Snapdragon 765G vs Snapdragon 845: The Google Pixel 5 could offer worse performance than the Pixel 3

Much has been said about the Google Pixel 5. The phone is expected to debut in October, but even that uncertain, as reports say it could be delayed. The Pixel 5 is expected to take a step down from the flagship space to the sub-premium segment, and that'll likely be marked by the SoC the phone sports.

Going by most reports, the Google Pixel 5 will be powered by a sub-premium SoC. That chip is likely the Snapdragon 765G or Snapdragon 768G—Qualcomm's current second-tier chipsets. How does the Snapdragon 765G compare to an older flagship SoC like the Snapdragon 845 used on the two-year-old Pixel 3. Well, it's a mixed bag.

On Geekbench 5's single-core test, the Snapdragon 845 usually puts out scores in the 509 range. The Snapdragon 765G, on the other hand, has a median single-core score of 582. That's a very impressive showing by the newer SoC, as it denotes a handy 14% bump in single-core performance versus the Snapdragon 845.

On the multi-core test, the Snapdragon 845 records a score of 1857. The Snapdragon 765G, however, has a median score of 1598. Here, the balance swings in favor of the older flagship chipset, as its numbers show a 16% advantage. 

Moving on to AnTuTu, the Snapdragon 845 earns a CPU score of 104,184. The Snapdragon 765G almost matches that with a score of 103,750. At this point, it's safe to conclude that both chipsets offer identical CPU performance. 

Expectedly, it's in the GPU department that things start to go wild. On AnTuTu, the Snapdragon 845 records a score of 142,235. The Snapdragon 765G falls way short, as it only makes do with a score of 92,142. That's a...rather large difference in performance. The Snapdragon 845 has a 54% GPU advantage, to be exact.

That carries over to 3DMark, where the Snapdragon 845 has a median score of 34,928 in the Ice Storm Unlimited Physics test. The Snapdragon 765G, on the other hand, scrapes by with a median score of 21,545. That's a 62% advantage to the Snapdragon 845. 

It's safe to conclude that the Snapdragon 845 remains a more powerful chipset than the Snapdragon 765G. CPU performance is identical, but the older SoC completely dominates the Snapdragon 765G GPU-wise. It's important to note, though, that the Snapdragon 765G is likely a far more efficient chipset. On the flip side, you'll find that the Snapdragon 765G doesn't support 4K@60fps video recording, for example.