Smart Wizard
Get a complete build plan based on budget and goals.
Build Comparison
Compare complete builds side by side.
Part Comparison
Check specs, price, and value across parts.
Bottleneck Calculator
Measure CPU and GPU balance before you buy.
Power Calculator
Estimate wattage and PSU headroom.
Will It Run?
Test your hardware against popular games.
Smart Wizard
Get a complete build plan based on budget and goals.
Build Comparison
Compare complete builds side by side.
Part Comparison
Check specs, price, and value across parts.
Bottleneck Calculator
Measure CPU and GPU balance before you buy.
Power Calculator
Estimate wattage and PSU headroom.
Will It Run?
Test your hardware against popular games.
Smart Wizard
Get a complete build plan based on budget and goals.
Build Comparison
Compare complete builds side by side.
Part Comparison
Check specs, price, and value across parts.
Bottleneck Calculator
Measure CPU and GPU balance before you buy.
Power Calculator
Estimate wattage and PSU headroom.
Will It Run?
Test your hardware against popular games.
Intel
Detailed architecture, platform, memory, and feature data for this CPU.
Instruction Sets
About This Product
The Intel Core i5-6600K is a 4-core, 4-thread desktop CPU from the 6th Gen Skylake series, featuring a base clock of 3.5 GHz and a boost clock of 3.9 GHz. Its unlocked multiplier allows for overclocking, offering potential performance gains for enthusiasts. While capable for general desktop use and light gaming, it is outperformed by newer CPUs in its current price range for demanding tasks and modern gaming.
Verdict
βBest for budget builders seeking an overclockable CPU for basic tasks and light gaming.β
Performance Benchmarks
Scores are grouped by benchmark family so it is easy to compare raw speed, threaded output, and real-world value without mixing scales.
Render Workloads
Next-Gen Scale
Large Sample Pool
Value & Efficiency
These derived metrics use Cinebench R23 multi-core performance to keep the value calculation consistent across the catalog.
Performance per Watt
43.6 pts/W
Performance per Dollar
34.2 pts/$
Gaming Performance
These results come from real submitted gameplay sessions, so the reference GPU matters as much as the CPU itself.
Reference GPU
Hogwarts Legacy
Mixed player settings
45 FPS
Playable
Reference GPU
Red Dead Redemption 2
Mixed player settings
40 FPS
Playable
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Rating
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