PassMark CPU Mark evaluates processor speed through complex mathematical computations. It provides a reliable metric to compare multi-core performance, where higher scores indicate faster processing for multitasking, gaming, and heavy workloads.

Head-to-Head Verdict, Benchmarks, Value & Long-Term Outlook

This comparison brings together gaming FPS, productivity performance, platform differences, power efficiency, pricing context, and upgrade path so you can see which CPU actually makes more sense.

Core i5-10400F

2020

Why buy it

✅100+% more PCIe lanes (16 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.
✅Includes a boxed cooler (Yes), unlike Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (13,029 vs 20,084).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (12 MB vs 16 MB).
❌Launch MSRP is still $160 MSRP, while Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z mostly shows up through inconsistent older-market listings.
❌1525% higher power demand at 65W vs 4W.

Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z

2022

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +45.9% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅+33.3% larger total L3 cache (16 MB vs 12 MB).
✅Draws 4W instead of 65W, a 61W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌No boxed cooler included, unlike Core i5-10400F.

Core i5-10400F

2020

Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z

2022

Why buy it

✅100+% more PCIe lanes (16 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.
✅Includes a boxed cooler (Yes), unlike Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z.

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +45.9% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅+33.3% larger total L3 cache (16 MB vs 12 MB).
✅Draws 4W instead of 65W, a 61W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower PassMark (13,029 vs 20,084).
❌Smaller total L3 cache (12 MB vs 16 MB).
❌Launch MSRP is still $160 MSRP, while Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z mostly shows up through inconsistent older-market listings.
❌1525% higher power demand at 65W vs 4W.

Trade-offs

❌No boxed cooler included, unlike Core i5-10400F.

Quick Answers

So, is Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z better than Core i5-10400F?

Yes. Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z is the better overall CPU here. You are getting a 45.9% average FPS lead across 4 shared CPU game tests in our data, 54.1% better PassMark, and the stronger long-term platform, which makes it the stronger all-around choice.

Which one is better for gaming?

If gaming is the priority, Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z is the better pick here. According to our tests, it delivers 45.9% more average FPS across 4 shared CPU game tests.

Which one is better for streaming, content creation, and heavy multitasking?

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z is the better fit. You are getting 54.1% better PassMark, backed by 8 cores and 16 threads. It also carries the larger cache pool with 33.3% larger total L3 cache (16 MB vs 12 MB).

Which one is the smarter buy today, not just the cheaper CPU?

Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z is still the faster CPU overall, but Core i5-10400F makes more sense if price matters more than absolute performance. Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z is at an unclear MSRP at unclear MSRP versus $160 MSRP, and it gives you a 45.9% average FPS lead across 4 shared CPU game tests in our data. Core i5-10400F is also 100.0% better value on MSRP (81.4 vs 0.0 PassMark/$), which is why it is easier to justify for price-conscious builds on paper.

Which one is more future-proof for 2026 and beyond?

Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2022 vs 2020), 33.3% larger total L3 cache (16 MB vs 12 MB), and more multi-core headroom with 8 cores / 16 threads instead of 6/12. That extra compute headroom should age better as games, background tasks, and creator workloads get heavier.

Games Benchmarks

Paired with RTX 4090

To accurately isolate CPU performance, all benchmarks below use an NVIDIA RTX 4090 as the reference GPU. This eliminates GPU-side bottlenecks and highlights pure processing throughput differences between the CPUs.

Note: Real-world results may vary based on your actual GPU. CPU performance impact is more visible in processing-intensive titles and high-refresh-rate gaming scenarios.

Core i5-10400F Benchmark Check

Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Core i5-10400F	Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z
1080p
low	192 FPS	274 FPS
medium	152 FPS	244 FPS
high	123 FPS	206 FPS
ultra	100 FPS	176 FPS
1440p
low	153 FPS	231 FPS
medium	119 FPS	185 FPS
high	97 FPS	152 FPS
ultra	79 FPS	133 FPS
4K
low	82 FPS	161 FPS
medium	70 FPS	130 FPS
high	55 FPS	101 FPS
ultra	43 FPS	88 FPS

Open Core i5-10400F Open Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Core i5-10400F	Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z
1080p
low	326 FPS	461 FPS
medium	318 FPS	377 FPS
high	290 FPS	323 FPS
ultra	253 FPS	286 FPS
1440p
low	326 FPS	397 FPS
medium	292 FPS	339 FPS
high	267 FPS	295 FPS
ultra	234 FPS	252 FPS
4K
low	309 FPS	275 FPS
medium	258 FPS	241 FPS
high	235 FPS	224 FPS
ultra	199 FPS	195 FPS

Open Core i5-10400F Open Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Core i5-10400F	Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z
1080p
low	326 FPS	502 FPS
medium	326 FPS	502 FPS
high	326 FPS	502 FPS
ultra	326 FPS	502 FPS
1440p
low	326 FPS	502 FPS
medium	326 FPS	502 FPS
high	326 FPS	502 FPS
ultra	326 FPS	433 FPS
4K
low	326 FPS	502 FPS
medium	326 FPS	440 FPS
high	289 FPS	389 FPS
ultra	229 FPS	321 FPS

Open Core i5-10400F Open Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Core i5-10400F	Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z
1080p
low	326 FPS	502 FPS
medium	326 FPS	502 FPS
high	326 FPS	502 FPS
ultra	326 FPS	502 FPS
1440p
low	326 FPS	502 FPS
medium	326 FPS	502 FPS
high	326 FPS	502 FPS
ultra	326 FPS	502 FPS
4K
low	326 FPS	502 FPS
medium	326 FPS	502 FPS
high	326 FPS	482 FPS
ultra	326 FPS	418 FPS

Open Core i5-10400F Open Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Core i5-10400F and Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z

Core i5-10400F

The Core i5-10400F is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 30 April 2020 (5 years ago). It is based on the Comet Lake (2020−2025) architecture. It features 6 cores and 12 threads. Base frequency is 2.9 GHz, with boost up to 4.3 GHz. L3 cache: 12 MB (total). L2 cache: 256K (per core). Built on 14 nm process technology. Socket: LGA1200. Thermal design power (TDP): 65 Watt. Memory support: DDR4. Passmark benchmark score: 13,029 points. Launch price was $155.

Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z

The Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 20 April 2022 (3 years ago). It is based on the Rembrandt U (Zen 3+) (2022) architecture. It features 8 cores and 16 threads. Base frequency is 2.7 GHz, with boost up to 4.75 GHz. L3 cache: 16 MB. L2 cache: 4 MB. Built on 6 nm process technology. Socket: FP7. Thermal design power (TDP): 4 MB + 16 MB. Passmark benchmark score: 20,084 points. Launch price was $299.

⚡

Processing Power

The Core i5-10400F packs 6 cores / 12 threads, while the Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z offers 8 cores / 16 threads — the Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z has 2 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4.3 GHz on the Core i5-10400F versus 4.75 GHz on the Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z — a 9.9% clock advantage for the Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z (base: 2.9 GHz vs 2.7 GHz). The Core i5-10400F uses the Comet Lake (2020−2025) architecture (14 nm), while the Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z uses Rembrandt U (Zen 3+) (2022) (6 nm). In PassMark, the Core i5-10400F scores 13,029 against the Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z's 20,084 — a 42.6% lead for the Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z. L3 cache: 12 MB (total) on the Core i5-10400F vs 16 MB on the Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z.

Feature	Core i5-10400F	Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z
Cores / Threads	6 / 12	8 / 16+33%
Boost Clock	4.3 GHz	4.75 GHz+10%
Base Clock	2.9 GHz+7%	2.7 GHz
L3 Cache	12 MB (total)	16 MB+33%
L2 Cache	256K (per core)	4 MB+1500%
Process	14 nm	6 nm-57%
Architecture	Comet Lake (2020−2025)	Rembrandt U (Zen 3+) (2022)
PassMark	13,029	20,084+54%
Cinebench R23 Multi	8,191	—
Geekbench 6 Single	1,454	—
Geekbench 6 Multi	5,783	—

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Memory & Platform

The Core i5-10400F uses the LGA1200 socket (PCIe 3.0), while the Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z uses FP7 (PCIe 4.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.

Feature	Core i5-10400F	Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z
Socket	LGA1200	FP7
PCIe Generation	PCIe 3.0	PCIe 4.0+33%
Max RAM Speed	DDR4-2666	—
Max RAM Capacity	128 GB	—
RAM Channels	2	—
ECC Support	No	—
PCIe Lanes	16	—

🔧

Advanced Features

Virtualization: VT-x, VT-d (Core i5-10400F) / not specified (Ryzen 7 PRO 6860Z). Primary use case: Core i5-10400F targets Gaming. Direct competitor: Core i5-10400F rivals Ryzen 5 3600.