Core i5-6400 vs 12th Gen Core i5-12450HX
Short answer: which is best?
Core i5-6400 is 8.8 % stronger than 12th Gen Core i5-12450HX. Core i5-6400 ranks #95 of 99 measured processors at WhatFPS (3,476 CPU score over 1 verified runs). 12th Gen Core i5-12450HX ranks #96 of 99 measured processors at WhatFPS (3,195 CPU score over 1 verified runs). The numbers are measured in 2 verified WhatFPS runs — not estimated, not self-reported.
Measured comparison
| Metric | Core i5-6400 | 12th Gen Core i5-12450HX |
|---|---|---|
| CPU score (the processor's own performance) | 3,476 | 3,195 |
| Best rig (GAMING — whole PC) | 2,418 | 2,703 |
| Integer (MT) | 1.6 Gop/s | 3.4 Gop/s |
| Single-thread (1T) | 0.35 Gop/s | 0.12 Gop/s |
| Draw calls/s (DX11) | 4,875,346 | 7,379,307 |
| Cores / threads | 4 / 4 | 8 / 12 |
| L3 cache | 6 MB | 12 MB |
What the numbers mean
The CPU score is the processor's own performance — that is what we rank on. GAMING is the whole rig's score in the best PC we measured the processor in, and leans heavily on the graphics card. A strong processor in a weak PC gets a low GAMING score without being worse. We show both and never mix them.
All numbers come from our benchmark suite: four hand-built 3D scenes written directly against the graphics APIs in Rust, the same load on every PC. The methodology is open at https://whatfps.com/metodik
All measurements for Core i5-6400 · All measurements for 12th Gen Core i5-12450HX