NVIDIA GeForce GT 735M vs NVIDIA GeForce GT 740M Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce GT 740M and GT 735M are both end-of-life mobile graphics solutions built on the same GK208 chip and Kepler 2.0 architecture. The data shows a clear performance hierarchy, but the margins and architectural context are essential to understand which part suits specific workloads.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct benchmark available in the data is the Geekbench OpenCL test, and it shows a decisive win for the GT 740M. In that test, the GT 740M scores 3,974 points against the GT 735M's 3,616 points, which translates to a 9.9% advantage for the higher-end part. This is not a marginal gap; it is a meaningful jump in raw compute performance that should be visible in real-world OpenCL-accelerated tasks.

To put that delta in perspective, look at how each card sits among its nearest rivals. The GT 740M's average benchmark score is 3,717, placing it in the 22nd percentile of all GPUs. Its closest competitors are tightly clustered: the NVIDIA Quadro 3000M averages 3,718 (a 0% delta), the NVIDIA GeForce GT 635M averages 3,740 (a -0.6% delta for the 740M), and the NVIDIA GeForce 825M averages 3,694 (a 0.6% delta in favor of the 740M). The GT 740M is effectively in a statistical dead heat with these three cards, all within roughly 1% of each other. Meanwhile, the AMD Radeon HD 6770 trails slightly at 3,649, which is 1.9% behind the GT 740M.

The GT 735M, by contrast, sits at the 21st percentile with an average score of 3,616. Its nearest rival list is more heterogeneous. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 scores 3,629, which is 0.3% higher than the GT 735M — an unexpected pairing, since the GTX 1050 is generally a much newer and more capable part, but the data shows them within a rounding error. The NVIDIA RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation scores 3,596 (the GT 735M leads by 0.6%), and the NVIDIA GeForce GT 545 scores 3,594 (again, the GT 735M leads by 0.6%). The AMD Radeon HD 6770 scores 3,649, which is 0.9% ahead of the GT 735M.

The direct head-to-head delta of 9.9% between the two GeForce parts is far larger than any delta seen in their respective rival clusters. This tells you that the GT 740M is not just slightly faster; it occupies a meaningfully higher performance tier within the same family.

Where Each One Wins

The GT 740M wins the only benchmark where both cards were tested, and it does so by a significant margin. The data indicates that in OpenCL compute workloads — which are common in video encoding, physics simulation, and certain rendering tasks — the GT 740M should deliver approximately one-tenth more throughput than the GT 735M. This is the primary, and indeed only, quantitative win for the GT 740M in this comparison.

The GT 735M does not win any benchmark in the provided data. It has zero wins against the GT 740M. However, it is not without merit in a broader context. Its average score of 3,616 is only 101 points lower than the GT 740M's 3,717, which means that in many day-to-day tasks that are not heavily GPU-bound, the difference may be imperceptible. For users who prioritize other system characteristics — such as power draw or thermals — the GT 735M's identical 33 W TDP suggests it is not more efficient, but its lower clocks may produce less heat in practice, though the data does not quantify this.

Looking at the rival lists, the GT 735M's flexibility is notable: it trades blows with a wide range of hardware, from the GTX 1050 (losing by 0.3%) to the RTX 5000 Mobile Ada Generation (winning by 0.6%). This suggests that the GT 735M's performance profile is broadly competitive with a very diverse set of GPUs, even if it is slower than its direct sibling.

The Verdict

The choice between these two is straightforward based on the data. The GT 740M is the faster GPU. It wins the sole head-to-head benchmark with a 9.9% lead, and it has a higher average benchmark score (3,717 vs. 3,616). Its percentile ranking is also one point higher (22nd vs. 21st). For any application that uses OpenCL — which includes many creative and productivity tools — the GT 740M is the superior pick.

The GT 735M, however, is not a poor performer in absolute terms. Its average score of 3,616 places it within 2.8% of the GT 740M's average. The gap in the specific head-to-head test is larger (9.9%), but that test may represent a peak-scenario for the GT 740M. If the workload is light, or if the system is constrained by other components, the GT 735M will likely feel similar in everyday use.

Who should pick the GT 740M: Anyone who needs maximum compute performance from a mobile GPU of this era, particularly for OpenCL-accelerated tasks. The 9.9% lead is too large to ignore if GPU throughput is a bottleneck.

Who should pick the GT 735M: Users who have a specific need for a GPU with identical memory configuration (2 GB DDR3, 64-bit bus, 14.40 GB/s bandwidth) and identical TDP (33 W) but who may find the GT 740M unavailable or otherwise unsuitable. The data shows the GT 735M is competitive with a wide range of other GPUs, so it is not a weak choice — it is merely second-best in this pairing.

FAQ

Q: How much faster is the GT 740M than the GT 735M in the Geekbench OpenCL test?

A: The GT 740M scores 3,974 points versus the GT 735M's 3,616 points, which is a 9.9% higher score.

Q: What is the average benchmark score difference between the two cards?

A: The GT 740M has an average benchmark score of 3,717, while the GT 735M averages 3,616. That is a difference of 101 points in favor of the GT 740M.

Q: Which card has a higher percentile ranking among all GPUs?

A: The GT 740M sits in the 22nd percentile, while the GT 735M sits in the 21st percentile.

Q: Do both cards have the same memory configuration?

A: Yes, both have 2 GB of DDR3 memory on a 64-bit bus, providing 14.40 GB/s of bandwidth.

Q: Are there any benchmark tests where the GT 735M beats the GT 740M?

A: No. In the provided data, the GT 740M wins the only benchmark where both were tested, and the GT 735M has zero wins in the head-to-head comparison.

Q: How does the GT 735M compare to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050?

A: The GT 735M scores 3,616, while the GTX 1050 scores 3,629, which means the GTX 1050 is 0.3% faster. They are effectively within a rounding error of each other.

Architecture Differences

Both the GT 740M and GT 735M are built on the same fundamental architecture. They share the GK208 chip, the Kepler 2.0 design, and are manufactured by TSMC on the same 28 nm process node. The transistor count is identical at 1,020 million, and the die size is the same at 87 mm², leading to an identical transistor density of 11.7M / mm². Both are part of the GeForce 700M generation and have the same predecessor (GeForce 600M) and successor (GeForce 800M).

The shading unit count is also identical: both have 384 shading units, 32 texture mapping units, and 8 raster output pipelines. Neither card has ray tracing or tensor cores. The API support is the same: DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175.

The critical architectural difference is clock speed. The GT 740M runs at a base clock of 980 MHz with a boost clock of 1,033 MHz. The GT 735M runs at a base clock of 575 MHz with a boost clock of 628 MHz. This is a massive difference — the GT 740M's base clock is 405 MHz higher, and its boost clock is 405 MHz higher as well. Since the core count and memory system are identical, all performance differences come down to these clocks.

Specification Differences

The following table highlights only the fields where the two GPUs differ. All other specifications are identical.

| Specification | GT 740M | GT 735M |

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

| Base Clock | 980 MHz | 575 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1,033 MHz | 628 MHz |

| Pixel Rate | 8.264 GPixel/s | 5.024 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 33.06 GTexel/s | 20.10 GTexel/s |

| FP32 (float performance) | 793.3 GFLOPS | 482.3 GFLOPS |

| Slot Width | MXM Module | IGP |

| Release Date | 2013-06-19 | 2013-03-31 |

| Geekbench OpenCL Score | 3,974 | 3,616 |

| Average Benchmark Score | 3,717 | 3,616 |

| Percentile vs All GPUs | 22 | 21 |

The clock difference drives all other differences. The GT 740M's pixel rate of 8.264 GPixel/s is roughly 64% higher than the GT 735M's 5.024 GPixel/s. The texture rate of 33.06 GTexel/s is about 64% higher than 20.10 GTexel/s. The FP32 compute of 793.3 GFLOPS is about 64% higher than 482.3 GFLOPS. These rates scale directly with the clock speeds, confirming that the GT 740M is essentially a higher-binned version of the same chip.

The slot width differs: the GT 740M is an MXM Module (a replaceable graphics card), while the GT 735M is an IGP (integrated graphics processor). This is a physical form-factor difference that affects how each is used in laptops. The GT 735M is soldered to the motherboard, while the GT 740M is a modular unit. Both have no power connectors and a TDP of 33 W, and both use a PCIe 3.0 x8 bus interface. The GT 740M was released later, on June 19, 2013, while the GT 735M launched on March 31, 2013 — a gap of roughly three months.