Intel Core i9-9960X vs Intel Core i5-9600KF

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CPU comparison with benchmarks


Intel Core i9-9960X CPU1 vs CPU2 Intel Core i5-9600KF
Intel Core i9-9960X Intel Core i5-9600KF

CPU comparison

In this CPU comparison, we compare the Intel Core i9-9960X and the Intel Core i5-9600KF and use benchmarks to check which processor is faster.

We compare the Intel Core i9-9960X 16 core processor released in Q4/2018 with the Intel Core i5-9600KF which has 6 CPU cores and was introduced in Q1/2019.
Intel Core i9 (78) Family Intel Core i5 (328)
Intel Core i 9000X (8) CPU group Intel Core i 9000 (34)
9 Generation 9
Skylake X Refresh Architecture Coffee Lake S Refresh
Desktop / Server Segment Desktop / Server
Intel Core i9-7960X Predecessor --
-- Successor Intel Core i5-10600KF

CPU Cores and Base Frequency

The Intel Core i9-9960X is a 16 core processor with a clock frequency of 3.10 GHz (4.50 GHz). The processor can compute 32 threads at the same time. The Intel Core i5-9600KF clocks with 3.70 GHz (4.60 GHz), has 6 CPU cores and can calculate 6 threads in parallel.

Intel Core i9-9960X Characteristic Intel Core i5-9600KF
16 Cores 6
32 Threads 6
normal Core architecture normal
Yes Hyperthreading No
Yes Overclocking ? Yes
3.10 GHz Frequency 3.70 GHz
4.50 GHz Turbo Frequency (1 Core) 4.60 GHz
4.10 GHz Turbo Frequency (All Cores) 4.30 GHz

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Processors with the support of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can process many calculations, especially audio, image and video processing, much faster than classic processors. Algorithms for ML improve their performance the more data they have collected via software. ML tasks can be processed up to 10,000 times faster than with a classic processor.

Intel Core i9-9960X Characteristic Intel Core i5-9600KF
-- AI hardware --
-- AI specifications --

Internal Graphics

Graphics (iGPU) integrated into the processor not only enable image output without having to rely on a dedicated graphics solution, but can also efficiently accelerate video playback.

no iGPU GPU no iGPU
GPU frequency --
-- GPU (Turbo) --
-- GPU Generation --
Technology
Max. displays
-- Compute units --
-- Shader --
No Hardware Raytracing No
No Frame Generation No
-- Max. GPU Memory --
-- DirectX Version --

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.

no iGPU GPU no iGPU
No Codec h265 / HEVC (8 bit) No
No Codec h265 / HEVC (10 bit) No
No Codec h264 No
No Codec VP9 No
No Codec VP8 No
No Codec AV1 No
No Codec AVC No
No Codec VC-1 No
No Codec JPEG No

Memory & PCIe

Up to 128 GB of memory in a maximum of 4 memory channels is supported by the Intel Core i9-9960X, while the Intel Core i5-9600KF supports a maximum of 128 GB of memory with a maximum memory bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s enabled.

Intel Core i9-9960X Characteristic Intel Core i5-9600KF
DDR4-2666 Memory DDR4-2666
128 GB Max. Memory 128 GB
4 (Quad Channel) Memory channels 2 (Dual Channel)
42.7 GB/s Max. Bandwidth 42.7 GB/s
No ECC No
-- L2 Cache --
22.00 MB L3 Cache 9.00 MB
3.0 PCIe version 3.0
44 PCIe lanes 16
43.3 GB/s PCIe Bandwidth 15.8 GB/s

Thermal Management

The Intel Core i9-9960X has a TDP of 165 W. The TDP of the Intel Core i5-9600KF is 95 W. System integrators use the TDP of the processor as a guide when dimensioning the cooling solution.

Intel Core i9-9960X Characteristic Intel Core i5-9600KF
165 W TDP (PL1 / PBP) 95 W
-- TDP (PL2) --
-- TDP up --
-- TDP down --
92 °C Tjunction max. 100 °C

Technical details

The Intel Core i9-9960X has 22.00 MB cache and is manufactured in 14 nm. The cache of Intel Core i5-9600KF is at 9.00 MB. The processor is manufactured in 14 nm.

Intel Core i9-9960X Characteristic Intel Core i5-9600KF
14 nm Technology 14 nm
Monolithic Chip design Monolithic
x86-64 (64 bit) Instruction set (ISA) x86-64 (64 bit)
SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX2, AVX-512 ISA extensions SSE4.1, SSE4.2, AVX2
LGA 2066 Socket LGA 1151-2
VT-x, VT-x EPT, VT-d Virtualization VT-x, VT-x EPT, VT-d
Yes AES-NI Yes
Windows 10, Windows 11, Linux Operating systems Windows 10, Windows 11, Linux
Q4/2018 Release date Q1/2019
1684 $ Release price 260 $
show more data show more data


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Average performance in benchmarks

⌀ Single core performance in 4 CPU benchmarks
⌀ Multi core performance in 6 CPU benchmarks

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 i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 4.50 GHz
1174 (94%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 4.60 GHz
1244 (100%)

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 i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 4.10 GHz
14314 (100%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 4.30 GHz
5643 (39%)

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The single-core benchmark only evaluates the performance of the fastest CPU core, the number of CPU cores in a processor is irrelevant here.
Intel Core i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 4.50 GHz
1459 (93%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 4.60 GHz
1561 (100%)

Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)

Geekbench 6 is a benchmark for modern computers, notebooks and smartphones. What is new is an optimized utilization of newer CPU architectures, e.g. based on the big.LITTLE concept and combining CPU cores of different sizes. The multi-core benchmark evaluates the performance of all of the processor's CPU cores. Virtual thread improvements such as AMD SMT or Intel's Hyper-Threading have a positive impact on the benchmark result.
Intel Core i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 4.10 GHz
11020 (100%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 4.30 GHz
6244 (57%)

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 i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 4.50 GHz
457 (96%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 4.60 GHz
475 (100%)

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 i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 4.10 GHz
6671 (100%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 4.30 GHz
2643 (40%)

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 i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 4.10 GHz
30355 (100%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 4.30 GHz
10791 (36%)

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 i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 4.10 GHz
104.3 (33%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 4.30 GHz
315.5 (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 i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 4.50 GHz
200 (98%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 4.60 GHz
204 (100%)

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 i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 4.10 GHz
2872 (100%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 4.30 GHz
1165 (41%)

Cinebench 2024 (Single-Core)

The Cinebench 2024 benchmark is based on the Redshift rendering engine, which is also used in Maxon's 3D program Cinema 4D. The benchmark runs are each 10 minutes long to test whether the processor is limited by its heat generation.
Intel Core i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 4.50 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 4.60 GHz
73 (100%)

Cinebench 2024 (Multi-Core)

The Multi-Core test of the Cinebench 2024 benchmark uses all cpu cores to render using the Redshift rendering engine, which is also used in Maxons Cinema 4D. The benchmark run is 10 minutes long to test whether the processor is limited by its heat generation.
Intel Core i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 4.50 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 4.60 GHz
355 (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 i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 4.50 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 4.60 GHz
1276 (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 i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 4.10 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 4.30 GHz
7301 (100%)

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 i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 4.10 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 4.30 GHz
539 (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 i9-9960X Intel Core i9-9960X
16C 32T @ 3.10 GHz
0 (0%)
Intel Core i5-9600KF Intel Core i5-9600KF
6C 6T @ 3.70 GHz
2921 (100%)

Devices using this processor

Intel Core i9-9960X Intel Core i5-9600KF
Unknown Unknown

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