AMD Radeon RX 480 vs AMD Radeon RX 5300M Comparison

The AMD Radeon RX 5300M and AMD Radeon RX 480 represent two very different eras of GPU design, and the benchmark data reflects that divide. The RX 5300M is a modern 7nm mobile part built on RDNA 1.0, while the RX 480 is a 14nm desktop card from the GCN 4.0 generation. In the single available head-to-head benchmark, the older desktop card takes the win, but the margins are surprisingly tight given the architectural gap.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct comparison in the data is the Geekbench OpenCL test, where the AMD Radeon RX 480 scores 37,998 against the RX 5300M’s 36,529. That gives the RX 480 a 3.9% victory. The delta is modest, but it matters because the RX 480 achieves it with a much older architecture and a process node two generations behind. The RX 480’s raw compute advantage is evident in its FP32 throughput of 5.834 TFLOPS, which is roughly 43% higher than the RX 5300M’s 4.069 TFLOPS. Yet the newer card’s RDNA 1.0 architecture closes much of that gap in real-world OpenCL performance, suggesting better instruction efficiency per clock.

The RX 5300M’s nearest rivals in the database show how competitive it is. It sits within 0% of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN X (36,530) and is just 0.7% ahead of the NVIDIA T1000 (36,289). It trails the AMD Radeon PRO W6400 (37,157) by 1.7% and leads the AMD Radeon Pro Duo (35,860) by 1.9%. Those are tight clustering results, indicating the RX 5300M punches well above its mobile-class positioning. Meanwhile, the RX 480’s nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon HD 7950 (33,951) at 0.1% and the AMD Radeon RX 560 XT (34,133) at -0.4%. The RX 480 also leads the AMD Radeon RX 7700S (33,849) by 0.4% and trails the NVIDIA RTX A2000 12 GB (34,154) by 0.5%.

Looking at the broader benchmark picture, the RX 480 has a richer test history. Beyond OpenCL, it scores 51,057 in Geekbench Metal and 45,968 in Geekbench Vulkan. It also manages 966 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12. The RX 5300M has no comparable results in those tests, so its 80th percentile vs. all GPUs is based solely on its single OpenCL score. The RX 480’s 78th percentile reflects its average across four tests, but its OpenCL result alone is actually higher than the RX 5300M’s.

The transistor counts tell a story of efficiency. The RX 5300M packs 6,400 million transistors into a 158 mm² die on a 7nm TSMC process, yielding a density of 40.5 million per mm². The RX 480 uses 5,700 million transistors across a much larger 232 mm² die on GlobalFoundries’ 14nm node, with a density of just 24.6 million per mm². The newer card achieves more transistors in less space while consuming significantly less power.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear but nuanced verdict. The AMD Radeon RX 480 wins the only direct head-to-head benchmark, but the 3.9% margin is far smaller than the hardware specifications would suggest. If you need maximum raw compute in a desktop environment, the RX 480 delivers higher FP32 performance (5.834 TFLOPS vs. 4.069 TFLOPS) and more memory bandwidth (256.0 GB/s vs. 168.0 GB/s). It also has 8GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, compared to the RX 5300M’s 3GB of GDDR6 on a 96-bit bus.

However, the RX 5300M’s performance-per-watt is dramatically better. Its 85W TDP is nearly half the RX 480’s 150W, and it requires no power connectors, whereas the RX 480 needs a single 6-pin connector and a 450W suggested PSU. The RX 5300M also supports PCIe 4.0 x8, doubling the bandwidth per lane of the RX 480’s PCIe 3.0 x16 interface.

For a mobile or compact system, the RX 5300M is the obvious choice. It achieves 80th percentile standings against all GPUs despite its limited memory and narrower bus. For a desktop build where power draw is less critical, the RX 480 offers more memory and higher compute ceilings. The RX 480 also has a longer track record in the database, with Vulkan and Metal scores that the RX 5300M cannot match in the available data.

Where Each One Wins

The RX 480 wins in scenarios that demand high memory capacity and bandwidth. Its 8GB frame buffer and 256-bit bus are suited for texture-heavy workloads or higher-resolution gaming where 3GB would be a hard limit. The RX 480’s 1,824 GTexel/s texture rate is substantially higher than the RX 5300M’s 127.2 GTexel/s, giving it an edge in fill-rate-bound tasks. It also has more shading units (2,304 vs. 1,408) and more TMUs (144 vs. 88).

The RX 5300M wins in efficiency and modern feature support. Its 7nm process and RDNA 1.0 architecture deliver a 46.24 GPixel/s pixel rate, which is actually higher than the RX 480’s 40.51 GPixel/s despite the latter having more raw compute. The RX 5300M also supports DirectX 12_1, while the RX 480 is limited to DirectX 12_0. Both support OpenGL 4.6, but the RX 5300M has Vulkan 1.4 support versus the RX 480’s Vulkan 1.3.

For compact or battery-powered systems, the RX 5300M’s 85W TDP and lack of power connectors make it far easier to integrate. The RX 480, at 240mm long and 35mm wide, is a dual-slot desktop card that requires a power supply rated at 450W. The RX 5300M’s display outputs are portable-device dependent, while the RX 480 offers 1x HDMI 2.0b and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 5300M has an average benchmark score of 36,529, while the AMD Radeon RX 480 averages 33,997. The RX 5300M sits at the 80th percentile vs. all GPUs, and the RX 480 is at the 78th percentile.

Q: How do the two cards compare in the Geekbench OpenCL test?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 480 scores 37,998, beating the AMD Radeon RX 5300M’s 36,529 by 3.9%. This is the only direct head-to-head benchmark available.

Q: What are the memory specifications of each card?

A: The RX 5300M has 3GB of GDDR6 memory on a 96-bit bus with 168.0 GB/s bandwidth. The RX 480 has 8GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus with 256.0 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Which card has a higher power draw?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 480 has a TDP of 150W and requires a 6-pin power connector and a 450W suggested PSU. The AMD Radeon RX 5300M has an 85W TDP and needs no power connectors.

Q: Do these cards support the same graphics APIs?

A: No. The RX 5300M supports DirectX 12_1, while the RX 480 supports DirectX 12_0. Both support OpenGL 4.6, but the RX 5300M supports Vulkan 1.4 and the RX 480 supports Vulkan 1.3.

Q: What are the nearest performance rivals for each card?

A: The RX 5300M’s closest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN X with a 0% delta, followed by the NVIDIA T1000 at 0.7%. The RX 480’s closest rival is the AMD Radeon HD 7950 at 0.1%, with the AMD Radeon RX 560 XT at -0.4%.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Radeon RX 5300M is built on the Navi 14 chip using RDNA 1.0 architecture, manufactured on a 7nm TSMC process. The AMD Radeon RX 480 uses the Ellesmere chip with GCN 4.0 architecture, manufactured on a 14nm GlobalFoundries process. This process difference is significant: the RX 5300M achieves a transistor density of 40.5 million per mm² on a 158 mm² die, while the RX 480 manages only 24.6 million per mm² on a much larger 232 mm² die.

The RX 5300M’s RDNA 1.0 architecture is designed for efficiency, with 1,408 shading units, 88 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. It runs at a base clock of 1000 MHz, a boost clock of 1445 MHz, and a game clock of 1181 MHz. Its FP16 performance is 8.138 TFLOPS at a 2:1 ratio, double its FP32 rate of 4.069 TFLOPS. The RX 480’s GCN 4.0 architecture has 2,304 shading units, 144 TMUs, and 32 ROPs, with a base clock of 1120 MHz and a boost clock of 1266 MHz. Its FP16 performance is identical to FP32 at 5.834 TFLOPS because it operates at a 1:1 ratio.

Memory architecture diverges sharply. The RX 5300M uses 3GB of GDDR6 at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) on a 96-bit interface, yielding 168.0 GB/s. The RX 480 uses 8GB of GDDR5 at 2000 MHz (8 Gbps effective) on a 256-bit interface, yielding 256.0 GB/s. The RX 5300M’s pixel rate of 46.24 GPixel/s exceeds the RX 480’s 40.51 GPixel/s, but the RX 480’s texture rate of 182.3 GTexel/s is much higher than the RX 5300M’s 127.2 GTexel/s.

The RX 5300M belongs to the Radeon RX 5000 series and the Navi Mobile generation, with a predecessor of Polaris Mobile. The RX 480 belongs to the Arctic Islands RX 400 generation, with a predecessor of Pirate Islands and a successor of Polaris. The RX 5300M uses a PCIe 4.0 x8 interface, while the RX 480 uses PCIe 3.0 x16. The RX 480 is a dual-slot card measuring 240mm by 95mm by 35mm, while the RX 5300M has no listed dimensions because it is designed for portable devices. Both cards are end-of-life, but the RX 480 launched on 2016-06-28 with a launch MSRP of 229 USD, while the RX 5300M launched on 2019-11-12 with no listed MSRP.