AMD Radeon 550X vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database includes one shared benchmark between these two mobile GPUs: Geekbench OpenCL. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M scores 12,630 points, while the AMD Radeon 550X scores 8,866 points. That is a 42.5% advantage for the NVIDIA part, and it is the only head-to-head test recorded. The GTX 870M wins that match outright, giving it a 1 to 0 win record in direct comparisons.

Looking at the average benchmark score across all recorded tests, the GTX 870M lands at 9,959 points, which places it in the 48th percentile of all GPUs in the database. The Radeon 550X averages 8,918 points, sitting in the 45th percentile. The gap in average scores is about 1,041 points, or roughly 11.7% in favor of the NVIDIA card, even though the two parts are only three percentile ranks apart.

The GTX 870M’s closest rivals in the database are instructive. The AMD Radeon Pro 5300M averages 10,013 points, just 0.5% above the 870M. The NVIDIA Quadro K5100M averages 10,043 points, 0.8% higher. The AMD Radeon R9 M375 averages 10,070 points, 1.1% higher. On the other side, the NVIDIA Quadro 6000 averages 9,846 points, which is 1.1% lower than the 870M. So the 870M sits in a tight cluster of older and mid-range parts, all within roughly a point or two of each other.

The Radeon 550X’s nearest rivals tell a similar story. The AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100 averages 8,863 points, just 0.6% below the 550X. The AMD Radeon R9 M265X averages 8,851 points, 0.8% lower. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 averages 9,022 points, which is 1.2% higher than the 550X. The NVIDIA TITAN V CEO Edition averages 9,037 points, 1.3% higher. The 550X is essentially bracketed by a small margin on either side, but the overall level of performance is clearly below the 870M’s neighborhood.

The 42.5% OpenCL delta is the headline number. It is not a narrow win; it is a substantial margin that shows up across the entire compute workload. The GTX 870M also has a Geekbench Metal score of 7,288, which is not directly comparable to the 550X because the AMD card has no Metal result recorded. The 550X does have a Vulkan score of 8,970, but the GTX 870M has no Vulkan result in the database, so that comparison cannot be made directly.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different design generations and different foundries. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M uses the GK104 chip, built on the Kepler architecture, and is manufactured by TSMC on a 28 nm process. The die size is 294 mm², and the chip packs 3,540 million transistors, giving it a transistor density of 12.0 million per square millimeter.

The AMD Radeon 550X uses the Lexa chip, built on GCN 4.0 architecture, and is manufactured by GlobalFoundries on a 14 nm process. The die is much smaller at 103 mm², with 2,200 million transistors, resulting in a higher transistor density of 21.4 million per square millimeter. The process advantage is clear: the 550X fits about two-thirds of the transistor count into roughly one-third of the silicon area.

The GTX 870M belongs to the GeForce 800M generation and was released earlier, with a production status of end-of-life. Its predecessor is the GeForce 700M series and its successor is the GeForce 900M series. The Radeon 550X belongs to the Polaris (RX 500X) generation, released later, also end-of-life, with Polaris as its predecessor and Vega as its successor.

Compute resources differ sharply. The GTX 870M has 1,344 shading units, 112 texture mapping units, and 24 ROPs. The Radeon 550X has 512 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. The NVIDIA card has more than twice the shading units and more than three times the TMUs. The pixel rate reflects this: the 870M reaches 27.08 GPixel/s, while the 550X reaches 19.49 GPixel/s. The texture rate gap is larger: 108.3 GTexel/s versus 38.98 GTexel/s.

Memory configurations also differ. The GTX 870M has 3 GB of GDDR5 on a 192-bit bus, with memory clocked at 1250 MHz and 5 Gbps effective, producing 120.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The Radeon 550X has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, with memory at 1750 MHz and 7 Gbps effective, producing 112.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The 870M has slightly more bandwidth and 50% more capacity.

The FP32 compute figures show a clear hierarchy. The GTX 870M delivers 2.599 TFLOPS, while the Radeon 550X delivers 1,247.2 GFLOPS, which is about 1.25 TFLOPS. The NVIDIA card has roughly twice the raw floating-point throughput. The 550X does offer FP16 at 1,247.2 GFLOPS with a 1:1 ratio, but the GTX 870M has no FP16 figure recorded.

Power and physical layout differ as well. The GTX 870M has a TDP of 100 W and uses an MXM Module slot width with an MXM-B (3.0) bus interface. It has no power connectors and its display outputs are listed as portable device dependent. The Radeon 550X has a TDP of 50 W, uses a dual-slot form factor, a PCIe 3.0 x8 interface, and no power connectors, with a suggested PSU of 250 W. It also has fixed display outputs: 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, and 1x DisplayPort 1.4a. The 550X is 145 mm (5.7 inches) long.

API support favors the AMD card in some areas. The GTX 870M supports DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175. The Radeon 550X supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The AMD part has a higher DirectX feature level and a newer Vulkan version.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in the shared OpenCL benchmark?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M scores 12,630 in Geekbench OpenCL, which is 42.5% higher than the Radeon 550X’s 8,866.

Q: How do their average benchmark scores compare?

A: The GTX 870M averages 9,959 points across recorded tests, while the Radeon 550X averages 8,918 points. The 870M sits in the 48th percentile of all GPUs, the 550X in the 45th.

Q: Do they use the same manufacturing process?

A: No. The GTX 870M uses a 28 nm TSMC process, while the Radeon 550X uses a 14 nm GlobalFoundries process. The 550X has a higher transistor density at 21.4M per mm² versus 12.0M per mm².

Q: Which card has more memory bandwidth?

A: The GTX 870M has 120.0 GB/s of bandwidth from 3 GB of GDDR5 on a 192-bit bus. The Radeon 550X has 112.0 GB/s from 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus.

Q: Does the Radeon 550X support newer graphics APIs?

A: Yes. The 550X supports DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.3, while the GTX 870M supports DirectX 12 (11_0) and Vulkan 1.2.175. Both support OpenGL 4.6.

Q: What are the closest rivals for each card?

A: The GTX 870M’s nearest rival is the AMD Radeon Pro 5300M at 10,013 points, 0.5% higher. The Radeon 550X’s nearest rival is the AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100 at 8,863 points, 0.6% lower.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear winner for raw compute performance. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M beats the AMD Radeon 550X by 42.5% in the only direct benchmark comparison available, and it also holds a roughly 11.7% lead in average benchmark score across all recorded tests. It has more shading units, more TMUs, more ROPs, higher pixel rate, higher texture rate, more than double the FP32 throughput, more memory, and slightly more memory bandwidth. If the workload is compute-heavy, the GTX 870M is the stronger part.

The Radeon 550X is not without merit. It draws half the power at 50 W versus 100 W, it is built on a smaller and denser process, it has a newer architecture with higher DirectX feature level and Vulkan 1.3 support, and it offers FP16 compute at a 1:1 ratio. It also has fixed display outputs and a shorter 145 mm length, which makes it easier to slot into compact or low-power systems. But in terms of measured performance, it trails the 870M in every head-to-head metric recorded in the database.

For a user choosing between these two for an existing system, the decision depends on what matters more. If maximum compute performance and memory capacity are the priority, the GTX 870M is the answer. If lower power draw, newer API support, and a smaller physical footprint are more important, the Radeon 550X is the practical pick. Neither card is current, and both are end-of-life, so the choice is about matching an older part to a specific workload.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M | AMD Radeon 550X |

|---|---|---|

| Chip | GK104 | Lexa |

| Architecture | Kepler | GCN 4.0 |

| Generation | GeForce 800M | Polaris (RX 500X) |

| Process node | 28 nm | 14 nm |

| Foundry | TSMC | GlobalFoundries |

| Transistors | 3,540 million | 2,200 million |

| Die size | 294 mm² | 103 mm² |

| Transistor density | 12.0M / mm² | 21.4M / mm² |

| Base clock | 941 MHz | 1082 MHz |

| Boost clock | 967 MHz | 1218 MHz |

| Memory clock | 1250 MHz, 5 Gbps effective | 1750 MHz, 7 Gbps effective |

| Memory size | 3 GB | 2 GB |

| Memory type | GDDR5 | GDDR5 |

| Memory bus | 192 bit | 128 bit |

| Memory bandwidth | 120.0 GB/s | 112.0 GB/s |

| Shading units | 1344 | 512 |

| TMUs | 112 | 32 |

| ROPs | 24 | 16 |

| Pixel rate | 27.08 GPixel/s | 19.49 GPixel/s |

| Texture rate | 108.3 GTexel/s | 38.98 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 2.599 TFLOPS | 1,247.2 GFLOPS |

| FP16 | Not recorded | 1,247.2 GFLOPS (1:1) |

| TDP | 100 W | 50 W |

| Slot width | MXM Module | Dual-slot |

| Power connectors | None | None |

| Suggested PSU | Not recorded | 250 W |

| Bus interface | MXM-B (3.0) | PCIe 3.0 x8 |

| Display outputs | Portable Device Dependent | 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, 1x DisplayPort 1.4a |

| DirectX | 12 (11_0) | 12 (12_0) |

| OpenGL | 4.6 | 4.6 |

| Vulkan | 1.2.175 | 1.3 |

| Length | Not recorded | 145 mm (5.7 inches) |

| Release date | 2014-03-11 | 2019-03-26 |

| Production status | End-of-life | End-of-life |

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M wins in raw compute performance. Its OpenCL score is 42.5% higher than the Radeon 550X, and its average benchmark score is about 11.7% higher. It also wins on memory capacity with 3 GB versus 2 GB, on memory bandwidth with 120.0 GB/s versus 112.0 GB/s, and on every compute resource count: shading units, TMUs, and ROPs. Its pixel rate of 27.08 GPixel/s and texture rate of 108.3 GTexel/s are both well ahead of the 550X’s 19.49 GPixel/s and 38.98 GTexel/s. Its FP32 throughput of 2.599 TFLOPS is more than double the 550X’s 1,247.2 GFLOPS. For any workload that stresses raw throughput, texture fill, or memory capacity, the 870M is the better card.

The AMD Radeon 550X wins on efficiency and modern feature support. Its TDP is exactly half of the 870M’s, at 50 W versus 100 W, and it requires only a 250 W suggested PSU. It has a newer architecture, a denser process, and a smaller die. It supports DirectX 12 (12_0) instead of 12 (11_0), and Vulkan 1.3 instead of 1.2.175. It also supports FP16 compute at a 1:1 ratio, which the 870M does not record. Its fixed display outputs and 145 mm length make it easier to install in a standard desktop slot, whereas the 870M’s MXM form factor depends on the host device. For a low-power, compact, or API-forward system, the 550X is the sensible choice.