Ryzen 5 5500 vs Intel Core i5-12600KF — Specs & Performance Compared

Verdict: The Intel Core i5-12600KF is ahead of the Ryzen 5 5500 on all 7 shared benchmarks on file, by 28% to 66%, including 66% in Cinebench R23 multi (17,579 vs 10,561).

Side-by-side CPU comparison of the Ryzen 5 5500 and the Intel Core i5-12600KF. Released 2022 (Ryzen 5 5500), 2021 (Intel Core i5-12600KF). MSRP range: $159 · $264. Specs, synthetic benchmarks, AI inference tok/s, and Amazon availability below; each column header links to that part's benchmark page.

AMD · Zen 3

Ryzen 5 5500

6 cores65W TDP$159 MSRP2022

Full Ryzen 5 5500 benchmarks →

Intel · Alder Lake

Intel Core i5-12600KF

10 cores125W TDP$264 MSRP2021

Full Intel Core i5-12600KF benchmarks →

*Price sourced from Amazon.com. Price and availability subject to change.

Where to buy

A listing for each part; the current price and stock are on the retailer's page.

Specs side-by-side

Spec	Ryzen 5 5500	Intel Core i5-12600KF
cores	6	10
threads	12	16
p cores	—	6
e cores	—	4
base clock ghz	3.6	3.7
boost clock ghz	4.2	4.9
tdp w	65	125
l3 cache mb	16	20
process nm	7	10
socket	AMD Socket AM4	LGA1700

Synthetic benchmarks

Each row says whether a higher or a lower number is better (ranks and times are lower-is-better). Scores come from NanoReview, GadgetVersus, CGDirector, PCSpecs.io, PCBench, HardwareDB, Geekbench Browser, CpuTronic and PassMark; each row links its sources, and where they differ the cell shows their median. Empty cells mean we don't yet have that benchmark on file for the SKU.

Benchmark	Ryzen 5 5500	Intel Core i5-12600KF
Cinebench 2024 Multi-Core (higher is better) Source: NanoReview	588 pts	—
Cinebench 2024 Single-Core (higher is better) Source: NanoReview	82 pts	—
Cinebench R23 multi (higher is better) Source: GadgetVersus, CGDirector, PCSpecs.io, PCBench	10,561 points	17,579 points
Cinebench R23 single (higher is better) Source: GadgetVersus, CGDirector, PCSpecs.io, PCBench	1,365 points	1,860 points
Geekbench 6 multi (higher is better) Source: HardwareDB, Geekbench Browser, GadgetVersus, CpuTronic	7,745 points	11,934 points
Geekbench 6 Multi-Core (higher is better) Source: NanoReview	8,220 pts	—
Geekbench 6 single (higher is better) Source: HardwareDB, Geekbench Browser, GadgetVersus, CpuTronic	1,902 points	2,470 points
Geekbench 6 Single-Core (higher is better) Source: NanoReview	1,961 pts	—
PassMark CPU Mark (higher is better) Source: PassMark	19,267 pts	27,529 points
PassMark Single Thread (higher is better) Source: PassMark	3,062 points	3,915 points
PassMark Single Thread Rating (higher is better) Source: PassMark	3,060 points	3,916 points

Quick answers

Which is faster, the Ryzen 5 5500 or the Intel Core i5-12600KF?

The Intel Core i5-12600KF is ahead of the Ryzen 5 5500 on all 7 shared benchmarks on file, by 28% to 66%, including 66% in Cinebench R23 multi (17,579 vs 10,561).

What did the Ryzen 5 5500 and the Intel Core i5-12600KF cost at launch?

The Ryzen 5 5500 launched at a $159 MSRP and the Intel Core i5-12600KF at $264. Street prices drift from launch pricing; the Where to buy section links current listings.