GeForce GTX 980M vs Radeon Pro W5500X

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 980M

2014

Why buy it

✅Draws 100W instead of 125W, a 25W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Less VRAM, with 4 GB vs 8 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2014-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 12.3 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $599 MSRP).

Radeon Pro W5500X

2019

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 12.3 vs 0 G3D/$ ($599 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
✅100% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (8 GB vs 4 GB).
✅More future proof: RDNA 1.0 (2019−2020) on 7nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌25% higher power demand at 125W vs 100W.

GeForce GTX 980M

2014

Radeon Pro W5500X

2019

Why buy it

✅Draws 100W instead of 125W, a 25W reduction.

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 12.3 vs 0 G3D/$ ($599 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
✅100% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (8 GB vs 4 GB).
✅More future proof: RDNA 1.0 (2019−2020) on 7nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌Less VRAM, with 4 GB vs 8 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2014-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 12.3 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $599 MSRP).

Trade-offs

❌25% higher power demand at 125W vs 100W.

Quick Answers

So, is GeForce GTX 980M better than Radeon Pro W5500X?

Yes. GeForce GTX 980M is clearly the better overall GPU here. You are also looking at 7,353 vs 7,351 in G3D Mark. On top of that, GeForce GTX 980M is a 2014 card with no meaningful modern upscaling stack, while Radeon Pro W5500X is a 2019 model from an older generation with FSR upscaling. So this is not really a tight same-tier comparison. It is more a modern card against an older, weaker alternative.

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

Radeon Pro W5500X is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer 2019 generation instead of 2014, more VRAM at 8 GB instead of 4 GB, better upscaling support with FSR Upscaling / FSR 4 (2025) instead of no meaningful modern upscaling stack, and a 7nm process instead of 28nm. That extra memory headroom makes it the safer pick for newer games, heavier textures, and higher settings over time.

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

GeForce GTX 980M is the smarter buy by a wide margin. GeForce GTX 980M is priced in an unclear MSRP range at an unclear MSRP versus $599 MSRP, and you are getting 0.0% higher G3D Mark. Radeon Pro W5500X really only makes sense now as a very cheap stopgap or a used-market placeholder.

When does Radeon Pro W5500X make more sense than GeForce GTX 980M?

Yes. Radeon Pro W5500X 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 newer architecture, future-proofing, and staying closer to $599 MSRP more than squeezing out the extra headroom of GeForce GTX 980M. The trade-off is that GeForce GTX 980M currently gives you 0.0% higher G3D Mark. Radeon Pro W5500X 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 980M Benchmark Check

Radeon Pro W5500X Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	GeForce GTX 980M	Radeon Pro W5500X
1080p
low	105 FPS	107 FPS
medium	90 FPS	91 FPS
high	75 FPS	79 FPS
ultra	44 FPS	52 FPS
1440p
low	91 FPS	94 FPS
medium	80 FPS	78 FPS
high	59 FPS	61 FPS
ultra	33 FPS	39 FPS
4K
low	28 FPS	39 FPS
medium	27 FPS	35 FPS
high	18 FPS	22 FPS
ultra	16 FPS	19 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 980M Open Radeon Pro W5500X

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	GeForce GTX 980M	Radeon Pro W5500X
1080p
low	172 FPS	137 FPS
medium	145 FPS	105 FPS
high	119 FPS	75 FPS
ultra	87 FPS	51 FPS
1440p
low	119 FPS	92 FPS
medium	93 FPS	63 FPS
high	73 FPS	47 FPS
ultra	52 FPS	34 FPS
4K
low	51 FPS	43 FPS
medium	42 FPS	32 FPS
high	38 FPS	26 FPS
ultra	30 FPS	19 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 980M Open Radeon Pro W5500X

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	GeForce GTX 980M	Radeon Pro W5500X
1080p
low	331 FPS	331 FPS
medium	265 FPS	265 FPS
high	221 FPS	221 FPS
ultra	165 FPS	165 FPS
1440p
low	248 FPS	248 FPS
medium	199 FPS	198 FPS
high	165 FPS	165 FPS
ultra	124 FPS	124 FPS
4K
low	165 FPS	165 FPS
medium	132 FPS	132 FPS
high	105 FPS	110 FPS
ultra	75 FPS	83 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 980M Open Radeon Pro W5500X

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	GeForce GTX 980M	Radeon Pro W5500X
1080p
low	148 FPS	270 FPS
medium	123 FPS	234 FPS
high	108 FPS	197 FPS
ultra	93 FPS	155 FPS
1440p
low	111 FPS	201 FPS
medium	94 FPS	178 FPS
high	83 FPS	144 FPS
ultra	70 FPS	110 FPS
4K
low	64 FPS	109 FPS
medium	52 FPS	89 FPS
high	40 FPS	74 FPS
ultra	31 FPS	56 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 980M Open Radeon Pro W5500X

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of GeForce GTX 980M and Radeon Pro W5500X

GeForce GTX 980M

The GeForce GTX 980M is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in October 7 2014. It features the Maxwell 2.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 1038 MHz to 1127 MHz. It has 1536 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 100W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 7,353 points.

Radeon Pro W5500X

The Radeon Pro W5500X is manufactured by AMD. It was released in December 11 2019. It features the RDNA 1.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 1187 MHz to 1757 MHz. It has 1536 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 125W. Manufactured using 7 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 7,351 points. Launch price was $599.

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Graphics Performance

The GeForce GTX 980M scores 7,353 and the Radeon Pro W5500X reaches 7,351 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 0% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GTX 980M is built on Maxwell 2.0 while the Radeon Pro W5500X uses RDNA 1.0, both on 28 nm vs 7 nm. Shader units: 1,536 (GeForce GTX 980M) vs 1,536 (Radeon Pro W5500X). Raw compute: 1.659 TFLOPS (GeForce GTX 980M) vs 5.398 TFLOPS (Radeon Pro W5500X). Boost clocks: 1127 MHz vs 1757 MHz.

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M	Radeon Pro W5500X
G3D Mark Score	7,353	7,351
Architecture	Maxwell 2.0	RDNA 1.0
Process Node	28 nm	7 nm
Shading Units	1536	1536
Compute (TFLOPS)	1.659 TFLOPS	5.398 TFLOPS+225%
Boost Clock	1127 MHz	1757 MHz+56%
ROPs	64+100%	32
TMUs	96	96
L2 Cache	2 MB	2 MB

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Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GTX 980M gives access to NVIDIA DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling), widely regarding as the superior upscaling method for image quality. The Radeon Pro W5500X relies on FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution), which is capable but generally slightly noisier than DLSS in motion.

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M	Radeon Pro W5500X
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

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Video Memory (VRAM)

The GeForce GTX 980M comes with 4 GB of VRAM, while the Radeon Pro W5500X has 8 GB. The Radeon Pro W5500X offers 100% more capacity, crucial for higher resolutions and texture-heavy games. Bus width: 256-bit vs 128-bit.

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M	Radeon Pro W5500X
VRAM Capacity	4 GB	8 GB+100%
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR6
Bus Width	256-bit+100%	128-bit
L2 Cache	2 MB	2 MB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12.1 (GeForce GTX 980M) vs 12.0 (Radeon Pro W5500X). Vulkan: 1.1 vs 1.3. OpenGL: 4.5 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 5.

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M	Radeon Pro W5500X
DirectX	12.1	12.0
Vulkan	1.1	1.3+18%
OpenGL	4.5	4.6+2%
Max Displays	4	5+25%

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC 2.0 (GeForce GTX 980M) vs VCN 2.0 (Radeon Pro W5500X). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP6 vs VCN 2.0. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264 (GeForce GTX 980M) vs H.264,H.265 (Radeon Pro W5500X).

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M	Radeon Pro W5500X
Encoder	NVENC 2.0	VCN 2.0
Decoder	PureVideo HD VP6	VCN 2.0
Codecs	MPEG-2,H.264	H.264,H.265

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Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 980M draws 100W versus the Radeon Pro W5500X's 125W — a 22.2% difference. The GeForce GTX 980M is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce GTX 980M) vs 350W (Radeon Pro W5500X). Power connectors: 1x 6-pin vs PCIe-powered.