Buy on Amazon
$35
In Stock
Prices and StockMSRP $133
Prices and Stock
MSRP $133
Prices and StockMSRP $409
Prices and Stock
MSRP $409
Key Differences
In short — Core i7-12700K outperforms the cheaper Core i3-540 on the selected game parameters. However, the worse performing Core i3-540 is a better bang for your buck. The better performing Core i7-12700K is 4319 days newer than the cheaper Core i3-540.
Advantages of Core i3-540
- Up to 82% cheaper than Core i7-12700K - $35.00 vs $195.00
- Up to 73% better value when playing New World than Core i7-12700K - $0.36 vs $1.34 per FPS
- Consumes up to 42% less energy than Intel Core i7-12700K - 73 vs 125 Watts
Advantages of Core i7-12700K
- Performs up to 51% better in New World than Core i3-540 - 146 vs 97 FPS
- Can execute more multi-threaded tasks simultaneously than Intel Core i3-540 - 20 vs 4 threads
New World
Resolution
1920 x 1080
Game Graphics
Very High
Intel Core i3 Processor i3-540 3.06GHz 4MB LGA1156 CPU BX80616I3540
Buy for $35 on Amazon
In Stock
Updated 7268 minutes ago
Intel Core i7-12700K Gaming Desktop Processor with Integrated Graphics and 12 (8P+4E) Cores up to 5.0 GHz Unlocked LGA1700 600 Series Chipset 125W
Buy for $195 on Amazon
In Stock
Updated 7268 minutes ago
My Games
With selected game settings
Resolution
1920 x 1080
Game Graphics
Very High
Core i3-540
Desktop • Jan 7th, 2010
Core i7-12700K
Desktop • Nov 4th, 2021
Geekbench 5 Benchmarks
Core i3-540 | vs | Core i7-12700K |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 7th, 2010 | Release Date | Nov 4th, 2021 |
| Core i3 | Collection | Core i7 |
| Clarkdale | Codename | Alder Lake |
| Intel Socket 1156 | Socket | Intel Socket 1700 |
Desktop | Segment | Desktop |
| 2 | Cores | 12 |
| 4 | Threads | 20 |
| 3.1 GHz | Base Clock Speed | 3.6 GHz |
| Non-Turbo | Turbo Clock Speed | 5.0 GHz |
73 W | TDP | 125 W |
| 32 nm | Process Size | 10 nm |
| 23.0x | Multiplier | 36.0x |
| Intel HD | Integrated Graphics | UHD Graphics 770 |
| No | Overclockable | Yes |
PCs Using Core i3-540 or Core i7-12700K
With selected game settings
109 FPS
$18.35/FPS
GeForce RTX 3080
Core i7-12700K
32 GB, 2 TB HDD
Buy on Amazon
$1,999.99
In Stock
86 FPS
$14.52/FPS
GeForce RTX 4060
Core i7-12700K
32 GB, N/A Storage
Buy on Amazon
$1,249
In Stock
110 FPS
$19.07/FPS
GeForce RTX 4070
Core i7-12700K
64 GB, 4 TB SSD
Buy on Amazon
$2,098
In Stock
109 FPS
$15.6/FPS
GeForce RTX 3080
Core i7-12700K
32 GB, 1 TB SSD
Buy on Amazon
$1,699.99
In Stock
109 FPS
$19.37/FPS
GeForce RTX 3080
Core i7-12700K
32 GB, 1 TB SSD
Buy on Amazon
$2,110.95
In Stock
114 FPS
$27.56/FPS
GeForce RTX 3080 Ti
Core i7-12700K
32 GB, 1 TB SSD + 2 TB HDD
Buy on Amazon
$3,141.51
In Stock
96 FPS
$16.67/FPS
GeForce RTX 3070
Core i7-12700K
32 GB, 1 TB SSD
Buy on Amazon
$1,599.99
In Stock
86 FPS
$13.14/FPS
GeForce RTX 4060
Core i7-12700K
32 GB, 1 TB SSD
Buy on Amazon
$1,129.99
In Stock
96 FPS
$20.09/FPS
GeForce RTX 3070
Core i7-12700K
32 GB, 2 TB SSD
Buy on Amazon
$1,929
In Stock
69 FPS
$24.48/FPS
GeForce RTX 3050
Core i7-12700K
32 GB, 4 TB SSD
Buy on Amazon
$1,689
In Stock
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$35
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$35
vs
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$35
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$35
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$35
vs
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$143.81
Core i3-540
$35
vs
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$126.99
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$35
vs
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$35
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$35
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