Intel Core i5-4570 vs Intel Pentium Gold G6400 Comparison

The Intel Core i5-4570 and the Intel Pentium Gold G6400 are desktop processors from different generations, yet the recorded benchmark data reveals a surprisingly lopsided contest. The i5-4570, a quad-core Haswell part from 2013, wins 13 of the 16 head-to-head tests, while the Pentium Gold G6400, a dual-core Comet Lake chip from 2020, takes only three. The margins are often large, and the pattern is consistent: the older i5 dominates multi-threaded and math-heavy workloads, while the newer Pentium counters with superior single-thread performance and encryption throughput.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The i5-4570's biggest wins come in the Cinebench suite. In Cinebench R15 multicore, it scores 447 against the Pentium's 305, a 46.6% advantage. The same delta appears in Cinebench R20 multicore (1865 vs 1272) and Cinebench R23 multicore (4442 vs 3030). Even in single-core Cinebench tests, the i5 leads: R20 singlecore 263 vs 179 (46.9% ahead) and R23 singlecore 627 vs 427 (46.8% ahead). This is unexpected given the Pentium's higher base clock, but the i5's four physical cores and larger cache appear to outweigh the clock deficit.

The Passmark suite shows a similar story, though with varying margins. The i5's most dramatic victory is in extended instructions, where it scores 5961 against the Pentium's 1784, a 234.1% lead. That is a massive gap, suggesting the i5's Haswell architecture handles SIMD and vectorized code far more efficiently. The i5 also wins in find prime numbers (31 vs 17, 82.4% ahead), floating point math (11706 vs 8788, 33.2%), integer math (15415 vs 13941, 10.6%), multithread (5238 vs 4118, 27.2%), physics (395 vs 356, 11%), random string sorting (9992 vs 8034, 24.4%), and data compression (75010 vs 62806, 19.4%).

The Pentium Gold G6400's three wins are narrower but still clear. In Passmark data encryption, it scores 1535 against the i5's 1321, a 13.9% advantage. In the two single-thread Passmark tests (listed as passmark_single_thread and passmark_singlethread, both with identical scores), the Pentium posts 2457 versus the i5's 2033, a 17.3% lead. These wins are meaningful for lightly threaded applications and encryption workloads, but they do not offset the i5's dominance elsewhere.

The average benchmark scores reinforce the i5's overall edge: 7421 for the i5-4570 versus 6969 for the Pentium Gold G6400. Both CPUs sit at the 63rd percentile among all processors, but the i5's higher average score places it closer to the top of that band. Its nearest rivals include the Intel Core i9-9990XE (delta 0.1%) and the AMD EPYC 7282 (delta 0.2%), while the Pentium's nearest rivals include the Intel Xeon Platinum 8260 (delta -0.3%) and the AMD Ryzen 3 3200G (delta 0.5%). The i5's score is also within 0.6% of the Intel Core i5-7400, a newer quad-core part, which puts its performance in context.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear conclusion: the Intel Core i5-4570 is the stronger processor for most workloads. It wins 13 of 16 head-to-head tests, including every Cinebench benchmark and the majority of Passmark's compute tests. Its four physical cores and 6 MB of shared L3 cache give it a decisive advantage in multi-threaded rendering, compression, and math-heavy tasks. The i5 also has a higher average benchmark score (7421 vs 6969) and a larger L3 cache, despite being seven years older.

The Pentium Gold G6400, however, is not without merit. Its 4.00 GHz base clock (with no boost) and 14 nm process node deliver superior single-thread performance, as shown by its 17.3% lead in Passmark single-thread. It also wins in data encryption, a niche but real workload. For users who prioritize single-threaded applications or encryption, the Pentium is the better choice. But for anyone running multi-threaded software, the i5-4570 is the clear winner.

FAQ

Q: Which CPU has higher multi-core performance?

A: The i5-4570 wins all Cinebench multi-core tests. For example, Cinebench R23 multicore scores 4442 vs 3030, a 46.6% advantage.

Q: Which CPU is faster in single-threaded tasks?

A: The Pentium Gold G6400 scores 2457 in Passmark single-thread, compared to 2033 for the i5-4570, a 17.3% lead.

Q: How do they compare in encryption?

A: The Pentium Gold G6400 wins Passmark data encryption with 1535 vs 1321, a 13.9% advantage.

Q: What are the core counts?

A: The i5-4570 has 4 physical cores, while the Pentium Gold G6400 has 2 physical cores with 4 threads.

Q: Which CPU has a larger L3 cache?

A: The i5-4570 has 6 MB shared L3, while the Pentium Gold G6400 has 4 MB shared L3.

Q: What memory types do they support?

A: The i5-4570 supports DDR3, while the Pentium Gold G6400 supports DDR4.

Specification Differences

| Specification | Intel Core i5-4570 | Intel Pentium Gold G6400 |

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

| Cores | 4 | 2 |

| Base Clock | 3.20 GHz | 4.00 GHz |

| Boost Clock | 3.60 GHz | None |

| TDP | 84 W | 58 W |

| Socket | Intel Socket 1150 | Intel Socket 1200 |

| Architecture | Haswell | Comet Lake |

| Process Node | 22 nm | 14 nm |

| Transistors | 1,400 million | Not specified |

| Die Size | 177 mm² | Not specified |

| L3 Cache | 6 MB (shared) | 4 MB (shared) |

| Memory Support | DDR3 | DDR4 |

| Memory Bandwidth | Not specified | 42.7 GB/s |

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

| Integrated Graphics | Intel HD 4600 | UHD Graphics 610 |

| Release Date | 2013-06-01 | 2020-04-29 |

| Part Number | SR14E | SRH3Y |

| Production Status | Not specified | Active |

Architecture Differences

The i5-4570 is built on Intel's Haswell architecture using a 22 nm process, while the Pentium Gold G6400 uses the newer Comet Lake architecture on a 14 nm node. The i5 has four physical cores, whereas the Pentium has two physical cores with Hyper-Threading, giving both four threads. The i5's L3 cache is 6 MB shared, compared to 4 MB on the Pentium. Memory support differs: the i5 uses DDR3, the Pentium uses DDR4, and the Pentium lists a memory bandwidth of 42.7 GB/s while the i5 does not specify one. The integrated graphics also differ: the i5 has Intel HD 4600, the Pentium has UHD Graphics 610. The i5 supports PCIe Gen 3, while the Pentium supports Gen 3 with 16 lanes (CPU only). The i5 has a boost clock of 3.60 GHz, but the Pentium has no boost, relying on its 4.00 GHz base clock. The TDP is 84 W for the i5 and 58 W for the Pentium, reflecting the i5's higher power draw.

Where Each One Wins

The i5-4570 wins in every multi-threaded benchmark, including Cinebench R15, R20, and R23 multicore, as well as Passmark multithread, physics, and data compression. It also dominates in extended instructions (234.1% ahead), find prime numbers (82.4%), floating point math (33.2%), integer math (10.6%), and random string sorting (24.4%). These results point to a clear advantage in rendering, scientific computing, compression, and any workload that can use multiple cores or SIMD instructions.

The Pentium Gold G6400 wins in Passmark data encryption (13.9% ahead) and in single-thread Passmark tests (17.3% ahead). Its higher base clock and newer architecture give it an edge in lightly threaded applications, such as older games or single-threaded productivity tools, and in encryption tasks. For users who need maximum single-thread responsiveness or work with encryption-heavy data, the Pentium is the better option. For everything else, the i5-4570 is the superior choice based on the recorded data.