Intel has shared official benchmarks of its Core Ultra 7 270K Plus & Core Ultra 5 250K Plus in gaming, apps, and more, against AMD Ryzen CPUs.
Core Ultra 200S Plus Are Now The Fastest Gaming CPUs From Intel, Surpassing the Core i9-14900K.
For performance comparisons, Intel is pitting the Core Ultra 7 270K Plus against the Ryzen 7 9700X and the Core Ultra 5 250K Plus against the Ryzen 5 9600X. Both of these CPUs are valid comparisons based on their prices. The company also compares the performance against existing Core Ultra 200S "Non Plus" & 14th Gen CPUs to showcase the generational uplifts.
Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus Gaming Performance
Starting first with the Core Ultra 7 270K Plus, we have our comparison against the Core Ultra 7 265K, in gaming, where the Plus chip ends up 15% faster on average at 1080p across a multitude of games. The 7 Plus chip is anywhere from 1% to up to 39% faster in games, which is a decent uplift for a CPU that is very much technically the same.
Versus the Core i7-14700K, the Core Ultra 7 270K Plus ends up 9% faster on average, with up to a 33% FPS improvement.
But it doesn't end here, the Core Ultra 7 270K Plus is also compared to the Core i9-14900K, which has been Intel's fastest CPU for a while now. The new Plus chip is reportedly 5% faster on average and can be up to 25% faster, which is great for a chip that costs $299.
Versus the competition, which is the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X ($299), the Plus chip ends up 4% faster on average. It does lose in a few titles, but the maximum lead is extended up to 23%.
Intel also isn't shy in comparing the Core Ultra 7 270K Plus to the Ryzen 7 9800X3D. The 9800X3D costs around $480 US, which is 60% more expensive than the 270K Plus, yet it only ends up 12% slower on average. That bodes well when comparing the Core Ultra 7 270K Plus against the Ryzen 7 7800X3D, which also costs over $400 US, but the average FPS lead will be lower in the single-digit range. Although Intel still isn't near AMD's X3D performance, they are offering superb value with its new Plus family.
Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus Gaming Performance
Next up, we have the Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus, for which Intel has already touted a 13% average gaming improvement versus the Core Ultra 5 245K.
Versus the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X, which retails around the same $199 US price point, the gaming performance is comparable. But the main difference lies in the app performance.
Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus & Core Ultra 5 250K Plus In Apps
In multi-threaded environments, the new Plus offerings offer up to double the performance in a variety of workloads, which is to be expected since you are comparing 24 cores versus 8 cores/16 threads, and 18 cores versus 6 cores/12 threads.
Both chips, the Core Ultra 7 270K Plus and the Core Ultra 5 250K Plus, offer up to a 2x improvement in multi-threaded performance versus their AMD competitors.
The Core Ultra 7 270K Plus offers exceptional multi-threaded capabilities across a variety of workloads and apps that are meant to utilize more cores and threads.
For example, in SPECWorkstation, the 270K Plus has a 50% improvement over the 9700X, and is also faster in single-threaded workloads. The 270K Plus also offers up to 10% faster content creation perf versus the Ryzen 9 9950X, a $500 US+ chip.
For the Core Ultra 5 250K Plus, Intel provides the following figures versus the Ryzen 5 9600X:
- 103% Faster Multi-Core
- 130% Faster 3D Rendering
- 5% Faster Single-Thread
- 19% Faster Video Editing
- 8% Faster Photo Editing
- 75% Faster Video Export
The following are Intel's official performance benchmark numbers. The games here are tested at 1080p (High). Our own review was delayed due to the shipping routes being affected by the current global situation, but we will definitely have our full testing done as soon as we get our hands on the samples.
Intel 270K Plus & 250K Plus Benchmarks:
| Benchmark | Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus | AMD Ryzen 7 9700X | Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus | AMD Ryzen 5 9600X |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cinebench 2024 Single Core CPU (10 Min) | 145 | 136 | 140 | 134 |
| Cinebench 2024 Multi Core CPU (10 Min) | 2515 | 1307 | 1872 | 943 |
| Cinebench 2026 Single Core (10 Min) | 596 | 551 | 572 | 543 |
| Cinebench 2026 Multi Core (10 Min) | 10081 | 5421 | 7427 | 3933 |
| Geekbench 6.3 – Single Core | 3325 | 3376 | 3220 | 3343 |
| Geekbench 6.3 – Multi Core | 23966 | 17020 | 20643 | 14672 |
| CrossMark - Overall score (Extended) | 2610 | 2291 | 2355 | 2204 |
| Procyon Office Productivity - Overall | 10088 | 9551 | 9490 | 9555 |
| PugetBench for Creators (v1.13.7) - Premiere Pro (v25.1) - Overall Score | 157607 | 132212 | 149663 | 125901 |
| PugetBench for Creators (v1.13.7) - Photoshop (v26.2) - Overall Score | 11478 | 13562 | 11298 | 13050 |
| Blender Benchmark CPU (v4.3) - Monster | 281 | 148 | 199 | 104 |
| Blender Benchmark CPU (v4.3) - Junkshop | 187 | 103 | 135 | 73 |
| Blender Benchmark CPU (v4.3) - Classroom | 141 | 79 | 100 | 55 |
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 229 | 219 | 219 | 207 |
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 364 | 296 | 287 | 289 |
| Total War: Warhammer III - Mirrors of Madness Benchmark | 171 | 167 | 165 | 142 |
| Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail Benchmark | 281 | 281 | 244 | 286 |
Pricing Information & Competition Comparison
The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus is going to be available at $299, while the Core Ultra 5 250K Plus is going to be available at $199. These are very competitive prices given the performance on offer. The 270K Plus's competition is the Ryzen 7 9700X, which retails for $299 right now, and the 270K Plus should offer much better MT performance and either similar or better gaming performance. The same is true for the Core Ultra 5 250K Plus, which matches the current retail pricing of the Ryzen 5 9600X at $199. That too is very strong in MT, and the gaming improvements should help Intel close the gap versus AMD's offerings.
The question, though, remains about the platform itself. Intel has made some nice feature improvements to its LGA 1851 platform, and the new PLUS chips should help carry some momentum, but at the end of the day, we all know that the LGA 1851 platform is going to be replaced later this year by a new socket.
So users who are already on the LGA 1851 platform and running a Non-Plus chip will find little reason to upgrade unless they are on a lower tier or Non-K chip. Similarly, new PC builders might go with AMD's AM5 platform versus LGA 1851, given the competition has confirmed support till 2027+, while going with Intel means that if you want to upgrade from the Core Ultra 200S/200S Plus, you will need to switch over to a new motherboard again.
But with the coming socket, Intel has hinted at offering longer platform longevity. So whether they stick to their promise remains to be seen, but you can read more on what Intel has to say on that here.
The Intel Core Ultra 200S Plus CPUs will be hitting retail shelves on the 26th of March, while new boards will be launching in the coming months.
About the author: A Software Engineer by training and a PC enthusiast by passion, Hassan Mujtaba serves as Wccftech's Senior Editor for hardware section. With years of experience in the industry, he specializes in deep-dive technical analysis of next-generation CPU and GPU architectures, motherboards, and cooling solutions. His work involves not only breaking news on upcoming technologies but also extensive hands-on reviews and benchmarking.
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