Intel Core i3-6100 vs Intel Core i5-2500k

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CPU comparison with benchmarks


Intel Core i3-6100 CPU1 vs CPU2 Intel Core i5-2500k
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i5-2500k

CPU comparison

Intel Core i3-6100 or Intel Core i5-2500k - which processor is faster? In this comparison we look at the differences and analyze which of these two CPUs is better. We compare the technical data and benchmark results.

The Intel Core i3-6100 has 2 cores with 4 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 3.70 GHz. Up to 64 GB of memory is supported in 2 memory channels. The Intel Core i3-6100 was released in Q3/2015.

The Intel Core i5-2500k has 4 cores with 4 threads and clocks with a maximum frequency of 3.70 GHz. The CPU supports up to 32 GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The Intel Core i5-2500k was released in Q1/2011.
Intel Core i3 (205) Family Intel Core i5 (336)
Intel Core i 6000 (24) CPU group Intel Core i 2000 (28)
6 Generation 2
Skylake S Architecture Sandy Bridge S
Desktop Segment Desktop
-- Predecessor --
Intel Core i3-7100 Successor --

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The Intel Core i3-6100 has 2 CPU cores and can calculate 4 threads in parallel. The clock frequency of the Intel Core i3-6100 is 3.70 GHz while the Intel Core i5-2500k has 4 CPU cores and 4 threads can calculate simultaneously. The clock frequency of the Intel Core i5-2500k is at 3.30 GHz (3.70 GHz).

Intel Core i3-6100 Characteristic Intel Core i5-2500k
2 Cores 4
4 Threads 4
normal Core architecture normal
Yes Hyperthreading No
No Overclocking ? Yes
3.70 GHz Frequency 3.30 GHz
-- Turbo Frequency (1 Core) 3.70 GHz
-- Turbo Frequency (All Cores) 3.70 GHz

NPU AI performance

The performance values of the processor's AI unit. The isolated NPU performance is specified here, the total AI performance (NPU+CPU+iGPU) can be higher. Processors with support for artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can process many calculations, especially audio, image and video processing, much faster than classic processors.

Intel Core i3-6100 Characteristic Intel Core i5-2500k
-- AI hardware --
-- AI specifications --
-- NPU + CPU + iGPU --

Integrated graphics (iGPU)

The Intel Core i3-6100 or Intel Core i5-2500k has integrated graphics, called iGPU for short. The iGPU uses the system's main memory as graphics memory and sits on the processor's die.

Intel HD Graphics 530 GPU Intel HD Graphics 3000
0.35 GHz GPU frequency 0.85 GHz
1.15 GHz GPU (Turbo) 1.10 GHz
9 GPU Generation 6
14 nm Technology 32 nm
3 Max. displays 2
24 Compute units 12
192 Shader 96
No Hardware Raytracing No
No Frame Generation No
32 GB Max. GPU Memory 2 GB
12 DirectX Version 10.1

Hardware codec support

A photo or video codec that is accelerated in hardware can greatly accelerate the working speed of a processor and extend the battery life of notebooks or smartphones when playing videos.

Intel HD Graphics 530 GPU Intel HD Graphics 3000
Decode / Encode Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit) No
Decode Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit) No
Decode / Encode Codec h264 Decode / Encode
Decode Codec VP9 No
Decode / Encode Codec VP8 No
No Codec AV1 No
Decode / Encode Codec AVC Decode / Encode
Decode Codec VC-1 Decode
Decode / Encode Codec JPEG No

Memory & PCIe

The Intel Core i3-6100 can use up to 64 GB of memory in 2 memory channels. The maximum memory bandwidth is 34.1 GB/s. The Intel Core i5-2500k supports up to 32 GB of memory in 2 memory channels and achieves a memory bandwidth of up to 21.3 GB/s.

Intel Core i3-6100 Characteristic Intel Core i5-2500k
DDR4-2133, DDR3-1600 Memory DDR3-1333
64 GB Max. Memory 32 GB
2 (Dual Channel) Memory channels 2 (Dual Channel)
34.1 GB/s Max. Bandwidth 21.3 GB/s
Yes ECC No
-- L2 Cache --
3.00 MB L3 Cache 6.00 MB
3.0 PCIe version 2.0
16 PCIe lanes 16
15.8 GB/s PCIe Bandwidth 8.0 GB/s

Thermal Management

The thermal design power (TDP for short) of the Intel Core i3-6100 is 51 W, while the Intel Core i5-2500k has a TDP of 95 W. The TDP specifies the necessary cooling solution that is required to cool the processor sufficiently.

Intel Core i3-6100 Characteristic Intel Core i5-2500k
51 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 95 W
-- TDP (PL2) --
-- TDP up --
-- TDP down --
-- Tjunction max. --

Technical details

The Intel Core i3-6100 is manufactured in 14 nm and has 3.00 MB cache. The Intel Core i5-2500k is manufactured in 32 nm and has a 6.00 MB cache.

Intel Core i3-6100 Characteristic Intel Core i5-2500k
14 nm Technology 32 nm
Monolithic Chip design Monolithic
x86-64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) x86-64 (64 bit)
SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX2 ISA extensions SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX
LGA 1151 Socket LGA 1155
VT-x, VT-x EPT, VT-d Virtualization VT-x, VT-x EPT
Yes AES-NI Yes
Windows 10, Linux Operating systems Windows 10, Linux
Q3/2015 Release date Q1/2011
117 $ Release price --
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Rate these processors

Here you can rate the Intel Core i3-6100 to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 3.8 stars (22 ratings). Rate now:
Here you can rate the Intel Core i5-2500k to help other visitors make their purchasing decisions. The average rating is 3.5 stars (13 ratings). Rate now:

Average performance in benchmarks

Single core performance in 5 CPU benchmarks
Intel Core i3-6100 (99%)
Intel Core i5-2500k (79%)
Multi core performance in 7 CPU benchmarks
Intel Core i3-6100 (92%)
Intel Core i5-2500k (95%)

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a partial load benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. In the single-core test, only the fastest CPU core is measured. The test run simulates the performance in practice.
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i3-6100
2C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
1208 (100%)
Intel Core i5-2500k Intel Core i5-2500k
4C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
651 (54%)

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

The practical Geekbench 6 multi-core benchmark tests the system's performance under partial load. The processor's maximum power consumption is far from being used up.
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i3-6100
2C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
2355 (100%)
Intel Core i5-2500k Intel Core i5-2500k
4C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
1948 (83%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Single-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i3-6100
2C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
901 (100%)
Intel Core i5-2500k Intel Core i5-2500k
4C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
760 (84%)

Geekbench 5, 64bit (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 5 is a cross plattform benchmark that heavily uses the systems memory. A fast memory will push the result a lot. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i3-6100
2C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
2064 (81%)
Intel Core i5-2500k Intel Core i5-2500k
4C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
2537 (100%)

Cinebench R20 (Single-Core)

Cinebench R20 is the successor of Cinebench R15 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i3-6100
2C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
368 (100%)
Intel Core i5-2500k Intel Core i5-2500k
4C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
262 (71%)

Cinebench R20 (Multi-Core)

Cinebench R20 is the successor of Cinebench R15 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i3-6100
2C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
916 (100%)
Intel Core i5-2500k Intel Core i5-2500k
4C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
894 (98%)

iGPU - FP32 Performance (Single-precision GFLOPS)

The theoretical computing performance of the internal graphics unit of the processor with simple accuracy (32 bit) in GFLOPS. GFLOPS indicates how many billion floating point operations the iGPU can perform per second.
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i3-6100
Intel HD Graphics 530 @ 1.15 GHz
442 (100%)
Intel Core i5-2500k Intel Core i5-2500k
Intel HD Graphics 3000 @ 1.10 GHz
211 (48%)

Estimated results for PassMark CPU Mark

Some of the CPUs listed below have been benchmarked by CPU-monkey. However the majority of CPUs have not been tested and the results have been estimated by a CPU-monkey’s secret proprietary formula. As such they do not accurately reflect the actual Passmark CPU mark values and are not endorsed by PassMark Software Pty Ltd.
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i3-6100
2C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
4148 (100%)
Intel Core i5-2500k Intel Core i5-2500k
4C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
4155 (100%)

Blender 2.81 (bmw27)

Blender is a free 3D graphics software for rendering (creating) 3D bodies, which can also be textured and animated in the software. The Blender benchmark creates predefined scenes and measures the time (s) required for the entire scene. The shorter the time required, the better. We selected bmw27 as the benchmark scene.
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i3-6100
2C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
947.2 (100%)
Intel Core i5-2500k Intel Core i5-2500k
4C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
778.7 (82%)

CPU-Z Benchmark 17 (Single-Core)

The CPU-Z benchmark measures a processor's performance by measuring the time it takes the system to complete all benchmark calculations. The faster the benchmark is completed, the higher the score.
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i3-6100
2C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
357 (96%)
Intel Core i5-2500k Intel Core i5-2500k
4C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
372 (100%)

CPU-Z Benchmark 17 (Multi-Core)

The CPU-Z benchmark measures a processor's performance by measuring the time it takes the system to complete all benchmark calculations. The faster the benchmark is completed, the higher the score.
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i3-6100
2C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
1045 (78%)
Intel Core i5-2500k Intel Core i5-2500k
4C 4T @ 3.30 GHz
1336 (100%)

Cinebench R15 (Single-Core)

Cinebench R15 is the successor of Cinebench 11.5 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i3-6100
2C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
152 (100%)
Intel Core i5-2500k Intel Core i5-2500k
4C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
127 (84%)

Cinebench R15 (Multi-Core)

Cinebench R15 is the successor of Cinebench 11.5 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i3-6100
2C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
392 (85%)
Intel Core i5-2500k Intel Core i5-2500k
4C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
461 (100%)

Cinebench R23 (Single-Core)

Cinebench R23 is the successor of Cinebench R20 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The single-core test only uses one CPU core, the amount of cores or hyperthreading ability doesn't count.
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i3-6100
2C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i5-2500k Intel Core i5-2500k
4C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
697 (100%)

Cinebench R23 (Multi-Core)

Cinebench R23 is the successor of Cinebench R20 and is also based on the Cinema 4 Suite. Cinema 4 is a worldwide used software to create 3D forms. The multi-core test involves all CPU cores and taks a big advantage of hyperthreading.
Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i3-6100
2C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i5-2500k Intel Core i5-2500k
4C 4T @ 3.70 GHz
2450 (100%)

Devices using this processor

Intel Core i3-6100 Intel Core i5-2500k
Unknown Unknown

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