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 970

2014

Why buy it

✅Costs $320 less on MSRP ($329 MSRP vs $649 MSRP).
✅Delivers 95.2% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 29.3 vs 15.0 G3D/$ ($329 MSRP vs $649 MSRP).
✅Draws 150W instead of 275W, a 125W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X across 49 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2014-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌36.9% longer card at 267mm vs 195mm.

Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X

2015

Why buy it

✅16.8% more average FPS across 49 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅Measures 195mm instead of 267mm, a 72mm shorter card that is more SFF-friendly.
✅More future proof: GCN 3.0 (2014−2019) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌Poor future-proofing: 2015-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌
97.3% HIGHER MSRP
$649 MSRPvs$329 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 15.0 vs 29.3 G3D/$ ($649 MSRP vs $329 MSRP).
❌83.3% higher power demand at 275W vs 150W.

GeForce GTX 970

2014

Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X

2015

Why buy it

✅Costs $320 less on MSRP ($329 MSRP vs $649 MSRP).
✅Delivers 95.2% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 29.3 vs 15.0 G3D/$ ($329 MSRP vs $649 MSRP).
✅Draws 150W instead of 275W, a 125W reduction.

Why buy it

✅16.8% more average FPS across 49 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅Measures 195mm instead of 267mm, a 72mm shorter card that is more SFF-friendly.
✅More future proof: GCN 3.0 (2014−2019) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X across 49 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2014-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌36.9% longer card at 267mm vs 195mm.

Trade-offs

❌Poor future-proofing: 2015-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌
97.3% HIGHER MSRP
$649 MSRPvs$329 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 15.0 vs 29.3 G3D/$ ($649 MSRP vs $329 MSRP).
❌83.3% higher power demand at 275W vs 150W.

Quick Answers

So, is Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X better than GeForce GTX 970?

Yes. Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X is the better GPU overall here. You are getting 16.8% more average FPS across 49 tracked games in our benchmark data and 1% higher PassMark G3D performance. It also comes from 2015 instead of 2014, which helps its case as the more complete modern gaming card.

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

GeForce GTX 970 is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting the stronger feature stack with no meaningful modern upscaling stack instead of FSR upscaling. That broader feature stack should age better as more games lean on modern upscaling and frame-generation support.

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

Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X is the smarter buy by a wide margin. Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X is about 97.3% more expensive on MSRP at $649 MSRP versus $329 MSRP, and you are getting 16.8% more estimated average FPS across 49 tracked games in our benchmark data and 1.0% higher G3D Mark. GeForce GTX 970 really only makes sense now as a very cheap stopgap or a used-market placeholder.

When does GeForce GTX 970 make more sense than Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X?

Yes. GeForce GTX 970 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 lower power draw (150W vs 275W), future-proofing, and staying closer to $329 MSRP more than squeezing out the extra headroom of Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X. The trade-off is that Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X currently gives you 1.0% higher G3D Mark and 16.8% more estimated average FPS across 49 tracked games in our benchmark data. GeForce GTX 970 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 970 Benchmark Check

Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	GeForce GTX 970	Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X
1080p
low	81 FPS	92 FPS
medium	69 FPS	80 FPS
high	58 FPS	65 FPS
ultra	38 FPS	45 FPS
1440p
low	70 FPS	76 FPS
medium	62 FPS	66 FPS
high	46 FPS	49 FPS
ultra	29 FPS	33 FPS
4K
low	26 FPS	30 FPS
medium	24 FPS	27 FPS
high	17 FPS	20 FPS
ultra	14 FPS	18 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 970 Open Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	GeForce GTX 970	Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X
1080p
low	185 FPS	243 FPS
medium	152 FPS	205 FPS
high	122 FPS	162 FPS
ultra	92 FPS	133 FPS
1440p
low	132 FPS	176 FPS
medium	102 FPS	145 FPS
high	81 FPS	121 FPS
ultra	60 FPS	94 FPS
4K
low	63 FPS	98 FPS
medium	50 FPS	80 FPS
high	46 FPS	65 FPS
ultra	37 FPS	49 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 970 Open Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	GeForce GTX 970	Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X
1080p
low	405 FPS	438 FPS
medium	347 FPS	351 FPS
high	289 FPS	292 FPS
ultra	217 FPS	219 FPS
1440p
low	325 FPS	329 FPS
medium	260 FPS	263 FPS
high	217 FPS	219 FPS
ultra	163 FPS	164 FPS
4K
low	210 FPS	219 FPS
medium	174 FPS	175 FPS
high	129 FPS	146 FPS
ultra	95 FPS	110 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 970 Open Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	GeForce GTX 970	Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X
1080p
low	179 FPS	160 FPS
medium	138 FPS	133 FPS
high	120 FPS	115 FPS
ultra	103 FPS	98 FPS
1440p
low	138 FPS	116 FPS
medium	107 FPS	98 FPS
high	94 FPS	86 FPS
ultra	80 FPS	73 FPS
4K
low	80 FPS	71 FPS
medium	59 FPS	58 FPS
high	46 FPS	46 FPS
ultra	36 FPS	36 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 970 Open Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of GeForce GTX 970 and Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X

GeForce GTX 970

The GeForce GTX 970 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in September 19 2014. It features the Maxwell 2.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 1050 MHz to 1178 MHz. It has 1664 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 150W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 9,640 points. Launch price was $329.

Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X

The Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X is manufactured by AMD. It was released in June 24 2015. It features the GCN 3.0 architecture. The boost clock speed is 1050 MHz. It has 4096 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 275W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 9,741 points. Launch price was $649.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The GeForce GTX 970 scores 9,640 and the Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X reaches 9,741 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 1% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GTX 970 is built on Maxwell 2.0 while the Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X uses GCN 3.0, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 1,664 (GeForce GTX 970) vs 4,096 (Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X). Raw compute: 3.92 TFLOPS (GeForce GTX 970) vs 8.602 TFLOPS (Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X). Boost clocks: 1178 MHz vs 1050 MHz.

Feature	GeForce GTX 970	Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X
G3D Mark Score	9,640	9,741+1%
Architecture	Maxwell 2.0	GCN 3.0
Process Node	28 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	1664	4096+146%
Compute (TFLOPS)	3.92 TFLOPS	8.602 TFLOPS+119%
Boost Clock	1178 MHz+12%	1050 MHz
ROPs	56	64+14%
TMUs	104	256+146%
L1 Cache	0.61 MB	1 MB+64%
L2 Cache	2 MB	2 MB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GTX 970 gives access to NVIDIA DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling), widely regarding as the superior upscaling method for image quality. The Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X relies on FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution), which is capable but generally slightly noisier than DLSS in motion.

Feature	GeForce GTX 970	Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X
Upscaling Tech	Upscaling support	FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	NVIDIA Reflex	AMD Anti-Lag

💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards feature 4 GB of video memory. Memory bandwidth: 224 GB/s (GeForce GTX 970) vs 512 GB/s (Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X) — a 128.6% advantage for the Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X. Bus width: 256-bit vs 4096-bit.

Feature	GeForce GTX 970	Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X
VRAM Capacity	4 GB	4 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	HBM
Memory Bandwidth	224 GB/s	512 GB/s+129%
Bus Width	256-bit	4096-bit+1500%
L2 Cache	2 MB	2 MB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (FL 12_1) (GeForce GTX 970) vs 12.0 (Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X). Vulkan: 1.3 vs 1.2. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.4. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 4.

Feature	GeForce GTX 970	Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X
DirectX	12 (FL 12_1)	12.0
Vulkan	1.3+8%	1.2
OpenGL	4.6+5%	4.4
Max Displays	4	4

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC 2nd gen (GeForce GTX 970) vs VCE 3.0 (Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X). Decoder: PureVideo VP6 vs UVD 6.0. Supported codecs: H.264,H.265/HEVC (GeForce GTX 970) vs MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC (Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X).

Feature	GeForce GTX 970	Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X
Encoder	NVENC 2nd gen	VCE 3.0
Decoder	PureVideo VP6	UVD 6.0
Codecs	H.264,H.265/HEVC	MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 970 draws 150W versus the Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X's 275W — a 58.8% difference. The GeForce GTX 970 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 500W (GeForce GTX 970) vs 600W (Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X). Power connectors: 2x 6-pin vs 2x 8-pin. Card length: 267mm vs 195mm, occupying 2 vs 2 slots. Typical load temperature: 80°C vs 65°C.

Feature	GeForce GTX 970	Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X
TDP	150W-45%	275W
Recommended PSU	500W-17%	600W
Power Connector	2x 6-pin	2x 8-pin
Length	267mm	195mm
Height	111mm	115mm
Slots	2	2
Temp (Load)	80°C	65°C-19%
Perf/Watt	64.3+82%	35.4

💰

Value Analysis

The GeForce GTX 970 launched at $329 MSRP, while the Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X launched at $649. The GeForce GTX 970 costs 49.3% less ($320 savings) on MSRP. Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 29.3 (GeForce GTX 970) vs 15.0 (Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X) — the GeForce GTX 970 offers 95.3% better value. The Radeon R9 Fury + Fury X is the newer GPU (2015 vs 2014).