AMD Athlon X4 970 vs Intel Core i5-3470 Comparison

The Intel Core i5-3470 and AMD Athlon X4 970 are both aging quad-core desktop parts, but benchmark data reveals they occupy very different performance tiers. The Intel chip, built on Ivy Bridge architecture and released in 2012, dominates the AMD part across nearly every workload category. The Athlon X4 970, a Bristol Ridge part from 2017, manages a single victory in integer math, but its overall average benchmark score of 6850 lags slightly behind the i5-3470's 6906. Both processors sit at the 63rd percentile among all CPUs, yet the nature of their respective strengths and weaknesses could not be more distinct.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The Intel Core i5-3470 wins 15 of the 16 head-to-head comparisons, and the margins are frequently enormous. In the Cinebench suite, the results are remarkably consistent: the i5-3470 leads by 28.4% in R15 multicore (398 vs 310), 28.4% in R20 multicore (1661 vs 1294), and 28.4% in R23 multicore (3957 vs 3081). Single-core performance tells the same story, with the Intel part ahead by 28.6% in R20 single-core (234 vs 182) and 28.3% in R23 single-core (558 vs 435). This consistent one-quarter-plus advantage across both multi-threaded and single-threaded rendering workloads indicates a fundamental architectural superiority rather than a workload-specific quirk.

The gap widens dramatically in several PassMark subtests. The most lopsided result is in prime number finding, where the i5-3470 scores 28 versus the Athlon's 11, a staggering 154.5% advantage. Floating-point math also heavily favors Intel, with the i5-3470 posting 10871 against 6049, a 79.7% lead. Extended instruction performance shows a 64.6% gap (3548 vs 2156), while physics simulation favors the Intel part by 55.6% (378 vs 243). Even random string sorting, often a memory-latency-sensitive test, sees the Intel chip ahead by 46.9% (9004 vs 6128).

The Athlon X4 970's sole victory comes in PassMark integer math, where it scores 19174 against the i5-3470's 14840, a 22.6% edge for AMD. This is a notable outlier, suggesting the Excavator architecture has a particular strength in integer-heavy arithmetic that does not translate to other workloads. In the remaining categories, the Intel part wins by more modest margins: 17.2% in data compression (73224 vs 62454), 16.7% in single-thread performance (1935 vs 1658), and a narrow 3.8% in data encryption (1189 vs 1146). The multithread score of 4669 for Intel versus 3625 for AMD represents a 28.8% gap, consistent with the Cinebench multicore results.

Architecture Differences

The two processors take fundamentally different approaches to achieving their four-core, four-thread configurations. The Intel Core i5-3470 uses the Ivy Bridge architecture, manufactured on Intel's 22 nm process with 1,400 million transistors on a 160 mm² die. The AMD Athlon X4 970 uses the older Excavator architecture, built by GlobalFoundries on a 28 nm process, with 3,100 million transistors on a 250 mm² die. Despite having more than double the transistor count, the AMD chip still cannot match Intel's performance, highlighting the efficiency advantages of the smaller process node and newer microarchitecture.

Cache hierarchies are similarly divergent. The i5-3470 features a traditional per-core L1 cache of 64 KB and per-core L2 cache of 256 KB, with a shared 6 MB L3 cache. The Athlon X4 970 has a combined L1 cache of 320 KB and a 2 MB L2 cache, but crucially, it has no L3 cache at all. This absence of a shared third-level cache likely contributes to the Intel chip's substantial leads in memory-latency-sensitive workloads like random string sorting and physics simulation.

Memory support also differs significantly. The Intel part supports DDR3 on a dual-channel bus with 25.6 GB/s of bandwidth, while the AMD part supports DDR4 on a dual-channel bus with 38.4 GB/s. Interestingly, the Athlon's higher theoretical memory bandwidth does not translate into performance advantages, suggesting that memory bandwidth is not the limiting factor for either processor. The i5-3470 also offers PCIe Gen 3 with 16 lanes, whereas the Athlon X4 970 provides PCIe Gen 3 with only 8 lanes, which could impact expandability in graphics-heavy configurations.

The Intel chip includes integrated graphics in the form of Intel HD 2500, while the AMD part has no integrated graphics at all. This makes the i5-3470 a more self-contained solution for basic systems without a discrete GPU. Both processors lack an unlocked multiplier, and neither supports ECC memory. The Intel part carries a launch MSRP of $184, while the AMD part's launch pricing is not available in the data.

FAQ

Q: Which processor has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The Intel Core i5-3470 has an average benchmark score of 6906, slightly ahead of the AMD Athlon X4 970's 6850. Both processors rank at the 63rd percentile among all CPUs.

Q: How much faster is the Intel part in Cinebench R23 multicore?

A: The i5-3470 scores 3957 in Cinebench R23 multicore, while the Athlon X4 970 scores 3081, giving Intel a 28.4% advantage. The same 28.4% margin appears in both R15 and R20 multicore tests.

Q: Is there any workload where the AMD Athlon X4 970 beats the Intel Core i5-3470?

A: Yes, in PassMark integer math, the Athlon X4 970 scores 19174 versus the i5-3470's 14840, a 22.6% lead for AMD. This is the only head-to-head benchmark where the AMD part wins.

Q: What are the clock speed differences between the two processors?

A: The AMD Athlon X4 970 has a base clock of 3.80 GHz and a boost clock of 4.00 GHz. The Intel Core i5-3470 has a lower base clock of 3.20 GHz and a boost clock of 3.60 GHz.

Q: Which processor has a more advanced manufacturing process?

A: The Intel Core i5-3470 uses a 22 nm process, while the AMD Athlon X4 970 uses a 28 nm process. Intel's process node is more advanced, despite the AMD chip being released five years later.

Q: Do either of these processors support ECC memory?

A: No, both the Intel Core i5-3470 and the AMD Athlon X4 970 lack ECC memory support. Both also have locked multipliers, preventing overclocking.

The Verdict

The data tells a clear story: the Intel Core i5-3470 is the superior processor in nearly every measurable way. Its consistent 28% lead across all Cinebench versions, combined with massive advantages in floating-point math, physics simulation, and extended instruction workloads, makes it the clear choice for rendering and compute-heavy applications. The i5-3470's lead in single-thread performance (16.7% in PassMark, 28.6% in Cinebench R20) also makes it the better option for everyday desktop responsiveness and lightly-threaded tasks.

The AMD Athlon X4 970 does have one legitimate claim to superiority: its 22.6% lead in integer math. For workloads that are purely integer-arithmetic bound, the AMD part is genuinely faster. However, this single bright spot is overwhelmed by the 15 benchmark losses, several of which exceed 50% margins. The Athlon also offers higher base and boost clocks (3.80/4.00 GHz vs 3.20/3.60 GHz) and more memory bandwidth (38.4 GB/s vs 25.6 GB/s), yet these advantages fail to materialize into real-world performance gains.

For buyers choosing between these two, the Intel Core i5-3470 is the obvious pick for general use, rendering, physics simulation, and any workload that benefits from mature architecture and a shared L3 cache. The AMD Athlon X4 970 should only be considered by users with specific integer-math-heavy workloads, or those who need the AM4 socket platform for future upgrade paths. The i5-3470's inclusion of integrated graphics (Intel HD 2500) further solidifies its position as the more complete package, despite the Athlon's newer release date and lower TDP of 65W versus the Intel's 77W.

Specification Differences

| Specification | Intel Core i5-3470 | AMD Athlon X4 970 |

|---|---|---|

| Base Clock | 3.20 GHz | 3.80 GHz |

| Boost Clock | 3.60 GHz | 4.00 GHz |

| TDP | 77 W | 65 W |

| Socket | Intel Socket 1155 | AMD Socket AM4 |

| Architecture | Ivy Bridge | Excavator |

| Process Node | 22 nm | 28 nm |

| Transistors | 1,400 million | 3,100 million |

| Die Size | 160 mm² | 250 mm² |

| L1 Cache | 64 KB (per core) | 320 KB |

| L2 Cache | 256 KB (per core) | 2 MB |

| L3 Cache | 6 MB (shared) | None |

| Memory Support | DDR3 | DDR4 |

| Memory Bandwidth | 25.6 GB/s | 38.4 GB/s |

| PCIe | Gen 3, 16 Lanes (CPU only) | Gen 3, 8 Lanes (CPU only) |

| Integrated Graphics | Intel HD 2500 | None |

| Production Status | End-of-life | Active |

| Release Date | 2012-05-31 | 2017-07-26 |

| Launch MSRP | $184 | Not available |