Pricing change: Intel’s massive CPU price increase lands blows squarely on Japan’s best-selling 13th and 14th-generation processors: The PC component pricing landscape is changing – and not for the better. As Intel has now confirmed regarding its CPUs for the Japanese market, this latest round of price increases is not doing consumers or system builders any favour when it comes to sticker shock. This Intel CPU price increase has hit the cheapest, best-selling models the hardest, such as the Core i5-14400F, whose price has shot up by an eye-watering 20% in just one month.
The new Arrow Lake processors are here, but the old generation Raptor Lake and Raptor Lake Refresh CPUs are still the best option for budget buyers. I mean they have a track record and their prices were declining which made them quite popular — literally. Unfortunately this comes at a massive change in that equation, however, with this new Intel CPU price hike pricing budget PC builds up out of existence.
Explaining the CPU Price Hike Stats from Intel
The average increase is said to be 10% across the board for Intel CPUs, but the increase comes nowhere near equally. Certain models have been affected more and costs have surged far beyond the mean.
- Intel Core i5-14400F Budget king – 19,800 Yen (September) After an Intel CPU price increase in October, it price soared to 23,780 Yen That translates to a straight-up 20 per cent increase, which is the highest leap in the table.
- Intel Core i5-14600KF: A popular CPU for mid-range gamers saw a 30,000 Yen price rise to 34,000 Yen (+9% Intel CPU price hike)
- Intel Core i3-14100: All the way down to the entry-level. This month, the widespread Intel CPU price hike also made its way to the ‘non-F’ variant of this processor as well costing around 10% more than before.
Again with models equipped with integrated graphics, such as the Core i5-14400, we have an even more substantial 11% price increase. At the top, prices have crept up an increment among the high-end Core i7-14700K/KF models, while the prices on Core i9-14900K/KF remain flat in most cases — for now. But reports suggest this supply instability for these flagship chips could spark a second Intel CPU price rise soon as stock at retailers dries up.
What This Intel CPU Price Increase Would Mean for Customers
This unexpected rise in Japan pressurises the prospects of anyone considering a new PC build or an upgrade with that Intel CPU. And those processors with performance-per-Yen ratios that were second outside of K-chips?well, they’re exactly the ones most affected and the cornerstone of so many budget and mid-range systems. These hikes are money either absorbed by consumers, a search for older or remaining stock or a full change to Intel’s platform entirely. This shows just how variable components prices are nowadays, and how easily a single market statement, like a potential Intel CPU price increase, can ripple through the market.
Our Expertise and Experience
This most recent Intel CPU price hike analysis is based on ongoing market monitoring and data aggregation from Japan retailers and technology publications. With more than 10 years of hands-on knowledge on the trends of pricing and availability of PC components (and even more on how that directly affects consumers), our team is closer to both the consumer and supplier worlds than perhaps anybody. Instead, Intel’s CPUs have been up and down on prices more than high-school kids, but we have covered previous Intel CPU generations quite a bit — plenty of build guides and performance review coverage has made for a deep well of relevant knowledge, and, in this instance, perfect context for a massive increase in price on Intel CPUs of the past few generations.
