Core i5-13500 vs Core Ultra 5 225

The Core i5-13500 packs 14 cores / 20 threads, while the Core Ultra 5 225 offers 10 cores / 10 threads — the Core i5-13500 has 4 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4.8 GHz on the Core i5-13500 versus 4.9 GHz on the Core Ultra 5 225 — a 2.1% clock advantage for the Core Ultra 5 225 (base: 2.5 GHz vs 3.3 GHz). The Core i5-13500 uses the Raptor Lake-S (2023−2024) architecture (Intel 7 nm), while the Core Ultra 5 225 uses Arrow Lake-S (2024−2025) (3 nm). In PassMark, the Core i5-13500 scores 31,109 against the Core Ultra 5 225's 31,137 — a 0.1% lead for the Core Ultra 5 225. Cinebench R23 multi-core: 20,924 vs 17,020 (20.6% advantage for the Core i5-13500). Geekbench 6 single-core — the metric most relevant to gaming — records 2,419 vs 2,653, a 9.2% lead for the Core Ultra 5 225 that directly translates to higher frame rates. Multi-core Geekbench: 12,160 vs 13,028 (6.9% advantage for the Core Ultra 5 225). L3 cache: 24 MB (total) on the Core i5-13500 vs 20 MB (total) on the Core Ultra 5 225.

The Core i5-13500 uses the LGA1700 socket (PCIe 5.0), while the Core Ultra 5 225 uses LGA1851 (PCIe 5.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Both support up to DDR5-4800 memory speed. The Core Ultra 5 225 supports up to 256 GB of RAM compared to 192 GB — 28.6% more capacity for professional workloads. Both feature 2-channel memory with ECC support. PCIe lanes: 20 (Core i5-13500) vs 24 (Core Ultra 5 225) — the Core Ultra 5 225 offers 4 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives. Chipset compatibility: Z790,B760,Z690,B660 (Core i5-13500) and Z890,B860,H810 (Core Ultra 5 225).

Neither processor supports overclocking. Both support VT-x, VT-d, EPT virtualization. Both include integrated graphics — Intel UHD Graphics 770 (Core i5-13500) and Intel Arc Graphics (2 Xe-cores) (Core Ultra 5 225) — useful as a fallback for troubleshooting or display output without a dedicated GPU. Primary use case: Core i5-13500 targets High-end Productivity / Gaming, Core Ultra 5 225 targets Mainstream Desktop / Efficiency. Direct competitor: Core i5-13500 rivals Ryzen 7 7700; Core Ultra 5 225 rivals Ryzen 5 8600G.

The Core i5-13500 launched at $242 MSRP, while the Core Ultra 5 225 debuted at $240. At current prices ($264 vs $200), the Core Ultra 5 225 is $64 cheaper. In terms of value (PassMark points per dollar), the Core i5-13500 delivers 117.8 pts/$ vs 155.7 pts/$ for the Core Ultra 5 225 — making the Core Ultra 5 225 the 27.7% better value option.