Xeon E5-1681 V3 vs Core i5-12500TE

Xeon E5-1681 V3

10 Cores20 Thrd135 WWMax: 3.5 GHz2014

Core i5-12500TE

6 Cores12 Thrd35 WWMax: 4.3 GHz2022

Performance Spectrum - CPU

Xeon E5-1681 V3

10 / 20

14,820

0.0%

15,008

+1.3%

About PassMark

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.

Value Upgrade Path

This is the official ChipVERSUS Value Rating, comparing raw performance (PassMark) per dollar. Components placed above yours deliver better value for money.

MSRP is the manufacturer's suggested retail price.•
Avg price is the current average price collected from markets across the web.

Performance Per Dollar Xeon E5-1681 V3

#483

EPYC 9634

MSRP: $10304|Avg: $3949

112%

#484

EPYC 7773X

MSRP: $8800|Avg: $8800

111%

#485

Xeon Gold 6258R

MSRP: $3950|Avg: $1400

110%

#486

EPYC 9175F

MSRP: $4256|Avg: $3703

110%

#488

EPYC 9534

MSRP: $8803|Avg: $2999

108%

#489

EPYC 9654

MSRP: $11805|Avg: $5345

108%

#490

EPYC 7H12

MSRP: $6950|Avg: $1340

107%

#491

EPYC 7742

MSRP: $6950|Avg: $800

107%

#492

Xeon Platinum 8352M

MSRP: $4471|Avg: $4471

106%

#493

Xeon Platinum 8570

MSRP: $9595|Avg: $9595

105%

#494

EPYC 9184X

MSRP: $4928|Avg: $3750

104%

#495

Xeon Platinum 8470

MSRP: $9359|Avg: $9359

103%

#496

Xeon E7-8857 v2

MSRP: $3838|Avg: $2995

101%

#497

Xeon Gold 6148

MSRP: $3072|Avg: $290

101%

#498

Xeon E5-1681 V3

MSRP: $1589|Avg: $200

100%

#499

Xeon W-3275

MSRP: $4449|Avg: $1550

99%

#500

Xeon Gold 6138

MSRP: $2612|Avg: $300

99%

#501

Xeon E5-2690 v4

MSRP: $2090|Avg: $389

99%

#502

Xeon Platinum 8362

MSRP: $6236|Avg: $5740

98%

#503

Xeon W-3275M

MSRP: $4449|Avg: $4449

97%

#504

Xeon E5-2660 v3

MSRP: $1445|Avg: $150

97%

#505

Xeon E5-2679 v4

MSRP: $2702|Avg: $500

96%

#506

Xeon E5-2680 v3

MSRP: $1745|Avg: $212

91%

#507

Xeon Platinum 8562Y+

MSRP: $5945|Avg: $7000

90%

#508

Xeon E7-8895 v2

MSRP: $6841|Avg: $65

90%

#509

EPYC 9754

MSRP: $11900|Avg: $10631

89%

#509

EPYC 9684X

MSRP: $14756|Avg: $14756

89%

#511

Xeon D-1587

MSRP: $1652|Avg: $1443

88%

#512

Xeon E5-2687W v4

MSRP: $2141|Avg: $1138

88%

#513

Xeon W-3265

MSRP: $3684|Avg: $3400

88%

Based on actual market prices and performance synthetic scores.

Performance Per Dollar Core i5-12500TE

#273

Core i9-9900X

MSRP: $989|Avg: $300

108%

#274

Core i7-9700K

MSRP: $385|Avg: $200

108%

#274

Ryzen 7 1800X

MSRP: $499|Avg: $120

49%

#275

Core i3-10320

MSRP: $154|Avg: $140

107%

#276

Core i5-9600KF

MSRP: $262|Avg: $150

106%

#277

Ryzen 3 PRO 5355GE

MSRP: $180|Avg: $180

106%

#278

Ryzen Threadripper 1900X

MSRP: $549|Avg: $116

46%

#278

Core i7-14701TE

MSRP: $392|Avg: $390

106%

#279

Core i9-11900KF

MSRP: $513|Avg: $349

106%

#279

Ryzen Threadripper 1920X

MSRP: $799|Avg: $265

43%

#280

Athlon Silver 3050GE

MSRP: $75|Avg: $65

105%

#280

Core i7-7820X

MSRP: $599|Avg: $198

43%

#281

Core i7-9700E

MSRP: $259|Avg: $180

105%

#282

Core i7-11700K

MSRP: $399|Avg: $350

104%

#283

Ryzen Threadripper 1920

MSRP: $799|Avg: $200

41%

#283

Ryzen 7 PRO 3700

MSRP: $329|Avg: $330

103%

#284

Core i7-14701E

MSRP: $392|Avg: $380

103%

#284

Ryzen Threadripper 1950X

MSRP: $999|Avg: $300

41%

#285

Core i5-10400

MSRP: $182|Avg: $175

103%

#286

Core i3-12100

MSRP: $122|Avg: $180

103%

#287

Core Ultra 9 285T

MSRP: $549|Avg: $549

101%

#288

Ryzen Threadripper 1950

MSRP: $999|Avg: $300

33%

#288

Core i5-12500TE

MSRP: $225|Avg: $225

100%

#289

Athlon Silver PRO 3125GE

MSRP: $108|Avg: $70

99%

#290

Core i9-10900KF

MSRP: $509|Avg: $336

99%

#291

Core i9-7900X

MSRP: $999|Avg: $188

31%

#291

Core i9-14900T

MSRP: $549|Avg: $577

99%

#292

Core i5-13500T

MSRP: $342|Avg: $342

99%

#293

Core i3-10300

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $140.49

99%

#294

Core i9-7920X

MSRP: $1199|Avg: $236

29%

#294

Core i9-10900F

MSRP: $464|Avg: $300

99%

Based on actual market prices and performance synthetic scores.

Performance Comparison

About PassMark

🏆 Chipversus Verdict

🚀 Performance Leadership

Generational Difference: This comparison involves processors from different technological eras. The Core i5-12500TE (2022) utilizes 10 nm technology and **DDR4, DDR5 Dual-channel**, providing a fundamental performance advantage.

Insight	Xeon E5-1681 V3	Core i5-12500TE
Gaming	❌ Lower gaming performance	✅ Superior gaming performance
Workstation	❌ Weaker in multi-core tasks	✅ Better multi-core power
Price	✅ More affordable ($200)	⚠️ Higher cost ($225)
Longevity	🛑 Legacy (Haswell-EP (2014−2015) / 22 nm)	✨ Modern (Alder Lake-S (2022) / 10 nm)

💎 Value Proposition

The Xeon E5-1681 V3 (2014) relies on 22 nm technology and DDR4-2133, placing it in a different performance category relative to modern standards.

Insight	Xeon E5-1681 V3	Core i5-12500TE
Cost Efficiency	✅ Better overall value (+11%)	❌ Lower cost efficiency
Upfront Cost	✅ More affordable ($200)	⚠️ Higher cost ($225)

Performance Check

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.

Xeon E5-1681 V3 Benchmark Check

Core i5-12500TE Benchmark Check

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Xeon E5-1681 V3 and Core i5-12500TE

Xeon E5-1681 V3

The Xeon E5-1681 V3 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 2015-01-01. It is based on the Haswell-EP (2014−2015) architecture. It features 10 cores and 20 threads. Base frequency is 2.9 GHz, with boost up to 3.5 GHz. L3 cache: 25 MB (total). L2 cache: 256K (per core). Built on 22 nm process technology. Socket: LGA2011-3. Thermal design power (TDP): 135 Watt. Memory support: DDR4-2133. Passmark benchmark score: 14,820 points. Launch price was $800.

Core i5-12500TE

The Core i5-12500TE is manufactured by Intel. It was released in Janeiro 2022 (3 years ago). It is based on the Alder Lake-S (2022) architecture. It features 6 cores and 12 threads. Base frequency is 1.9 GHz, with boost up to 4.3 GHz. L3 cache: 18 MB (total). L2 cache: 1.25 MB (per core). Built on 10 nm process technology. Socket: LGA1700. Thermal design power (TDP): 35 Watt. Memory support: DDR4, DDR5 Dual-channel. Passmark benchmark score: 15,008 points. Launch price was $299.

⚡

Processing Power

The Xeon E5-1681 V3 packs 10 cores / 20 threads, while the Core i5-12500TE offers 6 cores / 12 threads — the Xeon E5-1681 V3 has 4 more cores. Boost clocks reach 3.5 GHz on the Xeon E5-1681 V3 versus 4.3 GHz on the Core i5-12500TE — a 20.5% clock advantage for the Core i5-12500TE (base: 2.9 GHz vs 1.9 GHz). The Xeon E5-1681 V3 uses the Haswell-EP (2014−2015) architecture (22 nm), while the Core i5-12500TE uses Alder Lake-S (2022) (10 nm). In PassMark, the Xeon E5-1681 V3 scores 14,820 against the Core i5-12500TE's 15,008 — a 1.3% lead for the Core i5-12500TE. Geekbench 6 single-core — the metric most relevant to gaming — records 1,050 vs 1,962, a 60.6% lead for the Core i5-12500TE that directly translates to higher frame rates. Multi-core Geekbench: 9,000 vs 1,898 (130.3% advantage for the Xeon E5-1681 V3). L3 cache: 25 MB (total) on the Xeon E5-1681 V3 vs 18 MB (total) on the Core i5-12500TE.

Feature	Xeon E5-1681 V3	Core i5-12500TE
Cores / Threads	10 / 20+67%	6 / 12
Boost Clock	3.5 GHz	4.3 GHz+23%
Base Clock	2.9 GHz+53%	1.9 GHz
L3 Cache	25 MB (total)+39%	18 MB (total)
L2 Cache	256K (per core)	1.25 MB (per core)+400%
Process	22 nm	10 nm-55%
Architecture	Haswell-EP (2014−2015)	Alder Lake-S (2022)
PassMark	14,820	15,008+1%
Cinebench R23 Multi	—	659
Geekbench 6 Single	1,050	1,962+87%
Geekbench 6 Multi	9,000+374%	1,898

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Xeon E5-1681 V3 uses the LGA2011-3 socket (PCIe 3.0), while the Core i5-12500TE uses LGA1700 (PCIe 5.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Maximum memory speed reaches DDR4-2133 on the Xeon E5-1681 V3 versus DDR5-4800 on the Core i5-12500TE — the Core i5-12500TE supports 22.2% faster memory, which can translate to measurable gains in memory-sensitive workloads. The Xeon E5-1681 V3 supports up to 768 GB of RAM compared to 128 GB — 142.9% more capacity for professional workloads. Memory channels: 4 (Xeon E5-1681 V3) vs 2 (Core i5-12500TE). PCIe lanes: 40 (Xeon E5-1681 V3) vs 20 (Core i5-12500TE) — the Xeon E5-1681 V3 offers 20 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives. Chipset compatibility: C612,X99 (Xeon E5-1681 V3) and H610,B660,H670,Z690,B760,H770,Z790 (Core i5-12500TE).

Feature	Xeon E5-1681 V3	Core i5-12500TE
Socket	LGA2011-3	LGA1700
PCIe Generation	PCIe 3.0	PCIe 5.0+67%
Max RAM Speed	DDR4-2133	DDR5-4800+25%
Max RAM Capacity	768 GB+500%	128 GB
RAM Channels	4+100%	2
ECC Support	✅	✅
PCIe Lanes	40+100%	20

🔧

Advanced Features

Virtualization support: Yes (Xeon E5-1681 V3) vs VT-x, VT-d (Core i5-12500TE). The Core i5-12500TE includes integrated graphics (UHD 770), while the Xeon E5-1681 V3 requires a dedicated GPU. Primary use case: Core i5-12500TE targets Budget. Direct competitor: Core i5-12500TE rivals Core i5-12400T.

Feature	Xeon E5-1681 V3	Core i5-12500TE
Integrated GPU	No	Yes
IGPU Model	—	UHD 770
Unlocked	—	No
AVX-512	No	No
Virtualization	Yes	VT-x, VT-d
Target Use	—	Budget

💰

Value Analysis

The Xeon E5-1681 V3 launched at $1589 MSRP, while the Core i5-12500TE debuted at $225. At current prices ($200 vs $225), the Xeon E5-1681 V3 is $25 cheaper. In terms of value (PassMark points per dollar), the Xeon E5-1681 V3 delivers 74.1 pts/$ vs 66.7 pts/$ for the Core i5-12500TE — making the Xeon E5-1681 V3 the 10.5% better value option.