Looking for the best CPU for LGA 1200? look no further. Updated: Feb 16, 2024 10:07 am WePC is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Prices subject to change. Learn more Table of Contents Table of Contents Looking for the best CPU for the LGA 1200 socket? You’re in luck, we’ve tested numerous different CPUs at WePC to comprise this list. The LGA 1200 socket belongs to Intel’s 500 series motherboards. The socket’s main features consist of PCIe Gen 4 support, USB 3.0, and Thunderbolt. Intel 11th gen was the last generation of CPUs to use the socket, which was later superseded by the 12th gen Alder Lake CPUs on socket LGA 1700. But what is the Best CPU for LGA 1200 motherboard? We’re looking for the best of the best CPU to grace the Socket LGA 1200, we’re not looking for the cheapest. Luckily, thanks to the socket’s age, we can find the 11th gen flagship for relatively cheap. This is because it’s three generations out of date, thanks to the arrival of the 14th Gen CPUs. If you’re pressed for time, we have selected the Core i9-11900k as the best CPU for LGA 1200, thanks to its insane single-core performance and strong multi-core performance. So, without further delay, here are the best CPUs for LGA 1200. If you’re after a more modern CPU, check out the best CPUs for gaming in 2024, where you’ll find the best of the best. What is the best CPU for LGA 1200 in 2024 The best CPU for LGA 1200 is the most powerful CPU belonging to the Intel LGA 1200 socket standard. Best doesn’t always mean most powerful, however, best can mean whatever will serve your use case the best. On a budget? try the 11600K, need the most power? try the 11900K. We recommend the CPUs to accommodate any use case and budget. Best LGA 1200 CPU – Intel Core i9-11900K Intel Core i9 11900K Rocket Lake CPU Pros Wsa a flagship so stunning performance Still quite expensive Will work with older, cheaper motherboards Cons Not as fast as some of the newer CPUs Big investment in older tech The Core i9-11900K was the best CPU to debut on the socket LGA 1200. It has a massive bank of cores and threads at its disposal, ready to chew through whatever task you can throw at it. The 8-Core-16-Thread CPU can achieve wonders in the multi-core workload arena, all thanks to its hyperthreaded main cores. As you know, the later Intel CPUs are split, between E-cores and P-cores. That’s not the case here. good old-fashioned P-cores all around. The core speed of the 11900K pushed 5.2GHzm, and that is very impressive for a CPU at the time. As we know, a CPU’s single-core speed directly affects how well that CPU will perform during gaming workloads. The 11900K, at the time, was deemed the fastest gaming CPU in the world. The TDP of the 11900K is a measly 125W, which is nothing compared to the TDP output by the latest flagships. This CPU is both efficient and easy to cool. You’re not going to have any issues keeping the 11900K cool. This CPU is a beast and will still destroy any of its competition at the same level. This CPU will serve you well when paired with a 30 series GPU from Nvidia or if you want to do some high-end gaming on a budget. It’s not quite the performance levels of the 12th gen. but it’s very close for the money you can pick one up now. It also won’t bottleneck the RTX 4080 or RTX 4090, so could well be a good option for those still on the LGA 1200 socket. best value LGA 1200 CPU – Core i5-10600K Pros Very cheap and packs a lot of power With 14th Gen now here, risks being left behind Cons Not powerful enough for ultra high-end GPUs This truly is the little CPU that could. It offers very good value for money with the single-core performance being exceptional for this generation of CPU. The moderate number of cores means it can get through a decent level of multitasking or multi-core workloads, and it has the core speed to back it up when gaming. The reason we chose this CPU is it is the middle of the pack’s best value-for-money pick that can hold its own in any workload. You can pick a 10600K up for very little money and it serves as an example of just how good the earlier hardware can still be. Best budget LGA 1200 CPU – Core i3-10100F Intel Core i3-10100F Pros Very affordable Low power consumption Easy to cool, can use stock cooler fine. Cons not the best performance with only 4 cores The Intel Core i5-10100F is a budget-friendly CPU that delivers excellent performance for its price. It features four cores and eight threads, thanks to hyper-threading technology, making it capable of handling multitasking and demanding applications effectively. With a base clock speed of 3.6 GHz and a turbo boost of up to 4.3 GHz, the 10100F offers solid performance for gaming, content creation, and general computing tasks. The 10100F also supports DDR4 memory up to 2666 MHz and has a power consumption of 65 watts, making it efficient and suitable for small form factor builds. Overall, the 10100F provides a great balance of performance, affordability, and power efficiency, making it an excellent choice for budget LGA 1200 systems. What is LGA 1200? LGA 1200, also known as Socket H5, is a CPU socket used for Intel processors. It is the successor to the LGA 1151 socket and was introduced in 2020, it supports the latest 10th and 11th Gen Intel Core processors (Codename Comet Lake and Rocket Lake). This socket has 1200 pins that are used to connect the CPU to the motherboard. It also includes additional features such as support for DDR4 memory and PCIe 4.0, which can provide faster data transfer speeds and increased performance. Additionally, LGA 1200 also has a direct power delivery design, which allows for more efficient power delivery to the CPU and features like support for Thunderbolt 4, USB 3.2 Gen 2×2, and Wi-Fi 6. LGA 1200 is physically compatible with LGA 1151, but it is not electrically compatible and none of the motherboards that support LGA 1151 can support LGA 1200. So to use LGA 1200, you will need a new motherboard that supports the LGA 1200 socket, a new CPU, and a new CPU cooler at the very least. FAQs What Intel CPU generation does socket LGA 1200 support? Intel LGA 1200 supports Rocket Lake and Comet Lake series of CPUs, this is Intel 10th and 11th gen. This means if you already have an intel 10th gen processor, you can upgrade without issue. Is intel 11th gen still good? Yes! Intel 11th gen makes a fantastic budget generation considering we are now on the 14th generation of Intel processors. These processors are still plenty powerful for mid-high end gaming, as long as you have a sufficient GPU. Final Word The generations that sat within the socket LGA 1200 were great, even now the performance in games still holds up because game processing hasn’t changed all that much. For GPUs, it has, sure, but not so much for CPUs. Whatever CPU you choose from these two we’ve highlighted, both are winners. The two generations you pick will be a winner. The i5-10600K is still a great budget option, while the i9-11900K is a great companion for those after high-end gaming and multitasking.
