AMD Radeon HD 8970M vs AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only directly comparable benchmark in the database is Geekbench OpenCL, and the result is decisive. The AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT scores 59,467, while the AMD Radeon HD 8970M scores 21,237. That is a 64.3% advantage for the Pro 5700 XT, meaning the newer card delivers roughly three times the raw compute throughput in this test. No other head-to-head tests were recorded, so this single data point carries the full weight of the comparison.

Looking at the broader database context, the HD 8970M sits at the 66th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 21,237. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL at 21,153 (0.4% behind), the NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile at 21,379 (0.7% ahead), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 at 21,035 (1% behind), and the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 5000 at 21,629 (1.8% ahead). This places the HD 8970M in a tight cluster where small performance differences separate cards. It is essentially neck-and-neck with those mid-range mobile and workstation parts, which tells you the old GCN architecture still holds its own in compute workloads relative to its peers.

The Pro 5700 XT, by contrast, sits at the 63rd percentile globally, with an average benchmark score of 18,685. That average is dragged down by its Passmark scores, which include a DirectX 9 result of 153, DirectX 10 of 76, DirectX 11 of 85, and DirectX 12 of 59. Its Passmark G3D score is 12,547 and its GPU compute score is 5,787. The Geekbench OpenCL score of 59,467 is far higher than its average, indicating that the card is heavily optimized for compute-style workloads. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 560X at 18,626 (0.3% behind), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 at 18,789 (0.6% ahead), the AMD FirePro D500 at 18,533 (0.8% behind), and the NVIDIA Tesla K80 at 18,866 (1% ahead). The Pro 5700 XT is essentially tied with these cards in average terms, but its OpenCL peak is a different story entirely.

The key takeaway from the head-to-head data is that the Pro 5700 XT wins the only direct comparison by a massive margin, but the HD 8970M is more consistent across its limited test set. The HD 8970M only has one benchmark recorded, so its average equals its OpenCL score. The Pro 5700 XT has ten benchmarks, and its average is much lower than its OpenCL peak, suggesting it trades blows across different APIs.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear split. If you are running OpenCL-heavy workloads, the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT is the obvious choice. Its 59,467 OpenCL score is 180% higher than the HD 8970M's 21,237, and 64.3% higher in the direct head-to-head comparison. There is no scenario in the recorded data where the HD 8970M wins a benchmark against the Pro 5700 XT.

However, the HD 8970M is not without merit. Its 66th percentile ranking is higher than the Pro 5700 XT's 63rd percentile, and its average score of 21,237 is actually higher than the Pro 5700 XT's average of 18,685. This is because the Pro 5700 XT's Passmark scores are low, particularly the DirectX 9 result of 153 and DirectX 12 result of 59. If you care about legacy DirectX performance or 2D workloads, the HD 8970M's single OpenCL score does not tell you much, but its percentile suggests it is a more well-rounded performer relative to its peers.

Who should pick which? Strictly from the data, the Pro 5700 XT is for anyone prioritizing modern compute performance, especially in OpenCL or Vulkan. The HD 8970M is for those who need a card that sits higher in the global percentile ranking, indicating it outperforms a larger share of the GPU population. But that ranking is based on a single benchmark, so treat it with caution.

Architecture Differences

The two cards come from different eras of AMD's GPU design. The HD 8970M uses the Neptune chip based on GCN 1.0 architecture, manufactured on a 28 nm process at TSMC. It packs 2,800 million transistors on a 212 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 13.2 million per square millimeter. The Pro 5700 XT uses the Navi 10 chip based on RDNA 1.0 architecture, also built by TSMC but on a 7 nm process. It contains 10,300 million transistors on a 251 mm² die, with a density of 41.0 million per square millimeter. The node shrink is significant: the Pro 5700 XT fits nearly four times as many transistors into a slightly larger die.

Clock speeds differ substantially. The HD 8970M runs at 850 MHz base and 900 MHz boost, with memory at 1200 MHz (4.8 Gbps effective). The Pro 5700 XT runs at 1243 MHz base and 1499 MHz boost, with memory at 1500 MHz (12 Gbps effective). The Pro 5700 XT has a 46% higher base clock and a 67% higher boost clock. Memory bandwidth also favors the newer card: the HD 8970M offers 153.6 GB/s over a 256-bit GDDR5 bus, while the Pro 5700 XT delivers 384.0 GB/s over a 256-bit GDDR6 bus. That is a 150% bandwidth increase.

The compute configuration is radically different. The HD 8970M has 1,280 shading units, 80 texture mapping units, and 32 ROPs. The Pro 5700 XT has 2,560 shading units, 160 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. Doubling each of these counts explains the Pro 5700 XT's raw throughput advantage. Pixel rate jumps from 28.80 GPixel/s to 95.94 GPixel/s, and texture rate jumps from 72.00 GTexel/s to 239.8 GTexel/s. FP32 compute goes from 2.304 TFLOPS to 7.675 TFLOPS, and the Pro 5700 XT also supports FP16 at 15.35 TFLOPS (2:1 ratio), while the HD 8970M has no FP16 capability listed.

Power and interface differences are notable. The HD 8970M has a 100 W TDP and uses an MXM module slot, while the Pro 5700 XT has a 130 W TDP and is an IGP with no power connectors and no display outputs. The Pro 5700 XT lists a suggested PSU of 300 W, while the HD 8970M has none. The bus interface also differs: the HD 8970M uses PCIe 3.0 x16, while the Pro 5700 XT uses PCIe 4.0 x16. API support is similar but not identical: both support DirectX 12 and OpenGL 4.6, but the HD 8970M supports DirectX 12 (11_1) and Vulkan 1.2.170, while the Pro 5700 XT supports DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.4.

FAQ

Q: Which card has a higher OpenCL score?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT scores 59,467 in Geekbench OpenCL, while the AMD Radeon HD 8970M scores 21,237. The Pro 5700 XT leads by 64.3% in the direct head-to-head comparison.

Q: How do these cards compare in global percentile ranking?

A: The HD 8970M sits at the 66th percentile of all GPUs, while the Pro 5700 XT sits at the 63rd percentile. Despite the Pro 5700 XT winning the head-to-head, the HD 8970M ranks higher globally.

Q: What is the memory configuration difference?

A: The HD 8970M has 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, providing 153.6 GB/s bandwidth. The Pro 5700 XT has 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, providing 384.0 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Do both cards support the same DirectX version?

A: Both support DirectX 12, but the HD 8970M is limited to feature level 11_1, while the Pro 5700 XT supports feature level 12_1. OpenGL support is identical at 4.6 for both.

Q: What are the power requirements?

A: The HD 8970M has a 100 W TDP, while the Pro 5700 XT has a 130 W TDP. The Pro 5700 XT lists a suggested PSU of 300 W, while the HD 8970M has no suggested PSU listed.

Q: Which card supports more shading units?

A: The Pro 5700 XT has 2,560 shading units, exactly double the HD 8970M's 1,280. The Pro 5700 XT also doubles the TMUs (160 vs 80) and ROPs (64 vs 32).

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT wins the only recorded head-to-head benchmark, and it wins decisively. Its OpenCL score of 59,467 dwarfs the HD 8970M's 21,237. The Pro 5700 XT also wins on every architectural metric: it has double the shading units, TMUs, and ROPs, higher clocks, more memory, faster memory, and higher pixel and texture rates. For modern compute workloads, particularly those that leverage OpenCL or Vulkan 1.4, the Pro 5700 XT is the clear winner.

The HD 8970M wins on global percentile ranking, sitting at 66th versus the Pro 5700 XT's 63rd. It also has a higher average benchmark score of 21,237 versus 18,685, though this is partly because the Pro 5700 XT has more benchmarks dragging its average down. The HD 8970M's nearest rivals are all within 1.8% of its score, indicating it is a consistent performer relative to its peers. If you are comparing against the broader GPU landscape, the HD 8970M looks better in the database.

The Pro 5700 XT wins on API support, offering Vulkan 1.4 versus the HD 8970M's Vulkan 1.2.170, and DirectX 12 (12_1) versus 11_1. It also wins on process efficiency, with 7 nm versus 28 nm, and on memory capacity, with 16 GB versus 4 GB. The HD 8970M wins on power consumption, drawing 100 W versus 130 W, and on form factor flexibility, using an MXM module that can be swapped in portable devices, whereas the Pro 5700 XT is an IGP with no display outputs.

Specification Differences

The table below lists only the fields where the two cards differ, based on the recorded data.

| Specification | AMD Radeon HD 8970M | AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT |

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

| Chip | Neptune | Navi 10 |

| Architecture | GCN 1.0 | RDNA 1.0 |

| Generation | Solar System (HD 8900M) | Radeon Pro Mac (Navi Series) |

| Process Node | 28 nm | 7 nm |

| Transistors | 2,800 million | 10,300 million |

| Die Size | 212 mm² | 251 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 13.2M / mm² | 41.0M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 850 MHz | 1243 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 900 MHz | 1499 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1200 MHz, 4.8 Gbps effective | 1500 MHz, 12 Gbps effective |

| Memory Size | 4 GB | 16 GB |

| Memory Type | GDDR5 | GDDR6 |

| Memory Bandwidth | 153.6 GB/s | 384.0 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 1280 | 2560 |

| TMUs | 80 | 160 |

| ROPs | 32 | 64 |

| Pixel Rate | 28.80 GPixel/s | 95.94 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 72.00 GTexel/s | 239.8 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Performance | 2.304 TFLOPS | 7.675 TFLOPS |

| FP16 Performance | None | 15.35 TFLOPS (2:1) |

| TDP | 100 W | 130 W |

| Slot Width | MXM Module | IGP |

| Power Connectors | None | None |

| Suggested PSU | None | 300 W |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | PCIe 4.0 x16 |

| Display Outputs | Portable Device Dependent | No outputs |

| DirectX Support | 12 (11_1) | 12 (12_1) |

| Vulkan Support | 1.2.170 | 1.4 |

| Release Date | 2013-05-13 | 2020-08-03 |

| Predecessor | London | None |

| Successor | Gem System | None |

| Geekbench OpenCL Score | 21,237 | 59,467 |

| Percentile vs All GPUs | 66 | 63 |

| Average Benchmark Score | 21,237 | 18,685 |