AMD Radeon R5 M420 vs AMD Radeon RX 560 Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only directly comparable benchmark between the AMD Radeon RX 560 and the AMD Radeon R5 M420 is the Geekbench OpenCL test, and the result is decisively one-sided. The RX 560 scores 16,472 points, while the R5 M420 scores 3,956 points. This represents a 316.4% advantage for the RX 560, meaning it delivers roughly four times the compute performance of the R5 M420 in this workload. The data shows no test where the R5 M420 comes out ahead; the head-to-head record stands at one win for the RX 560 and zero for the R5 M420.

To contextualize the RX 560's OpenCL result, its average benchmark score across all recorded tests is 4,569 points, which places it in the 26th percentile of all GPUs in the database. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon R5 M230 with an average score of 4,577 (0.2% lower), the Intel HD Graphics P530 at 4,560 (0.2% higher), the NVIDIA Quadro M3000M at 4,621 (1.1% higher), and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M at 4,628 (1.3% higher). These deltas are all within a couple of percentage points, indicating that the RX 560 sits in a tightly contested performance cluster despite its commanding lead over the R5 M420.

The R5 M420, by contrast, has an average benchmark score of 3,956 points, placing it in the 23rd percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce 830M at 3,957 (0% difference), the NVIDIA GeForce GT 745M at 3,953 (0.1% higher), the NVIDIA Quadro K2000 at 3,964 (0.2% higher), and the AMD Radeon HD 6850 X2 at 3,977 (0.5% higher). The R5 M420 is essentially tied with these older or lower-tier parts, whereas the RX 560 is competitive with much more capable mobile workstation and gaming GPUs from the same era.

It is importantly the RX 560 has a broader benchmark footprint in the database, with results across DirectX 9, 10, 11, and 12 tests, as well as 2D, 3D, and compute workloads. The R5 M420 only has a single recorded OpenCL result. This limited dataset for the R5 M420 means its average score is derived from one data point, while the RX 560's average reflects nine separate tests. The RX 560's individual scores include a Passmark G3D score of 3,671, a Passmark GPU compute score of 1,437, and a Geekbench Metal score of 18,941, none of which have a counterpart in the R5 M420's records.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins the only directly comparable benchmark?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 560 wins the Geekbench OpenCL test with a score of 16,472 against the R5 M420's 3,956, a delta of 316.4%.

Q: How do the two GPUs rank relative to all other GPUs in the database?

A: The RX 560 is in the 26th percentile of all GPUs, while the R5 M420 is in the 23rd percentile. The RX 560's average benchmark score is 4,569, compared to 3,956 for the R5 M420.

Q: What are the closest competitors to each GPU based on average score?

A: For the RX 560, the closest rival is the Intel HD Graphics P530 with a 0.2% higher average score. For the R5 M420, the closest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce 830M with a 0% difference in average score.

Q: Does the R5 M420 have any benchmark win over the RX 560?

A: No. The head-to-head benchmark record shows one win for the RX 560 and zero wins for the R5 M420.

Q: What is the difference in memory bandwidth between the two?

A: The RX 560 has a memory bandwidth of 112.0 GB/s, while the R5 M420 has a memory bandwidth of 16.00 GB/s. The RX 560 also uses GDDR5 memory, whereas the R5 M420 uses DDR3.

Q: Which GPU has a higher pixel rate?

A: The RX 560 has a pixel rate of 20.40 GPixel/s, compared to the R5 M420's 6.800 GPixel/s.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs are built on fundamentally different architectures and process nodes. The RX 560 uses the Polaris 21 chip based on GCN 4.0 architecture, fabricated on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. The R5 M420 uses the Jet chip based on GCN 1.0 architecture, fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC. This represents two full generations of architectural evolution, as GCN 4.0 includes significant improvements over the original GCN 1.0 design.

The transistor counts reflect this gap. The RX 560 packs 3,000 million transistors on a die size of 123 mm², giving it a transistor density of 24.4M per mm². The R5 M420 has 690 million transistors on a 56 mm² die, with a transistor density of 12.3M per mm². The RX 560 has more than four times the transistor count and more than double the die area, while also achieving nearly double the transistor density thanks to the newer 14 nm process.

Compute resources differ substantially. The RX 560 has 1,024 shading units, 64 texture mapping units, and 16 raster operation units. The R5 M420 has 320 shading units, 20 TMUs, and 8 ROPs. This means the RX 560 has three times the shading units, more than three times the TMUs, and double the ROPs. The texture rate is 81.60 GTexel/s for the RX 560 versus 17.00 GTexel/s for the R5 M420, and the pixel rate is 20.40 GPixel/s versus 6.800 GPixel/s.

The FP32 compute throughput tells a similar story: the RX 560 delivers 2.611 TFLOPS, while the R5 M420 delivers 544.0 GFLOPS. The RX 560 also supports FP16 at a 1:1 ratio with FP32, whereas the R5 M420 has no recorded FP16 capability. The RX 560 features a boost clock of 1275 MHz and a base clock of 1175 MHz, while the R5 M420 has a boost clock of 850 MHz and a base clock of 780 MHz.

Memory architecture differs as well. The RX 560 uses 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, with an effective memory speed of 7 Gbps. The R5 M420 uses 4 GB of DDR3 on a 64-bit bus, with an effective memory speed of 2 Gbps. This results in the RX 560's 112.0 GB/s bandwidth versus the R5 M420's 16.00 GB/s, a sevenfold difference.

API support shows the RX 560 is more modern: it supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3, while the R5 M420 supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. The RX 560 also has a higher power envelope at 75 W TDP, while the R5 M420 has no recorded TDP in the database. The RX 560 is a dual-slot card with no power connectors and a suggested 250 W PSU, while the R5 M420 is an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with portable-device-dependent display outputs.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the AMD Radeon RX 560 is the far stronger GPU in every measurable category. Its 316.4% lead in the only shared benchmark, its higher percentile ranking (26th versus 23rd), and its substantial advantages in compute units, memory bandwidth, and clock speeds all point to the same conclusion. The RX 560 is a discrete graphics card designed for gaming and compute workloads, while the R5 M420 is an integrated-class part intended for basic laptop graphics duties.

The RX 560's average score of 4,569 places it in the same performance tier as the NVIDIA Quadro M3000M and GeForce GTX 970M, both of which are professional or high-end mobile GPUs. The R5 M420's average score of 3,956 places it alongside the NVIDIA GeForce 830M and GT 745M, which are entry-level mobile parts. The performance gap between these two AMD GPUs is not marginal; it is a generational and architectural chasm.

Users should choose the RX 560 if they need a capable discrete GPU for gaming, content creation, or general compute tasks. The R5 M420 is suitable only for scenarios where an integrated GPU is the only option, such as thin-and-light laptops, and even then, its performance is limited by its DDR3 memory and 64-bit bus. The RX 560's GDDR5 memory, 128-bit bus, and 14 nm process give it a decisive edge in both raw throughput and efficiency.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon RX 560 | AMD Radeon R5 M420 |

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

| Architecture | GCN 4.0 | GCN 1.0 |

| Process Node | 14 nm | 28 nm |

| Foundry | GlobalFoundries | TSMC |

| Transistors | 3,000 million | 690 million |

| Die Size | 123 mm² | 56 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 24.4M / mm² | 12.3M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1175 MHz | 780 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1275 MHz | 850 MHz |

| Memory Type | GDDR5 | DDR3 |

| Memory Bus Width | 128 bit | 64 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 112.0 GB/s | 16.00 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 1024 | 320 |

| TMUs | 64 | 20 |

| ROPs | 16 | 8 |

| Pixel Rate | 20.40 GPixel/s | 6.800 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 81.60 GTexel/s | 17.00 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 2.611 TFLOPS | 544.0 GFLOPS |

| FP16 | 2.611 TFLOPS (1:1) | None |

| TDP | 75 W | Not recorded |

| Slot Width | Dual-slot | IGP |

| Power Connectors | None | Not recorded |

| Suggested PSU | 250 W | Not recorded |

| Display Outputs | 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, 1x DisplayPort 1.4a | Portable Device Dependent |

| DirectX Support | 12 (12_0) | 12 (11_1) |

| Vulkan Support | 1.3 | 1.2.170 |

| Release Date | 2017-04-17 | 2016-05-14 |

| Launch MSRP | 99 USD | None recorded |

Where Each One Wins

The RX 560 wins in all compute-heavy scenarios. Its FP32 throughput of 2.611 TFLOPS is nearly five times the R5 M420's 544.0 GFLOPS, making it substantially faster for general-purpose GPU computing, machine learning inference, and physics simulations. The 112.0 GB/s memory bandwidth versus 16.00 GB/s means the RX 560 can feed its shading units much more effectively, which benefits texture-heavy workloads and large data sets. The 1:1 FP16 support on the RX 560 also opens up acceleration paths that the R5 M420 cannot access.

In gaming, the RX 560's advantages are equally clear. Its 16 ROPs and 20.40 GPixel/s pixel rate provide double the fill rate of the R5 M420's 8 ROPs and 6.800 GPixel/s. The 64 TMUs and 81.60 GTexel/s texture rate are more than four times the R5 M420's 20 TMUs and 17.00 GTexel/s, which directly impacts how quickly textures can be sampled and filtered. The RX 560's GDDR5 memory also responds faster than DDR3, reducing stutter in memory-bound scenes.

The R5 M420 has no recorded benchmark win over the RX 560, and its only advantage is its integrated form factor. As an IGP, it requires no separate power connectors and takes no expansion slot, making it suitable for ultra-portable laptops where space and power are at a premium. The RX 560, by contrast, is a dual-slot card that needs a 250 W PSU and has a 75 W TDP, though it still does not require external power connectors.

For users who need a discrete GPU with a known performance baseline, the RX 560 is the clear choice. Its 26th percentile ranking and average score of 4,569 put it in a different class than the R5 M420's 23rd percentile and 3,956 average. The RX 560's nearest rivals include the Quadro M3000M and GTX 970M, while the R5 M420's rivals are the GeForce 830M and GT 745M. The data supports a simple conclusion: the RX 560 is a real GPU, while the R5 M420 is a placeholder for basic display output.