AMD Radeon Pro 570 vs NVIDIA Quadro M5000 Comparison

AMD Radeon Pro 570 and NVIDIA Quadro M5000 are both end-of-life professional workstation GPUs, but they target different eras and design philosophies. The Radeon Pro 570 is a 14 nm GCN 4.0 part built for Apple Mac systems, while the Quadro M5000 is a 28 nm Maxwell 2.0 card aimed at traditional PC workstations. In the available head-to-head benchmark data, the Quadro M5000 wins both tests, yet the Radeon Pro 570 posts a higher average benchmark score due to an additional test result. This analysis breaks down the performance data, architectural differences, and use-case implications from the FACT PACK.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The head-to-head comparison includes two benchmark tests: Geekbench OpenCL and Geekbench Vulkan. In both, the NVIDIA Quadro M5000 comes out ahead, though the margins differ significantly.

Geekbench OpenCL: NVIDIA Quadro M5000 wins by 6%

The Quadro M5000 scores 29,481 in OpenCL, while the Radeon Pro 570 scores 27,702. This represents a 6% delta, with the NVIDIA card taking the win. OpenCL has historically been a strong API for NVIDIA workstation GPUs, and the data reflects that. The 1,779-point gap is substantial enough to be meaningful in compute workloads that rely on OpenCL, such as certain scientific simulations and older rendering pipelines.

Geekbench Vulkan: NVIDIA Quadro M5000 wins by 2.9%

In Vulkan, the gap narrows considerably. The Quadro M5000 scores 32,931, while the Radeon Pro 570 scores 31,974. The 2.9% delta translates to a 957-point difference. Vulkan is a more modern API, and the Radeon Pro 570’s GCN architecture handles it reasonably well, but the Quadro M5000 still edges ahead. This suggests that in Vulkan-based workloads, the two cards are closer in real-world performance, but the NVIDIA card retains a slight advantage.

Overall wins: NVIDIA Quadro M5000 leads 2–0

The head-to-head data shows the Quadro M5000 winning both tests. However, the average benchmark scores tell a different story. The Radeon Pro 570 has an average benchmark score of 33,207 across three tests (including Geekbench Metal, which the Quadro M5000 does not have a result for). The Quadro M5000’s average is 31,206 across two tests. This means the Radeon Pro 570’s 39,945 Metal score boosts its average by roughly 6.7% over the Quadro M5000’s average. That Metal score is a decisive factor for Apple ecosystem users, as Metal is the primary GPU API on macOS.

Percentile rankings

The Radeon Pro 570 sits at the 78th percentile among all GPUs, while the Quadro M5000 is at the 76th percentile. This 2-percentile difference aligns with the average score gap. The Radeon Pro 570’s nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Mobile with an average score of 33,170, just 0.1% behind. The Quadro M5000’s closest rival is the NVIDIA GRID M60-1Q, which scores 31,220, a 0% delta. Interestingly, the Quadro M5000 also sits within 1.5% of the NVIDIA TITAN RTX (31,676), a much more expensive card, indicating the M5000’s compute performance remains competitive in its niche.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 570 has an average benchmark score of 33,207, while the NVIDIA Quadro M5000 averages 31,206. This gives the Radeon Pro 570 a 6.4% higher average, driven largely by its Geekbench Metal score of 39,945, which the Quadro M5000 lacks.

Q: Does the NVIDIA Quadro M5000 win every head-to-head test?

A: Yes, the Quadro M5000 wins both Geekbench OpenCL (29,481 vs. 27,702, a 6% delta) and Geekbench Vulkan (32,931 vs. 31,974, a 2.9% delta) tests against the Radeon Pro 570.

Q: How do the two GPUs compare in terms of memory capacity?

A: The NVIDIA Quadro M5000 has 8 GB of GDDR5 memory, while the AMD Radeon Pro 570 has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory. Both use a 256-bit memory bus, but the Radeon Pro 570 has slightly higher bandwidth at 217.0 GB/s versus 211.6 GB/s for the Quadro M5000.

Q: What is the transistor density difference between the two chips?

A: The Radeon Pro 570’s Ellesmere chip has a transistor density of 24.6 million transistors per square millimeter (5,700 million transistors on a 232 mm² die). The Quadro M5000’s GM204 chip has a density of 13.1 million transistors per square millimeter (5,200 million transistors on a 398 mm² die). The Radeon Pro 570’s 14 nm process from GlobalFoundries allows nearly double the density of the Quadro M5000’s 28 nm TSMC process.

Q: Which GPU supports the Vulkan 1.4 API?

A: The NVIDIA Quadro M5000 lists Vulkan 1.4 support, while the AMD Radeon Pro 570 lists Vulkan 1.3. Both support DirectX 12 and OpenGL 4.6, though the Quadro M5000 supports DirectX 12_1 while the Radeon Pro 570 supports DirectX 12_0.

Q: What is the physical size difference between the two cards?

A: The Quadro M5000 is a dual-slot card measuring 267 mm in length and 111 mm in height, requiring a 1x 6-pin power connector and a 450 W suggested PSU. The Radeon Pro 570 is an integrated GPU (IGP) with no power connectors and portable-device-dependent display outputs, meaning it is soldered to a motherboard rather than installed as a discrete card.

Where Each One Wins

AMD Radeon Pro 570 wins in Apple ecosystem and integrated form factor. The Radeon Pro 570’s Geekbench Metal score of 39,945 is its standout result, and it is the only benchmark where it clearly outperforms the Quadro M5000 (which has no Metal result). This makes it the better choice for macOS-based workflows that leverage Metal, such as Final Cut Pro rendering or Metal-accelerated compute. Additionally, its IGP slot width and lack of power connectors mean it is designed for portable or all-in-one Mac devices where a discrete dual-slot card like the Quadro M5000 cannot physically fit. The Radeon Pro 570 also has a higher transistor density (24.6M per mm²) and smaller die size (232 mm²), which is advantageous for power-constrained, space-limited environments.

NVIDIA Quadro M5000 wins in raw compute and traditional workstation setups. The Quadro M5000 wins both head-to-head benchmarks (OpenCL by 6%, Vulkan by 2.9%). It also has double the memory (8 GB vs. 4 GB), which is critical for large datasets, high-resolution textures, or multi-application workflows that exceed 4 GB. Its 64 ROPs double the Radeon Pro 570’s 32 ROPs, and its pixel rate of 66.43 GPixel/s is nearly double the Radeon Pro 570’s 35.36 GPixel/s. For professionals using discrete PCIe cards in a standard tower workstation, the Quadro M5000’s dual-slot design, 1x 6-pin power connector, and 450 W suggested PSU make it a drop-in replacement for many existing systems. The Quadro M5000 also supports Vulkan 1.4, a newer API version than the Radeon Pro 570’s Vulkan 1.3.

Compute efficiency is a mixed bag. The Quadro M5000 has higher raw FP32 throughput (4.252 TFLOPS vs. 3.960 TFLOPS), more shading units (2048 vs. 1792), more TMUs (128 vs. 112), and a higher texture rate (132.9 GTexel/s vs. 123.8 GTexel/s). However, the Radeon Pro 570 matches its FP16 performance at 3.960 TFLOPS (1:1 ratio), while the Quadro M5000 has no listed FP16 capability. In workloads that heavily use FP16 (common in AI inference), the Radeon Pro 570 has a distinct advantage, despite its lower overall FP32 numbers.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ fundamentally in process node, memory capacity, and physical design. The Radeon Pro 570 uses a 14 nm process from GlobalFoundries, while the Quadro M5000 uses a 28 nm process from TSMC. This leads to a major difference in die size: 232 mm² for the Radeon Pro 570 versus 398 mm² for the Quadro M5000, despite the Radeon Pro 570 having 500 million more transistors (5,700M vs. 5,200M). The Radeon Pro 570 has higher clocks (1000 MHz base, 1105 MHz boost) compared to the Quadro M5000 (861 MHz base, 1038 MHz boost). Memory differs significantly: 4 GB vs. 8 GB of GDDR5, though bandwidth is close (217.0 GB/s vs. 211.6 GB/s). The Radeon Pro 570 has 1792 shading units, 112 TMUs, and 32 ROPs, while the Quadro M5000 has 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. Pixel rate and texture rate are both higher on the Quadro M5000 (66.43 GPixel/s and 132.9 GTexel/s vs. 35.36 GPixel/s and 123.8 GTexel/s). Power delivery differs: the Radeon Pro 570 is an IGP with no power connectors, while the Quadro M5000 is a dual-slot card with a single 6-pin connector and a 450 W suggested PSU. Display outputs are also distinct: the Radeon Pro 570 is portable-device-dependent, while the Quadro M5000 offers 1x DVI and 4x DisplayPort 1.2. The Quadro M5000 measures 267 mm in length and 111 mm in height.

Architecture Differences

The Radeon Pro 570 is built on AMD’s GCN 4.0 architecture (chip: Ellesmere), while the Quadro M5000 uses NVIDIA’s Maxwell 2.0 architecture (chip: GM204). This is a generational gap: GCN 4.0 is a newer architecture designed for 14 nm manufacturing, whereas Maxwell 2.0 is a 28 nm design. The Radeon Pro 570 supports FP16 at a 1:1 ratio with FP32 (both 3.960 TFLOPS), while the Quadro M5000 has no listed FP16 support, making the Radeon Pro 570 more flexible for mixed-precision compute. The Radeon Pro 570 supports DirectX 12_0, while the Quadro M5000 supports DirectX 12_1, indicating the NVIDIA card has additional DirectX 12 features. Both support OpenGL 4.6, but Vulkan support differs: the Radeon Pro 570 lists Vulkan 1.3, while the Quadro M5000 lists Vulkan 1.4. Neither card has ray tracing cores or tensor cores. The Radeon Pro 570 belongs to the Radeon Pro Mac (500 Series) generation, while the Quadro M5000 is part of the Quadro Maxwell (Mx000) generation. The Quadro M5000’s predecessor is Quadro Kepler and its successor is Quadro Pascal, placing it in a clear lineage; the Radeon Pro 570 has no listed predecessor or successor. The Radeon Pro 570’s transistor density of 24.6M per mm² versus 13.1M per mm² for the Quadro M5000 reflects the manufacturing process advantage. Both cards are end-of-life, with the Radeon Pro 570 released on June 4, 2017, and the Quadro M5000 on June 28, 2015.