Core i3-7300 vs Celeron G6900

The Core i3-7300 packs 2 cores / 4 threads, matching the Celeron G6900's 2 cores. Boost clocks reach 4 GHz on the Core i3-7300 versus 3.4 GHz on the Celeron G6900 — a 16.2% clock advantage for the Core i3-7300 (base: 4 GHz vs 3.4 GHz). The Core i3-7300 uses the Kaby Lake (2016−2019) architecture (14 nm), while the Celeron G6900 uses Alder Lake-S (2022) (Intel 7 nm). In PassMark, the Core i3-7300 scores 4,519 against the Celeron G6900's 4,458 — a 1.4% lead for the Core i3-7300. Both processors carry 4 MB (total) of L3 cache.

The Core i3-7300 uses the LGA1151 socket (PCIe 3.0), while the Celeron G6900 uses LGA1700 (PCIe 5.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Maximum memory speed reaches DDR4-2400 on the Core i3-7300 versus DDR5-4800 on the Celeron G6900 — the Celeron G6900 supports 22.2% faster memory, which can translate to measurable gains in memory-sensitive workloads. The Celeron G6900 supports up to 128 GB of RAM compared to 64 GB — 66.7% more capacity for professional workloads. Both feature 2-channel memory with ECC support. PCIe lanes: 16 (Core i3-7300) vs 20 (Celeron G6900) — the Celeron G6900 offers 4 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives.

Neither processor supports overclocking. Virtualization support: VT-x, VT-d (Core i3-7300) vs VT-x (Celeron G6900). Both include integrated graphics — HD Graphics 630 (Core i3-7300) and UHD Graphics 710 (Celeron G6900) — useful as a fallback for troubleshooting or display output without a dedicated GPU. Primary use case: Core i3-7300 targets Desktop, Celeron G6900 targets Budget. Direct competitor: Celeron G6900 rivals Pentium Gold G7400.

The Core i3-7300 launched at $184 MSRP, while the Celeron G6900 debuted at $52. At current prices ($46 vs $77), the Core i3-7300 is $31 cheaper. In terms of value (PassMark points per dollar), the Core i3-7300 delivers 98.2 pts/$ vs 57.9 pts/$ for the Celeron G6900 — making the Core i3-7300 the 51.7% better value option.