i3-8121U vs Ryzen 5 2500U

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Aggregate performance score

Ryzen 5 2500U
2017
4 cores / 8 threads, 15 Watt
4.11
+48.9%
Core i3-8121U
2018
2 cores / 4 threads, 15 Watt
2.76

Ryzen 5 2500U outperforms Core i3-8121U by a considerable 49% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Ryzen 5 2500U and Core i3-8121U processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking14031698
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Market segmentLaptopLaptop
SeriesAMD Ryzen 5Intel Core i3
Power efficiency25.939.33
Architecture codenameRaven Ridge (2017−2018)Coffee Lake-U (2018−2019)
Release date26 October 2017 (7 years ago)5 May 2018 (6 years ago)

Detailed specifications

Ryzen 5 2500U and Core i3-8121U 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)2 (Dual-core)
Threads84
Base clock speed2 GHz2.2 GHz
Boost clock speed3.6 GHz3.2 GHz
Bus typeno dataOPI
Bus rateno data4 GT/s
Multiplier2022
L1 cache128K (per core)64K (per core)
L2 cache512K (per core)256K (per core)
L3 cache4 MB (shared)4 MB (shared)
Chip lithography14 nm10 nm
Die size246 mm2123 mm2
Maximum core temperatureno data105 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)no data72 °C
Number of transistors4950 Millionno data
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility--

Compatibility

Information on Ryzen 5 2500U and Core i3-8121U 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)
SocketFP5Intel BGA1440
Power consumption (TDP)15 Watt15 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Ryzen 5 2500U and Core i3-8121U. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsXFR, FMA3, SSE 4.2, AVX2, SMTIntel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512
AES-NI++
AVX++
vProno data-
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)no data+
QuickAssistno data-
Speed Shiftno data+
My WiFino data+
Turbo Boost Technologyno data2.0
Hyper-Threading Technologyno data+
Idle Statesno data+
Thermal Monitoring-+
Flex Memory Accessno data+
Smart Responseno data+
Demand Based Switchingno data-
HD Audiono data+
RSTno data+
Precision Boost 2+no data

Security technologies

Ryzen 5 2500U and Core i3-8121U technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXTno data-
EDBno data+
Secure Keyno data+
MPX-+
SGXno data-
OS Guardno data+

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Ryzen 5 2500U and Core i3-8121U are enumerated here.

AMD-V+-
VT-dno data+
VT-xno data+
VT-ino data-
EPTno data+

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Ryzen 5 2500U and Core i3-8121U. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR4-2400DDR4
Maximum memory size32 GB32 GB
Max memory channels22
Maximum memory bandwidth38.397 GB/s38.397 GB/s
ECC memory support+-

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics cardAMD Radeon Vega 8Iris Pro Plus

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Ryzen 5 2500U and Core i3-8121U.

PCIe version3.03.0
PCI Express lanes1216

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.

Ryzen 5 2500U 4.11
+48.9%
i3-8121U 2.76

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.

Ryzen 5 2500U 6535
+48.8%
i3-8121U 4391

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.

Ryzen 5 2500U 811
i3-8121U 1165
+43.6%

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.

Ryzen 5 2500U 2375
+0.3%
i3-8121U 2367

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.

Ryzen 5 2500U 4828
+11.9%
i3-8121U 4314

Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core

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

Ryzen 5 2500U 609
+91.8%
i3-8121U 318

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.

Ryzen 5 2500U 137
+3%
i3-8121U 133

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 4.11 2.76
Recency 26 October 2017 5 May 2018
Physical cores 4 2
Threads 8 4
Chip lithography 14 nm 10 nm

Ryzen 5 2500U has a 48.9% higher aggregate performance score, and 100% more physical cores and 100% more threads.

i3-8121U, on the other hand, has an age advantage of 6 months, and a 40% more advanced lithography process.

The Ryzen 5 2500U is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i3-8121U in performance tests.


Should you still have questions on choice between Ryzen 5 2500U and Core i3-8121U, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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AMD Ryzen 5 2500U
Ryzen 5 2500U
Intel Core i3-8121U
Core i3-8121U

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Community ratings

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Questions & comments

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