Intel Core i9-12900K vs Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (Balanced)

Intel

Intel Core i9-12900K

Overall performance index

70,1

Rank 16 of 27 CPUs tested

MSRP US$648

Faster

Intel

Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (Balanced)

Overall performance index

85,1

Rank 8 of 27 CPUs tested

MSRP US$589

Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (Balanced) is 17,7% faster on average

Intel Core i9-12900K Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (Balanced)

Individual tests: Intel Core i9-12900K wins 3, Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (Balanced) wins 24 (27 shared tests)

Performance by discipline

Gaming (720p) +7,0 % 292,8fps 314,7fps Multi-thread +26,4 % 102,4points 139,1points Single-thread +18,5 % 126,6points 155,5points

Benchmarks

Intel Core i9-12900K Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (Balanced) Other tested CPUs Click a row to open the chart with every CPU tested; hover shows the gap in %.

Gaming (720p) – all CPUs tested

Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (Balanced) +7,5 %

Individual results (10 tests)

VR Mark Orange Room 18.147 points 20.230 points +11,5 %

VR Mark Blue Room 6.363 points 6.473 points +1,7 %

Unigine Superposition 1.1 720p Low Punkte 45.316 points 37.928 points +19,5 %

Unigine Superposition720p, Low,FPS 338,9 fps 283,7 fps +19,5 %

Shadow of the Tomb RaiderLite, 720p 233,0 fps 296,0 fps +27,0 %

Final Fantasy XV Benchmark720p, Low 23.095 points 23.655 points +2,4 %

Resident Evil VILLAGE720p, Lite, DX12 343,9 fps 280,8 fps +22,5 %

Metro Exodus Enhanced Edition720p, Low, Moscow 255,2 fps 398,4 fps +56,1 %

Fortnite720p, Low 508,2 fps –

Counter-Strike 2 372,9 fps 412,2 fps +10,5 %

Multi-thread – all CPUs tested

Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (Balanced) +35,8 %

Individual results (16 tests)

7-ZipMIPS) 32 MB 122.953 MIPS 179.823 MIPS +46,3 %

Corona 1.3lower is better 55,0 s 40,0 s +37,5 %

HandBrake4GB Video-> HQ1080P30fpslower is better 815,0 s 610,0 s +33,6 %

WinRAR 6.0164-Bit-Version 34.523 KB/s 45.477 KB/s +31,7 %

Cinebench R15 Multi-Core 4.051 points 6.392 points +57,8 %

Cinebench R20 Multi-Core 10.540 points 16.592 points +57,4 %

3D Mark Time Spy ExtremeCPU 9.159 points 14.275 points +55,9 %

3D Mark Time SpyCPU 18.464 points 18.531 points +0,4 %

3DMark CPU BenchmarkMax Threads 11.769 points 18.953 points +61,0 %

3DMark CPU Benchmark16 Threads 10.311 points 14.881 points +44,3 %

3DMark CPU Benchmark8 Threads 7.731 points 9.669 points +25,1 %

3DMark CPU Benchmark4 Threads 4.139 points 5.050 points +22,0 %

3DMark CPU Benchmark2 Threads 2.111 points 2.730 points +29,3 %

Geekbench 5.5.1 CPUMulti-Thread 18.143 points 27.029 points +49,0 %

POV-Ray v3.7Multi-Thread 9.045 px/s 15.184 px/s +67,9 %

Cinebench R23 n-CoreMulti-Thread – 42.618 points

Single-thread – all CPUs tested

Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (Balanced) +22,8 %

Individual results (4 tests)

3DMark CPU Benchmark1 Thread 1.063 points 1.389 points +30,7 %

Geekbench 5.5.1 CPUSingle-Thread 2.000 points 2.337 points +16,9 %

POV-Ray v3.7Single-Thread 736,0 px/s 938,0 px/s +27,4 %

Cinebench R23 1-CoreSingle-Thread – 2.417 points

Price / performance

Each dot is a CPU we tested – the further top-left, the more performance per euro.

Specifications

Key details

	Intel Core i9-12900K	Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (Balanced)
Codename	Alder Lake	Arrow Lake
Series	Core 12000	Core Ultra 200
Release	Q4 2021	Q4 2024
Launch MSRP	US$648	US$589
Unlocked multiplier	Yes	Yes

Cores, clocks and cache

	Intel Core i9-12900K	Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (Balanced)
Cores / threads	16	24
Threads	24	24
Performance cores	8	8
Efficient cores	8	16
Base clock	3.2 GHz	3.7 GHz
Max boost clock	5.2 GHz	5.7 GHz
L2 cache	14 MB	40 MB
L3 cache	30 MB	36 MB

Power and manufacturing

	Intel Core i9-12900K	Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (Balanced)
TDP / base power	125 W	125 W
Max turbo power	241 W	250 W
Process	Intel 7	n/a
Max temperature (Tjmax)	100 °C	105 °C

Platform and connectivity

	Intel Core i9-12900K	Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (Balanced)
Socket	LGA1700	LGA1851
Memory	Up to DDR5 4800 MT/s, Up to DDR4 3200 MT/s	Up to DDR5 6400 MT/s
Memory channels	2	2
PCI Express	PCIe 5.0 and 4.0	PCIe 5.0 and 4.0
PCIe lanes	20	24
Integrated graphics	Intel UHD Graphics 770	Intel Graphics

Our measurements

	Intel Core i9-12900K	Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (Balanced)
System power idle	101 W	78 W
System power load	351 W	309 W
CPU package idle	18 W	11.7 W
CPU package load	212 W	189 W
Temperature idle	29 °C	34 °C
Temperature load	86 °C	74 °C
Highest measured clock	5000 MHz	5400 MHz (P) / 4600 MHz (E)

Test system

	Intel Core i9-12900K	Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (Balanced)
Test configuration	n/a	Balanced
Motherboard	n/a	ASUS ROG Strix Z890-F Gaming Wifi
Memory	n/a	Lexar ARES RGB Black DIMM Kit 32GB, DDR5-6400
CPU cooler	n/a	DeepCool LS720
Operating system	Windows 11 21H2	Windows 11 23H2
Settings	DDR5-5200	DDR5-6400, Ultimate Leistung, Intel Presets, 10.1.19867.8574 chipset · Ausbalanciert, wegen vergleich

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