Intel Core i7-10870H vs Intel Core i5-10500

Processor comparisons   17-03-2021
   Let's say you can't decide which processor to buy, you can make a decision by looking at the Intel Core i7-10870H vs Intel Core i5-10500 tests and see which is better for games or normal use for video editing, streaming, machine learning, rendering, programming. Here you can find useful information from many benchmarks or real streaming and video editing tests. A step-by-step analysis of all the specifications, to make it easier to read, is made by the table.
   From the comparison video, you can get the results of parallel examination in synthetic type tests such as 3DMark, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), Blender, 7zip, GeekBench 6, 5.2, VeraCrypt, RealBench, DaVinci Resolve Studio, Dolphin Emulator, SuperPi, AIDA64, Furmark, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, Blender, Handbrake, PassMark, MATLAB, Prime95, WPrime, UserBenchmark, Gears 5, PCMark 10.
   And how good the CPUs are in games:

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

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 i5-10500 or Intel Core i7-10870H.

Summary benchmark results

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

Core i7-10870H

54%

Core i5-10500

54%

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

Core i7-10870H

54%

Core i5-10500

54%

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 play games. Because this processor costs several tens of thousands of dollars. And if it seems to you that the selected CPU has a low game result, look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the summary table below.
List of other games in which processors were compared: PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), Battlefield V, Half-Life: Alyx, Horizon Zero Dawn, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), Monster Hunter World, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Ghostrunner, DOTA 2A, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Hitman 3, League of Legends (LOL), Forza Horizon 4, Control, NBA 2K20, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Metro Exodus, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	96.0	95.4
Valorant	109.1	108.4
Cyberpunk 2077	61.1	60.7
Apex Legends	102.5	101.9
Call of Duty Warzone	81.8	81.3
Overwatch	88.3	87.8
Red Dead Redemption 2	75.3	74.8
DOOM Eternal	54.5	54.2
Warzone	85.1	84.5
Assassin's Creed	91.6	91.0
Valheim	90.5	90.0

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: 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

Core i7-10870H

94%

Core i5-10500

61%

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 Core i7-10870H is more energy efficient than the Core i5-10500 as it consumes less power: 45W vs. 65W. Power consumption is particularly 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 want to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for machine learning, programming, streaming, video rendering or video editing, then first of all you need to pay attention to the performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, to achieve maximum performance, the processor uses all cores and threads that it has. You will learn this data from the benchmark tables below. Before you take into account the data from these tests, be sure to check whether the program you are going to use on your computer supports multi-threaded mode. Because there are still many programs that use only one core to run, and all the advantages of multi-core mode turns out to be unnecessary.
Cinebench 23, 20 an 15
The results of this benchmark show Single-threaded and Multi-threaded CPU performance

	Intel Core i7-10870H	Intel Core i5-10500
Cinbench 15 Single-core	208	201
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	1522	1491
Cinbench 20 Single-core	499	467
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	3457	3392
Cinbench 23 Single-core	1167	1082
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	11396	8209

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

	Intel Core i7-10870H	Intel Core i5-10500
Single-Core	2734	2743
Multi-Core	15954	13414

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

	Intel Core i7-10870H	Intel Core i5-10500
Single-Core	1271	1196
Multi-Core	7816	7233

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 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 can be said about overclocking. If the processor can be overclocked, thereby increasing its performance, then it will continue to maintain maximum FPS even in new games. The economy are obvious! Accordingly, there is no longer a need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer.

	Intel Core i7-10870H	Intel Core i5-10500
Announcement date	October 01, 2020	April 01, 2020
Type	Laptop	Desktop
Socket	FCBGA1440	FCLGA1200
Core name	Comet Lake	Comet Lake
Architecture	x86	x86
Generation	10	10
Turbo Frequency	5 MHz	4.5 MHz
Frequency	2.2 MHz	3.1 MHz
Cores	8	6
Threads	16	12
Bus rate	8 GT/s	8 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	14 nm	14 nm
Transistors count	6800 millions	4800 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	45 W	65 W
Memory type	DDR4-2933	DDR4-2666
Max. Memory	128 Gb	128 Gb
Memory Frequency
Memory bandwidth	45.8 GB/s	41.6 GB/s
L1 cache
L2 cache
L3 cache	16 MB	12 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 i5-10500 is 29% better than Core i7-10870H in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Core i7-10870H has 2 more core than Core i5-10500. 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 i7-10870H is better: 28
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i5-10500 is better: 2
However, it should be realized that all the data in the article above do not mean that taking them into account you should completely trust a simple comparison of these numbers. Better to watch the video tests and read the opinion of real owners of Intel Core i7-10870H and Intel Core i5-10500 before making a choice which CPU to buy for gaming and which not.

• Intel Core i7-10870H specs and review.

• Intel Core i5-10500 specs and review.