Core i9-9900 vs Core i5-1240P

The Core i9-9900 packs 8 cores / 16 threads, while the Core i5-1240P offers 12 cores / 16 threads — the Core i5-1240P has 4 more cores. Boost clocks reach 5 GHz on the Core i9-9900 versus 4.4 GHz on the Core i5-1240P — a 12.8% clock advantage for the Core i9-9900 (base: 3.1 GHz vs 1.7 GHz). The Core i9-9900 uses the Coffee Lake-R (2018−2019) architecture (14 nm), while the Core i5-1240P uses Alder Lake-P (2022) (Intel 7 nm). In PassMark, the Core i9-9900 scores 16,238 against the Core i5-1240P's 16,224 — a 0.1% lead for the Core i9-9900. Cinebench R23 multi-core: 7,619 vs 11,268 (38.6% advantage for the Core i5-1240P). Geekbench 6 single-core — the metric most relevant to gaming — records 1,637 vs 2,102, a 24.9% lead for the Core i5-1240P that directly translates to higher frame rates. Multi-core Geekbench: 7,619 vs 7,577 (0.6% advantage for the Core i9-9900). L3 cache: 16 MB (total) on the Core i9-9900 vs 12 MB (total) on the Core i5-1240P.

The Core i9-9900 uses the LGA1151 socket (PCIe 3.0), while the Core i5-1240P uses FCBGA1744 (PCIe 5.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Maximum memory speed reaches DDR4-2666 on the Core i9-9900 versus DDR5-4800, DDR4-3200 on the Core i5-1240P — the Core i5-1240P supports 22.2% faster memory, which can translate to measurable gains in memory-sensitive workloads. The Core i9-9900 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 i9-9900) vs 20 (Core i5-1240P) — the Core i5-1240P offers 4 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives. Chipset compatibility: Z390,B365 (Core i9-9900) and Alder Lake-P (Core i5-1240P).

Neither processor supports overclocking. Both support VT-x, VT-d virtualization. Both include integrated graphics — UHD Graphics 630 (Core i9-9900) and Iris Xe Graphics (Core i5-1240P) — useful as a fallback for troubleshooting or display output without a dedicated GPU. Primary use case: Core i5-1240P targets Budget. Direct competitor: Core i5-1240P rivals Ryzen 5 6600U.

The Core i9-9900 launched at $423 MSRP, while the Core i5-1240P debuted at $309. At current prices ($330 vs $200), the Core i5-1240P is $130 cheaper. In terms of value (PassMark points per dollar), the Core i9-9900 delivers 49.2 pts/$ vs 81.1 pts/$ for the Core i5-1240P — making the Core i5-1240P the 49% better value option.