AMD coined the name from the Latin semper, which means "always", to suggest the Sempron is suitable for "daily use, practical, and part of everyday life".

The first Sempron CPUs were based on the Athlon XP architecture using the Thoroughbred or Thorton core.

These models were equipped with the Socket A interface, 256 KiB L2 cache and 166 MHz Front side bus (FSB 333).

Later, AMD introduced the Sempron 3000+ CPU, based on the Barton core with 512 KiB L2 cache.

Some differences from Athlon 64 processors include a reduced cache size (either 128 or 256 KiB L2), and the absence of AMD64 support in earlier models.