Customer Ratings & Reviews

I’m loving this processor. No issues. Graphics are ok for a budget build or to get up and running. I didn’t find the included fan as noisy as others have said, but It’s not silent. Nice product.

The best cpu for under $200 IMO. You can OC this one to just over 5.0 MHz and it’s very reliable. I hope when this cpu is discontinued, that the value goes up on such a amazing cpu. 10/10.

amazing budget gamer cpu in the market !! nothing better for value

Very good CPU and provides a good value for the last of the 1151 motherboards out there. Upgraded from a core i3 for a power user that could use more cores. The Dell Optiplex PC I put this in had an 8th gen Core i3 8100, and most boards that can use 8th gen Intel CPUs are compatible with 9th gen CPUs, too. Going from the i3 8100 and pairing the i5-9400 with faster 2666Mhz memory made a noticeable difference in performance. The current 10th gen i5 are also 6 core, but add hyperthreading for 12 threads. They require new motherboards to support socket 1200, though. This is a good way to breathe life into an older system.

The reason for my 4/5 star rating is because I haven’t had this processor for that long so I can’t give it an accurate long-term evaluation. But in the short time that I’ve had it, it has been great! I used the standard fan and thermal compound that came pre-installed and I have had any issues. The fan is very quiet and I don’t notice any sort of excess heat. Speeds are also very nice. I use my computer for music production; so I typically have many programs and VSTs running at one and I haven’t had any issues with running out of processing power.

For general desktop use this processor is very solid, and it handles gaming well. While it isn't an appropriate choice for a workstation, it is excellent in other regards. Thermals are easily managed by even the stock cooler that is included with it, and it hasn't proven to be a significant bottleneck at average refresh rates. Wouldn't recommend it for serious eSports, but for a casual gamer or general desktop use this processor is plenty even considering newer generation products. Four stars only in context of there being better options on the used market that are just as reliable. But for a new processor this strikes into the territory of being an excellent budget processor. Integrated graphics are solid, but not on par with Ryzen APUs at a similar price.

This chip has performed better for me than its locked sister chip. not sure what's going on there. Includes a stock fan. Fast reliable chip. Wish intel and mobo manufactures would make it easier to pare hardware. Come up with a less confusing way of doing things than generation numbers for crying out loud. Would be easier if all same socket types were compatible.

Bought this to upgrade from an older 4th gen i5 and it's been performing beautifully. I'm not going to take a star off because it's not the intended purpose, but if you're wanting to do alot of video streaming or use it as a workstation, look for an i7 or i9. You can overclock with this, but you'd have more stable OC performance with an i7 or i9.

I bought this for my brother for his first build. It's been really great. He's able to play all the games he wants at a very good level. Happy I didn't have to break the bank to get him great performance.

Extremely satisfied with this product. I was able to purchase it on sale for $130 which is a great price for a 9th generation Intel I5 processor. After installing Windows 10, everything works smooth and fast.

This processor runs my 24/7 server. The server mainly handles media procurement and serving (via Plex). Thus far, nothing has slowed down the 9400. Plex routinely dishes out 2 streams of transcoded video (UHD graphics!!), and never needs to buffer or freeze. My only gripe with the processor is that it's a bit more power-hungry than my previous i5-6400t (which was specifically a low-power CPU)--but the difference equates to about $1 in power usage over the entire year. Soooo, in truth, that gripe is more about my nick-pickiness. If you're on the fence about this processor, I'm willing to bet that it'll work great for you regardless of the task. And at the price I paid for it, around $150 after rebates, it's hard NOT to recommend.

Solid cpu. Six cores, excellent for daily use and gaming with a mid range graphics card. Same price as an i5-10400, which has hyperthreading. But if you can find a h310 or b365 motherboard for $50-55, this is a better value proposition if you don’t need the extra threads.

I was updating my son's gaming rig from a gen 1 Intel Core I-7 (quad core) cpu. I was tempted to go with another core I-7or I-9 but the cost was a lot of money. When at the store I thought I was compromising with the 9th gen core I-5, but I was wrong. This processor is equal to or greater than the first gen core I-7 and the price was just right. If you are upgrading from an older processor, then this core I-5 is both powerful and cost effective.

Great processor for the price. Gets the job done. Lights up nicely and looks great in my motherboard

Worth not being able to overclock. Great for Gamers and Streamers on a budget

My son has a Ryzen 2600 gaming PC. I've always used Intel, I had a i5-6500 that was getting long in the tooth when it came to gaming. So I had a choice, stick with Intel or go with a Ryzen. Around the same price point as the Ryzen 2600 was this i5-9400 which in my opinion intel tends to dominate in games at similar price points, so I went with this intel CPU instead of a similarly priced Ryzen. My son said his PC is better so I challenged him with doing benchmarks and playing games. We ran 3DMark Timespy benchmark (we both have 1080 ti GPUs), His CPU score on his Ryzen 2600 was 28% faster than my i5-9400. Tomb raider benchmark was also faster on his, as was cinebench. In actual gaming, mine seemed ok, minor stuttering here and there but not hugely noticeable, however I expected marked improvement from a i5-6500 and to tell you the truth I can't tell the difference, should've stuck with what I had. If you're going to pay this money, go with a similarly priced Ryzen, they are better. If you have more money to spend go with a 9700k or higher if you want to stick with intel, although I don't own one, based on reviews people are reporting they are excellent for gaming. This CPU, however is not that good for gaming, compared to the competition - be warned.

Nice CPU for basic everyday computing, as well as for gaming on a budget. It feels good to be able to play most games at ultra or high settings. I was initially going to get the 9400f model which doesn't have onboard graphics but for a few bucks more, I figured it was worth it just in case my graphics card bombs so I don't have any down time. Happy with my purchase

Great processor for the price. Easy to install and ups the quality

For the price you get good performance and and great graphics

Great for gaming able to handle a handful of demanding cpu intensive programs at once with ease. (ex. Triple A game titles + streaming software+ the 12 tabs you accidently left open in IE) for what it is, and how it performs its a tough value to top