Intel Core i5-10500
The current Intel Core i5-10500 price from retailers, its key specifications, and how it performs for each job.
Intel · CPU
Retailer photo of Intel Core i5-10500. View this offer in Where to buy
Trade-offs: you want strong value with Balanced priorities specifically
Move a slider and the page re-scores this product against the same market frame.
What does it cost today, and is that a good price?
Market confidence: LowAt $144 the Intel Core i5-10500 is priced in line with its $144 representative market level. Only one verified new offer stands behind it, so the level can move quickly.
Consider: AMD Ryzen 5 7500F offers stronger value around $106.Compare
Prices & availability
Intel Core i5-10500: current price and offers
Compare the offers we track for this model, across variants and retailers.
2 tracked offers · 2 retailers
| Variant | Store | Condition | Price (snapshot) | Value · Balanced | Checked | Offer link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intel Core i5-10500 | Newegg | New | $144 | 40 | 2026-11-05 | View offer → |
Prices are dated snapshots, not live quotes — confirm the final price at the store. New, refurbished and used offers are listed separately; used offers carry warranty and seller risk.
Show the other 1 tracked offers
| Variant | Store | Condition | Price (snapshot) | Value · Balanced | Checked | Offer link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intel Core i5-10500 | Amazon | Refurbished | Check on Amazon | 58 | 2026-11-09 | View offer → |
Performance and where it ranks
Two different questions, side by side. Performance compares what the hardware can do; Value compares what that capability costs at today’s price. A product can rank high on one and low on the other — that gap is the point.
Performance Balanced
How much it can do. Price plays no part in this ranking.
#195 of 270 graded processors
- #192 AMDAMD Ryzen 5 2600 8
- #193 IntelIntel Core i7-7800X 8
- #194 IntelIntel Xeon E5 2660 V3 8
- #195 IntelIntel Core i5-10500 8
- #196 IntelIntel Core i7-8700 7
- #197 IntelIntel Core i3-12100 7
- #198 IntelIntel Core i5-10400F 7
Value Balanced
How much of that you get for today’s price.
#102 of 270 currently priced processors
- #99 IntelIntel Core Ultra 7 265 40
- #100 IntelIntel Core i5-9400F 40
- #101 IntelIntel Core i7-13700KF 40
- #102 IntelIntel Core i5-10500 40
- #103 AMDAMD Ryzen 9 5900XT 40
- #104 IntelIntel Pentium Gold G7400 40
- #105 IntelIntel Core i5-9600 40
Performance Gaming
How much it can do. Price plays no part in this ranking.
#182 of 270 graded processors
- #179 IntelIntel Core i9-9940X 55
- #180 IntelIntel Core i7-8700 55
- #181 IntelIntel Core i7-7740X 55
- #182 IntelIntel Core i5-10500 55
- #183 IntelIntel Core i5-8600K 55
- #184 IntelIntel Core i9-9900X 54
- #185 IntelIntel Core i7-7700K 54
Value Gaming
How much of that you get for today’s price.
#90 of 270 currently priced processors
- #87 IntelIntel Core Ultra 7 265K 51
- #88 IntelIntel Core i7-11700K 50
- #89 IntelIntel Core i7-12700KF 50
- #90 IntelIntel Core i5-10500 50
- #91 IntelIntel Core i9-11900F 49
- #92 IntelIntel Core i9-14900KS 49
- #93 IntelIntel Core i3-10105 49
Performance Productivity
How much it can do. Price plays no part in this ranking.
#195 of 270 graded processors
- #192 AMDAMD Ryzen 5 2600 8
- #193 IntelIntel Core i7-7800X 8
- #194 IntelIntel Xeon E5 2660 V3 8
- #195 IntelIntel Core i5-10500 8
- #196 IntelIntel Core i7-8700 7
- #197 IntelIntel Core i3-12100 7
- #198 IntelIntel Core i5-10400F 7
Value Productivity
How much of that you get for today’s price.
#152 of 270 currently priced processors
- #149 IntelIntel Core i7-9700K 31
- #150 IntelIntel Core i7-10700 31
- #151 IntelIntel Core i3-10100F 31
- #152 IntelIntel Core i5-10500 31
- #153 IntelIntel Core i5-12500 31
- #154 IntelIntel Core i9-9900X 30
- #155 AMDAMD Ryzen 5 4600G 30
Performance Performance per Watt
How much it can do. Price plays no part in this ranking.
#172 of 270 graded processors
- #169 IntelIntel Xeon E5-2699 v4 18
- #170 IntelIntel Core i9-10850K 18
- #171 IntelIntel Core i7-8700K 18
- #172 IntelIntel Core i5-10500 18
- #173 IntelIntel Pentium Gold G7400 18
- #174 IntelIntel Core i9-10940X 17
- #175 IntelIntel Core i9-7960X 17
Value Performance per Watt
How much of that you get for today’s price.
#82 of 270 currently priced processors
- #79 AMDAMD Ryzen 7 7700X 38
- #80 IntelIntel Core i5-13600KF 38
- #81 AMDAMD Ryzen 9 7900 37
- #82 IntelIntel Core i5-10500 37
- #83 IntelIntel Core i7-4790 37
- #84 IntelIntel Core i7-6850K 37
- #85 IntelIntel Core i7-9700KF 37
These ladders follow the preset scenario shown above. Your own weights re-score this product, not the whole field.
What it is good for
| Scenario | this productCapability grade · Value at current price | Higher capability | Higher Value with current priorities |
|---|---|---|---|
| Balanced (all-round)Weighted all-round view | GradeNo grade Value40 | Higher capability Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF 79 +233% capability · +11% price | Higher Value with current priorities AMD Ryzen 5 7500F 94 +72% capability · -27% price |
| GamingScenario capability | GradeB Value50 | Higher capability Ryzen 5 9600X A 89 +33% capability · +19% price | Higher Value with current priorities AMD Ryzen 5 7500F A 100 +27% capability · -27% price |
| ProductivityScenario capability | GradeF Value31 | Higher capability Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF A 90 +233% capability · +11% price | Higher Value with current priorities Intel Core Ultra 5 225F B 79 +139% capability |
| Performance per WattScenario capability | GradeF Value37 | Higher capability Ryzen 5 9600X A 70 +256% capability · +19% price | Higher Value with current priorities AMD Ryzen 5 5500 C 100 +130% capability |
Balanced has no letter: it is a weighting preset, not a capability rubric. A grade answers “how well does this handle that job?” — price is never part of it. Relative Value puts the current market price back in.
Compare these grades with the full tier list
Browse shortlists for different uses
Trade-offs
Works well if
- Gaming is your main prioritygraded B for Gaming on the same rubric as the tier list
Consider other options if
- You want strong value with Balanced priorities specificallyat today's market no realistic price for this model reaches strong value with Balanced priorities — the calculation only gets there near $72, against a cheapest tracked $144
- Value for money matters more to you than this exact modelAMD Ryzen 5 7500F holds Relative Value 94 against its 40 with Balanced priorities, at $106
- Not the pick if Productivity is your main useit grades only F there
Works well if
- Gaming is your main prioritygraded B for Gaming on the same rubric as the tier list
Consider other options if
- You want strong value for Gaming specificallyat today's market no realistic price for this model reaches strong value for Gaming — the calculation only gets there near $56, against a cheapest tracked $144
- Value for money matters more to you than this exact modelAMD Ryzen 5 7500F holds Relative Value 100 against its 50 for Gaming, at $106
- Not the pick if Productivity is your main useit grades only F there
For the selected scenario this is not a strong fit — the grade above is the reason, and the models below suit it better.
Works well if
- Productivity is not actually your main job — Gaming isit grades F for Productivity, but B for Gaming
Consider other options if
- Not the pick if Productivity is your main useit grades F there; Intel Core Ultra 5 245KF grades A at $160
- You want strong value for Productivity specificallycompeting products deliver so much more for Productivity per dollar that no price this model realistically trades at reaches the strong-value mark for this job
- Value for money matters more to you than this exact modelIntel Core Ultra 5 225F holds Relative Value 79 against its 31 for Productivity. Check on Amazon.
For the selected scenario this is not a strong fit — the grade above is the reason, and the models below suit it better.
Works well if
- Performance per Watt is not actually your main job — Gaming isit grades F for Performance per Watt, but B for Gaming
Consider other options if
- Not the pick if Performance per Watt is your main useit grades F there; Ryzen 5 9600X grades A at $171
- You want strong value for Performance per Watt specificallyat today's market no realistic price for this model reaches strong value for Performance per Watt — the calculation only gets there near $67, against a cheapest tracked $144
- Value for money matters more to you than this exact modelAMD Ryzen 5 5500 holds Relative Value 100 against its 37 for Performance per Watt. Check on Amazon.
Models that suit Performance per Watt better, at this budget
Every line states the fact it was derived from, for the scenario selected above. Thresholds are calculated points on our value curve — information about where the maths turns, not instructions about what to pay.
Similar options to the Intel Core i5-10500
Chosen for Balanced
Chosen for Gaming
Chosen for Productivity
Chosen for Performance per Watt
Alternatives stay near this product’s price range. Step-up options may exceed the standard budget envelope when the capability gain is meaningful.
More head-to-head comparisons in this category
Upgrade planner
Judge the change in the active scenario, then make the cash gap explicit.
Using page scenarioWhat are you upgrading from? These are the axes we compare on, and where this product stands in the current market.
We rank upgrades by out-of-pocket cost — the new price minus what yours is worth — not by sticker price.
Only candidates that clear the configured meaningful-upgrade gate will be shown; roles are omitted rather than filled.
Capability differences are expressed as tiers and index points, not as benchmark percentages we did not measure.
Specifications and compatibility
What this product is, and what to check before it goes into your build.
Core / Performance
- Cores
- 6
- Threads
- 12
- Performance cores
- 6
- Efficiency cores
- 0
- Base clock
- 3100 MHz
- Boost clock
- 4500 MHz
Power / Interface
Show all specifications
Core / Performance
- L2 cache
- 1 MB
- L3 cache
- 12 MB
- Unlocked multiplier
- No
Warranty & release
- Warranty
- 3 years
- Release year
- 2020
- Manufacturer part number
- CM8070104290511
Hover any value to see where it came from: a manufacturer specification, or a figure The Comparator calculated.
Sources: Comparator offer frame 2026-11-02–2026-11-09
What to check in your build
LGA 1200 required
Your motherboard must use socket LGA 1200. A different socket does not fit — this is a physical constraint, not a preference.
Board BIOS must list this model
A matching socket is necessary but not sufficient — check the vendor CPU support list.
DDR4 memory
This processor takes DDR4. Memory of another generation does not fit the slots, even on a board with the right socket.
Cooler rated for 134 W or more
No cooler is included. Your cooler must be rated for at least 134 W on socket LGA 1200.
Found an error? Report this specification Email the field, corrected value and an optional source.
Compatibility guidance is practical help, not a score. Missing data is shown as unknown, never invented.
Summary
Intel Core i5-10500 offers a balanced view across an all-round mix of priorities. It ranks #195 by capability in the current modelled field. Its clearest measured strength is multi-thread index 365. AMD Ryzen 5 7500F currently clears the same practical bar with stronger Relative Value.
Intel Core i5-10500 offers B-grade capability for Gaming. It ranks #182 by capability in the current modelled field. Its clearest measured strength is multi-thread index 365. AMD Ryzen 5 7500F currently clears the same practical bar with stronger Relative Value.
Intel Core i5-10500 offers F-grade capability for Productivity. It ranks #195 by capability in the current modelled field. Its clearest measured strength is multi-thread index 365. The F grade is the decisive limitation for this workload.
Intel Core i5-10500 offers F-grade capability for Performance per Watt. It ranks #172 by capability in the current modelled field. Its clearest measured strength is multi-thread index 365. The F grade is the decisive limitation for this workload.
FAQ
Why does Relative Value change when I choose another scenario?
Each scenario changes the weights applied to capability, price and the other published factors. The hardware facts stay fixed, but the value question changes, so its score and rank can change too.
Why can Amazon appear without a tracked price?
Amazon listing snapshots can participate in Value while fresh. We show Check on Amazon instead of its price; confirm the current price and availability at the store. When no current listing snapshot exists, Amazon is a search link only.
Useful links & sources
offer frame 2026-11-02–2026-11-09 · formula cpu-value-v6.1 · facts facts-2026-11-09 · Relative Value is an estimate from our current dataset, the selected weights and dated market prices — not an official product rating and not a price forecast. Target prices are calculation thresholds, not predictions. Methodology We are not a shop. Affiliate links may earn us a commission; they never change the calculations or the ranking.