Are you looking at the i9-13900k vs i7-13700k vs i5-13600k comparison to know which processor to buy? First, we put you in a situation… on October 20, the Intel Core i9-13900K and the rest of the Raptor Lake-S CPUs were launched , where the Azul brand reaches new heights of performance thanks to the substantial increase in frequency in its P- architecture. Core + E-Core.
This top – of – the – line model doubles the efficient core count to 16 , for a total of 32 threads . With them, it intends to surpass the AMD flagship in multitasking and especially in games, a field that has always been favorable to Intel. It also comes with improvements in L2 cache by doubling its capacity, Intel Thread Director and higher MTP up to 253W . Let’s see what it’s capable of!
You may be interested in knowing:
- Intel Core i9-13900K Review
- Intel Core i7-13700K Review
- Intel Core i5-13600K Review
Index of contents
- Intel Core i9-13900K technical characteristics
- Benchmark and performance
- Benchmarks (synthetic tests)
- game testing
- Consumption and temperature
- Conclusion about i9-13900k vs i7-13700k vs i5-13600k
Intel Core i9-13900K technical characteristics
| Intel Core i9-13900K | Intel Core i7-13700K | Intel Core i5-13600K | |
| microarchitecture | Raptor Lake-S (13th Gen) | Raptor Lake-S (13th Gen) | Raptor Lake-S (13th Gen) |
| Lithography | 10nm enhanced Intel 7 | 10nm enhanced Intel 7 | 10nm enhanced Intel 7 |
| Socket | LGA1700 | LGA1700 | LGA1700 |
| Cores/Threads | 8 P-core / 16 HT threads
16 E-core / 16 threads |
8 P-core / 16 HT threads
8 E-core / 8 threads |
6 P-core / 12 HT threads
8 E-core / 8 threads |
| clock frequency | P-Core at 3 Ghz base
5.8Ghz Turbo Boost Max 3.0 E-core 2.2Ghz base 4.3Ghz Turbo Boost |
P-Core at 3.4 Ghz base
5.4Ghz Turbo Boost Max 3.0 E-core 2.5Ghz base 4.2Ghz Turbo Boost |
P-Core at 3.5 Ghz base
5.1Ghz Turbo Boost Max E-core 2.6Ghz base 3.9Ghz Turbo Boost |
| unlocked | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| integrated graphics | Intel UHD 770 @ 1.45Ghz | Intel UHD 770 @ 1.6Ghz | Intel UHD 770 @ 1.5Ghz |
| Cache | L3: 36MB Smart Cache (E-core + P-core + iGPU)
L2: 32MB; 2MB/P-core, 4MB/E-core |
L3: 24MB Smart Cache (E-core + P-core + iGPU)
L2: 30MB; 2MB/P-core, 4MB/E-core |
L3: 24MB Smart Cache (E-core + P-core + iGPU)
L2: 20MB; 2MB/P-core, 4MB/E-core |
| power limit | 125W Processor Base Power (PL1)
253W Max Turbo Power (PL2) |
125W Processor Base Power (PL1)
253W Max Turbo Power (PL2) |
125W Processor Base Power (PL1)
181W Max Turbo Power (PL2) |
| TjMax | 100ºC | 100ºC | 100ºC |
| Heatsink included | Nope | Nope | Nope |
| CPU I/O | DDR5-5600Mhz DualChannel
DDR4-3200Mhz DualChannel 16 PCIe 5.0 lanes 4 PCIe 4.0 lanes |
DDR5-5600Mhz DualChannel
DDR4-3200Mhz DualChannel 16 PCIe 5.0 lanes 4 PCIe 4.0 lanes |
DDR5-5600Mhz DualChannel
DDR4-3200Mhz DualChannel 16 PCIe 5.0 lanes 4 PCIe 4.0 lanes |
Benchmark and performance
It’s time to test the Intel Core i9-13900K and make a comparison with its rivals with the following benchmark:
| TESTING BENCH | |
| Processor: | Intel Core i9-13900K |
| Motherboard : | Asus ROG Maximus Z790 Hero |
| RAM: | 32GB Kingston Fury Beast RGB DDR5 5600MHz |
| heatsink | Corsair H150i ELITE LCD |
| HDD | ADATA Gammix S70 |
| Graphic card | Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti |
| Power supply | Corsair RM1000 |
*The Asus ROG Maximus Z790 Hero board has been configured with a BIOS version 0502 with stock values, using Windows 11 Pro in its latest version for testing and VBS disabled.
Benchmarks (synthetic tests)
The tests we have used are:
- Cinebench R23 (CPU Score)
- Aida64 (RAM memory)
- 3DMARK Fire Strike (DX11)
- Time Spy (DX12) (Physics Score)
RAM read and write speeds are superior regardless of core configuration. Cinebench R15 multicore performance improvements are 52% compared to 12900K and 14% compared to 12900K in single core performance. Finally, the CB-R23 tests show that it is the most powerful CPU we have reviewed, reaching 48% multi-core efficiency, and breaking the 2200 barrier in single-threading, an impressive feat.
The results of the Fire Strike test on DX11 are staggering, with the 13900K beating the 7950X by 21% and the 12900K by 40%. In the DX12 Time Spy test, we see a 24% improvement over the 12900K.
game testing
Below we evaluate the performance of the Intel Core i9-13900K in games with 1080p and 1440p resolutions . Remember that the lower the resolution of the game, the greater the influence of the CPU . The test has been carried out with Resizable-BAR activated in the BIOS. The configuration that we have chosen in each case will be the following:
- Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Alto, TAA, DirectX 12
- Far Cry 5,Alto, TAA, DirectX 12
- DOOM Eternal, Ultra, Vulkan
- Final Fantasy XV, standard, TAA, DirectX 11
- Deus EX Mankind Divided, Alto, DirectX 11
- Metro Exodus, Alto, DirectX 12
The results for 1080p resolution in FPS is:
For 1440p resolutions the FPS achieved are:
The increase in frequencies and L2 cache has helped the 13900K to surpass its competitors, as you can see. A great step forward in gaming that can be seen in the results shown by these graphs.
Consumption and temperature
The Prime95 test has been used to analyze temperatures and consumption of the Intel Core i9-13900K in different scenarios, monitoring telemetry through HWiNFO and measuring the consumption of the test bench with a wattmeter .
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 1080p Telemetry in Stock Settings with Benchmark
In the following paragraphs, we will discuss the impact of BIOS and motherboard power settings on CPU performance. Since the Asus ROG Maximus Z790 Hero motherboard does not limit PL2 on this CPU, we see occasional power usage of 300W in certain tests like Prime95 or Cinebench, which is above the 253W specified by Intel. As a result, the average temperatures rise to 91 C and the peaks to 100 C. In general, the operating frequencies and voltages are adjusted to the maximum capacity, resulting in a consumption of 253 W. Operating frequencies and voltages are set to maximum capacity for the P core 5.5 GHz @1.32V and the E core 4.3 GHz @1.32V , with a maximum voltage of 1.484V once the 5.8 GHz boost is reached. These values have remained unchanged throughout the testing time.
Telemetry limiting PL1 and PL2 to 253W
We slightly reduced temperatures by setting the 253W limit in the short-lived package power limit section of the BIOS. Using an unchanged pure performance baseline in synthetic testing , average lowest temperatures of 88°C were measured, with maximum temperatures of 100°C unchanged. In games, the PL1 and PL2 limits are theoretically governed by the type of cooling we have, but in practice they would not have any impact on performance. It’s clear that we need at least an 850W power supply to run the RTX 3080 Ti on our test bench, which consumes 805W. On the Raptor Lak-S hardware, we need to unleash its power consumption restrictions if we want to get high temperatures.
Conclusion about i9-13900k vs i7-13700k vs i5-13600k
The Intel Core i9-13900K meets expectations as the fastest processor on the market, surpassing its predecessor by around 40%, with the brutal increase in clock frequencies and the addition of 8 more E-core being key. In addition, the performance is much better than the i7 and i5, especially if you want it for heavy multicore loads, where it has shown great results.
We recommend reading the best processors .
However, against has its price. Therefore, perhaps for a gamer the ideal would be to buy an intel Core i5-13600k , which has a better price-performance result. And leave the i7-13700k for those who only play very occasionally and need heavy workloads. To justify the price. But hey, if you like to treat yourself and buy an i9 to play alone. Go ahead, we will not be the one who tells you where you spend your money on whims. But you know, that with an i5, you can buy a better graphics card, that you will notice there.