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.

Radeon Pro 5500 XT

2020

Why buy it

✅Costs $130 less on MSRP ($199 MSRP vs $329 MSRP).
✅Delivers 60.5% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 39.7 vs 24.8 G3D/$ ($199 MSRP vs $329 MSRP).
✅More future proof: RDNA 1.0 (2019−2020) on 7nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.
✅Draws 125W instead of 300W, a 175W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon R9 290 / 390 across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.

Radeon R9 290 / 390

2015

Why buy it

✅27.7% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.

Trade-offs

❌Poor future-proofing: 2015-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌
65.3% HIGHER MSRP
$329 MSRPvs$199 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 24.8 vs 39.7 G3D/$ ($329 MSRP vs $199 MSRP).
❌140% higher power demand at 300W vs 125W.

Radeon Pro 5500 XT

2020

Radeon R9 290 / 390

2015

Why buy it

✅Costs $130 less on MSRP ($199 MSRP vs $329 MSRP).
✅Delivers 60.5% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 39.7 vs 24.8 G3D/$ ($199 MSRP vs $329 MSRP).
✅More future proof: RDNA 1.0 (2019−2020) on 7nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.
✅Draws 125W instead of 300W, a 175W reduction.

Why buy it

✅27.7% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon R9 290 / 390 across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.

Trade-offs

❌Poor future-proofing: 2015-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌
65.3% HIGHER MSRP
$329 MSRPvs$199 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 24.8 vs 39.7 G3D/$ ($329 MSRP vs $199 MSRP).
❌140% higher power demand at 300W vs 125W.

Quick Answers

So, is Radeon R9 290 / 390 better than Radeon Pro 5500 XT?

Yes. Radeon R9 290 / 390 is clearly the better overall GPU here. Radeon R9 290 / 390 averages 27.7% more FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. You are also looking at 8,150 vs 7,910 in G3D Mark. On top of that, Radeon R9 290 / 390 is a 2015 card with FSR upscaling, while Radeon Pro 5500 XT is a 2020 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 5500 XT is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer 2020 generation instead of 2015 and a 7nm process instead of 28nm. That makes it the safer long-run choice for modern games.

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

Radeon R9 290 / 390 is the smarter buy by a wide margin. Radeon R9 290 / 390 is about 65.3% more expensive on MSRP at $329 MSRP versus $199 MSRP, and you are getting 27.7% more estimated average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and 3.0% higher G3D Mark. Radeon Pro 5500 XT really only makes sense now as a very cheap stopgap or a used-market placeholder.

When does Radeon Pro 5500 XT make more sense than Radeon R9 290 / 390?

Yes. Radeon Pro 5500 XT 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, lower power draw (125W vs 300W), future-proofing, and staying closer to $199 MSRP more than squeezing out the extra headroom of Radeon R9 290 / 390. The trade-off is that Radeon R9 290 / 390 currently gives you 3.0% higher G3D Mark and 27.7% more estimated average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. Radeon Pro 5500 XT 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.

Radeon Pro 5500 XT Benchmark Check

Radeon R9 290 / 390 Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Radeon Pro 5500 XT	Radeon R9 290 / 390
1080p
low	83 FPS	80 FPS
medium	72 FPS	69 FPS
high	61 FPS	56 FPS
ultra	40 FPS	37 FPS
1440p
low	73 FPS	70 FPS
medium	64 FPS	61 FPS
high	49 FPS	45 FPS
ultra	31 FPS	28 FPS
4K
low	27 FPS	25 FPS
medium	26 FPS	24 FPS
high	17 FPS	16 FPS
ultra	15 FPS	14 FPS

Open Radeon Pro 5500 XT Open Radeon R9 290 / 390

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Radeon Pro 5500 XT	Radeon R9 290 / 390
1080p
low	136 FPS	182 FPS
medium	102 FPS	154 FPS
high	74 FPS	128 FPS
ultra	50 FPS	99 FPS
1440p
low	90 FPS	130 FPS
medium	61 FPS	102 FPS
high	45 FPS	82 FPS
ultra	33 FPS	62 FPS
4K
low	41 FPS	59 FPS
medium	30 FPS	48 FPS
high	25 FPS	43 FPS
ultra	18 FPS	35 FPS

Open Radeon Pro 5500 XT Open Radeon R9 290 / 390

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Radeon Pro 5500 XT	Radeon R9 290 / 390
1080p
low	350 FPS	367 FPS
medium	285 FPS	293 FPS
high	237 FPS	244 FPS
ultra	178 FPS	183 FPS
1440p
low	267 FPS	275 FPS
medium	214 FPS	220 FPS
high	178 FPS	183 FPS
ultra	133 FPS	138 FPS
4K
low	177 FPS	183 FPS
medium	142 FPS	147 FPS
high	103 FPS	122 FPS
ultra	76 FPS	92 FPS

Open Radeon Pro 5500 XT Open Radeon R9 290 / 390

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Radeon Pro 5500 XT	Radeon R9 290 / 390
1080p
low	156 FPS	151 FPS
medium	123 FPS	124 FPS
high	104 FPS	107 FPS
ultra	86 FPS	91 FPS
1440p
low	116 FPS	109 FPS
medium	93 FPS	90 FPS
high	79 FPS	78 FPS
ultra	64 FPS	64 FPS
4K
low	62 FPS	64 FPS
medium	50 FPS	50 FPS
high	39 FPS	39 FPS
ultra	30 FPS	29 FPS

Open Radeon Pro 5500 XT Open Radeon R9 290 / 390

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Radeon Pro 5500 XT and Radeon R9 290 / 390

Radeon Pro 5500 XT

The Radeon Pro 5500 XT is manufactured by AMD. It was released in August 4 2020. 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: 7,910 points.

Radeon R9 290 / 390

The Radeon R9 290 / 390 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in June 18 2015. It features the GCN 2.0 architecture. The boost clock speed is 1000 MHz. It has 2560 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 300W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 8,150 points. Launch price was $329.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The Radeon Pro 5500 XT scores 7,910 and the Radeon R9 290 / 390 reaches 8,150 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 3% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Radeon Pro 5500 XT is built on RDNA 1.0 while the Radeon R9 290 / 390 uses GCN 2.0, both on 7 nm vs 28 nm. Shader units: 1,536 (Radeon Pro 5500 XT) vs 2,560 (Radeon R9 290 / 390). Raw compute: 5.398 TFLOPS (Radeon Pro 5500 XT) vs 5.12 TFLOPS (Radeon R9 290 / 390). Boost clocks: 1757 MHz vs 1000 MHz.

Feature	Radeon Pro 5500 XT	Radeon R9 290 / 390
G3D Mark Score	7,910	8,150+3%
Architecture	RDNA 1.0	GCN 2.0
Process Node	7 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	1536	2560+67%
Compute (TFLOPS)	5.398 TFLOPS+5%	5.12 TFLOPS
Boost Clock	1757 MHz+76%	1000 MHz
ROPs	32	64+100%
TMUs	96	160+67%
L2 Cache	2 MB+100%	1 MB
Frame Generation	FSR upscaling + RSR	FSR upscaling

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

Feature	Radeon Pro 5500 XT	Radeon R9 290 / 390
Upscaling Tech	FSR Upscaling / FSR 4	FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	AMD Anti-Lag	AMD Anti-Lag

💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards feature 4 GB of video memory. Bus width: 128-bit vs 512-bit. L2 Cache: 2 MB (Radeon Pro 5500 XT) vs 1 MB (Radeon R9 290 / 390) — the Radeon Pro 5500 XT has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	Radeon Pro 5500 XT	Radeon R9 290 / 390
VRAM Capacity	4 GB	4 GB
Memory Type	GDDR6	GDDR5
Bus Width	128-bit	512-bit+300%
L2 Cache	2 MB+100%	1 MB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12.1 (Radeon Pro 5500 XT) vs 12.0 (Radeon R9 290 / 390). Vulkan: 1.4 vs 1.2. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 0 vs 6.

Feature	Radeon Pro 5500 XT	Radeon R9 290 / 390
DirectX	12.1	12.0
Vulkan	1.4+17%	1.2
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
Max Displays	0	6

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: VCN 2.0 (Radeon Pro 5500 XT) vs VCE 2.0 (Radeon R9 290 / 390). Decoder: VCN 2.0 vs UVD 4.2. Supported codecs: H.264,H.265 (Radeon Pro 5500 XT) vs MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1 (Radeon R9 290 / 390).

Feature	Radeon Pro 5500 XT	Radeon R9 290 / 390
Encoder	VCN 2.0	VCE 2.0
Decoder	VCN 2.0	UVD 4.2
Codecs	H.264,H.265	MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The Radeon Pro 5500 XT draws 125W versus the Radeon R9 290 / 390's 300W — a 82.4% difference. The Radeon Pro 5500 XT is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (Radeon Pro 5500 XT) vs 750W (Radeon R9 290 / 390). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs 6-pin + 8-pin.

Feature	Radeon Pro 5500 XT	Radeon R9 290 / 390
TDP	125W-58%	300W
Recommended PSU	350W-53%	750W
Power Connector	PCIe-powered	6-pin + 8-pin
Length	—	275mm
Height	—	109mm
Slots	2	2
Temp (Load)	—	95°C
Perf/Watt	63.3+133%	27.2

💰

Value Analysis

The Radeon Pro 5500 XT launched at $199 MSRP, while the Radeon R9 290 / 390 launched at $329. The Radeon Pro 5500 XT costs 39.5% less ($130 savings) on MSRP. Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 39.7 (Radeon Pro 5500 XT) vs 24.8 (Radeon R9 290 / 390) — the Radeon Pro 5500 XT offers 60.1% better value. The Radeon Pro 5500 XT is the newer GPU (2020 vs 2015).