Core i3-3250 vs Core i3-2100

Gaming speed, cores and clocks

On our gaming index the Core i3-3250 scores 13 and the Core i3-2100 scores 12, about 8% faster for gaming. That gap is small and mostly shows up at 1080p with a very fast graphics card.

The Core i3-3250 has 2 cores and 4 threads, and the Core i3-2100 has 2 cores and 4 threads. Core counts are the same, so cache size and clock speed decide the difference. Boost clocks are 3.5 GHz and 3.1 GHz.

Platform, power and price

Both chips use the LGA1155 socket, so they fit the same motherboards. You can swap one for the other without changing the board.

Rated power is 55 W for the first and 65 W for the second. That is close enough that cooling needs will be similar.

At launch the Core i3-3250 cost $138 and the Core i3-2100 $117, which gives 9.4 and 10.3 points of gaming performance per $100. Today's prices will differ.

Which graphics cards each one can feed, and which to buy

At 1080p the Core i3-3250 can feed a card up to the Radeon RX 6500 XT before it holds the card back by more than 10 percent. The Core i3-2100 reaches the GeForce GTX 980. Both chips are in the same range for graphics card pairing.

Choose the Core i3-3250 if you want the faster gaming chip and the same or more cores. Choose the Core i3-2100 if you would rather spend the difference on a graphics card, which does more for frame rates in most games.