Intel Core i5-14600 vs Intel Core Ultra 5 235 Comparison

The Intel Core Ultra 5 235 and Intel Core i5-14600 are both 14-core desktop processors with a 65W TDP, but they come from different generations and architectures. The Ultra 5 235 is part of the Core Ultra Series 2 (Arrow Lake) on a 3nm TSMC process, while the i5-14600 is a Raptor Lake Refresh part on Intel's 10nm node. Benchmark results show a clear split: the i5-14600 dominates Cinebench workloads, while the Ultra 5 235 wins most Passmark sub-tests. Both sit at the 89th percentile of all CPUs, but the Ultra 5 235 has a higher average benchmark score (46062 vs 44889). The data also places the Ultra 5 235 within 0.1% of the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 375 and 0.1% below the Intel Core i9-13900HX, while the i5-14600 sits 0.5% below the Intel Core i9-12900KS and 0.5% below the AMD EPYC 4344P.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The most dramatic differences appear in Cinebench. The i5-14600 scores 30464 in Cinebench R23 multicore, which is 51.5% higher than the Ultra 5 235's 14769. The same 51.5% gap appears in Cinebench R15 multicore (3070 vs 1488) and R20 multicore (12794 vs 6202). Single-core Cinebench results follow the same pattern: the i5-14600 leads by 51.5% in R15 (433 vs 210), 51.6% in R20 (1806 vs 875), and 51.5% in R23 (4300 vs 2085). These are massive margins, indicating that the i5-14600 is far ahead in rendering and CPU-bound tasks that rely on the Cinebench engine.

The Ultra 5 235 fights back in Passmark. Its biggest win is in find prime numbers, where it scores 371 versus 155, a 139.4% advantage. Floating point math also favors the Ultra 5 235 by 37.5% (117951 vs 85759), and extended instructions come in 27.6% higher (32752 vs 25674). Data encryption is 16.8% faster (29293 vs 25082). The Ultra 5 235 also wins the Passmark multithread test by 5.5% (37816 vs 35848) despite having only 14 threads versus 20, and it takes physics by 10.3% (2570 vs 2330). Random string sorting is a narrow 2% win (48980 vs 48043), and single-thread performance is 8.4% higher (4516 vs 4167) in both Passmark single-thread entries.

The i5-14600 still claims two Passmark wins: data compression by 10.1% (434620 vs 390711) and integer math by 24.9% (117078 vs 87948). Overall, the head-to-head table shows 9 wins for the Ultra 5 235 and 8 for the i5-14600, but the Cinebench margins are so large that they dominate the average score comparison.

Where Each One Wins

The i5-14600 is the clear choice for Cinebench-style workloads. Its multicore and single-core scores are roughly double those of the Ultra 5 235 across R15, R20, and R23. This points to strong performance in video rendering, 3D modeling, and other tasks that use the Cinebench engine. The i5-14600 also wins in integer math and data compression, which are common in database operations, file archiving, and general integer-heavy processing.

The Ultra 5 235 excels in Passmark's floating point and encryption tests. Its 37.5% lead in floating point math suggests better handling of scientific simulations, physics calculations, and financial modeling. The 16.8% encryption advantage makes it a better fit for security-related workloads, VPNs, and disk encryption. The 139.4% lead in prime number finding is a strong indicator for cryptography and number theory applications. The Ultra 5 235 also wins the Passmark multithread test, which is notable because it does so with fewer threads, and it takes the single-thread Passmark test by 8.4%. For users who rely on the Passmark suite as their primary benchmark, the Ultra 5 235 is the better performer.

The Verdict

The data does not declare a single winner. The i5-14600 is the superior processor for Cinebench-based rendering and integer-heavy tasks, with a 51.5% lead in Cinebench R23 multicore and a 24.9% lead in integer math. If your workflow depends on those workloads, the i5-14600 is the obvious pick. The Ultra 5 235, however, wins the majority of Passmark sub-tests, including floating point, encryption, and multithread, and it has a higher average benchmark score (46062 vs 44889). It also matches the i5-14600 in overall percentile (89th) and offers a 5.5% multithread win despite having 6 fewer threads. For users who run a mix of Passmark-style workloads, the Ultra 5 235 is the better all-rounder. Both processors have a 65W TDP and are locked, and their launch MSRPs are $257 for the Ultra 5 235 and $255 for the i5-14600. The choice comes down to which benchmark suite reflects your actual usage.

FAQ

Q: Which processor has more threads?

A: The Intel Core i5-14600 has 20 threads, while the Intel Core Ultra 5 235 has 14 threads. Both have 14 cores.

Q: Which processor has a higher boost clock?

A: The i5-14600 boosts to 5.20 GHz, while the Ultra 5 235 boosts to 5.00 GHz. The i5-14600 also has a lower base clock at 2.70 GHz versus 3.40 GHz.

Q: Does either processor support ECC memory?

A: The i5-14600 supports ECC memory, while the Ultra 5 235 does not.

Q: Which processor has more PCIe lanes?

A: The Ultra 5 235 provides 20 PCIe Gen 5 lanes (CPU only), while the i5-14600 provides 16 PCIe Gen 5 lanes.

Q: Which processor has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The Ultra 5 235 has an average benchmark score of 46062, compared to 44889 for the i5-14600. Both are at the 89th percentile of all CPUs.

Q: Which processor wins in Cinebench R23 multicore?

A: The i5-14600 wins by a large margin, scoring 30464 versus 14769 for the Ultra 5 235, a 51.5% difference.

Architecture Differences

The two processors are built on fundamentally different architectures. The Ultra 5 235 uses Arrow Lake (Arrow Lake-S) on a 3nm process from TSMC, with 17,800 million transistors on a 243 mm² die. The i5-14600 uses Raptor Lake (Raptor Lake-R) on Intel's 10nm process, with a 257 mm² die and no transistor count listed. The Ultra 5 235 has 14 cores and 14 threads, meaning no hyperthreading, while the i5-14600 has 14 cores and 20 threads, using hyperthreading to add 6 extra threads. Cache layouts differ: the Ultra 5 235 has 192 KB of L1 per core and 3 MB of L2 per core, while the i5-14600 has 80 KB of L1 per core and 2 MB of L2 per core. Both share 24 MB of L3 cache. Memory support also diverges: the Ultra 5 235 supports only DDR5 with a dual-channel bus and a memory bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s, while the i5-14600 supports both DDR4 and DDR5 on a dual-channel bus, with no bandwidth figure recorded. The Ultra 5 235 does not support ECC, but the i5-14600 does. PCIe connectivity is stronger on the Ultra 5 235 with 20 Gen 5 lanes versus 16 on the i5-14600. Integrated graphics differ as well: the Ultra 5 235 has Arc Xe-LPG Graphics with 24 execution units, while the i5-14600 has UHD Graphics 770. The Ultra 5 235 uses Socket 1851, while the i5-14600 uses Socket 1700.

Specification Differences

The two processors differ in several key specifications. The Ultra 5 235 has 14 threads, a base clock of 3.40 GHz, a boost clock of 5.00 GHz, and a launch MSRP of $257. The i5-14600 has 20 threads, a base clock of 2.70 GHz, a boost clock of 5.20 GHz, and a launch MSRP of $255. The Ultra 5 235 uses Socket 1851, while the i5-14600 uses Socket 1700. The architecture is Arrow Lake for the Ultra 5 235 and Raptor Lake for the i5-14600. The process node is 3 nm (TSMC) for the Ultra 5 235 and 10 nm (Intel) for the i5-14600. The Ultra 5 235 has 17,800 million transistors; the i5-14600 has no listed transistor count. Die size is 243 mm² for the Ultra 5 235 and 257 mm² for the i5-14600. L1 cache is 192 KB per core on the Ultra 5 235 versus 80 KB per core on the i5-14600. L2 cache is 3 MB per core versus 2 MB per core. Memory support is DDR5 only for the Ultra 5 235, while the i5-14600 supports DDR4 and DDR5. The Ultra 5 235 has a memory bandwidth of 102.4 GB/s; the i5-14600 has no recorded bandwidth. ECC support is absent on the Ultra 5 235 and present on the i5-14600. PCIe lanes are 20 Gen 5 on the Ultra 5 235 versus 16 Gen 5 on the i5-14600. Integrated graphics are Arc Xe-LPG (24 EU) on the Ultra 5 235 and UHD Graphics 770 on the i5-14600. Release dates are January 6, 2025 for the Ultra 5 235 and January 7, 2024 for the i5-14600. Part numbers are SRQAS for the Ultra 5 235 and SRN44 for the i5-14600. Both have 14 cores, a 65W TDP, dual-channel memory bus, 24 MB shared L3, desktop market segment, active production status, and locked multipliers.