PassMark CPU Mark evaluates processor speed through complex mathematical computations. It provides a reliable metric to compare multi-core performance, where higher scores indicate faster processing for multitasking, gaming, and heavy workloads.

Head-to-Head Verdict, Benchmarks, Value & Long-Term Outlook

This comparison brings together gaming FPS, productivity performance, platform differences, power efficiency, pricing context, and upgrade path so you can see which CPU actually makes more sense.

Core Ultra 5 225F

2025

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +9.3% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Draws 65W instead of 95W, a 30W reduction.
✅20% more PCIe lanes (24 vs 20) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Trade-offs

❌Smaller total L3 cache (20 MB vs 24 MB).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than Xeon E-2488, which brings 8 cores / 16 threads.
❌Launch MSRP is still $231 MSRP, while Xeon E-2488 mostly shows up through inconsistent older-market listings.

Xeon E-2488

2023

Why buy it

✅+20% larger total L3 cache (24 MB vs 20 MB).
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 8 cores / 16 threads.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Core Ultra 5 225F across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower Cinebench R23 multi-core (15,000 vs 17,050).
❌46.2% higher power demand at 95W vs 65W.

Core Ultra 5 225F

2025

Xeon E-2488

2023

Why buy it

✅Better for gaming: +9.3% higher average FPS across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
✅Draws 65W instead of 95W, a 30W reduction.
✅20% more PCIe lanes (24 vs 20) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.

Why buy it

✅+20% larger total L3 cache (24 MB vs 20 MB).
✅Better for workstations and heavier parallel workloads: 8 cores / 16 threads.

Trade-offs

❌Smaller total L3 cache (20 MB vs 24 MB).
❌Less compelling for workstation-style loads than Xeon E-2488, which brings 8 cores / 16 threads.
❌Launch MSRP is still $231 MSRP, while Xeon E-2488 mostly shows up through inconsistent older-market listings.

Trade-offs

❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Core Ultra 5 225F across 4 shared CPU benchmark tests.
❌Lower Cinebench R23 multi-core (15,000 vs 17,050).
❌46.2% higher power demand at 95W vs 65W.

Quick Answers

So, is Core Ultra 5 225F better than Xeon E-2488?

Not in a simple one-size-fits-all way. Xeon E-2488 makes more sense for workstation-style multi-core throughput, while Core Ultra 5 225F is the better mainstream desktop choice for gaming, platform cost, and day-to-day practicality.

Which one is better for gaming?

If gaming is the priority, Core Ultra 5 225F is the better pick here. According to our tests, it delivers 9.3% more average FPS across 4 shared CPU game tests.

Which one is better for streaming, content creation, and heavy multitasking?

For streaming, content creation, and heavier multitasking, Core Ultra 5 225F is the better fit. You are getting 13.7% better Cinebench R23 multi-core, backed by 10 cores and 10 threads.

Which one is the smarter buy today, not just the cheaper CPU?

Core Ultra 5 225F is the smarter buy today. Core Ultra 5 225F is at an unclear MSRP at $231 MSRP versus unclear MSRP, and it gives you a 9.3% average FPS lead across 4 shared CPU game tests in our data. It is also 100.0% better value on MSRP (136.5 vs 0.0 PassMark/$), so the better CPU is not just faster, it is also the cleaner value play on paper.

Which one is more future-proof for 2026 and beyond?

Core Ultra 5 225F is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer CPU generation (2025 vs 2023), more multi-core headroom with 10 cores / 10 threads instead of 8/16, and AVX-512 support for heavier modern compute workloads. That should give you a better long-term upgrade path for motherboard, RAM, and future CPU swaps.

Games Benchmarks

Paired with RTX 4090

To accurately isolate CPU performance, all benchmarks below use an NVIDIA RTX 4090 as the reference GPU. This eliminates GPU-side bottlenecks and highlights pure processing throughput differences between the CPUs.

Note: Real-world results may vary based on your actual GPU. CPU performance impact is more visible in processing-intensive titles and high-refresh-rate gaming scenarios.

Core Ultra 5 225F Benchmark Check

Xeon E-2488 Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Core Ultra 5 225F	Xeon E-2488
1080p
low	256 FPS	258 FPS
medium	244 FPS	248 FPS
high	208 FPS	206 FPS
ultra	176 FPS	176 FPS
1440p
low	219 FPS	223 FPS
medium	187 FPS	191 FPS
high	154 FPS	152 FPS
ultra	133 FPS	133 FPS
4K
low	150 FPS	154 FPS
medium	127 FPS	131 FPS
high	99 FPS	100 FPS
ultra	86 FPS	88 FPS

Open Core Ultra 5 225F Open Xeon E-2488

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Core Ultra 5 225F	Xeon E-2488
1080p
low	603 FPS	652 FPS
medium	512 FPS	557 FPS
high	421 FPS	468 FPS
ultra	378 FPS	426 FPS
1440p
low	501 FPS	564 FPS
medium	441 FPS	504 FPS
high	372 FPS	427 FPS
ultra	319 FPS	367 FPS
4K
low	301 FPS	329 FPS
medium	266 FPS	301 FPS
high	248 FPS	285 FPS
ultra	218 FPS	251 FPS

Open Core Ultra 5 225F Open Xeon E-2488

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Core Ultra 5 225F	Xeon E-2488
1080p
low	789 FPS	647 FPS
medium	680 FPS	529 FPS
high	609 FPS	466 FPS
ultra	522 FPS	404 FPS
1440p
low	725 FPS	589 FPS
medium	588 FPS	490 FPS
high	515 FPS	426 FPS
ultra	439 FPS	371 FPS
4K
low	504 FPS	427 FPS
medium	422 FPS	376 FPS
high	377 FPS	341 FPS
ultra	318 FPS	288 FPS

Open Core Ultra 5 225F Open Xeon E-2488

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Core Ultra 5 225F	Xeon E-2488
1080p
low	789 FPS	797 FPS
medium	789 FPS	797 FPS
high	777 FPS	737 FPS
ultra	699 FPS	663 FPS
1440p
low	789 FPS	794 FPS
medium	716 FPS	712 FPS
high	623 FPS	618 FPS
ultra	547 FPS	545 FPS
4K
low	560 FPS	544 FPS
medium	510 FPS	496 FPS
high	457 FPS	445 FPS
ultra	402 FPS	389 FPS

Open Core Ultra 5 225F Open Xeon E-2488

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Core Ultra 5 225F and Xeon E-2488

Core Ultra 5 225F

The Core Ultra 5 225F is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 7 January 2025 (less than a year ago). It is based on the Arrow Lake-S (2024−2025) architecture. It features 10 cores and 10 threads. Base frequency is 3.3 GHz, with boost up to 4.9 GHz. L3 cache: 20 MB (total). L2 cache: 3 MB (per core). Built on 3 nm process technology. Socket: LGA1851. Thermal design power (TDP): 65 Watt. Memory support: DDR5-6400. Passmark benchmark score: 31,541 points. Launch price was $231.

Xeon E-2488

The Xeon E-2488 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 14 December 2023 (1 year ago). It is based on the Raptor Lake-S (2023−2024) architecture. It features 8 cores and 16 threads. Base frequency is 3.2 GHz, with boost up to 5.6 GHz. L3 cache: 24 MB (total). L2 cache: 2 MB (per core). Built on Intel 7 nm process technology. Socket: LGA1700. Thermal design power (TDP): 95 Watt. Memory support: DDR5-4800. Passmark benchmark score: 31,888 points. Launch price was $606.

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Processing Power

The Core Ultra 5 225F packs 10 cores / 10 threads, while the Xeon E-2488 offers 8 cores / 16 threads — the Core Ultra 5 225F has 2 more cores. Boost clocks reach 4.9 GHz on the Core Ultra 5 225F versus 5.6 GHz on the Xeon E-2488 — a 13.3% clock advantage for the Xeon E-2488 (base: 3.3 GHz vs 3.2 GHz). The Core Ultra 5 225F uses the Arrow Lake-S (2024−2025) architecture (3 nm), while the Xeon E-2488 uses Raptor Lake-S (2023−2024) (Intel 7 nm). In PassMark, the Core Ultra 5 225F scores 31,541 against the Xeon E-2488's 31,888 — a 1.1% lead for the Xeon E-2488. Cinebench R23 multi-core: 17,050 vs 15,000 (12.8% advantage for the Core Ultra 5 225F). Geekbench 6 single-core — the metric most relevant to gaming — records 2,653 vs 2,100, a 23.3% lead for the Core Ultra 5 225F that directly translates to higher frame rates. Multi-core Geekbench: 13,028 vs 12,000 (8.2% advantage for the Core Ultra 5 225F). L3 cache: 20 MB (total) on the Core Ultra 5 225F vs 24 MB (total) on the Xeon E-2488.

Feature	Core Ultra 5 225F	Xeon E-2488
Cores / Threads	10 / 10+25%	8 / 16
Boost Clock	4.9 GHz	5.6 GHz+14%
Base Clock	3.3 GHz+3%	3.2 GHz
L3 Cache	20 MB (total)	24 MB (total)+20%
L2 Cache	3 MB (per core)+50%	2 MB (per core)
Process	3 nm-57%	Intel 7 nm
Architecture	Arrow Lake-S (2024−2025)	Raptor Lake-S (2023−2024)
PassMark	31,541	31,888+1%
Cinebench R23 Multi	17,050+14%	15,000
Geekbench 6 Single	2,653+26%	2,100
Geekbench 6 Multi	13,028+9%	12,000

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Memory & Platform

The Core Ultra 5 225F uses the LGA1851 socket (PCIe 5.0), while the Xeon E-2488 uses LGA1700 (PCIe 5.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard. Both support up to DDR5-6400 memory speed. The Core Ultra 5 225F supports up to 256 GB of RAM compared to 128 GB — 66.7% more capacity for professional workloads. Both feature 2-channel memory with ECC support. PCIe lanes: 24 (Core Ultra 5 225F) vs 20 (Xeon E-2488) — the Core Ultra 5 225F offers 4 more lanes for additional GPUs or NVMe drives. Chipset compatibility: Z890,B860 (Core Ultra 5 225F) and W680 (Xeon E-2488).

Feature	Core Ultra 5 225F	Xeon E-2488
Socket	LGA1851	LGA1700
PCIe Generation	PCIe 5.0	PCIe 5.0
Max RAM Speed	DDR5-6400	DDR5-4800
Max RAM Capacity	256 GB+100%	128 GB
RAM Channels	2	2
ECC Support	No	Yes
PCIe Lanes	24+20%	20

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Advanced Features

Neither processor supports overclocking. Only the Core Ultra 5 225F supports AVX-512 instructions — important for machine learning and scientific applications. Virtualization support: VT-x, VT-d (Core Ultra 5 225F) vs VT-x, VT-d, EPT (Xeon E-2488). Primary use case: Xeon E-2488 targets Entry-level Server / Workstation. Direct competitor: Xeon E-2488 rivals Xeon E-2388G.