AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT vs AMD Radeon RX 5500M Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data shows a complete sweep for the AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT across all ten shared benchmark tests. The desktop card wins every head-to-head comparison, with the margin varying dramatically from a modest single-digit lead in one API test to near-doubling the mobile part in compute workloads. This is not a close contest; the RX 5500 XT is consistently faster, but the size of the gap depends heavily on the workload.

The narrowest victory comes in Geekbench Metal, where the RX 5500 XT scores 54842 against the RX 5500M's 50359, a lead of 8.9%. That is a meaningful advantage, but it is the closest the mobile GPU comes to matching its desktop sibling. Moving to OpenCL, the gap widens substantially: 46965 versus 38725, a 21.3% delta. Vulkan shows an even larger spread, with the RX 5500 XT at 44191 and the RX 5500M at 35693, representing a 23.8% advantage. These results suggest that compute-oriented APIs amplify the performance difference far more than graphics-focused Metal workloads.

The PassMark suite tells a similar story, but with even more extreme swings. In DirectX 10, the RX 5500 XT scores 46 against 39, a 17.9% lead. DirectX 11 shows a massive 60% delta: 56 versus 35. DirectX 12 continues the trend with a 42.9% gap, 40 against 28. DirectX 9, an older API, yields a 33% difference with scores of 133 and 100. The 2D graphics test is particularly lopsided: the RX 5500 XT hits 774, while the RX 5500M manages only 414, an 87% advantage for the desktop part.

The most striking results, however, are in the 3D and compute tests. PassMark G3D shows the RX 5500 XT scoring 9083 against 5848, a 55.3% lead. The GPU compute test is even more one-sided: 4446 versus 2316, a 92% delta. That means the RX 5500 XT delivers nearly double the compute performance of the RX 5500M in this specific benchmark. The pattern is clear: the desktop card dominates across the board, and the advantage grows with workloads that stress raw throughput rather than fixed-function graphics paths.

The Verdict

The data leaves no ambiguity: the AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT is the superior GPU in every measured category. It wins all ten head-to-head benchmarks, and its average benchmark score of 14692 sits well above the RX 5500M's 13356. The percentile rankings reflect this too, with the RX 5500 XT at the 57th percentile of all GPUs versus the RX 5500M at the 54th. Neither card is a flagship, but the desktop part is clearly the stronger performer.

Who should pick the RX 5500 XT? Anyone who needs maximum performance from this chip generation and does not require portability. The desktop card's nearest rivals, according to the database, include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770 with an average score of 14747, a 0.4% difference; the RX 5500 XT essentially trades blows with that older NVIDIA card. It also sits 2% ahead of the GeForce GTX 965M and 2.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11. These are respectable comparisons for a 2019 GPU.

Who should pick the RX 5500M? The mobile part is not without merit, but its strengths are not in raw performance. Its nearest rivals are all older mobile or workstation parts: the AMD FirePro M6100 matches it exactly (0% delta), the AMD Radeon HD 8950M is 0.1% behind, the AMD Radeon Pro 555X is 0.3% ahead, and the AMD Radeon Pro 555 is 0.4% behind. The RX 5500M is competitive within its mobile peer group, but the desktop RX 5500 XT is in a different performance class entirely. For a laptop user, the RX 5500M represents a capable option, but the data shows it cannot keep pace with the desktop equivalent.

Architecture Differences

Both GPUs share the same fundamental DNA. They are built on the RDNA 1.0 architecture, use the Navi 14 chip, and are fabricated on TSMC's 7 nm process node. The transistor count is identical at 6,400 million, and the die size is the same at 158 mm², resulting in an identical transistor density of 40.5M per mm². The memory subsystem is also unchanged: 4 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth in both cases. The API support matches as well, with DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4 listed for both.

The differences appear in how the silicon is configured. The RX 5500 XT has a base clock of 1607 MHz, a boost clock of 1845 MHz, and a game clock of 1717 MHz. The RX 5500M runs at 1375 MHz base, 1645 MHz boost, and 1448 MHz game clock. That is a 232 MHz difference at base, 200 MHz at boost, and 269 MHz at game clock. These clock disparities directly explain the performance gap, as the underlying hardware is otherwise identical.

The pixel rate tells the story: the RX 5500 XT achieves 59.04 GPixel/s, while the RX 5500M manages 52.64 GPixel/s. Texture rate follows suit, with 162.4 GTexel/s for the desktop part versus 144.8 GTexel/s for the mobile chip. FP32 compute is rated at 5.196 TFLOPS for the RX 5500 XT and 4.632 TFLOPS for the RX 5500M. FP16, at a 2:1 ratio, is 10.39 TFLOPS versus 9.265 TFLOPS. The RX 5500M is essentially a lower-clocked version of the same silicon, tuned for efficiency rather than maximum throughput.

Specification Differences

The most striking difference is power consumption. The RX 5500 XT carries a TDP of 130 W, while the RX 5500M is rated at just 85 W. That 45 W gap explains the clock speed reductions in the mobile part; it is operating within a much tighter thermal envelope. The desktop card requires a dual-slot cooler and a single 8-pin power connector, with a suggested power supply of 300 W. The RX 5500M has no power connectors listed, as it draws power from the laptop's motherboard, and no suggested PSU is applicable.

Physical dimensions also differ, though only the RX 5500 XT has full measurements recorded. It is 180 mm (7.1 inches) long. The RX 5500M has no listed dimensions, as portable device layouts vary. Display outputs are another point of divergence: the RX 5500 XT offers 1x HDMI 2.0b and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, while the RX 5500M's outputs are listed as "Portable Device Dependent." The bus interface is the same, PCIe 4.0 x8, for both cards.

Release dates and lineage differ as well. The RX 5500 XT was released on 2019-12-11, with the RX 5500M arriving earlier on 2019-10-06. The desktop card's predecessor is listed as Vega and its successor as Navi II, while the mobile part's predecessor is Polaris Mobile with no successor listed. The RX 5500 XT also carries a launch MSRP of 169 USD, a figure stated once here for reference. Both are end-of-life products. The RX 5500M has no launch MSRP recorded. Shading units, TMUs, and ROPs are identical: 1408, 88, and 32 respectively. Neither card has ray tracing cores or tensor cores.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins in DirectX 11 performance?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT scores 56 in PassMark DirectX 11, while the RX 5500M scores 35. That is a 60% advantage for the desktop card, the largest margin in any DirectX test.

Q: How much faster is the RX 5500 XT in compute workloads?

A: In the PassMark GPU compute test, the RX 5500 XT scores 4446 against 2316 for the RX 5500M, a 92% lead. This is the single biggest performance gap between the two cards across all recorded benchmarks.

Q: Are the two GPUs based on the same chip?

A: Yes, both use the Navi 14 chip with the RDNA 1.0 architecture, and both have 6,400 million transistors on a 158 mm² die. The differences come from clock speeds, not hardware configuration.

Q: What is the memory configuration on both cards?

A: Both have 4 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, with 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth and a memory clock of 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective). There is no difference in memory specifications.

Q: Does the RX 5500M have a lower power draw?

A: Yes, the RX 5500M is rated at 85 W TDP, compared to 130 W for the RX 5500 XT. This 45 W difference is why the mobile part runs at lower clocks and delivers less performance.

Q: How do the two cards compare to their nearest rivals?

A: The RX 5500 XT is 0.4% behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770, 1.1% ahead of the Quadro M2000, 2% ahead of the GTX 965M, and 2.1% ahead of the RX Vega 11. The RX 5500M is exactly level with the AMD FirePro M6100, 0.1% ahead of the Radeon HD 8950M, 0.3% behind the Radeon Pro 555X, and 0.4% ahead of the Radeon Pro 555.

Where Each One Wins

The RX 5500 XT wins every benchmark category, but the magnitude of its victories points to specific strengths. Its largest margins come in compute-heavy workloads: 92% in GPU compute, 87% in 2D graphics, and 55.3% in 3D graphics. These are workloads that benefit from higher clock speeds and sustained power delivery, which the desktop card's 130 W TDP enables. For gaming, the DirectX 11 and DirectX 12 results show 60% and 42.9% leads respectively, indicating that the RX 5500 XT is the clear choice for modern titles using those APIs. Even in Vulkan, where the gap is 23.8%, the desktop part maintains a solid advantage.

The RX 5500M has no benchmark wins in this comparison, but that does not mean it has no role. Its 85 W TDP makes it suitable for laptops where power and thermals are constrained. The data shows it is competitive with its mobile peers, trading blows with the AMD FirePro M6100 and Radeon Pro 555X. For users who need a discrete GPU in a portable chassis and cannot accommodate a dual-slot desktop card with an 8-pin connector, the RX 5500M is a reasonable option. Its closest benchmark result against the RX 5500 XT is in Geekbench Metal, where the 8.9% gap is the smallest of any test, suggesting that Metal-based workloads are where the mobile part loses the least ground. The RX 5500 XT, however, remains the definitive winner for anyone prioritizing raw performance over mobility.