AMD Radeon RX 550X vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 Comparison

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 550X has a higher average benchmark score at 10,481, compared to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760's 9,458. The RX 550X also sits at the 49th percentile of all GPUs in the database, while the GTX 760 sits at the 46th percentile.

Q: How do the two cards compare in OpenCL performance?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 wins the OpenCL test with a score of 11,299, which is 14.5% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 550X's score of 9,662.

Q: What about Vulkan performance?

A: The GTX 760 again takes the lead in Vulkan with a score of 12,551, beating the RX 550X's 11,299 by 10%.

Q: Which card has more memory bandwidth?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 offers substantially more memory bandwidth at 192.3 GB/s, while the AMD Radeon RX 550X delivers 96.00 GB/s. This difference stems from the GTX 760's wider 256-bit memory bus compared to the RX 550X's 128-bit bus.

Q: What are the power requirements for each card?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 550X has a 50 W TDP and requires no power connectors, with a suggested power supply of 250 W. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 has a 170 W TDP, requires two 6-pin power connectors, and needs a 450 W power supply.

Q: Which GPU supports newer graphics APIs?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 550X supports DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.3, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 supports DirectX 12 (11_0) and Vulkan 1.2.175. Both cards support OpenGL 4.6.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different architectural generations and manufacturing processes. The AMD Radeon RX 550X is built on the GCN 4.0 architecture with the Lexa chip, produced on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 uses the older Kepler architecture with the GK104 chip, fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC. This process gap is significant: the RX 550X packs 2,200 million transistors into a 103 mm² die, achieving a transistor density of 21.4 million per square millimeter. The GTX 760 has more transistors overall at 3,540 million, but its die is much larger at 294 mm², resulting in a lower density of 12.0 million per square millimeter.

The compute configurations differ sharply. The RX 550X has 512 shading units, 32 texture mapping units, and 16 raster output units. The GTX 760 is far more heavily equipped with 1,152 shading units, 96 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. This gives the GTX 760 roughly double the texture and pixel processing capacity, which becomes apparent in the fill rate figures: the GTX 760 delivers 99.07 GTexel/s and 24.77 GPixel/s versus the RX 550X's 37.86 GTexel/s and 18.93 GPixel/s.

Clock speeds tell a different story. The RX 550X runs at a base clock of 1100 MHz with a boost of 1183 MHz, while the GTX 760 operates at a lower 980 MHz base and 1032 MHz boost. The RX 550X also has a narrower PCIe interface at PCIe 3.0 x8, compared to the GTX 760's PCIe 3.0 x16. Memory configurations are similarly divergent: the RX 550X uses 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, while the GTX 760 uses 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, which is why the older card has double the memory bandwidth.

The RX 550X supports newer display outputs including HDMI 2.0b and DisplayPort 1.4a, whereas the GTX 760 offers HDMI 1.4a and DisplayPort 1.2. The RX 550X also supports FP16 compute at a 1:1 ratio with FP32, while the GTX 760 has no listed FP16 capability. Both cards are end-of-life products, with the RX 550X released in December 2018 and the GTX 760 launched in June 2013.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database records two benchmark comparisons between these GPUs, and in both tests the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 emerges as the winner. In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the GTX 760 scores 11,299 against the RX 550X's 9,662. That represents a 14.5% advantage for the NVIDIA card, which is a substantial margin in compute workloads that leverage OpenCL. The RX 550X's smaller shading unit count and narrower memory bus likely contribute to this deficit, though the architecture difference between GCN 4.0 and Kepler also plays a role.

The Vulkan test shows a closer but still decisive result. The GTX 760 scores 12,551, while the RX 550X manages 11,299. The 10% delta in favor of the GTX 760 indicates that despite its older architecture, the Kepler chip retains an edge in graphics API performance. Interestingly, the RX 550X's Vulkan score of 11,299 exactly matches its OpenCL result, whereas the GTX 760 improves from 11,299 in OpenCL to 12,551 in Vulkan, suggesting the NVIDIA card benefits more from Vulkan's low-level overhead reduction.

The overall benchmark tally gives the GTX 760 two wins out of two tests. However, the average benchmark scores in the database tell a more nuanced story. The RX 550X has an average score of 10,481, which is 10.8% higher than the GTX 760's average of 9,458. This discrepancy arises because the database includes additional benchmark data beyond the two head-to-head tests. The GTX 760 also has a Metal benchmark score of 4,524, which is significantly lower than its OpenCL and Vulkan scores, pulling down its average. The RX 550X has no Metal score recorded, so its average reflects only its stronger OpenCL and Vulkan results.

Looking at the nearest rivals in the database provides context for each card's standing. The RX 550X sits within 1.4% of the AMD Radeon RX 6600S (which scores 10,629), 1% of the AMD Radeon R9 M275X (10,582), and 0.8% of the NVIDIA Tesla C2075 (10,400). The GTX 760 is nearly tied with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN BLACK, which scores 9,474, a difference of only 0.2%. It also leads the AMD Radeon R7 M380 by 1.6% and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M by 1.7%. These proximity figures show that both cards occupy a similar mid-range performance tier, despite the GTX 760's wins in the direct head-to-head tests.

Specification Differences

The two cards diverge across nearly every major specification category. The manufacturing process differs fundamentally: the RX 550X uses a 14 nm node from GlobalFoundries, while the GTX 760 uses a 28 nm node from TSMC. Transistor counts are 2,200 million for the AMD card and 3,540 million for the NVIDIA card, with die sizes of 103 mm² and 294 mm² respectively. Transistor density favors the AMD card at 21.4M per mm² versus 12.0M per mm².

Clock speeds show the RX 550X running faster: 1100 MHz base and 1183 MHz boost, compared to the GTX 760's 980 MHz base and 1032 MHz boost. Memory speed is nearly identical at 6 Gbps effective for both, but the GTX 760's 256-bit bus gives it a bandwidth of 192.3 GB/s versus the RX 550X's 96.00 GB/s. Memory capacity also differs, with the RX 550X offering 4 GB and the GTX 760 offering 2 GB.

Compute resources heavily favor the GTX 760: 1,152 shading units versus 512, 96 TMUs versus 32, and 32 ROPs versus 16. The resulting fill rates are 99.07 GTexel/s and 24.77 GPixel/s for the GTX 760, versus 37.86 GTexel/s and 18.93 GPixel/s for the RX 550X. FP32 performance is 2.378 TFLOPS for the GTX 760 and 1,211.4 GFLOPS for the RX 550X. The RX 550X offers FP16 at 1,211.4 GFLOPS, while the GTX 760 has no FP16 figure recorded.

Power characteristics are dramatically different. The RX 550X draws 50 W with no power connectors and a 250 W suggested PSU, while the GTX 760 draws 170 W, requires two 6-pin connectors, and needs a 450 W PSU. The bus interface differs (PCIe 3.0 x8 for AMD, PCIe 3.0 x16 for NVIDIA), as do display outputs. The RX 550X measures 145 mm in length, while the GTX 760 is longer at 241 mm. API support also diverges: DirectX 12 (12_0) for the RX 550X versus DirectX 12 (11_0) for the GTX 760, and Vulkan 1.3 versus 1.2.175.

The Verdict

The data presents a clear split between two different priorities. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 wins both recorded head-to-head benchmarks, with a 14.5% advantage in OpenCL and a 10% advantage in Vulkan. Its substantially larger compute configuration, with more than double the shading units, TMUs, and ROPs, along with double the memory bandwidth, gives it a decisive edge in raw graphics throughput. For users running OpenCL or Vulkan workloads, the GTX 760 is the stronger performer according to the recorded measurements.

The AMD Radeon RX 550X compensates with newer technology and greater efficiency. It draws only 50 W versus 170 W, needs no external power connectors, and fits in a shorter 145 mm package. It also offers double the memory capacity at 4 GB, which can be valuable in texture-heavy scenarios despite the narrower bus. Its average benchmark score of 10,481 exceeds the GTX 760's 9,458, and it sits at a higher percentile (49 versus 46). The RX 550X also supports newer API versions, including Vulkan 1.3 and DirectX 12 (12_0), which may provide better forward compatibility.

The choice depends on the workload. The GTX 760 is the pick for users prioritizing raw compute performance in OpenCL and Vulkan, backed by its dominant fill rates and wider memory bus. The RX 550X is the more balanced option for systems where power consumption, physical footprint, and memory capacity matter more than peak throughput. The GTX 760's launch MSRP was 249 USD, though both cards are now end-of-life products. The database shows two distinct design philosophies: one optimized for maximum compute density, the other for efficiency and modern feature support.