Intel Core i5-2500K
In gaming terms, an older chip that limits most recent games. It outscores 26% of the 133 processors in our index and keeps graphics cards up to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 fully used at 1440p.
- Index
- 34/100
- Rank
- #99
- Cores / threads
- 4/4
- Top speed
- 3.7 GHz
- Power
- 95 W
Graphics cards that match it
Recent cards the Intel Core i5-2500K keeps fully used at 1440p without much processor to spare, by our bottleneck model.
- AMD Radeon RX 6400 4 GB · 2022 · $159 at launch Check the pairing →
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4 GB · 2016 · $139 at launch Check the pairing →
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 2 GB · 2015 · $199 at launch Check the pairing →
- AMD Radeon R9 280 3 GB · 2014 · $279 at launch Check the pairing →
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 2 GB · 2013 · $249 at launch Check the pairing →
- AMD Radeon R9 270X 2 GB · 2013 · $199 at launch Check the pairing →
Games it handles, by the processor requirement
Against the 191 released games whose publisher names a processor we can place.
- 129 recommended processor or better 68%
- 33 minimum only 17%
- 30 below minimum 16%
Upcoming releases on the Intel Core i5-2500K
Unreleased games whose publishers have already named a processor.
Recommended spec 1
- Holstin To be announced
Minimum spec 3
Below minimum 12
- Gears of War: E-Day Oct 6, 2026
- Phantom Blade Zero Oct 28, 2026
- Sagas of Lumin Feb 4, 2027
- Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis Feb 12, 2027
- Fable Feb 23, 2027
- Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance 2027
- Sea of Remnants 2027
- Chrono Odyssey To be announced
- El Paso, Elsewhere 2 To be announced
- Guild Wars 3™ To be announced
- Lords of the Fallen II Coming soon
- SAW: Genesis To be announced
Where the processor decides the frame rate
Games that lean on the CPU more than the graphics card, and where this chip lands against each.
- Palworld Too slow
- Baldur's Gate 3 Minimum
- HELLDIVERS™ 2 Too slow
- Path of Exile 2 Too slow
- Monster Hunter Wilds Too slow
- World of Warcraft: The War Within Too slow
- PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS Minimum
- VALORANT Recommended
Spec card
- Maker
- Intel
- Released
- 2011
- Cores
- 4
- Threads
- 4
- Base speed
- 3.3 GHz
- Top speed
- 3.7 GHz
- Rated power
- 95 W
- Tier
- D
The processors either side of it
Nearest in our index. Pick one to compare them directly.
Intel Core i5-2500K: quick answers
Which graphics card suits the Intel Core i5-2500K?
At 1440p it keeps a card up to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 fully used, by our bottleneck model. 10 desktop cards are an even match for it. A faster card than the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 will spend time waiting on the processor, more so at 1080p.
Will the Intel Core i5-2500K run 2027 games?
Of the 16 upcoming games that name a processor, it meets the recommended one for 1, only the minimum for 3, and falls short of 12.
How many cores does the Intel Core i5-2500K have?
4 cores and 4 threads, with a top clock speed of 3.7 GHz.