Quadro M4000M vs Radeon R9 280X

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.

Quadro M4000M

2015

Why buy it

✅33.3% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (4 GB vs 3 GB).
✅Draws 100W instead of 200W, a 100W reduction.
✅More future proof: Maxwell 2.0 (2014−2019) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon R9 280X across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2015-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 20.4 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $299 MSRP).

Radeon R9 280X

2013

Why buy it

✅5.4% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 20.4 vs 0 G3D/$ ($299 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).

Trade-offs

❌Less VRAM, with 3 GB vs 4 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2013-era hardware with 3 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌100% higher power demand at 200W vs 100W.

Quadro M4000M

2015

Radeon R9 280X

2013

Why buy it

✅33.3% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (4 GB vs 3 GB).
✅Draws 100W instead of 200W, a 100W reduction.
✅More future proof: Maxwell 2.0 (2014−2019) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Why buy it

✅5.4% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 20.4 vs 0 G3D/$ ($299 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon R9 280X across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2015-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 20.4 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $299 MSRP).

Trade-offs

❌Less VRAM, with 3 GB vs 4 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2013-era hardware with 3 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌100% higher power demand at 200W vs 100W.

Quick Answers

So, is Quadro M4000M better than Radeon R9 280X?

Yes, but this is not really about a huge raw performance gap. Radeon R9 280X averages 5.4% more FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. The broader synthetic picture is also very close at 6,148 vs 6,100 in G3D Mark. The bigger reason to prefer Quadro M4000M is the overall package: you are getting a newer generation, no meaningful modern upscaling stack, plus much lower power draw (100W vs 200W).

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

Quadro M4000M is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer 2015 generation instead of 2013, more VRAM at 4 GB instead of 3 GB, and the stronger feature stack with no meaningful modern upscaling stack instead of FSR upscaling. 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?

Quadro M4000M is the smarter buy by a wide margin. Quadro M4000M is priced in an unclear MSRP range at an unclear MSRP versus $299 MSRP, and you are getting lower estimated average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and 0.8% higher G3D Mark. Radeon R9 280X really only makes sense now as a very cheap stopgap or a used-market placeholder.

Is Radeon R9 280X still worth buying for gaming in 2026?

No, not for a fresh gaming build. Radeon R9 280X is 2013 hardware with 3 GB of VRAM, 6,100 in G3D Mark, and FSR upscaling. That is simply too far behind to be an easy modern recommendation.

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.

Quadro M4000M Benchmark Check

Radeon R9 280X Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Quadro M4000M	Radeon R9 280X
1080p
low	80 FPS	77 FPS
medium	68 FPS	63 FPS
high	55 FPS	50 FPS
ultra	36 FPS	33 FPS
1440p
low	70 FPS	65 FPS
medium	60 FPS	54 FPS
high	43 FPS	38 FPS
ultra	28 FPS	24 FPS
4K
low	25 FPS	24 FPS
medium	23 FPS	23 FPS
high	15 FPS	14 FPS
ultra	13 FPS	12 FPS

Open Quadro M4000M Open Radeon R9 280X

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Quadro M4000M	Radeon R9 280X
1080p
low	199 FPS	140 FPS
medium	164 FPS	116 FPS
high	120 FPS	95 FPS
ultra	90 FPS	69 FPS
1440p
low	146 FPS	85 FPS
medium	118 FPS	64 FPS
high	92 FPS	48 FPS
ultra	69 FPS	35 FPS
4K
low	81 FPS	35 FPS
medium	66 FPS	26 FPS
high	54 FPS	20 FPS
ultra	39 FPS	15 FPS

Open Quadro M4000M Open Radeon R9 280X

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Quadro M4000M	Radeon R9 280X
1080p
low	277 FPS	274 FPS
medium	221 FPS	220 FPS
high	184 FPS	183 FPS
ultra	138 FPS	137 FPS
1440p
low	207 FPS	206 FPS
medium	166 FPS	165 FPS
high	138 FPS	137 FPS
ultra	104 FPS	103 FPS
4K
low	138 FPS	137 FPS
medium	111 FPS	110 FPS
high	92 FPS	92 FPS
ultra	69 FPS	69 FPS

Open Quadro M4000M Open Radeon R9 280X

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Quadro M4000M	Radeon R9 280X
1080p
low	147 FPS	145 FPS
medium	119 FPS	118 FPS
high	103 FPS	102 FPS
ultra	85 FPS	87 FPS
1440p
low	108 FPS	106 FPS
medium	89 FPS	87 FPS
high	78 FPS	75 FPS
ultra	64 FPS	60 FPS
4K
low	64 FPS	63 FPS
medium	49 FPS	49 FPS
high	39 FPS	38 FPS
ultra	30 FPS	27 FPS

Open Quadro M4000M Open Radeon R9 280X

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Quadro M4000M and Radeon R9 280X

Quadro M4000M

The Quadro M4000M is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in August 18 2015. It features the Maxwell 2.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 975 MHz to 1013 MHz. It has 1,280 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 100W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 6,148 points.

Radeon R9 280X

The Radeon R9 280X is manufactured by AMD. It was released in October 8 2013. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The boost clock speed is 1000 MHz. It has 2048 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 200W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 6,100 points. Launch price was $299.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The Quadro M4000M scores 6,148 and the Radeon R9 280X reaches 6,100 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 0.8% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Quadro M4000M is built on Maxwell 2.0 while the Radeon R9 280X uses GCN 1.0, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 1 (Quadro M4000M) vs 2,048 (Radeon R9 280X). Raw compute: 2.496 TFLOPS (Quadro M4000M) vs 4.096 TFLOPS (Radeon R9 280X). Boost clocks: 1013 MHz vs 1000 MHz.

Feature	Quadro M4000M	Radeon R9 280X
G3D Mark Score	6,148	6,100
Architecture	Maxwell 2.0	GCN 1.0
Process Node	28 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	1,280	2048+60%
Compute (TFLOPS)	2.496 TFLOPS	4.096 TFLOPS+64%
Boost Clock	1013 MHz+1%	1000 MHz
ROPs	64+100%	32
TMUs	80	128+60%
L1 Cache	480 KB	512 KB+7%
L2 Cache	2 MB+167%	0.75 MB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

Feature	Quadro M4000M	Radeon R9 280X
Upscaling Tech	Upscaling support	FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	Standard	AMD Anti-Lag

💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

The Quadro M4000M comes with 4 GB of VRAM, while the Radeon R9 280X has 3 GB. The Quadro M4000M offers 33.3% more capacity, crucial for higher resolutions and texture-heavy games. Bus width: 256-bit vs 384-bit. L2 Cache: 2 MB (Quadro M4000M) vs 0.75 MB (Radeon R9 280X) — the Quadro M4000M has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	Quadro M4000M	Radeon R9 280X
VRAM Capacity	4 GB+33%	3 GB
Memory Type	GDDR6	GDDR5
Bus Width	256-bit	384-bit+50%
L2 Cache	2 MB+167%	0.75 MB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (12_1) (Quadro M4000M) vs 12 (11_1) (Radeon R9 280X). Vulkan: 1.3 vs 1.2. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 3.

Feature	Quadro M4000M	Radeon R9 280X
DirectX	12 (12_1)	12 (11_1)
Vulkan	1.3+8%	1.2
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
Max Displays	4+33%	3

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC 5 (Quadro M4000M) vs VCE 2.0 (Radeon R9 280X). Decoder: NVDEC 1 vs UVD 4.2. Supported codecs: H.264,MPEG-2,MPEG-4,VC-1,DivX (Quadro M4000M) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4 (Radeon R9 280X).

Feature	Quadro M4000M	Radeon R9 280X
Encoder	NVENC 5	VCE 2.0
Decoder	NVDEC 1	UVD 4.2
Codecs	H.264,MPEG-2,MPEG-4,VC-1,DivX	H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The Quadro M4000M draws 100W versus the Radeon R9 280X's 200W — a 66.7% difference. The Quadro M4000M is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (Quadro M4000M) vs 500W (Radeon R9 280X). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs 6-pin + 8-pin. Typical load temperature: 80°C vs 75°C.