Core i5-13400F vs Core i7-12800H

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 i5-13400F

2023

Why buy it

✅+3.8% higher PassMark.
✅100+% more PCIe lanes (20 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.
✅Includes a boxed cooler (Yes), unlike Core i7-12800H.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Core i7-12800H across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Smaller total L3 cache (20 MB vs 24 MB).
❌Launch MSRP is still $196 MSRP, while Core i7-12800H mostly shows up through inconsistent older-market listings.
❌44.4% higher power demand at 65W vs 45W.

Core i7-12800H

2022

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +10.8% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅+20% larger total L3 cache (24 MB vs 20 MB).
✅Draws 45W instead of 65W, a 20W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark (24,119 vs 25,029).
❌No boxed cooler included, unlike Core i5-13400F.

Core i5-13400F

2023

Core i7-12800H

2022

Why buy it

✅+3.8% higher PassMark.
✅100+% more PCIe lanes (20 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.
✅Includes a boxed cooler (Yes), unlike Core i7-12800H.

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +10.8% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅+20% larger total L3 cache (24 MB vs 20 MB).
✅Draws 45W instead of 65W, a 20W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Core i7-12800H across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Smaller total L3 cache (20 MB vs 24 MB).
❌Launch MSRP is still $196 MSRP, while Core i7-12800H mostly shows up through inconsistent older-market listings.
❌44.4% higher power demand at 65W vs 45W.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark (24,119 vs 25,029).
❌No boxed cooler included, unlike Core i5-13400F.

Quick Answers

So, is Core i5-13400F better than Core i7-12800H?

It depends on what matters more to you. For gaming, Core i7-12800H is ahead with a 10.8% average FPS lead across 4 shared CPU game tests in our data. For rendering, compiling, streaming, and heavier multitasking, Core i5-13400F pulls ahead with 3.8% better PassMark. Core i7-12800H also has the bigger cache pool with 20% larger total L3 cache (24 MB vs 20 MB).

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

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, Core i5-13400F is the better fit. You are getting 3.8% better PassMark, backed by 10 cores and 16 threads.

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

Core i5-13400F is the smarter buy today. Core i5-13400F is at an unclear MSRP at $196 MSRP versus unclear MSRP, and it gives you 3.8% better PassMark. The trade-off is that Core i7-12800H is still the better pure gaming CPU with a 10.8% average FPS lead across 4 shared CPU game tests in our data. It is also 100.0% better value on MSRP (127.7 vs 0.0 PassMark/$), so the better CPU is not just faster, it is also the cleaner value play on paper.

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

Core i5-13400F is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2023 vs 2022) and more multi-core headroom with 10 cores / 16 threads instead of 14/20. 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 i5-13400F Benchmark Check

Core i7-12800H Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Core i5-13400F	Core i7-12800H
1080p
low	171 FPS	267 FPS
medium	158 FPS	257 FPS
high	132 FPS	213 FPS
ultra	112 FPS	183 FPS
1440p
low	143 FPS	229 FPS
medium	123 FPS	197 FPS
high	99 FPS	159 FPS
ultra	84 FPS	139 FPS
4K
low	81 FPS	159 FPS
medium	74 FPS	136 FPS
high	59 FPS	106 FPS
ultra	46 FPS	93 FPS

Open Core i5-13400F Open Core i7-12800H

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Core i5-13400F	Core i7-12800H
1080p
low	545 FPS	578 FPS
medium	464 FPS	490 FPS
high	389 FPS	414 FPS
ultra	356 FPS	381 FPS
1440p
low	458 FPS	477 FPS
medium	403 FPS	420 FPS
high	345 FPS	365 FPS
ultra	301 FPS	319 FPS
4K
low	280 FPS	293 FPS
medium	247 FPS	261 FPS
high	231 FPS	246 FPS
ultra	204 FPS	219 FPS

Open Core i5-13400F Open Core i7-12800H

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Core i5-13400F	Core i7-12800H
1080p
low	530 FPS	603 FPS
medium	449 FPS	603 FPS
high	415 FPS	545 FPS
ultra	375 FPS	462 FPS
1440p
low	490 FPS	603 FPS
medium	422 FPS	554 FPS
high	382 FPS	485 FPS
ultra	343 FPS	416 FPS
4K
low	393 FPS	498 FPS
medium	331 FPS	416 FPS
high	296 FPS	373 FPS
ultra	246 FPS	314 FPS

Open Core i5-13400F Open Core i7-12800H

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Core i5-13400F	Core i7-12800H
1080p
low	626 FPS	603 FPS
medium	626 FPS	603 FPS
high	626 FPS	603 FPS
ultra	626 FPS	602 FPS
1440p
low	626 FPS	603 FPS
medium	626 FPS	603 FPS
high	598 FPS	571 FPS
ultra	521 FPS	497 FPS
4K
low	535 FPS	524 FPS
medium	492 FPS	475 FPS
high	439 FPS	422 FPS
ultra	382 FPS	367 FPS

Open Core i5-13400F Open Core i7-12800H

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Core i5-13400F and Core i7-12800H

Core i5-13400F

The Core i5-13400F is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 4 January 2023 (2 years ago). It is based on the Raptor Lake-S (2023−2024) architecture. It features 10 cores and 16 threads. Base frequency is 2.5 GHz, with boost up to 4.6 GHz. L3 cache: 20 MB (total). L2 cache: 1.25 MB (per core). Built on Intel 7 nm process technology. Socket: LGA1700. Thermal design power (TDP): 65 Watt. Memory support: DDR5, DDR4. Passmark benchmark score: 25,029 points. Launch price was $196.

Core i7-12800H

The Core i7-12800H is manufactured by Intel. It was released in Janeiro 2022 (3 years ago). It is based on the Alder Lake-H (2022) architecture. It features 14 cores and 20 threads. Base frequency is 2.4 GHz, with boost up to 4.8 GHz. L3 cache: 24 MB (total). L2 cache: 1.25 MB (per core). Built on Intel 7 nm process technology. Socket: FCBGA1744. Thermal design power (TDP): 45 Watt. Memory support: DDR4, DDR5. Passmark benchmark score: 24,119 points. Launch price was $457.

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Processing Power

The Core i5-13400F packs 10 cores / 16 threads, while the Core i7-12800H offers 14 cores / 20 threads — the Core i7-12800H has 4 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4.6 GHz on the Core i5-13400F versus 4.8 GHz on the Core i7-12800H — a 4.3% clock advantage for the Core i7-12800H (base: 2.5 GHz vs 2.4 GHz). The Core i5-13400F uses the Raptor Lake-S (2023−2024) architecture (Intel 7 nm), while the Core i7-12800H uses Alder Lake-H (2022) (Intel 7 nm). In PassMark, the Core i5-13400F scores 25,029 against the Core i7-12800H's 24,119 — a 3.7% lead for the Core i5-13400F. L3 cache: 20 MB (total) on the Core i5-13400F vs 24 MB (total) on the Core i7-12800H.

Feature	Core i5-13400F	Core i7-12800H
Cores / Threads	10 / 16	14 / 20+40%
Boost Clock	4.6 GHz	4.8 GHz+4%
Base Clock	2.5 GHz+4%	2.4 GHz
L3 Cache	20 MB (total)	24 MB (total)+20%
L2 Cache	1.25 MB (per core)	1.25 MB (per core)
Process	Intel 7 nm	Intel 7 nm
Architecture	Raptor Lake-S (2023−2024)	Alder Lake-H (2022)
PassMark	25,029+4%	24,119
Cinebench R23 Multi	16,211	—
Geekbench 6 Single	2,407	—
Geekbench 6 Multi	11,408	—

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Memory & Platform

The Core i5-13400F uses the LGA1700 socket (PCIe 5.0), while the Core i7-12800H uses FCBGA1744 (PCIe 4.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.

Feature	Core i5-13400F	Core i7-12800H
Socket	LGA1700	FCBGA1744
PCIe Generation	PCIe 5.0+25%	PCIe 4.0
Max RAM Speed	DDR5-4800, DDR4-3200	—
Max RAM Capacity	192 GB	—
RAM Channels	2	—
ECC Support	No	—
PCIe Lanes	20	—

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Advanced Features

Virtualization: VT-x, VT-d (Core i5-13400F) / not specified (Core i7-12800H). Primary use case: Core i5-13400F targets Gaming. Direct competitor: Core i5-13400F rivals Ryzen 5 7600.