AMD Radeon Pro 555X vs AMD Radeon RX 550 Comparison

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 555X has the higher average benchmark score at 13,321, compared to the AMD Radeon RX 550 at 11,075. The Pro 555X also sits at the 54th percentile of all GPUs in the database, while the RX 550 sits at the 50th percentile.

Q: How do the two cards compare in Geekbench Metal performance?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 550 wins decisively in Geekbench Metal, scoring 20,838 against the Pro 555X's 14,479. That is a 30.5% advantage for the RX 550, the largest performance gap recorded in the head-to-head data.

Q: Which card wins in OpenCL and Vulkan workloads?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 555X wins both. In Geekbench OpenCL, it scores 12,628 versus 11,063 for the RX 550, a 14.1% lead. In Geekbench Vulkan, it scores 12,855 versus 12,270, a 4.8% lead.

Q: What are the memory specifications of each card?

A: The Pro 555X has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus with 94.08 GB/s of bandwidth. The RX 550 has 2 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus with 112.0 GB/s of bandwidth.

Q: Do both cards share the same architecture?

A: Yes, both use GCN 4.0 architecture and are built on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. They also both support DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3.

Q: What are the power requirements for each card?

A: The Pro 555X has a TDP of 75 W and is an integrated graphics package (IGP) with no power connectors. The RX 550 has a TDP of 50 W, also has no power connectors, and carries a suggested PSU of 250 W.

Architecture Differences

Both GPUs are built on GCN 4.0 architecture at GlobalFoundries on a 14 nm process, but the silicon underneath is distinct. The AMD Radeon Pro 555X uses the Polaris 21 chip, which packs 3,000 million transistors into a 123 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 24.4M per mm². The AMD Radeon RX 550 uses the Lexa chip, smaller at 103 mm² with 2,200 million transistors, for a density of 21.4M per mm². The Pro 555X therefore carries roughly 36% more transistors on a die that is about 19% larger.

The execution resources also differ substantially. The Pro 555X has 768 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 16 raster operation units. The RX 550 has 512 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. That means the Pro 555X has 50% more shaders and 50% more TMUs, while ROP count is identical. The larger shader and TMU arrays explain why the Pro 555X has a much higher texture rate of 43.54 GTexel/s versus 37.86 GTexel/s for the RX 550, even though the RX 550 has a higher pixel rate.

Clock behavior is a key architectural difference. The RX 550 has explicit base and boost clocks of 1100 MHz and 1183 MHz. The Pro 555X has no recorded base or boost clock in the database, only its memory clock and effective data rate. The RX 550 also runs its memory at 1750 MHz with 7 Gbps effective, while the Pro 555X runs memory at 1470 MHz with 5.9 Gbps effective. Despite the RX 550's smaller 2 GB capacity, its narrower-but-same 128-bit bus delivers higher bandwidth at 112.0 GB/s versus 94.08 GB/s.

The packaging and platform positioning differ as well. The Pro 555X is an integrated graphics package with a 75 W TDP and no power connectors, designed for portable devices with display outputs that are device dependent. The RX 550 is a dual-slot discrete card with no power connectors, a 50 W TDP, a 250 W suggested PSU, and standard display outputs including 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, and 1x DisplayPort 1.4a. The RX 550 measures 145 mm or 5.7 inches in length.

Both cards share API support, including DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3, and neither has ray tracing cores or tensor cores. The RX 550's predecessor is listed as Arctic Islands and its successor as Vega, while the Pro 555X has no recorded predecessor or successor in the database.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded head-to-head data covers three Geekbench tests, and the results split sharply by API. The AMD Radeon RX 550 takes the largest win in Geekbench Metal, scoring 20,838 against the Pro 555X's 14,479. That is a 30.5% margin in favor of the RX 550, and it is the only test where the RX 550 wins. The magnitude of this Metal win is substantial enough to lift the RX 550's overall profile despite losing the other two tests.

The AMD Radeon Pro 555X counters in Geekbench OpenCL with a score of 12,628 against 11,063 for the RX 550. The 14.1% delta is the Pro 555X's biggest win in the head-to-head set. In Geekbench Vulkan, the Pro 555X wins again, scoring 12,855 versus 12,270, but the margin narrows to just 4.8%. Across the three tests, the Pro 555X wins two and the RX 550 wins one.

The average benchmark scores in the database put the Pro 555X at 13,321 and the RX 550 at 11,075. The nearest rivals for the Pro 555X in the database include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 at 13,300 (0.2% ahead of the Pro 555X), the AMD FirePro M6100 at 13,354 (0.2% behind), the AMD Radeon RX 5500M at 13,356 (0.3% behind), and the AMD Radeon HD 8950M at 13,376 (0.4% behind). The nearest rivals for the RX 550 include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER at 11,047 (0.3% ahead of the RX 550), the NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000D Blackwell Max-Q at 11,088 (0.1% behind), and the AMD FirePro W4300 at 11,225 (1.3% behind).

The interesting pattern is that the Pro 555X's average score is well above the RX 550's average, yet the RX 550's single Metal result is far above anything the Pro 555X achieves in any test. This suggests the RX 550's Metal performance is an outlier in its own benchmark suite, while the Pro 555X is more consistent across APIs. The Pro 555X's lowest recorded score (12,628 in OpenCL) is still higher than the RX 550's lowest (11,063 in OpenCL), but the RX 550's highest (20,838 in Metal) towers over the Pro 555X's highest (14,479 in Metal).

Specification Differences

The two cards differ on nearly every physical and compute specification. The Pro 555X uses the Polaris 21 chip with 3,000 million transistors on a 123 mm² die, while the RX 550 uses the Lexa chip with 2,200 million transistors on a 103 mm² die. Transistor density is 24.4M per mm² for the Pro 555X and 21.4M per mm² for the RX 550.

The Pro 555X has 768 shading units and 48 TMUs, versus 512 shading units and 32 TMUs for the RX 550. Both have 16 ROPs. The Pro 555X's FP32 throughput is 1,393.2 GFLOPS, and its FP16 throughput is also 1,393.2 GFLOPS at a 1:1 ratio. The RX 550's FP32 is 1,211.4 GFLOPS, with FP16 also at 1,211.4 GFLOPS at 1:1.

Pixel and texture rates diverge. The RX 550 has the higher pixel rate at 18.93 GPixel/s versus 14.51 GPixel/s for the Pro 555X. The Pro 555X has the higher texture rate at 43.54 GTexel/s versus 37.86 GTexel/s for the RX 550.

Memory configuration differs in capacity, clock, and bandwidth. The Pro 555X has 4 GB of GDDR5 at 1470 MHz (5.9 Gbps effective) with 94.08 GB/s bandwidth. The RX 550 has 2 GB of GDDR5 at 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective) with 112.0 GB/s bandwidth. Both use a 128-bit bus.

Power and physical design differ. The Pro 555X is rated at 75 W TDP, is an IGP with no power connectors, and has portable-device-dependent display outputs. The RX 550 is rated at 50 W TDP, is a dual-slot card with no power connectors, a 250 W suggested PSU, and fixed display outputs. The RX 550 has a recorded length of 145 mm (5.7 inches); the Pro 555X has no recorded dimensions.

Release timing and status also differ. The RX 550 was released on 2017-04-19 and has a launch MSRP of 79 USD. The Pro 555X was released on 2018-07-15 and has no recorded launch MSRP. Both are end-of-life. The RX 550 lists Arctic Islands as its predecessor and Vega as its successor; the Pro 555X has neither listed.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon Pro 555X wins in compute-heavy and cross-platform API workloads. Its OpenCL score of 12,628 beats the RX 550's 11,063 by 14.1%, and its Vulkan score of 12,855 beats the RX 550's 12,270 by 4.8%. The Pro 555X also has the higher average benchmark score at 13,321 versus 11,075. It offers double the memory capacity at 4 GB versus 2 GB, more shading units (768 versus 512), more TMUs (48 versus 32), and higher FP32 throughput at 1,393.2 GFLOPS versus 1,211.4 GFLOPS. For users running OpenCL or Vulkan workloads, or needing more memory and higher texture throughput, the Pro 555X is the stronger choice. Its 75 W TDP is higher than the RX 550's 50 W, but it remains a low-power integrated package with no external power connectors.

The AMD Radeon RX 550 wins in Metal-specific scenarios and in pixel throughput. Its Geekbench Metal score of 20,838 crushes the Pro 555X's 14,479 by 30.5%. The RX 550 also has a higher pixel rate at 18.93 GPixel/s versus 14.51 GPixel/s, higher memory bandwidth at 112.0 GB/s versus 94.08 GB/s, and higher memory clock at 1750 MHz versus 1470 MHz. Its boost clock of 1183 MHz is explicitly recorded, while the Pro 555X has no recorded boost clock. For applications that rely heavily on Metal, or scenarios where pixel fill rate and memory bandwidth matter more than raw shader count, the RX 550 is the better performer. It also consumes less power at 50 W versus 75 W, and it is a self-contained dual-slot card with standard display outputs rather than an IGP tied to a portable device.

The overall win count in head-to-head tests is 2 for the Pro 555X and 1 for the RX 550, but the RX 550's single win is by a far larger margin than either of the Pro 555X's wins. The Pro 555X's OpenCL win is 14.1%, and its Vulkan win is 4.8%, while the RX 550's Metal win is 30.5%. That imbalance matters: the RX 550 is the clear choice for Metal-centric workflows, while the Pro 555X is the more balanced card across OpenCL and Vulkan. The database's percentile rankings reflect this split, with the Pro 555X at the 54th percentile of all GPUs and the RX 550 at the 50th.