i7-8700K vs i9-9900K

Aggregate performance score

Core i9-9900K
2018
8 cores / 16 threads, 95 Watt
11.49
+33.9%
Core i7-8700K
2017
6 cores / 12 threads, 95 Watt
8.58

Core i9-9900K outperforms Core i7-8700K by a substantial 34% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Core i9-9900K and Core i7-8700K processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking675875
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation7.634.44
Market segmentDesktop processorDesktop processor
SeriesCore i9 (Desktop)Intel Core i7
Power efficiency11.458.55
Architecture codenameCoffee Lake-R (2018−2019)Coffee Lake-S (2017−2018)
Release date19 October 2018 (6 years ago)5 October 2017 (7 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$488$359

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

i9-9900K has 72% better value for money than i7-8700K.

Detailed specifications

Core i9-9900K and Core i7-8700K 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 cores8 (Octa-Core)6 (Hexa-Core)
Threads1612
Base clock speed3.6 GHz3.7 GHz
Boost clock speed5 GHz4.7 GHz
Bus typeDMI 3.0DMI 3.0
Bus rate4 × 8 GT/s4 × 8 GT/s
Multiplierno data37
L1 cache64K (per core)64K (per core)
L2 cache256K (per core)256K (per core)
L3 cache16 MB (shared)12288 KB
Chip lithography14 nm14 nm
Die size178 mm2149 mm2
Maximum core temperature100 °C100 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)72 °C72 °C
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility++
Unlocked multiplier++

Compatibility

Information on Core i9-9900K and Core i7-8700K 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 configuration1 (Uniprocessor)1 (Uniprocessor)
SocketLGA-1151FCLGA1151
Power consumption (TDP)95 Watt95 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i9-9900K and Core i7-8700K. 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)++
Turbo Boost Technology2.02.0
Hyper-Threading Technology++
TSX++
Idle States++
Thermal Monitoring++
SIPP++

Security technologies

Core i9-9900K and Core i7-8700K technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT++
EDB++
Secure Key++
MPX++
Identity Protection++
SGXYes with Intel® MEYes with Intel® ME
OS Guard++

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i9-9900K and Core i7-8700K are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i9-9900K and Core i7-8700K. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR4DDR3, DDR4
Maximum memory size128 GB128 GB
Max memory channels22
Maximum memory bandwidth44.668 GB/s42.671 GB/s

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics cardIntel UHD Graphics 630Intel UHD Graphics 630
Max video memory64 GB64 GB
Quick Sync Video++
Clear Video++
Clear Video HD++
Graphics max frequency1.2 GHz1.2 GHz
InTru 3D++

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i9-9900K and Core i7-8700K integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported33

Graphics image quality

Maximum display resolutions supported by Core i9-9900K and Core i7-8700K integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.

4K resolution support++
Max resolution over HDMI 1.44096 x 2304@24Hz4096 x 2304@24Hz
Max resolution over eDP4096 x 2304@60Hz4096 x 2304@60Hz
Max resolution over DisplayPort4096 x 2304@60Hz4096 x 2304@60Hz

Graphics API support

APIs supported by Core i9-9900K and Core i7-8700K integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.

DirectX1212
OpenGL4.54.5

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i9-9900K and Core i7-8700K.

PCIe version3.03.0
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.

i9-9900K 11.49
+33.9%
i7-8700K 8.58

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.

i9-9900K 18259
+34%
i7-8700K 13622

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.

i9-9900K 1701
+5.7%
i7-8700K 1610

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.

i9-9900K 8048
+23.6%
i7-8700K 6513

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.

i9-9900K 7933
+8.3%
i7-8700K 7328

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.

i9-9900K 48779
+24.8%
i7-8700K 39096

3DMark06 CPU

3DMark06 is a discontinued DirectX 9 benchmark suite from Futuremark. Its CPU part contains two scenarios, one dedicated to artificial intelligence pathfinding, another to game physics using PhysX package.

i9-9900K 14282
+22.1%
i7-8700K 11701

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.

i9-9900K 3.58
+16.2%
i7-8700K 4.16

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.

i9-9900K 21
+42.6%
i7-8700K 15

Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core

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

i9-9900K 1979
+45.3%
i7-8700K 1362

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.

i9-9900K 212
+10.4%
i7-8700K 192

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.

i9-9900K 2.38
+8.2%
i7-8700K 2.2

TrueCrypt AES

TrueCrypt is a discontinued piece of software that was widely used for on-the-fly-encryption of disk partitions, now superseded by VeraCrypt. It contains several embedded performance tests, one of them being TrueCrypt AES, which measures data encryption speed using AES algorithm. Result is encryption speed in gigabytes per second.

i9-9900K 11.1
+38.8%
i7-8700K 8

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.  

i9-9900K 114
+31%
i7-8700K 87

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.  

i9-9900K 261
+12.3%
i7-8700K 232

WinRAR 4.0

WinRAR 4.0 is an outdated version of a popular file archiver. It contains an internal speed test, using 'Best' setting of RAR compression on large chunks of randomly generated data. Its results are measured in kilobytes per second.

i9-9900K 7633
+7.2%
i7-8700K 7120

Geekbench 5.5 Multi-Core

i9-9900K 8845
+40.2%
i7-8700K 6310

Blender(-)

i9-9900K 224
i7-8700K 333
+48.7%

Geekbench 5.5 Single-Core

i9-9900K 1300
+7.4%
i7-8700K 1210

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 11.49 8.58
Recency 19 October 2018 5 October 2017
Physical cores 8 6
Threads 16 12

i9-9900K has a 33.9% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 1 year, and 33.3% more physical cores and 33.3% more threads.

The Core i9-9900K is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i7-8700K in performance tests.


Should you still have questions on choice between Core i9-9900K and Core i7-8700K, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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