Intel BX8070811400

The i5-11400F was a budget hero in 2021, now it's a 3rd percentile has-been. Only buy it if you find it dirt cheap and already own the motherboard.

What surprised us most is how far this chip has fallen. The 11400F lands in the 3rd percentile for single-thread and 4th percentile for multi-thread in our database. That's not just mediocre, that's near the bottom of every CPU we've tested. The 65W TDP sounds efficient on paper, but the efficiency score is 4th percentile, so it's not doing much with those watts. PCIe Gen 4.0 support is nice, but you're pairing it with a platform that's already two generations behind. The included thermal solution is a stock Intel cooler, which is fine for a 65W chip, but don't expect quiet operation under load.

Our database throws some odd competitors at this chip, like the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D and a Dell Xeon E5-2637 V2, but those aren't realistic alternatives. The real comparison is against any modern budget CPU. A Ryzen 5 5600 or even a used Ryzen 5 3600 will crush the 11400F in single-thread and efficiency while costing less on the used market. The G.Skill Trident Z Neo showing up as a competitor is just our database being funny, that's RAM, not a CPU. The Xeon E5-2637 V2 is even older and worse, so at least the 11400F beats that fossil. But beating a 2013 server chip isn't a flex.

The value story here is messy. In the US, you're looking at USD 209, which is frankly absurd for a chip this old. But in Europe, prices swing from EUR 158 to EUR 229 across four listings, a EUR 71 spread. If you're in the EU, the EUR 158 listing is the only one even worth glancing at, and even then, you're paying for a dead platform. In Canada, CAD 178 is borderline okay if you're desperate. But at USD 209, you're getting robbed. This chip was a budget king in 2021, now it's just old stock with a nostalgia tax.

The Intel Core i5-11400F is a budget CPU from 2021 that's still kicking around on store shelves, and honestly, it's a weird buy in 2025. The one thing to know: this chip was a solid value pick back in the Rocket Lake days, but our database shows it's now sitting at the bottom of the barrel for single-thread, multi-thread, and efficiency. You're buying a 6-core, 12-thread processor with no integrated graphics, and it needs a discrete GPU just to boot. That's fine if you're building a cheap gaming rig, but the numbers don't lie, this thing is old.

If you're building a new PC in 2025, skip this entirely. Go get a modern Ryzen 5 or Intel Core i5 from the current generation. You'll get better performance, better efficiency, and an actual upgrade path. This chip is for people who already own a compatible board and just need a cheap drop-in replacement, and even then, only at a steep discount.

Don't buy this unless you find it for under EUR 160 or CAD 180 and you already have a compatible motherboard lying around. The i5-11400F is a relic from a generation Intel would rather forget, and our data shows it's near the bottom of every performance chart. If you're building new, spend your money on a modern budget platform. If you're upgrading an old 10th or 11th gen system, this chip only makes sense at a steep discount, and even then, you're polishing brass on the Titanic.