In an era of fierce CPU battles, the rivalry between Intel and AMD is ancient. Intel’s i5 is one of the best midrange processors for all kinds of usage. But AMD isn’t too far behind; the Ryzen 5 series give Intel a run for their money.
As there’s a continuous shift in the CPU market, I can’t help but feel like the war is only getting started.
Well, this article will give you proper information about all the AMD equivalents of i5 and choosing the better one among them.
So without further due, let’s jump in.
Which AMD Processor is Equivalent to the Intel Core i5?
Generally speaking, experts consider AMD’s Ryzen 5 series as the Intel i5 counterpart in terms of price, performance, and availability. But that was before the release of 13-generation processors. The Intel i5-13600K can compete with the Ryzen 7 7700X.
This section will show the AMD counterparts for all Intel Core i5 processors. It will help you to get the information quickly. Remember that you can also enable all cores in Windows 10 and Windows 11 to increase CPU performance.
Here are the AMD equivalents of the Intel Core i5 processors:
| Intel | AMD | Cinebench R23 Single thread score difference (Intel/AMD) |
|---|---|---|
| Core i5-13600K | Ryzen 7 7700X | 2,011 (Intel)/2,007(AMD) |
| Core i5-12600K | Ryzen 5 7600X | 1,892 (Intel)/1,965(AMD) |
| Core i5-12500 | Ryzen 5 5500 | 1804 (Intel)/1370 (AMD) |
| Core i5-11600K | Ryzen 5 5600X | 1,564 (Intel)/1,593(AMD) |
| Core i5-10600K | Ryzen 5 3600X | 1,276 (Intel)/1,074 (AMD) |
| Core i5-9600K | Ryzen 5 2600X | 1,276 (Intel)/1,074 (AMD) |
As you can see, the new 13-gen i5 processor not only beats the Ryzen 5, but the Ryzen 7 7700X processor also can’t stand against it.
In the following part, I will present several charts with specs and benchmarks that will help you
understand why these AMD and Intel processors are each other’s counterparts.
Let’s compare the Specifications and Benchmarks of some Intel Core-i5 and AMD Ryzen series:
Intel Core i5-12600K vs AMD Ryzen 5 7600X
| Comparison | Intel Core i5-12600K | AMD Ryzen 5 7600X |
|---|---|---|
| Socket Type | FCLGA1700 | AM5 |
| Clockspeed | 3.7 GHz | 4.7 GHz |
| Turbo Speed | Up to 4.9 GHz | Up to 5.3 GHz |
| Physical Cores | 10 (Threads: 16) | 6 (Threads: 12) |
| Cache | L1: 768 KB L2: 4.0 MB L3: 20 MB | L1: 384 KB L2: 6.0 MB L3: 32 MB |
| Max TDP | 150W | 105W |
| CPU Mark | 27788 | 28709 |
| Price | $238.99 | $246.03 |
Intel Core i5-12500 vs AMD Ryzen 5 5500
| Comparison | Intel Core i5-12500 | AMD Ryzen 5 5500 |
|---|---|---|
| Socket Type | LGA 1700 | AM4 |
| Clockspeed | 3.0 GHz | 3.6 GHz |
| Turbo Speed | Up to 4.6 GHz | Up to 4.2 GHz |
| Physical Cores | 6 (Threads: 12) | 6 (Threads: 12) |
| Cache | L1: 480 KB L2: 7.5 MB L3: 18 MB | L1: 384 KB L2: 3.0 MB L3: 16 MB |
| Max TDP | 65W | 65W |
| CPU Mark | 20002 | 19501 |
| Price | $230 | $97.99 |
As you can see, if you are comparing the 12-gen Intel processor with Ryzen 5, then clearly, the Ryzen 5 wins by a good margin. Ryzen 5 5500 provides the same performance as Intel Core i5-12500 but at a lower price.
However, as Intel releases the 13-gen Core i5 processor, everything changes.
The Intel Core i5-13600K CPU can easily beat the AMD Ryzen 7 7700X by a huge margin. Let’s see how the processor performs against the 7700X.
Here is the spec comparison between the Ryzen 7 7700X and the Intel Core i5-13600K CPU:
Intel Core i5-13600K vs AMD Ryzen 7 7700X
| Comparison | Intel Core i5-13600K | AMD Ryzen 7 7700X |
|---|---|---|
| Socket Type | FCLGA1700 | AM5 |
| Clockspeed | 3.5 GHz | 4.5 GHz |
| Turbo Speed | Up to 5.2 GHz | Up to 5.4 GHz |
| Physical Cores | 14 (Threads: 20) | 8 (Threads: 16) |
| Cache | L1: 2,560 KB L2: 16.0 MB L3: 24 MB | L1: 512 KB L2: 8.0 MB L3: 32 MB |
| Max TDP | 125W | 105W |
| CPU Mark | 38442 | 36476 |
| Price | $318.71 | $348.99 |
You can easily see the Intel Core i5-13600K breaks all the previous records. Both Ryzen 5 and 7 series can’t compete with 13600K.
But if you choose the Intel Core i5 to build your PC, you must select suitable components to ensure the best performance. Check out the best CPU coolers, RAM, and motherboards for Intel Core i5 processors to get the best performance.
Intel Core i5 13600K vs Ryzen 5 7600X and 7 7700X: Which is Better?
Intel’s 13th Gen Raptor Lake processor 13600K is a beast for a mid-range budget. In terms of performance and price, the 13600K outperforms the Ryzen 5 7600X and 7 7700X, which sit just above and below the Core i5 13600K processor. Also, 13600K costs less than AMD.
The current retail price of Core i5-13600K is $329. On the other hand, the Ryzen 7 7700x costs $399, and Ryzen 5 7600X at $299.
In the present section, I will compare the performance of the 13-gen Intel Core i5 processor with the Ryzen 7 7700x and the Ryzen 5 7600X. It will help you to pick the better one for your PC.
Check the performance comparison between the Intel Core i5 13600K vs Ryzen 5 7600X and 7 7700X:
Adobe Premiere Pro benchmark (Puget Systems) Score:
The Premiere Pro benchmark is one of the best testing methods for professional workstations. It determines how well your CPU performs in terms of designing and editing.
Let’s see the Adobe Premiere Pro benchmark (Puget Systems) Score for all 3 CPUs:
Here you can see the Ryzen 7 7700X performs much better than the Intel Core i5 13600K processor. But the Ryzen 5 7600X series is nowhere near the i5.
Adobe Lightroom + Photoshop (Procyon combined benchmark) score:
Procyon combined benchmark score is another great tool for benchmarking CPU. Expats calculate the benchmark based on the time to export four images of different sizes.
See the Procyon score for Intel Core i5 13600K, Ryzen 5 7600X, and Ryzen 7 7700X:
Here’s also the AMD processor wins by a great margin.
Handbrake H.264 Video Encoding (Realbench Score):
The Realbench uses open-source applications and simple scripting to calculate the performance of a CPU. Let’s see how well the Intel Core i5 13600K performs against the AMD processors.
As you can see, Intel Core i5-13600K outperforms both Ryzen 5 7600X, and Ryzen 7 7700X by a huge margin. It performs way better than its AMD counterpart.
Game Comparison:
If you’re a hardcore gamer like myself, you need to look at the FPS comparison below. In this section, I’ve tasted two great games of 2022; Forza Horizon 5 and Far Cry 6. The resolution was 1080P with ultra settings.
Let’s see the performance of Intel Core i5-13600K, Ryzen 5 7600X, and Ryzen 7 7700X for both games.
Follow the FPS comparison between Intel Core i5-13600K, Ryzen 5 7600X, and Ryzen 7 7700X:
FPS of Forza Horizon 5: 1080p-Ultra settings
FPS of Far Cry 6: 1080p-Ultra settings
As you can see here, the i5-13600K gives you more FPS than the Ryzen. So the Intel i5 is also a better choice for gaming.
But you need to enable all of your CPU cores to get these FPS. Because it will increase your gaming performance.
Total System Power Consumption (watts)
Power consumption isn’t Intel’s strong suit. The AMD processor always consumes less power than Intel. In this part, I will compare the power usage for all 3. Let’s jump in. 
As you can see, the Intel processor consumes more power than AMD performance.
But if you mainly focus on editing work, Ryzen 7 7700X is also a good choice.
FAQs
Is the Ryzen 5 better than the Intel i5 11th gen?
Yes, the Ryzen 5 3600 is 12.7% faster than the Core i5-11400 in the stock cooler. But if you can successfully overclock the i5-11400 processor, it will outrank the Ryzen 5 3600 OC.
Are AMD Ryzen 5 processors good?
The AMD Ryzen 5 5600 is one of the top AMD CPUs for gaming. It has a perfect blend of performance for gaming and application workloads.
Is the Intel Core i5-13600K worth it?
Absolutely. With the price tag of $329, no other CPU can beat the overall experience of the Core i5-13600K processor.
Conclusion
In short, Intel and AMD both provide widespread PCI-E Generation 5, DDR5 memory, and high clock speeds in their CPUs. That’s why they are now closely aligned in terms of products and competition.
Before the release of the 13 gen, you can easily consider Ryzen 5 as the counterpart of the i5. But the Intel Core i5-13600K can beat any AMD processor in the same price range.
After reading the article, I’m sure you know the AMD equivalent of the Intel i5 processor and which one you should choose. Comment if you have any other quarry about PC processors. Peace!
