AMD Radeon Pro 555X vs AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The three shared benchmark results between the AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT and the AMD Radeon Pro 555X are all compute-focused API tests, and the RX 5500 XT wins every one of them by a substantial margin. In Geekbench Metal, the RX 5500 XT scores 54,842 against 14,479 for the Pro 555X, a 278.8% advantage. That is not a close contest; it is a generational gap expressed in raw numbers.

Geekbench OpenCL tells the same story. The RX 5500 XT posts 46,965, while the Pro 555X manages 12,628. The delta here is 271.9%. Vulkan results follow suit: the RX 5500 XT reaches 44,191, and the Pro 555X trails at 12,855, a 243.8% difference. Across all three tests, the RX 5500 XT wins 3 and the Pro 555X wins 0.

The average benchmark score in the database reinforces this. The RX 5500 XT holds an average of 14,692 across its full benchmark suite, placing it in the 57th percentile of all GPUs. The Pro 555X averages 13,321, which puts it in the 54th percentile. The percentile gap looks modest, but the head-to-head deltas show the real story: in every directly comparable workload, the RX 5500 XT is between 2.4x and 3.8x faster.

The nearest rivals for each card also frame their standing differently. The RX 5500 XT sits within 2.1% of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M (14,404) and within 0.4% of the GTX 770 (14,747), meaning it trades blows with older high-end desktop parts. The Pro 555X, by contrast, is virtually tied with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 (13,300, a 0.2% difference) and the AMD FirePro M6100 (13,354, a 0.2% deficit). It also sits within 0.3% of the AMD Radeon RX 5500M (13,356), which is notable because that mobile part shares the Navi generation but is cut down.

Where Each One Wins

The RX 5500 XT wins in every category where data exists. It dominates compute APIs: Metal, OpenCL, and Vulkan all favor it by margins from 243.8% to 278.8%. That means any workload using these APIs, whether it is GPU compute, rendering, or modern gaming with Vulkan, will run dramatically faster on the RX 5500 XT.

The Pro 555X has no benchmark wins in the shared tests. However, its profile suggests a different purpose. It is an integrated GPU (IGP) with no power connectors and a 75 W TDP, designed for portable Mac systems. The database shows it has a higher transistor density efficiency in its own generation, but that does not translate into performance. Its only recorded benchmarks are the three Geekbench tests, all of which it loses heavily. If a use case requires the Pro 555X, it is because the host system is a specific Mac laptop, not because the GPU itself competes on raw throughput.

For compute-heavy tasks, the RX 5500 XT is the clear pick. For tasks that rely on the Pro 555X's specific integration in a Mac portable chassis, the comparison is moot; there is no choice between the two in that form factor. The data shows no workload where the Pro 555X comes out ahead.

Architecture Differences

The architecture gap is the root of the performance split. The RX 5500 XT uses the Navi 14 chip built on RDNA 1.0 architecture, fabricated on TSMC's 7 nm process. The Pro 555X uses the Polaris 21 chip on GCN 4.0 architecture, fabricated on GlobalFoundries' 14 nm process. That is a full node jump and a microarchitecture change in one step.

RDNA 1.0 is designed for higher instruction-level parallelism and better power efficiency per clock than GCN 4.0. The RX 5500 XT packs 6,400 million transistors into a 158 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 40.5M per mm². The Pro 555X contains 3,000 million transistors on a 123 mm² die, for a density of 24.4M per mm². The newer process allows nearly double the transistor count on only 28% more die area.

The API support also differs. The RX 5500 XT supports DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.4, while the Pro 555X supports DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.3. Both support OpenGL 4.6. The higher DirectX feature level and newer Vulkan version on the RX 5500 XT align with its stronger Vulkan benchmark result.

Memory architecture is another differentiator. The RX 5500 XT uses GDDR6 at 1750 MHz with 14 Gbps effective, over a 128-bit bus, delivering 224.0 GB/s. The Pro 555X uses GDDR5 at 1470 MHz with 5.9 Gbps effective, also on a 128-bit bus, but only reaches 94.08 GB/s. That bandwidth difference is a major factor in why the RX 5500 XT pulls so far ahead in compute tests.

The RX 5500 XT belongs to the Radeon RX 5000 series, with a predecessor of Vega and a successor of Navi II. The Pro 555X belongs to the Radeon Pro Mac (500X Series) generation with no listed predecessor or successor. These are different product lineages aimed at different markets.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ in nearly every specification that matters for performance.

| Specification | AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT | AMD Radeon Pro 555X |

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

| Process node | 7 nm | 14 nm |

| Transistors | 6,400 million | 3,000 million |

| Die size | 158 mm² | 123 mm² |

| Shading units | 1,408 | 768 |

| TMUs | 88 | 48 |

| ROPs | 32 | 16 |

| Pixel rate | 59.04 GPixel/s | 14.51 GPixel/s |

| Texture rate | 162.4 GTexel/s | 43.54 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 5.196 TFLOPS | 1,393.2 GFLOPS |

| FP16 | 10.39 TFLOPS (2:1) | 1,393.2 GFLOPS (1:1) |

| Memory type | GDDR6 | GDDR5 |

| Memory bandwidth | 224.0 GB/s | 94.08 GB/s |

| TDP | 130 W | 75 W |

| Power connectors | 1x 8-pin | None |

| Bus interface | PCIe 4.0 x8 | PCIe 3.0 x8 |

| Display outputs | 1x HDMI 2.0b, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a | Portable Device Dependent |

| DirectX | 12 (12_1) | 12 (12_0) |

| Vulkan | 1.4 | 1.3 |

| Slot width | Dual-slot | IGP |

| Suggested PSU | 300 W | None |

The RX 5500 XT has nearly double the shading units (1,408 vs 768), more than double the texture rate (162.4 vs 43.54 GTexel/s), and more than four times the pixel rate (59.04 vs 14.51 GPixel/s). FP32 throughput is 5.196 TFLOPS versus 1,393.2 GFLOPS, a 3.7x gap. The FP16 situation is even more skewed: the RX 5500 XT runs FP16 at 10.39 TFLOPS with 2:1 ratio, while the Pro 555X runs FP16 at the same rate as FP32 with 1:1 ratio.

The bus interface differs too: PCIe 4.0 x8 on the RX 5500 XT versus PCIe 3.0 x8 on the Pro 555X. The RX 5500 XT requires a 300 W suggested PSU and a dual-slot cooler with one 8-pin connector. The Pro 555X is an IGP with no power connectors and no PSU requirement, since it is integrated into a portable device.

The RX 5500 XT has a listed launch MSRP of 169 USD. The Pro 555X has no launch MSRP in the database.

FAQ

Q: Is the AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT faster than the AMD Radeon Pro 555X in all benchmarks?

A: Yes. In the three shared tests (Geekbench Metal, OpenCL, and Vulkan), the RX 5500 XT wins all three with deltas of 278.8%, 271.9%, and 243.8% respectively.

Q: What is the biggest performance gap between the two cards?

A: The largest delta is in Geekbench Metal, where the RX 5500 XT scores 54,842 versus 14,479 for the Pro 555X, a 278.8% advantage.

Q: How does the memory bandwidth compare?

A: The RX 5500 XT delivers 224.0 GB/s from GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, while the Pro 555X delivers 94.08 GB/s from GDDR5 on the same bus width.

Q: Which card has better DirectX support?

A: The RX 5500 XT supports DirectX 12 (12_1), while the Pro 555X supports DirectX 12 (12_0). Both support OpenGL 4.6, but the RX 5500 XT supports Vulkan 1.4 versus Vulkan 1.3 on the Pro 555X.

Q: What is the TDP difference?

A: The RX 5500 XT has a TDP of 130 W and requires a 300 W suggested PSU with a 1x 8-pin connector. The Pro 555X has a 75 W TDP, uses no power connectors, and is an IGP with no PSU requirement.

Q: How do their average scores compare to nearby GPUs?

A: The RX 5500 XT averages 14,692, within 0.4% of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770 (14,747) and 2.1% above the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 (14,385). The Pro 555X averages 13,321, within 0.2% of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 (13,300) and 0.3% below the AMD Radeon RX 5500M (13,356).

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous. The AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT is the superior performer in every recorded metric, often by margins exceeding 240%. Its 7 nm RDNA 1.0 architecture, 5.196 TFLOPS FP32 throughput, and 224.0 GB/s memory bandwidth put it in a different performance class than the Pro 555X's GCN 4.0 design with 1,393.2 GFLOPS and 94.08 GB/s.

The RX 5500 XT belongs in a desktop system with a PCIe 4.0 slot, a 300 W PSU, and a dual-slot cooler. It delivers 57th-percentile performance across all GPUs and sits competitive with the GTX 770 and GTX 965M in its nearest rival group. The Pro 555X, at 54th percentile, is a mobile integrated part with no power connectors and portable-device-dependent outputs. It is not a competitor in performance; it is a component for a specific Mac laptop chassis.

Who should pick which? The RX 5500 XT is for anyone building a desktop that needs a modern, capable GPU for compute, gaming, or general workload acceleration. The Pro 555X is only relevant if the host machine is a Mac portable that requires it, and even then the database shows it is far behind. If a choice exists, the RX 5500 XT wins on every number available.