G3D Mark is a standard benchmark that measures graphics performance in real-world gaming scenarios. It simplifies comparing cards from different brands, where higher scores directly correlate with better fps and smoother gaming experiences.

Head-to-Head Verdict, Benchmarks, Value & Long-Term Outlook

This comparison brings together gaming FPS, raw graphics performance, VRAM, feature set, power efficiency, pricing context, and long-term value so you can see which GPU actually makes more sense.

GeForce GTX 590

2011

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 4.8 vs 0 G3D/$ ($699 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).

Trade-offs

❌Less VRAM, with 3 GB vs 4 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Very weak future-proofing: 2011-era hardware with 3 GB of VRAM is already obsolete for modern gaming and is hard to recommend today.
❌386.7% higher power demand at 365W vs 75W.

GeForce GTX 960M

2015

Why buy it

✅33.3% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (4 GB vs 3 GB).
✅Draws 75W instead of 365W, a 290W reduction.
✅More future proof: Maxwell (2014−2017) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌Very weak future-proofing: 2015-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already obsolete for modern gaming and is hard to recommend today.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 4.8 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $699 MSRP).

GeForce GTX 590

2011

GeForce GTX 960M

2015

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 4.8 vs 0 G3D/$ ($699 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).

Why buy it

✅33.3% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (4 GB vs 3 GB).
✅Draws 75W instead of 365W, a 290W reduction.
✅More future proof: Maxwell (2014−2017) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌Less VRAM, with 3 GB vs 4 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Very weak future-proofing: 2011-era hardware with 3 GB of VRAM is already obsolete for modern gaming and is hard to recommend today.
❌386.7% higher power demand at 365W vs 75W.

Trade-offs

❌Very weak future-proofing: 2015-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already obsolete for modern gaming and is hard to recommend today.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 4.8 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $699 MSRP).

Quick Answers

So, is GeForce GTX 960M better than GeForce GTX 590?

Yes, but this is not really about a huge raw performance gap. The broader synthetic picture is also very close at 3,341 vs 3,375 in G3D Mark. The bigger reason to prefer GeForce GTX 960M is the overall package: you are getting a newer generation, no meaningful modern upscaling stack, plus much lower power draw (75W vs 365W).

Which one is more future-proof for 2026 and beyond?

GeForce GTX 590 is the safer long-term GPU choice because it gives you the stronger overall hardware and feature outlook for modern games.

Which one is the smarter buy today, not just the cheaper card?

GeForce GTX 960M is the smarter buy by a wide margin. GeForce GTX 960M is priced in an unclear MSRP range at an unclear MSRP versus $699 MSRP, and you are getting 1.0% higher G3D Mark. GeForce GTX 590 really only makes sense now as a very cheap stopgap or a used-market placeholder.

When does GeForce GTX 590 make more sense than GeForce GTX 960M?

Yes. GeForce GTX 590 is still an excellent gaming GPU in 2026: it is still comfortable for 1080p and decent for 1440p, though 4K is more situational. It makes more sense if your priority is future-proofing and staying closer to $699 MSRP more than squeezing out the extra headroom of GeForce GTX 960M. The trade-off is that GeForce GTX 960M currently gives you 1.0% higher G3D Mark. GeForce GTX 590 still holds the G3D-per-dollar lead, so the performance win comes with a real value premium.

Games Benchmarks

Real-world benchmarks and performance projections based on comprehensive hardware analysis and comparative metrics. Values represent expected performance on High/Ultra settings at 1080p, 1440p, and 4K. Modeled using a Ryzen 7 9800X3D reference profile to minimize specific CPU bottlenecks.

Note: Performance behavior can vary per game. Specific architectures may perform better or worse depending on game engine optimizations and API implementation.

GeForce GTX 590 Benchmark Check

GeForce GTX 960M Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	GeForce GTX 590	GeForce GTX 960M
1080p
low	102 FPS	27 FPS
medium	83 FPS	17 FPS
high	65 FPS	11 FPS
ultra	39 FPS	6 FPS
1440p
low	85 FPS	13 FPS
medium	70 FPS	7 FPS
high	50 FPS	4 FPS
ultra	29 FPS	2 FPS
4K
low	28 FPS	5 FPS
medium	26 FPS	3 FPS
high	17 FPS	2 FPS
ultra	15 FPS	1 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 590 Open GeForce GTX 960M

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	GeForce GTX 590	GeForce GTX 960M
1080p
low	137 FPS	79 FPS
medium	107 FPS	49 FPS
high	86 FPS	37 FPS
ultra	63 FPS	22 FPS
1440p
low	97 FPS	37 FPS
medium	70 FPS	27 FPS
high	57 FPS	17 FPS
ultra	42 FPS	12 FPS
4K
low	44 FPS	12 FPS
medium	34 FPS	10 FPS
high	31 FPS	8 FPS
ultra	25 FPS	5 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 590 Open GeForce GTX 960M

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	GeForce GTX 590	GeForce GTX 960M
1080p
low	150 FPS	152 FPS
medium	120 FPS	122 FPS
high	100 FPS	101 FPS
ultra	75 FPS	76 FPS
1440p
low	113 FPS	114 FPS
medium	90 FPS	91 FPS
high	75 FPS	76 FPS
ultra	56 FPS	57 FPS
4K
low	75 FPS	76 FPS
medium	60 FPS	61 FPS
high	50 FPS	51 FPS
ultra	38 FPS	38 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 590 Open GeForce GTX 960M

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	GeForce GTX 590	GeForce GTX 960M
1080p
low	150 FPS	152 FPS
medium	120 FPS	121 FPS
high	100 FPS	101 FPS
ultra	75 FPS	76 FPS
1440p
low	113 FPS	111 FPS
medium	90 FPS	91 FPS
high	75 FPS	76 FPS
ultra	56 FPS	57 FPS
4K
low	75 FPS	63 FPS
medium	60 FPS	49 FPS
high	50 FPS	38 FPS
ultra	35 FPS	30 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 590 Open GeForce GTX 960M

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of GeForce GTX 590 and GeForce GTX 960M

GeForce GTX 590

The GeForce GTX 590 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in March 24 2011. It features the Fermi 2.0 architecture. The core clock speed is 607 MHz. It has 1024 ×2 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 365W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 3,341 points. Launch price was $699.

GeForce GTX 960M

The GeForce GTX 960M is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in March 13 2015. It features the Maxwell architecture. The core clock ranges from 1096 MHz to 1176 MHz. It has 640 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 75W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 3,375 points.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The GeForce GTX 590 scores 3,341 and the GeForce GTX 960M reaches 3,375 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 1% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GTX 590 is built on Fermi 2.0 while the GeForce GTX 960M uses Maxwell, both on 40 nm vs 28 nm. Shader units: 1,024 (GeForce GTX 590) vs 640 (GeForce GTX 960M). Raw compute: 1.244 TFLOPS ×2 (GeForce GTX 590) vs 1.505 TFLOPS (GeForce GTX 960M).

Feature	GeForce GTX 590	GeForce GTX 960M
G3D Mark Score	3,341	3,375+1%
Architecture	Fermi 2.0	Maxwell
Process Node	40 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	1024 ×2+60%	640
Compute (TFLOPS)	1.244 TFLOPS ×2	1.505 TFLOPS+21%
ROPs	48 ×2+200%	16
TMUs	64 ×2+60%	40
L1 Cache	1 MB+223%	0.31 MB
L2 Cache	0.75 MB	2 MB+167%

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

Feature	GeForce GTX 590	GeForce GTX 960M
Upscaling Tech	Upscaling support	Upscaling support
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	NVIDIA Reflex	NVIDIA Reflex

💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

The GeForce GTX 590 comes with 3 GB of VRAM, while the GeForce GTX 960M has 4 GB. The GeForce GTX 960M offers 33.3% more capacity, crucial for higher resolutions and texture-heavy games. Bus width: 256-bit vs 128-bit. L2 Cache: 0.75 MB (GeForce GTX 590) vs 2 MB (GeForce GTX 960M) — the GeForce GTX 960M has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce GTX 590	GeForce GTX 960M
VRAM Capacity	3 GB	4 GB+33%
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth	Unknown	Unknown
Bus Width	256-bit+100%	128-bit
L2 Cache	0.75 MB	2 MB+167%

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (11_0) (GeForce GTX 590) vs 12 (11_0) (GeForce GTX 960M). OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 4.

Feature	GeForce GTX 590	GeForce GTX 960M
DirectX	12 (11_0)	12 (11_0)
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
Max Displays	4	4

🎬

Media & Encoding

Decoder: PureVideo HD (VP5) vs NVDEC (1st Gen). Supported codecs: H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2 (GeForce GTX 590) vs MPEG-2,VC-1,H.264,H.265 (GeForce GTX 960M).

Feature	GeForce GTX 590	GeForce GTX 960M
Encoder	—	NVENC (4th Gen)
Decoder	PureVideo HD (VP5)	NVDEC (1st Gen)
Codecs	H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2	MPEG-2,VC-1,H.264,H.265

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 590 draws 365W versus the GeForce GTX 960M's 75W — a 131.8% difference. The GeForce GTX 960M is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 700W (GeForce GTX 590) vs 350W (GeForce GTX 960M). Power connectors: 2x 8-pin vs 1x 6-pin. Typical load temperature: 90°C vs 82.

Feature	GeForce GTX 590	GeForce GTX 960M
TDP	365W	75W-79%
Recommended PSU	700W	350W-50%
Power Connector	2x 8-pin	1x 6-pin
Length	—	0mm
Height	—	0mm
Slots	2	0-100%
Temp (Load)	90°C	82-9%
Perf/Watt	9.2	45.0+389%