthetic type tests like Dolphin Emulator, Blender, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, WPrime, UserBenchmark, Prime95, GeekBench 6, 5.2, Blender, MATLAB, 7zip, AIDA64, 3DMark, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), Furmark, PassMark, VeraCrypt, Gears 5, SuperPi, PCMark 10, RealBench, DaVinci Resolve Studio, Handbrake.
   Gaming performance of CPUs in:

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

After reading the results these benchmarks and videos, you already be able to understand which processor is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i7-6700 or Intel Core i5-9400.

Summary benchmark results

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

Core i5-9400

52%

Core i7-6700

52%

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

Core i5-9400

53%

Core i7-6700

52%

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

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	93.5	92.4
Valorant	106.3	105.0
Cyberpunk 2077	59.5	58.8
Apex Legends	99.9	98.7
Call of Duty Warzone	79.7	78.8
Overwatch	86.1	85.1
Red Dead Redemption 2	73.3	72.5
DOOM Eternal	53.1	52.5
Warzone	82.9	81.9
Assassin's Creed	89.3	88.2
Valheim	88.2	87.2

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 that were in the comparisons not only did they have different video cards and different amounts of RAM. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: 2K, 4K 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 get acquainted with the benchmarks that are made with the same video card that is installed in your computer.

Power consumption

Core i5-9400

56%

Core i7-6700

56%

Software benchmarks

For example you plan to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for machine learning, programming, video rendering or video editing, streaming, then the main parameter for you is its performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to reach maximum performance, the processor uses all cores and threads 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. Because there are still many programs that can 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 i5-9400	Intel Core i7-6700
Cinbench 15 Single-core	177	171
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	987	816
Cinbench 20 Single-core	403	406
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	2284	1774
Cinbench 23 Single-core	1051	1071
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	5606	4921

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

	Intel Core i5-9400	Intel Core i7-6700
Single-Core	2474	2325
Multi-Core	9515	8025

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

	Intel Core i5-9400	Intel Core i7-6700
Single-Core	1107	1095
Multi-Core	5420	4353

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the most useful will be the the possibility of overclocking it and release date of the processor. 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 benefits from the presence of overclocking. When the processor can be overclocked, increasing its performance, then it will continue to maintain maximum FPS in the newest games. The savings 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 i5-9400	Intel Core i7-6700
Announcement date	January 01, 2019	April 01, 2015
Type	Desktop	Desktop
Socket	FCLGA1151-2	LGA 1151
Core name	Coffee Lake	Skylake
Architecture	x86	x86
Generation	9	6
Turbo Frequency	4.1 MHz	4 MHz
Frequency	2.9 MHz	3.4 MHz
Cores	6	4
Threads	6	8
Bus rate	8 GT/s	8 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	14 nm	14 nm
Transistors count	3600 millions	2800 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	65 W	65 W
Memory type	DDR4-2666	DDR4-1866/2133, DDR3L-1333/1600 @ 1.35V
Max. Memory	128 Gb	64 Gb
Memory Frequency
Memory bandwidth	41.6 GB/s	34.1 GB/s
L1 cache
L2 cache
L3 cache	9 MB	8 MB
Overclocking	Yes	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 i7-6700 is 14% better than Core i5-9400 in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Core i5-9400 has 2 more core than Core i7-6700. 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 i5-9400 is better: 27
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i7-6700 is better: 4
However, it should be understood that the summary data in the article above do not mean that taking them into account you should undividedly trust a simple comparison of these figures. Be sure to watch the video tests and read the opinion of of people who bought Intel Core i5-9400 and Intel Core i7-6700 before making a selection which processor to buy for gaming and which not.

• Intel Core i5-9400 specs and review.

• Intel Core i7-6700 specs and review.