Intel Core i5-14400 Review: Intel's value gaming chip falls behind AMD

The Intel 7 refresh train chugs along.

Core i5-14400
(Image: © Tom's Hardware)

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Intel Core i5-14400 Productivity Application Benchmarks, the TLDR:

We boil down productivity application performance into two broad categories: single- and multi-threaded. These slides show the geometric mean of performance in several of our most important tests in each of these categories, but be sure to look at the expanded results below for more granular analysis.

The $225 Core i5-14400 is only 1% faster in multi-threaded and 2% faster in single-threaded work than the previous-gen Core i5-13400, an imperceptible difference between the two chips. In terms of real-world workloads, this is the same chip. 

Again, we see that DDR4 memory with the Core i5-14400 delivers a slight improvement over DDR5 at stock settings. Memory tuning confers small gains in multi-threaded applications for both configurations, but there's no gain in single-threaded work. We also see limited uplift from tuning with the Ryzen models.

The $210 Ryzen 5 7600X is 6% faster than the Core i5-14400 in single-threaded work and 3% faster in multi-threaded applications, showing that it's a solid all-rounder if you prize performance in productivity workloads.

The $245 Ryzen 7 5700X3D uses the previous-gen Zen 3 CPU microarchitecture, so it loses steam in our application benchmarks. The Core i5-14400 is 10% faster in multi-threaded work and 27% faster in single-threaded applications, so it offers a much more balanced profile overall. However, the Ryzen 7 5700X3D is positioned for AM4 upgraders and those who are more focused on gaming, and there, it provides incredible value. 

The Ryzen 5 7600X provides the best performance in productivity applications overall, again providing more value than the Core i5-14400. 

Rendering Benchmarks on Intel Core i5-14400

The Core i5-14400 is 9% faster than the Ryzen 5 7600X in the Cinebench multi-threaded benchmark but trails by 8% in the single-threaded test. The 14400 also scores notable wins in POV-Ray and the various Blender renders, but the 7600X remains competitive in many of these workloads. 

Meanwhile, the Ryzen 7 5700X3D predictably lags across the board.

Encoding Benchmarks on Intel Core i5-14400

Our tests include single-threaded encoding benchmarks, like LAME and FLAC, but the SVT-AV1 and SVT-HEVC tests represent a newer class of threaded encoders.

The Ryzen 5 7600X outperforms the Core i5-14400 in all single-threaded encoder benchmarks and leads in most threaded encoders. 

Compilation, Compression, AVX on Intel Core i5-14400

This selection of tests spans from massively parallel molecular dynamics simulation code in NAMD to compression/decompression performance. Y-cruncher computes Pi with the AVX instruction set, making for an incredibly demanding benchmark.

The Ryzen 5 7600X carves out a lead in compression/decompression and y-cruncher, while the 14400 leads in compilation workloads.

Many of these tests aren't very relevant to the target audience for this class of chip, but we include them for completeness.

Paul Alcorn
Managing Editor: News and Emerging Tech

Paul Alcorn is the Managing Editor: News and Emerging Tech for Tom's Hardware US. He also writes news and reviews on CPUs, storage, and enterprise hardware.

  • -Fran-
    Snake oil? Le gasp!

    In any case, I have to say I'm surprised the perf/$ kind of sucks with this chip (not suck, but not beat AMD as it was the case). This was the last bastion for Intel to claim "superiority" from recent memory, so it's surprising.

    Thanks for the review and great data, Paul!

    Regards.
    Reply
  • usertests
    I didn't realize the 7600X was that far behind the 5000X3D CPUs.

    Seems the gap is wider than this review:
    https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amd-ryzen-9-7950x-ryzen-5-7600x-cpu-review/6
    Reply
  • edzieba
    Particular for DIY upgraders, the DDR4 aspect for Raptor Lake still likely makes it more attractive in total upgrade (CPU + mobo + RAM) perf/$. Even with DDR5 getting less expensive, it will still be more expensive than paying nothing to re-use your current DDR4 DIMMs.
    Reply
  • TerryLaze
    -Fran- said:
    Snake oil? Le gasp!

    In any case, I have to say I'm surprised the perf/$ kind of sucks with this chip (not suck, but not beat AMD as it was the case). This was the last bastion for Intel to claim "superiority" from recent memory, so it's surprising.

    Thanks for the review and great data, Paul!

    Regards.
    I'm just wondering, but what exactly is surprising about a company having to sell older technology for less money, or newer for more, anyway you take it.

    The 7600x was $300 when it came out...and now AMD is forced to sell it for 70% of that because of the x3d CPUs and the newer intel CPUs, even though it is current gen.
    Reply
  • Glutonias Hambonias
    Maybe Ryzen will start to pull ahead.
    Reply
  • rluker5
    The 14th series pricing is not the best compared to older named products. You can buy the same chip, but faster, unlocked and at 2/3 the price at Newegg right now: the 12600kf https://www.newegg.com/intel-core-i5-12600kf-core-i5-12th-gen/p/N82E16819118349
    It would probably beat the 7600x(at $210) for $155. A real world performance/price thrashing. Although you would have to buy a $20 cooler if you didn't already have one: https://www.amazon.com/Thermalright-Assassin-SE-Heatpipes-TL-C12C/dp/B09Y869Z8B/ref=sr_1_20?crid=2SX1Y3LFI5SQZ&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.oWn8-RfUPfvuDzeOWU8_36bSlzc8uRnTjORmhoO2C0vsUFZ2STUVF1WtAEnZKG4Z-zUmrifpulpSJuMlZsGSFeEKCMLhJtaGVL11yTUskSdNXF1vBh_BKnhNbXbFp3tXCfLhF5edknjQiEoY5HyH03kxieOlLxKUutlOXeloABhP1HFS0d8K3bcCwNERJBSq830llUJSSoS_NVuNQxFQtR_-9MBwMGiEx6rd9EcgLtA.GH6nMT41xmldgof1e-hTaPzaY_pNrkZhB5XDJ4IX1Mo&dib_tag=se&keywords=lga%2B1700%2Bcooler&qid=1713446673&sprefix=lga%2B1700%2Bcoo%2Caps%2C104&sr=8-20&th=1
    Reply
  • Roland Of Gilead
    The base and boost clocks for the 14400/13400 are reversed in the first table.
    Reply
  • strobolt
    I don't quite understand why the article mentions "adequate stock cooler" as a pro but then also within the article it's mentioned that "we always recommend upgrading the stock cooler". If the stock cooler is adequate then what's the reason for upgrading? I understand that some people who run very extensive multithreaded workloads and in warmer climate you might end up with excessive noise and even bottlenecking but the average gamer / productivity user in a airconditioned environment probably doesn't even notice the difference. And even in gaming when you want to run high fps, the GPU is likely going to make so much noise that the CPU cooler is not distinguishable anyway.
    Reply
  • -Fran-
    TerryLaze said:
    I'm just wondering, but what exactly is surprising about a company having to sell older technology for less money, or newer for more, anyway you take it.

    The 7600x was $300 when it came out...and now AMD is forced to sell it for 70% of that because of the x3d CPUs and the newer intel CPUs, even though it is current gen.
    Saying the i5 14400 is "new" is a big stretch given is a toss between being a re-hashed Alder or a defective Raptor.

    As for the price: Intel decided that price point, so they have only themselves to blame. I believe Intel thinks they can get away with people not doing their research (much like AMD does as well; 5700 non-G, looking at you) only looking at the price point relative to the rest.

    That's what is surprising to me: why didn't Intel read the room and chose such a price point that would make them look bad. Weird. Are they with no other options anymore?

    Regards.
    Reply
  • Amdlova
    You can grab a used 13500t on ebay for 175us. Cheap gaming little machine.
    Reply