AMD Radeon Pro 555X vs NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile Comparison

NVIDIA’s RTX A2000 Mobile and AMD’s Radeon Pro 555X are both end-of-life mobile workstation GPUs, but they represent vastly different eras of design. The data shows a complete sweep for the NVIDIA part in the available head-to-head benchmarks, with the RTX A2000 Mobile delivering over 300% higher scores in both OpenCL and Vulkan tests. However, the Radeon Pro 555X holds its own in the broader benchmark percentile rankings, sitting just one point behind the NVIDIA part (54th vs 55th percentile), suggesting that its legacy drivers and optimized Mac-oriented workloads keep it competitive in specific scenarios. This comparison highlights how generational leaps in architecture and process technology can create massive performance gaps, even when both cards target the same 4 GB mobile segment.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile wins decisively in raw compute and modern API performance. In the Geekbench OpenCL test, it scores 56,518 points against the Radeon Pro 555X’s 12,628, a 347.6% advantage. Similarly, in Geekbench Vulkan, the RTX A2000 Mobile posts 53,146 points versus 12,855, a 313.4% lead. These are not marginal wins; they represent a complete generational overhaul in shader throughput and API efficiency. For workloads that leverage Vulkan or OpenCL — such as GPU-accelerated rendering, scientific simulation, or modern game engines — the RTX A2000 Mobile is the only viable choice between these two.

The AMD Radeon Pro 555X, however, has a niche advantage: it supports Apple’s Metal API, for which it scores 14,479 in Geekbench Metal. The NVIDIA part has no Metal benchmark listed, meaning the Radeon Pro 555X is the only one of the two that can be evaluated in that Apple-centric ecosystem. For macOS users running Metal-optimized creative apps, the Radeon Pro 555X is the functional option, even if its raw numbers are lower. The Radeon Pro 555X also sits closer to its nearest rivals in average score — within 0.4% of the AMD Radeon RX 5500M and 0.2% of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 — suggesting that its performance profile is well-understood and stable, whereas the RTX A2000 Mobile’s nearest rivals show a wider spread, including the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT at a 0.6% higher average score.

In terms of DirectX legacy workloads, the RTX A2000 Mobile has a full set of Passmark scores (DirectX 9: 115, DirectX 10: 57, DirectX 11: 68, DirectX 12: 47), while the Radeon Pro 555X has no such data. This means the NVIDIA card is the only one with verified performance across older DirectX APIs, which matters for compatibility testing in legacy enterprise applications. The RTX A2000 Mobile also wins on compute density, with an 8,637 TFLOPS FP32 rating versus the Radeon Pro 555X’s 1,393.2 GFLOPS, making it the clear pick for FP32-heavy workloads like AI inference or physics simulations.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap is stark. The NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile uses the GA107 chip built on Samsung’s 8 nm process, packing 8,700 million transistors into a 200 mm² die. That yields a transistor density of 43.5 million per square millimeter. In contrast, the AMD Radeon Pro 555X uses the Polaris 21 chip on GlobalFoundries’ 14 nm process, with just 3,000 million transistors on a 123 mm² die, for a density of 24.4 million per square millimeter. The NVIDIA part is built on a newer, denser node, which directly contributes to its higher performance and efficiency.

The RTX A2000 Mobile is based on the Ampere architecture, which brings dedicated hardware features that the Radeon Pro 555X completely lacks: 20 ray tracing cores and 80 tensor cores. The Radeon Pro 555X, based on the older GCN 4.0 architecture, has no RT or tensor core equivalents. This means the NVIDIA card can accelerate ray-traced rendering and AI-based features like DLSS or tensor-core-accelerated denoising, while the AMD card relies purely on general-purpose shader units. The RTX A2000 Mobile also has far more shader resources: 2,560 shading units, 80 TMUs, and 48 ROPs, versus 768 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 16 ROPs on the Radeon Pro 555X.

Memory architecture differs significantly as well. Both cards have 4 GB of VRAM on a 128-bit bus, but the RTX A2000 Mobile uses GDDR6 at 12 Gbps effective, delivering 192.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The Radeon Pro 555X uses GDDR5 at 5.9 Gbps effective, yielding just 94.08 GB/s — less than half the bandwidth. This bandwidth disparity is critical for texture-heavy workloads and high-resolution rendering. The NVIDIA card also supports PCIe 4.0 x16, while the AMD part is limited to PCIe 3.0 x8, halving the potential host interface bandwidth for data transfers.

The API support also shows the generational divide. The RTX A2000 Mobile supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, while the Radeon Pro 555X is limited to DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.3. The NVIDIA card also has higher pixel and texture rates: 80.98 GPixel/s and 135.0 GTexel/s, versus 14.51 GPixel/s and 43.54 GTexel/s on the AMD part. These are not subtle differences — they reflect a fundamental shift in GPU design philosophy, with Ampere prioritizing parallel compute and specialized cores over the simpler GCN layout.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The two head-to-head benchmarks are unequivocal. In Geekbench OpenCL, the RTX A2000 Mobile scores 56,518 against the Radeon Pro 555X’s 12,628, a 347.6% delta. This is the largest margin in the entire comparison, driven by the NVIDIA card’s 6.2x higher FP32 throughput and 2x memory bandwidth. In Geekbench Vulkan, the RTX A2000 Mobile scores 53,146 versus 12,855, a 313.4% delta. Vulkan performance is particularly telling because it directly exercises the hardware’s ability to handle low-level draw calls and compute dispatches; the Ampere architecture’s redesigned SM layout gives it a massive advantage here.

Beyond the head-to-head, the RTX A2000 Mobile’s average benchmark score is 13,821, which places it 0.1% above the AMD Radeon 660M and 0.6% above the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT in its nearest rival list. The Radeon Pro 555X’s average score is 13,321, sitting 0.2% above the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 and 0.3% below the AMD Radeon RX 5500M. These averages include different benchmark suites, but they show that the RTX A2000 Mobile’s raw compute lead does not always translate to a higher average across all tests — likely because the Radeon Pro 555X has strong Metal performance that isn’t factored into the NVIDIA card’s average.

The RTX A2000 Mobile also has Passmark scores that the Radeon Pro 555X lacks entirely. Its Passmark G3D score is 9,611, and its GPU compute score is 4,334. The DirectX-specific scores (115 for DX9, 57 for DX10, 68 for DX11, 47 for DX12) show that the NVIDIA card handles older APIs well, though the DX10 and DX12 scores are notably lower than DX9, indicating driver tuning for modern workloads. The Radeon Pro 555X, with no Passmark data, cannot be compared on these metrics — a gap that matters for enterprise users running legacy DirectX applications.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has higher raw compute performance?

A: The NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile, with 8.637 TFLOPS FP32, versus the AMD Radeon Pro 555X’s 1,393.2 GFLOPS FP32. This translates to a 347.6% lead in Geekbench OpenCL.

Q: Does the Radeon Pro 555X support any features the RTX A2000 Mobile lacks?

A: Yes, it supports Apple’s Metal API, scoring 14,479 in Geekbench Metal. The RTX A2000 Mobile has no Metal benchmark listed, making the Radeon Pro 555X the only option for macOS-specific Metal workloads.

Q: What is the memory bandwidth difference?

A: The RTX A2000 Mobile has 192.0 GB/s from GDDR6 memory, while the Radeon Pro 555X has 94.08 GB/s from GDDR5. Both use a 128-bit bus and 4 GB capacity.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units?

A: The RTX A2000 Mobile has 2,560 shading units, compared to 768 on the Radeon Pro 555X. The NVIDIA card also has 80 TMUs and 48 ROPs versus 48 TMUs and 16 ROPs.

Q: Are there any benchmarks where the Radeon Pro 555X wins?

A: In the available head-to-head data, the Radeon Pro 555X wins zero tests. However, it has a Geekbench Metal score of 14,479, which is the only benchmark category where the NVIDIA card has no comparable entry.

Q: How do their average benchmark scores compare?

A: The RTX A2000 Mobile has an average score of 13,821, while the Radeon Pro 555X averages 13,321. The NVIDIA part is 0.1% above the AMD Radeon 660M, while the AMD part is 0.2% above the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ on nearly every technical specification. The RTX A2000 Mobile uses the GA107 chip on an 8 nm Samsung process with 8,700 million transistors and a 200 mm² die, while the Radeon Pro 555X uses Polaris 21 on a 14 nm GlobalFoundries process with 3,000 million transistors and a 123 mm² die. Transistor density is 43.5M/mm² versus 24.4M/mm². The NVIDIA card has a base clock of 1215 MHz and boost of 1687 MHz; the AMD card has no listed base or boost clocks. Memory clocks differ: 1500 MHz (12 Gbps effective) on the RTX A2000 Mobile versus 1470 MHz (5.9 Gbps effective) on the Radeon Pro 555X.

The RTX A2000 Mobile has 2,560 shading units, 80 TMUs, 48 ROPs, 20 RT cores, and 80 tensor cores. The Radeon Pro 555X has 768 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 16 ROPs, with no RT or tensor cores. Pixel rate is 80.98 GPixel/s versus 14.51 GPixel/s, and texture rate is 135.0 GTexel/s versus 43.54 GTexel/s. FP32 performance is 8.637 TFLOPS versus 1,393.2 GFLOPS. TDP is 95 W versus 75 W. The bus interface is PCIe 4.0 x16 versus PCIe 3.0 x8. API support: DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4 versus DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.3. Both are IGP slot width with no power connectors and portable-device-dependent display outputs. Release dates are 2021-04-11 for the NVIDIA part and 2018-07-15 for the AMD part.