GeForce GTX 980M SLI vs GeForce RTX 3050 8GB

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 SLI

2014

Why buy it

✅Competitive enough if your priority is price, power, or specific feature preference.

Trade-offs

❌No DLSS support; it relies on Upscaling support instead.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2014-era hardware with 8 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 50.3 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $249 MSRP).
❌53.8% higher power demand at 200W vs 130W.
❌10.3% longer card at 267mm vs 242mm.

GeForce RTX 3050 8GB

2022

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 50.3 vs 0 G3D/$ ($249 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
✅Access to DLSS 2 Super Resolution (2020).
✅More future proof: Ampere (2020−2025) on 8nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.
✅Draws 130W instead of 200W, a 70W reduction.
✅Measures 242mm instead of 267mm, a 25mm shorter card that is more SFF-friendly.

Trade-offs

❌Fewer clear downsides in this head-to-head, aside from the usual pricing and availability swings.

GeForce GTX 980M SLI

2014

GeForce RTX 3050 8GB

2022

Why buy it

✅Competitive enough if your priority is price, power, or specific feature preference.

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 50.3 vs 0 G3D/$ ($249 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
✅Access to DLSS 2 Super Resolution (2020).
✅More future proof: Ampere (2020−2025) on 8nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.
✅Draws 130W instead of 200W, a 70W reduction.
✅Measures 242mm instead of 267mm, a 25mm shorter card that is more SFF-friendly.

Trade-offs

❌No DLSS support; it relies on Upscaling support instead.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2014-era hardware with 8 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 50.3 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $249 MSRP).
❌53.8% higher power demand at 200W vs 130W.
❌10.3% longer card at 267mm vs 242mm.

Trade-offs

❌Fewer clear downsides in this head-to-head, aside from the usual pricing and availability swings.

Quick Answers

So, is GeForce RTX 3050 8GB better than GeForce GTX 980M SLI?

Yes. GeForce RTX 3050 8GB is clearly the better overall GPU here. You are also looking at 12,535 vs 12,523 in G3D Mark. On top of that, GeForce RTX 3050 8GB is a 2022 card with DLSS Super Resolution, while GeForce GTX 980M SLI is a 2014 model from an older generation with no meaningful modern upscaling stack. 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?

GeForce RTX 3050 8GB is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer 2022 generation instead of 2014, better upscaling support with DLSS 2 Super Resolution (2020) instead of no meaningful modern upscaling stack, and a 8nm process instead of 28nm. 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?

GeForce RTX 3050 8GB can still make sense if you find it at the right price, especially around $249 MSRP. GeForce RTX 3050 8GB is still the smarter buy for most people, though, because the raw performance is close while the overall package is cleaner. GeForce RTX 3050 8GB is priced in an unclear MSRP range at $249 MSRP versus an unclear MSRP, and you are getting 0.1% higher G3D Mark. Moving to $249 MSRP gets you newer hardware, lower power draw (130W vs 200W), and DLSS Super Resolution.

Is GeForce GTX 980M SLI still worth buying for gaming in 2026?

Yes. GeForce GTX 980M SLI is still a strong gaming card in 2026: it is very strong for 1080p, good for 1440p, and more limited at 4K. Price is really the swing factor here. If you find it at or below an unclear MSRP, it remains a very sensible buy. GeForce RTX 3050 8GB is still the safer recommendation for most fresh builds because it offers a cleaner overall package with newer hardware and DLSS Super Resolution.

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 SLI Benchmark Check

GeForce RTX 3050 8GB Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	GeForce RTX 3050 8GB
1080p
low	45 FPS	130 FPS
medium	37 FPS	113 FPS
high	27 FPS	99 FPS
ultra	18 FPS	83 FPS
1440p
low	36 FPS	119 FPS
medium	26 FPS	96 FPS
high	17 FPS	81 FPS
ultra	11 FPS	69 FPS
4K
low	15 FPS	64 FPS
medium	12 FPS	57 FPS
high	7 FPS	39 FPS
ultra	6 FPS	33 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 980M SLI Open GeForce RTX 3050 8GB

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	GeForce RTX 3050 8GB
1080p
low	105 FPS	245 FPS
medium	79 FPS	211 FPS
high	59 FPS	165 FPS
ultra	38 FPS	128 FPS
1440p
low	59 FPS	163 FPS
medium	39 FPS	135 FPS
high	28 FPS	112 FPS
ultra	19 FPS	92 FPS
4K
low	19 FPS	89 FPS
medium	13 FPS	74 FPS
high	11 FPS	62 FPS
ultra	8 FPS	49 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 980M SLI Open GeForce RTX 3050 8GB

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	GeForce RTX 3050 8GB
1080p
low	564 FPS	564 FPS
medium	451 FPS	451 FPS
high	376 FPS	376 FPS
ultra	282 FPS	282 FPS
1440p
low	423 FPS	423 FPS
medium	338 FPS	338 FPS
high	282 FPS	282 FPS
ultra	211 FPS	212 FPS
4K
low	277 FPS	282 FPS
medium	225 FPS	226 FPS
high	175 FPS	188 FPS
ultra	129 FPS	141 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 980M SLI Open GeForce RTX 3050 8GB

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	GeForce RTX 3050 8GB
1080p
low	216 FPS	469 FPS
medium	180 FPS	415 FPS
high	127 FPS	336 FPS
ultra	85 FPS	282 FPS
1440p
low	137 FPS	373 FPS
medium	108 FPS	326 FPS
high	79 FPS	237 FPS
ultra	53 FPS	198 FPS
4K
low	75 FPS	200 FPS
medium	56 FPS	175 FPS
high	43 FPS	152 FPS
ultra	30 FPS	126 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 980M SLI Open GeForce RTX 3050 8GB

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of GeForce GTX 980M SLI and GeForce RTX 3050 8GB

GeForce GTX 980M SLI

The GeForce GTX 980M SLI is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in October 7 2014. It features the Maxwell architecture. The core clock ranges from 1038 MHz to 1127 MHz. It has 3072 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 200W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 12,523 points.

GeForce RTX 3050 8GB

The GeForce RTX 3050 8GB is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in January 4 2022. It features the Ampere architecture. The core clock ranges from 1552 MHz to 1777 MHz. It has 2560 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 130W. Manufactured using 8 nm process technology. It features 20 dedicated ray tracing cores for enhanced lighting effects. G3D Mark benchmark score: 12,535 points. Launch price was $249.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The GeForce GTX 980M SLI scores 12,523 and the GeForce RTX 3050 8GB reaches 12,535 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 0.1% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GTX 980M SLI is built on Maxwell while the GeForce RTX 3050 8GB uses Ampere, both on 28 nm vs 8 nm. Shader units: 3,072 (GeForce GTX 980M SLI) vs 2,560 (GeForce RTX 3050 8GB). Boost clocks: 1127 MHz vs 1777 MHz.

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	GeForce RTX 3050 8GB
G3D Mark Score	12,523	12,535
Architecture	Maxwell	Ampere
Process Node	28 nm	8 nm
Shading Units	3072+20%	2560
Boost Clock	1127 MHz	1777 MHz+58%

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce RTX 3050 8GB supports the newer DLSS 2 Super Resolution, whereas the GeForce GTX 980M SLI is capped at Upscaling support.

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	GeForce RTX 3050 8GB
Upscaling Tech	Upscaling support	DLSS 2 Super Resolution
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	NVIDIA Reflex	NVIDIA Reflex

💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards feature 8 GB of video memory. Memory bandwidth: 160 GB/s (GeForce GTX 980M SLI) vs 224 GB/s (GeForce RTX 3050 8GB) — a 40% advantage for the GeForce RTX 3050 8GB. Bus width: 256-bit vs 128-bit.

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	GeForce RTX 3050 8GB
VRAM Capacity	8 GB	8 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR6
Memory Bandwidth	160 GB/s	224 GB/s+40%
Bus Width	256-bit+100%	128-bit

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12.1 (GeForce GTX 980M SLI) vs 12 Ultimate (GeForce RTX 3050 8GB). Vulkan: 1.1 vs 1.4. OpenGL: 4.4 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 4.

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	GeForce RTX 3050 8GB
DirectX	12.1	12 Ultimate
Vulkan	1.1	1.4+27%
OpenGL	4.4	4.6+5%
Max Displays	4	4

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC 4.0 (2x) (GeForce GTX 980M SLI) vs NVENC 7th gen (GeForce RTX 3050 8GB). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP6 (2x) vs NVDEC 5th gen. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC (GeForce GTX 980M SLI) vs H.264,H.265/HEVC,AV1,VP9 (GeForce RTX 3050 8GB).

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	GeForce RTX 3050 8GB
Encoder	NVENC 4.0 (2x)	NVENC 7th gen
Decoder	PureVideo HD VP6 (2x)	NVDEC 5th gen
Codecs	MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC	H.264,H.265/HEVC,AV1,VP9

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 980M SLI draws 200W versus the GeForce RTX 3050 8GB's 130W — a 42.4% difference. The GeForce RTX 3050 8GB is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 500W (GeForce GTX 980M SLI) vs 450W (GeForce RTX 3050 8GB). Power connectors: 1x 6-pin vs 8-pin. Card length: 267mm vs 242mm, occupying 2 vs 2 slots. Typical load temperature: 85°C vs 66°C.

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	GeForce RTX 3050 8GB
TDP	200W	130W-35%
Recommended PSU	500W	450W-10%
Power Connector	1x 6-pin	8-pin
Length	267mm	242mm
Height	111mm	112mm
Slots	2	2
Temp (Load)	85°C	66°C-22%
Perf/Watt	62.6	96.4+54%