NVIDIA Quadro P2000

The NVIDIA Quadro P2000 is a Pascal-generation professional workstation card built on the 16 nm GP106 chip, featuring 1,024 shading units, 64 texture mapping units, and 40 render output units. It was released in early 2017, is now end-of-life, and sits in the 36th percentile of all GPUs in the benchmark database, with an average benchmark score of 6,364.

Benchmark Performance

The Quadro P2000’s average benchmark score of 6,364 places it in a tightly contested mid-range segment, where its closest rivals are separated by less than one percent. The data shows a margin of just 0.4% behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580M, which scores 6,389, and a 0.6% advantage over the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 SE at 6,326. Meanwhile, it leads the AMD Radeon Pro WX 4100 by 0.9% (6,309) and trails the Intel UHD Graphics 730 by 0.9% (6,425). These deltas are effectively negligible in real-world terms, indicating that the P2000 performs at the same level as these four competitors in aggregate scoring.

Looking at specific workloads, the P2000 delivers 3.031 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and a texture rate of 94.72 GTexel/s, with a pixel rate of 59.20 GPixel/s. In synthetic API tests, the card shows a clear split between legacy and modern paths: it scores 124 in Passmark DirectX 9, 34 in DirectX 10, 47 in DirectX 11, and 28 in DirectX 12. The DirectX 12 result is notably lower than the DirectX 11 score, suggesting that the Pascal architecture’s driver overhead or hardware scheduling limits its efficiency in this newer API. The OpenCL score in Geekbench is 22,965, while the Vulkan score is 23,566, showing a modest 2.6% advantage for Vulkan in compute-oriented tasks.

The Passmark G3D score of 6,956 is the headline figure, while the GPU compute score of 2,933 is substantially lower, indicating that the card’s rasterization strength outpaces its general-purpose compute throughput. The G2D score of 626 reflects modest 2D performance, which is typical for a workstation card not optimized for desktop acceleration. Overall, benchmark results indicate that the P2000 is a balanced performer for its generation, but it does not excel in any single category, and its modern API scores lag behind its legacy API results.

Ray Tracing and Feature Set

The Quadro P2000 is built on the Pascal architecture and does not include dedicated ray tracing cores or tensor cores. The fact pack lists both rtCores and tensorCores as null, meaning the hardware lacks the specialized silicon found in later NVIDIA generations. Consequently, ray tracing workloads are not accelerated by dedicated hardware, and any ray-traced rendering would rely on compute shaders through the standard pipeline, which would be significantly slower than on RTX-class cards.

In terms of API support, the P2000 supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The DirectX 12_1 feature level includes conservative rasterization and rasterizer-ordered views, but without hardware ray tracing, the card relies on software-based approaches for such effects. Vulkan 1.4 support provides access to modern compute and graphics features, and the Geekbench Vulkan score of 23,566 slightly exceeds the OpenCL score, suggesting the driver is well-optimized for this API. For professional workloads, the card’s display outputs are four DisplayPort 1.4a connectors, which support high-resolution displays and daisy-chaining, but the feature set is firmly rooted in the pre-ray-tracing era.

Memory Subsystem

The P2000 is equipped with 5 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 160-bit bus, yielding a bandwidth of 140.2 GB/s. The memory clock runs at 1752 MHz, translating to 7 Gbps effective. This configuration is unusual in that 5 GB is an odd capacity for the era, and the 160-bit bus is narrower than typical 256-bit implementations, which limits peak bandwidth. The 140.2 GB/s figure is modest by modern standards, but for a 75 W card, it provides adequate throughput for 1080p and 1440p workloads.

At high resolutions, the bandwidth constraint becomes apparent. The 160-bit bus means that memory-intensive operations, such as large texture fetches or high-resolution framebuffer writes, will be bottlenecked compared to cards with wider buses. For 4K rendering, the 5 GB capacity is sufficient for many scenes, but the bandwidth may cause performance dips in scenarios with heavy anti-aliasing or high-resolution shadow maps. The pixel rate of 59.20 GPixel/s, derived from the 40 ROPs and boost clock of 1480 MHz, is a limiting factor for extreme resolutions, as it caps the fill rate. The base clock is 1076 MHz, with a boost of 1480 MHz, and the memory subsystem operates in lockstep with these clocks. Overall, the memory configuration is adequate for its target market but does not offer headroom for future demanding titles or professional applications at maximum settings.

Who Should Consider It

Benchmark results indicate that the Quadro P2000 is best suited for users running 1080p or 1440p workloads with moderate settings, where its 3.031 TFLOPS and 140.2 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient. The card’s 36th percentile ranking places it below the majority of contemporary GPUs, so it is not recommended for high-refresh-rate gaming or 4K gaming at high detail. The Passmark DirectX 11 score of 47 suggests reasonable performance in older titles, but the DirectX 12 score of 28 indicates that modern games using this API will see reduced frame rates. For professional applications, the 5 GB VRAM is useful for CAD, 3D modeling, and GPU-accelerated rendering at moderate resolutions, but the lack of tensor cores precludes AI-accelerated workflows.

Users with legacy software that relies on OpenGL or DirectX 9-11 will find the P2000 serviceable, as the scores for these APIs are relatively higher (124 for DX9, 47 for DX11). However, for Vulkan-based workloads, the 23,566 Geekbench score shows it can handle compute tasks, but the overall average score of 6,364 means it is not a high-performance option. The card’s single-slot design and 75 W TDP make it suitable for compact workstations or systems with limited power delivery, but its end-of-life status and 36th percentile ranking suggest it is a legacy option for users who need professional drivers and display outputs rather than raw speed.

How It Compares

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580M: The P2000 trails the GTX 580M by 0.4% in average score (6,364 vs 6,389). This margin is within noise, but the GTX 580M is a mobile GPU, so the comparison is academic. The P2000’s desktop form factor and 75 W TDP give it a thermal advantage, but performance is essentially identical.

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 SE: The P2000 leads the GTX 460 SE by 0.6% (6,364 vs 6,326). The GTX 460 SE is a much older Fermi card, yet the performance gap is minimal, indicating that Pascal’s architectural improvements do not translate into significant gains over this older part in aggregate benchmarks. The P2000’s 5 GB VRAM is a clear advantage, but raw compute is comparable.

AMD Radeon Pro WX 4100: The P2000 edges out the WX 4100 by 0.9% (6,364 vs 6,309). Both are professional workstation cards with similar power envelopes, and the data shows they are direct competitors. The P2000’s advantage is small, so driver optimizations or specific workloads could easily reverse the order. Neither card offers ray tracing or tensor cores.

Intel UHD Graphics 730: The P2000 falls behind the UHD 730 by 0.9% (6,364 vs 6,425). This is surprising, as the UHD 730 is an integrated graphics solution, but the data shows it outperforms the discrete P2000 in aggregate. This suggests that the P2000’s age and limited driver support for modern APIs hurt its overall score, despite having dedicated VRAM and higher raw compute.

Power and Cooling

The Quadro P2000 has a TDP of 75 W, which is exceptionally low for a discrete GPU, and it requires no power connectors, drawing all power from the PCIe 3.0 x16 slot. The suggested PSU rating is 250 W, making it compatible with a wide range of entry-level power supplies. The card is single-slot, measuring 196 mm in length (7.7 inches) and 111 mm in height (4.4 inches), which fits in compact chassis. The 16 nm process node and 4,400 million transistors on a 200 mm² die result in a transistor density of 22.0M / mm², which contributes to the low power draw.

The lack of power connectors simplifies installation, but the 75 W envelope limits overclocking headroom. The boost clock of 1480 MHz is 404 MHz above the base clock of 1076 MHz, indicating the card can sustain significant turbo frequencies under load, but the thermal solution is designed for the 75 W TDP. The single-slot cooler is adequate for this power level, and the card produces minimal heat, making it suitable for multi-GPU workstation builds where space and airflow are constrained. The production status is end-of-life, so users should consider the long-term availability of drivers, but the power efficiency remains a strong point for legacy systems.