i5-8500 vs i7-4790

Aggregate performance score

Core i7-4790
2014
4 cores / 8 threads, 84 Watt
4.75
Core i5-8500
2018
6 cores / 6 threads, 65 Watt
6.24
+31.4%

Core i5-8500 outperforms Core i7-4790 by a substantial 31% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Core i7-4790 and Core i5-8500 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking12891088
Place by popularity71not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation0.826.45
Market segmentDesktop processorDesktop processor
SeriesCore i7 (Desktop)Intel Core i5
Power efficiency5.168.75
Architecture codenameHaswell (2013−2015)Coffee Lake-S (2017−2018)
Release date1 May 2014 (10 years ago)2 April 2018 (6 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$303$202

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

i5-8500 has 687% better value for money than i7-4790.

Detailed specifications

Core i7-4790 and Core i5-8500 basic parameters such as number of cores, number of threads, base frequency and turbo boost clock, lithography, cache size and multiplier lock state. These parameters indirectly say of CPU speed, though for more precise assessment you have to consider their test results.

Physical cores4 (Quad-Core)6 (Hexa-Core)
Threads86
Base clock speed3.6 GHz3 GHz
Boost clock speed4 GHz4.1 GHz
Bus typeno dataDMI 3.0
Bus rate5 GT/s4 × 8 GT/s
Multiplierno data30
L1 cache64K (per core)384 KB
L2 cache256K (per core)1.5 MB
L3 cache8 MB (shared)9 MB (shared)
Chip lithography22 nm14 nm
Die size177 mm2149 mm2
Maximum core temperatureno data100 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)72 °C72 °C
Number of transistors1,400 millionno data
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility-+

Compatibility

Information on Core i7-4790 and Core i5-8500 compatibility with other computer components: motherboard (look for socket type), power supply unit (look for power consumption) etc. Useful when planning a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. Note that power consumption of some processors can well exceed their nominal TDP, even without overclocking. Some can even double their declared thermals given that the motherboard allows to tune the CPU power parameters.

Number of CPUs in a configuration11 (Uniprocessor)
SocketFCLGA1150FCLGA1151
Power consumption (TDP)84 Watt65 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-4790 and Core i5-8500. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsIntel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2
AES-NI++
AVX++
vPro++
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)++
My WiFi+no data
Turbo Boost Technology2.02.0
Hyper-Threading Technology++
TSX-+
Idle States++
Thermal Monitoring++
SIPP++
FDI+no data

Security technologies

Core i7-4790 and Core i5-8500 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT++
EDB++
Secure Key++
MPX-+
Identity Protection++
SGXno dataYes with Intel® ME
OS Guard++
Anti-Theft+no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i7-4790 and Core i5-8500 are enumerated here.

AMD-V++
VT-d++
VT-x++
EPT++

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i7-4790 and Core i5-8500. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR3DDR3, DDR4
Maximum memory size32 GB64 GB
Max memory channels22
Maximum memory bandwidth25.6 GB/s42.671 GB/s

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card
Compare
Intel HD Graphics 4600Intel UHD Graphics 630
Max video memory2 GB64 GB
Quick Sync Video++
Clear Videono data+
Clear Video HD++
Graphics max frequency1.2 GHz1.1 GHz
InTru 3D++

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i7-4790 and Core i5-8500 integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported33
eDP+no data
DisplayPort+-
HDMI+-
DVI+no data
VGA+no data

Graphics image quality

Maximum display resolutions supported by Core i7-4790 and Core i5-8500 integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.

4K resolution supportno data+
Max resolution over HDMI 1.44096x2304@24Hz4096x2304@24Hz
Max resolution over eDP3840x2160@60Hz4096x2304@60Hz
Max resolution over DisplayPort3840x2160@60Hz4096x2304@60Hz
Max resolution over VGA1920x1200@60Hzno data

Graphics API support

APIs supported by Core i7-4790 and Core i5-8500 integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.

DirectX11.2/1212
OpenGL4.34.5

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-4790 and Core i5-8500.

PCIe versionUp to 3.03.0
PCI Express lanes1616

Synthetic benchmark performance

Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.


Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark performance rating. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

i7-4790 4.75
i5-8500 6.24
+31.4%

Passmark

Passmark CPU Mark is a widespread benchmark, consisting of 8 different types of workload, including integer and floating point math, extended instructions, compression, encryption and physics calculation. There is also one separate single-threaded scenario measuring single-core performance.

i7-4790 7271
i5-8500 9547
+31.3%

GeekBench 5 Single-Core

GeekBench 5 Single-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses only a single CPU core.

i7-4790 1244
i5-8500 1392
+11.9%

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses all available CPU cores.

i7-4790 3895
i5-8500 4828
+24%

Cinebench 10 32-bit single-core

Cinebench R10 is an ancient ray tracing benchmark for processors by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. Its single core version uses just one CPU thread to render a futuristic looking motorcycle.

i7-4790 5926
i5-8500 8606
+45.2%

Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 10 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R10 using all the processor threads. Possible number of threads is limited by 16 in this version.

i7-4790 22667
i5-8500 40829
+80.1%

wPrime 32

wPrime 32M is a math multi-thread processor test, which calculates square roots of first 32 million integer numbers. Its result is measured in seconds, so that the less is benchmark result, the faster the processor.

i7-4790 6.39
+315%
i5-8500 26.52

Cinebench 11.5 64-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 11.5 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R11.5 which uses all the processor threads. A maximum of 64 threads is supported in this version.

i7-4790 8
i5-8500 10
+23.2%

Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 15 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R15 which uses all the processor threads.

i7-4790 765
i5-8500 950
+24.2%

Cinebench 15 64-bit single-core

Cinebench R15 (standing for Release 15) is a benchmark made by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version (sometimes called Single-Thread) only uses a single processor thread to render a room full of reflective spheres and light sources.

i7-4790 159
i5-8500 172
+8.5%

Cinebench 11.5 64-bit single-core

Cinebench R11.5 is an old benchmark by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version loads a single thread with ray tracing to render a glossy room full of crystal spheres and light sources.

i7-4790 1.79
i5-8500 1.96
+9.5%

x264 encoding pass 2

x264 Pass 2 is a slower variant of x264 video compression that produces a variable bit rate output file, which results in better quality since the higher bit rate is used when it is needed more. Benchmark result is still measured in frames per second.  

i7-4790 46
+16.2%
i5-8500 40

x264 encoding pass 1

x264 version 4.0 is a video encoding benchmark uses MPEG 4 x264 compression method to compress a sample HD (720p) video. Pass 1 is a faster variant that produces a constant bit rate output file. Its result is measured in frames per second, which means how many frames of the source video file were encoded per second.  

i7-4790 171
i5-8500 207
+20.8%

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 4.75 6.24
Integrated graphics card 1.84 3.09
Recency 1 May 2014 2 April 2018
Physical cores 4 6
Threads 8 6
Chip lithography 22 nm 14 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 84 Watt 65 Watt

i7-4790 has 33.3% more threads.

i5-8500, on the other hand, has a 31.4% higher aggregate performance score, 67.9% faster integrated GPU, an age advantage of 3 years, 50% more physical cores, a 57.1% more advanced lithography process, and 29.2% lower power consumption.

The Core i5-8500 is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i7-4790 in performance tests.


Should you still have questions on choice between Core i7-4790 and Core i5-8500, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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Intel Core i7-4790
Core i7-4790
Intel Core i5-8500
Core i5-8500

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Community ratings

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Questions & comments

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