AMD Radeon Pro 5500M vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database contains a single direct comparison between these two GPUs, and it is decisive. In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the AMD Radeon Pro 5500M scores 31,088, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 scores 13,300. This represents a 57.2% advantage for the AMD part, a margin that places the two cards in entirely different performance classes for compute workloads. The delta of -57.2% is recorded from the perspective of the NVIDIA card, meaning the GTX 480 trails by that amount.

Looking at the broader database context, the GTX 480 sits at the 53rd percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 13,300. Its nearest rivals in the database are tightly clustered around that figure: the AMD Radeon Pro 555X scores 13,321, just 0.2% higher, the AMD FirePro M6100 scores 13,354, 0.4% higher, and the AMD Radeon RX 5500M scores 13,356, also 0.4% higher. The AMD Radeon HD 8950M is 0.6% ahead at 13,376. This clustering indicates that the GTX 480's OpenCL performance is representative of a specific performance tier, and the card is essentially at parity with these contemporaries in this single test.

The Radeon Pro 5500M, by contrast, records a 51st percentile placement overall, with an average benchmark score of 11,528 across all of its recorded tests. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Tesla K20c at 11,479 (0.4% lower), the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT at 11,627 (0.8% higher), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 at 11,680 (1.3% higher), and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780M at 11,261 (2.4% lower). The average score is pulled down by additional test results beyond OpenCL, including a Passmark G3D score of 6,732 and a Passmark GPU Compute score of 3,240, which are not directly comparable to the GTX 480's single recorded benchmark.

The data shows a clear hierarchy in OpenCL compute. The Radeon Pro 5500M delivers more than double the raw OpenCL score of the GTX 480. This is not a marginal improvement; it is a generational leap in compute throughput. Every other comparison in the head-to-head table is absent, so the OpenCL result stands as the sole quantitative link between the two products. The GTX 480's nearest rivals all sit within a fraction of a percent of its score, confirming that its performance profile is well understood and consistent with its era. The Radeon Pro 5500M's OpenCL result places it far outside that cluster.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins the recorded head-to-head benchmark?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 5500M wins the only direct comparison, the Geekbench OpenCL test, with a score of 31,088 against the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480's 13,300, a 57.2% difference.

Q: How does the GTX 480 compare to its nearest rivals in the database?

A: The GTX 480's average score of 13,300 places it within 0.6% of four rivals: the AMD Radeon Pro 555X (13,321), AMD FirePro M6100 (13,354), AMD Radeon RX 5500M (13,356), and AMD Radeon HD 8950M (13,376).

Q: What is the Radeon Pro 5500M's overall standing in the database?

A: It holds the 51st percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 11,528 across tests that include Geekbench Metal (38,235), Geekbench OpenCL (31,088), Geekbench Vulkan (35,134), Passmark G3D (6,732), and Passmark GPU Compute (3,240).

Q: Does the GTX 480 have any recorded advantage in features or APIs?

A: The GTX 480 supports DirectX 12 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.6, while the Radeon Pro 5500M supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The database does not record a Vulkan API for the GTX 480, whereas the Radeon Pro 5500M lists Vulkan 1.4 support.

Q: How do the memory configurations differ?

A: The GTX 480 uses 1536 MB of GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus with 177.4 GB/s bandwidth. The Radeon Pro 5500M uses 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus with 192.0 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: What are the power requirements for each card?

A: The GTX 480 has a TDP of 250 W, requires a 600 W suggested PSU, and uses 1x 6-pin plus 1x 8-pin power connectors. The Radeon Pro 5500M has a TDP of 85 W and lists no power connectors or suggested PSU.

The Verdict

The data supports a straightforward selection for compute-focused workloads: the AMD Radeon Pro 5500M is the stronger GPU. Its OpenCL score of 31,088 is 57.2% higher than the GTX 480's 13,300, and it also carries support for Vulkan 1.4, which the GTX 480 lacks in the database. The GTX 480's only recorded benchmark, OpenCL, shows it performing at parity with its own contemporaries, but that parity is far below the Radeon Pro 5500M's output.

For users constrained by older software environments or specific legacy requirements, the GTX 480 remains a functional card with DirectX 12 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.6, and its 53rd percentile placement indicates it was competitive in its own generation. However, the benchmark data provides no scenario where the GTX 480 outperforms the Radeon Pro 5500M. The Radeon Pro 5500M also offers dramatically higher memory capacity at 8 GB versus 1536 MB, higher bandwidth at 192.0 GB/s versus 177.4 GB/s, and a much lower TDP of 85 W versus 250 W.

The Verdict is clear: the Radeon Pro 5500M wins the recorded benchmark and offers superior specifications across memory, power, and API support. The GTX 480's sole advantage in the data is its 384-bit memory bus, which does not translate into a benchmark victory.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every measurable specification. The GTX 480 uses a 40 nm process node, while the Radeon Pro 5500M uses 7 nm. Both use TSMC as the foundry. Transistor counts differ substantially: the GTX 480 has 3,100 million transistors on a 529 mm² die, yielding a density of 5.9M per mm². The Radeon Pro 5500M packs 6,400 million transistors onto a 158 mm² die, for a density of 40.5M per mm².

Clock speeds are recorded differently. The GTX 480 lists no base or boost clock but has a memory clock of 924 MHz (3.7 Gbps effective). The Radeon Pro 5500M lists a base clock of 1000 MHz, a boost clock of 1450 MHz, and a memory clock of 1500 MHz (12 Gbps effective). Memory size and type also diverge: the GTX 480 has 1536 MB of GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus, while the Radeon Pro 5500M has 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus. Bandwidth is 177.4 GB/s for the GTX 480 and 192.0 GB/s for the Radeon Pro 5500M.

The compute units differ as well. The GTX 480 has 480 shading units, 60 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. The Radeon Pro 5500M has 1536 shading units, 96 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. Pixel rate is 21.03 GPixel/s for the GTX 480 and 46.40 GPixel/s for the Radeon Pro 5500M. Texture rate is 42.06 GTexel/s versus 139.2 GTexel/s. FP32 throughput is 1,345.0 GFLOPS for the GTX 480 and 4.454 TFLOPS for the Radeon Pro 5500M, with the latter also recording FP16 at 8.909 TFLOPS (2:1).

Power and physical specifications also separate the two. The GTX 480 has a TDP of 250 W, is dual-slot, requires 1x 6-pin and 1x 8-pin connectors, and suggests a 600 W PSU. It measures 267 mm (10.5 inches) in length. The Radeon Pro 5500M has an 85 W TDP, no power connectors, no suggested PSU, and no recorded dimensions. The bus interface is PCIe 2.0 x16 for the GTX 480 and PCIe 4.0 x8 for the Radeon Pro 5500M. Display outputs are 2x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 1.3a for the GTX 480, while the Radeon Pro 5500M is listed as portable device dependent. The GTX 480 launched on 2010-03-25 with a launch MSRP of 499 USD; the Radeon Pro 5500M launched on 2019-11-12 with no recorded MSRP. Both are end-of-life products.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two GPUs is generational. The GTX 480 is built on NVIDIA's Fermi architecture, using the GF100 chip, and belongs to the GeForce 400 generation. The Radeon Pro 5500M uses AMD's RDNA 1.0 architecture with the Navi 14 chip, part of the Radeon Pro Mac (Navi Mobile) generation. The process node difference is stark: 40 nm for Fermi versus 7 nm for RDNA 1.0, both from TSMC. This node advantage allows the Radeon Pro 5500M to fit more than twice the transistors (6,400 million versus 3,100 million) into a die less than a third the size (158 mm² versus 529 mm²).

The shading unit count reflects the architectural shift. The GTX 480 uses 480 shading units, while the Radeon Pro 5500M uses 1536. Texture units are 60 versus 96, but ROPs are lower on the AMD card at 32 versus 48. The Radeon Pro 5500M records FP16 compute at 8.909 TFLOPS with a 2:1 ratio, a capability absent from the GTX 480's recorded data. Neither card lists ray tracing cores or tensor cores.

API support differs in DirectX and Vulkan. The GTX 480 supports DirectX 12 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.6, with no Vulkan entry. The Radeon Pro 5500M supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The memory architecture also diverges: the GTX 480 uses a wide 384-bit GDDR5 interface, while the Radeon Pro 5500M uses a narrower 128-bit GDDR6 interface. Despite the narrower bus, the Radeon Pro 5500M achieves higher bandwidth (192.0 GB/s versus 177.4 GB/s) due to faster memory clocks. The GTX 480's predecessor is the GeForce 200 series and its successor is the GeForce 500 series, while the Radeon Pro 5500M has no recorded predecessor or successor.

Where Each One Wins

The recorded data awards the Radeon Pro 5500M the sole benchmark victory. In OpenCL compute, it leads by 57.2%, a margin large enough to define the use case split. The Radeon Pro 5500M is the choice for OpenCL-based workloads, with 4.454 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, 8 GB of GDDR6 memory, and Vulkan 1.4 support for modern graphics APIs. Its 85 W TDP and lack of power connectors also make it suitable for portable or power-constrained systems, consistent with its classification as a mobile Radeon Pro part.

The GTX 480's recorded strengths are narrower. Its 384-bit memory bus and 177.4 GB/s bandwidth, combined with 48 ROPs, suggest a design aimed at high fill-rate scenarios, but no benchmark in the database confirms an advantage there. Its 53rd percentile placement and tight clustering with rivals like the Radeon Pro 555X and Radeon RX 5500M indicate that it performs at a level typical of its generation, but the only direct comparison shows it far behind the Radeon Pro 5500M.

For legacy DirectX 11-era applications, the GTX 480's architecture may still function, but the data does not include any test where it wins. The Radeon Pro 5500M wins the only head-to-head test and offers higher memory capacity, higher bandwidth, higher pixel and texture rates, and lower power draw. Users prioritizing OpenCL compute, modern API support, or energy efficiency should select the Radeon Pro 5500M. The GTX 480 remains relevant only as a historical data point, its performance anchored to a 2010-era design.