AMD Radeon Pro 555 vs NVIDIA Tesla K20c Comparison

Where Each One Wins

The benchmark data splits decisively in favor of the AMD Radeon Pro 555 in the only directly comparable test. In Geekbench OpenCL, the AMD part scores 11,682 against the Tesla K20c's 11,479, a 1.8% edge that gives the Radeon the sole head-to-head victory. That single win, however, does not tell the full story of where each card belongs.

The Radeon Pro 555 also has three additional recorded benchmarks that the Tesla lacks entirely: Geekbench Metal at 16,236 and Geekbench Vulkan at 12,303, plus the OpenCL result. This means the AMD card can be evaluated across three different compute APIs, while the Tesla's database entry contains only an OpenCL score. For workloads that leverage Metal or Vulkan, the Radeon is the only one of the two with any measurable data at all.

The average benchmark score reinforces the gap. The Radeon Pro 555 averages 13,407 across its three tests, while the Tesla K20c averages 11,479 from its single test. That is a 16.8% difference in average compute performance, though the comparison is skewed by the Radeon's Metal result, which is its strongest showing.

Looking at percentile rankings against all GPUs, the Radeon sits at the 54th percentile, while the Tesla sits at the 51st. Both cards are near the middle of the database, but the AMD part lands slightly higher overall.

The use-case split becomes clear: the Radeon Pro 555 is the choice for cross-API compute workloads, particularly those involving Metal or Vulkan, while the Tesla K20c appears to have been a more specialized compute accelerator with a narrower benchmark footprint. The Tesla's nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon Pro 5500M (0.4% lower), the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT (1.3% lower), and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 (1.7% lower), placing it in a competitive cluster despite its age.

Architecture Differences

The two cards come from fundamentally different design philosophies and manufacturing generations. The Radeon Pro 555 uses the Polaris 21 chip built on GlobalFoundries' 14 nm process, packing 3,000 million transistors into a 123 mm² die. That works out to a transistor density of 24.4 million per square millimeter, a figure that reflects the more modern manufacturing node.

The Tesla K20c uses NVIDIA's GK110 chip fabricated by TSMC on a 28 nm process. It contains 7,080 million transistors spread across a much larger 561 mm² die, giving a transistor density of only 12.6 million per square millimeter. The Tesla has more than twice the transistor count and more than four times the die area, but the older process makes it far less dense.

Architecturally, the Radeon uses GCN 4.0, while the Tesla uses Kepler. These are entirely different GPU designs with different strengths. The Radeon Pro 555 has 768 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 16 ROPs. The Tesla K20c counters with 2,496 shading units, 208 TMUs, and 40 ROPs, giving it roughly 3.25 times the shader count, 4.33 times the TMUs, and 2.5 times the ROPs.

The memory subsystems also diverge sharply. The Radeon has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 81.60 GB/s of bandwidth. The Tesla has 5 GB of GDDR5 on a 320-bit bus, delivering 208.0 GB/s, which is roughly 2.55 times the bandwidth. Memory clock rates are similar: 1275 MHz for the Radeon versus 1300 MHz for the Tesla, with effective data rates of 5.1 Gbps and 5.2 Gbps respectively.

Power and physical design differ as well. The Radeon Pro 555 draws 75 W and is an integrated GPU (IGP) with no power connectors and no display outputs of its own, since it is portable-device dependent. The Tesla K20c draws 225 W, is a dual-slot card 267 mm long, requires both a 6-pin and an 8-pin power connector, and has no display outputs at all. The Tesla suggests a 550 W power supply, while the Radeon has no PSU recommendation listed.

API support shows a notable divergence. The Radeon supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The Tesla supports DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175, meaning the Radeon has a more modern Vulkan implementation and a higher DirectX feature level.

FAQ

Q: Which card has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 555 averages 13,407 across three benchmarks, while the NVIDIA Tesla K20c averages 11,479 from a single OpenCL test, a difference of 16.8%.

Q: Does the Tesla K20c support Metal or Vulkan benchmarks?

A: The database lists no Metal or Vulkan results for the Tesla K20c. Its only recorded benchmark is Geekbench OpenCL. The Radeon Pro 555 has recorded scores for Metal, OpenCL, and Vulkan.

Q: How much faster is the Radeon in the direct head-to-head test?

A: In Geekbench OpenCL, the Radeon Pro 555 scores 11,682 versus the Tesla's 11,479, a 1.8% advantage.

Q: What is the memory capacity difference?

A: The Tesla K20c has 5 GB of GDDR5, while the Radeon Pro 555 has 2 GB. The Tesla also has a wider 320-bit bus versus the Radeon's 128-bit bus.

Q: Which card has a higher transistor density?

A: The Radeon Pro 555 achieves 24.4 million transistors per square millimeter on a 14 nm process, while the Tesla K20c achieves 12.6 million per square millimeter on 28 nm.

Q: What are the power requirements?

A: The Radeon Pro 555 has a 75 W TDP with no power connectors, while the Tesla K20c has a 225 W TDP and requires one 6-pin and one 8-pin connector, with a 550 W suggested PSU.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ in nearly every physical and architectural specification. The process node is 14 nm for the Radeon versus 28 nm for the Tesla. Foundries differ: GlobalFoundries for AMD, TSMC for NVIDIA. Transistor counts are 3,000 million versus 7,080 million, and die sizes are 123 mm² versus 561 mm².

Shading units: 768 versus 2,496. TMUs: 48 versus 208. ROPs: 16 versus 40. Memory size: 2 GB versus 5 GB. Memory bus width: 128 bit versus 320 bit. Memory bandwidth: 81.60 GB/s versus 208.0 GB/s.

Pixel rate is 13.60 GPixel/s for the Radeon versus 36.71 GPixel/s for the Tesla, a 2.7x advantage for the NVIDIA card. Texture rate is 40.80 GTexel/s versus 146.8 GTexel/s, a 3.6x advantage. FP32 compute is 1,305.6 GFLOPS versus 3.524 TFLOPS, meaning the Tesla delivers roughly 2.7 times the raw single-precision throughput. The Radeon has FP16 at 1,305.6 GFLOPS (1:1), while the Tesla lists no FP16 capability.

TDP: 75 W versus 225 W. Slot width: IGP versus dual-slot. Power connectors: none versus 1x 6-pin plus 1x 8-pin. Bus interface: PCIe 3.0 x8 versus PCIe 2.0 x16. Display outputs: portable device dependent versus no outputs. The Tesla has a 267 mm length; the Radeon has no listed dimensions.

Release dates are five years apart: the Radeon launched in June 2017, the Tesla in November 2012. The Tesla lists a predecessor (Tesla Fermi) and successor (Tesla Maxwell), while the Radeon has neither. The Tesla has a launch MSRP of 3,199 USD; the Radeon has no listed launch MSRP.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database contains exactly one direct comparison between these two cards: Geekbench OpenCL. The AMD Radeon Pro 555 scores 11,682, and the NVIDIA Tesla K20c scores 11,479. The Radeon wins by 1.8%, a modest but real margin. This is the only head-to-head result recorded, so all other conclusions must draw from their separate benchmark histories.

Looking at the Radeon's three test scores, its OpenCL result of 11,682 is actually its weakest showing. Its Vulkan score is 12,303, which is 5.3% higher than its OpenCL score, and its Metal score is 16,236, which is 39.0% higher than its OpenCL score. This suggests the Radeon's architecture is substantially better optimized for Metal and Vulkan workloads than for OpenCL, which is notable given its Mac-oriented generation.

The Tesla's single OpenCL score of 11,479 places it within a tight competitive cluster. Its nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon Pro 5500M at 11,528 (0.4% lower), the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT at 11,627 (1.3% lower), and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 at 11,680 (1.7% lower). The Tesla also sits 1.9% above the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780M at 11,261. The Tesla's OpenCL result is thus unexceptional for its era, sitting in a dense pack of modern and near-modern GPUs.

The Radeon's nearest rivals show a similar clustering. Its average score of 13,407 is 0.2% above the AMD Radeon HD 8950M, 0.4% above the AMD Radeon RX 5500M, and 0.4% above the AMD FirePro M6100. It sits 0.5% below the NVIDIA P106-090. The Radeon's average is therefore right in the middle of a group of cards that are all within 1% of each other, making its overall standing more about API breadth than raw dominance.

The biggest advantage in the head-to-head data is not the OpenCL margin but the Radeon's extra benchmark coverage. In Metal, the Radeon's 16,236 score is 41.4% higher than the Tesla's OpenCL score, and in Vulkan it is 7.2% higher. These are not direct comparisons, but they indicate the Radeon can be measured across a wider range of modern compute interfaces, while the Tesla's recorded performance is confined to a single legacy API test.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear division of purpose. For users working within Metal or Vulkan environments, the AMD Radeon Pro 555 has measurable performance and the Tesla K20c has none recorded. The Radeon's Metal score of 16,236 is its strongest result by a wide margin, and its Vulkan score of 12,303 also exceeds the Tesla's only benchmark. If your workload targets these APIs, the Radeon is the only choice with supporting evidence.

For raw OpenCL performance, the Radeon still wins, but by a slim 1.8% margin. The two cards are effectively peers in that single test, with the Radeon scoring 11,682 and the Tesla scoring 11,479. Neither card demonstrates a decisive OpenCL advantage.

For compute throughput in terms of raw specifications, the Tesla K20c is the more powerful hardware. It has 3.25 times the shading units, 4.33 times the TMUs, 2.5 times the ROPs, and 2.7 times the FP32 throughput. It also has 2.5 times the memory capacity and 2.55 times the bandwidth. But the benchmark data does not translate that theoretical advantage into a practical win in the one test where they are directly compared.

The Radeon Pro 555 is the more modern part with a smaller, denser 14 nm design, a 54th percentile standing, and support for DirectX 12_0 and Vulkan 1.3. The Tesla K20c is a 28 nm Kepler part from 2012, sitting at the 51st percentile, with a 3,199 USD launch MSRP and a 225 W power draw.

Who should pick which: users needing Metal or Vulkan compute, or those wanting a lighter, integrated solution with no external power, should choose the Radeon Pro 555. Users who require large memory capacity (5 GB) or the higher raw shader throughput for legacy compute workloads might consider the Tesla K20c, provided their software does not depend on the newer APIs where the Radeon has demonstrated results. The recorded data favors the Radeon in actual benchmark wins, but the Tesla's specification sheet shows untapped theoretical capability that never materialized in the database's measurements.