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 R9 290

2013

Why buy it

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

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon RX590 GME across 49 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌Less VRAM, with 4 GB vs 8 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2013-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌
130.6% HIGHER MSRP
$399 MSRPvs$173 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 20.5 vs 48.3 G3D/$ ($399 MSRP vs $173 MSRP).

Radeon RX590 GME

2018

Why buy it

✅26.3% more average FPS across 49 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅Costs $226 less on MSRP ($173 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅Delivers 135.3% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 48.3 vs 20.5 G3D/$ ($173 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅100% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (8 GB vs 4 GB).
✅Less risky long-term buy than Radeon R9 290: it remains the more sensible modern option while Radeon R9 290 is already legacy-tier future-proofing.

Trade-offs

❌Limited future-proofing: older hardware, 8 GB of VRAM, and weaker feature support mean it will age faster in upcoming AAA games.

Radeon R9 290

2013

Radeon RX590 GME

2018

Why buy it

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

Why buy it

✅26.3% more average FPS across 49 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅Costs $226 less on MSRP ($173 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅Delivers 135.3% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 48.3 vs 20.5 G3D/$ ($173 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅100% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (8 GB vs 4 GB).
✅Less risky long-term buy than Radeon R9 290: it remains the more sensible modern option while Radeon R9 290 is already legacy-tier future-proofing.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon RX590 GME across 49 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌Less VRAM, with 4 GB vs 8 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2013-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌
130.6% HIGHER MSRP
$399 MSRPvs$173 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 20.5 vs 48.3 G3D/$ ($399 MSRP vs $173 MSRP).

Trade-offs

❌Limited future-proofing: older hardware, 8 GB of VRAM, and weaker feature support mean it will age faster in upcoming AAA games.

Quick Answers

So, is Radeon RX590 GME better than Radeon R9 290?

Yes. Radeon RX590 GME is the better GPU overall here. You are getting 26.3% more average FPS across 49 tracked games in our benchmark data, 2% higher PassMark G3D performance, and 8 GB vs 4 GB of VRAM. It also comes from 2018 instead of 2013, which helps its case as the more complete modern gaming card.

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

Radeon RX590 GME is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer 2018 generation instead of 2013, more VRAM at 8 GB instead of 4 GB, and a 12nm 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?

Radeon RX590 GME is the smarter buy today, but it is not as lopsided as a simple winner label makes it sound. Radeon RX590 GME is about $226 cheaper on MSRP at $173 MSRP versus $399 MSRP, and you are getting 26.3% more estimated average FPS across 49 tracked games in our benchmark data and 2.0% higher G3D Mark. It also leads G3D-per-dollar by 135.3%. That is why the better overall card still comes out as the smarter buy today, not just the faster one.

Is Radeon R9 290 still worth buying for gaming in 2026?

Yes. Radeon R9 290 is still a strong modern gaming GPU: it is still comfortable for 1080p and decent for 1440p, though 4K is more situational. It remains a good buy when you can get it meaningfully cheaper than the alternative around $399 MSRP, even if Radeon RX590 GME is still the cleaner recommendation on overall value today.

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 R9 290 Benchmark Check

Radeon RX590 GME Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX590 GME
1080p
low	83 FPS	139 FPS
medium	71 FPS	124 FPS
high	59 FPS	108 FPS
ultra	39 FPS	93 FPS
1440p
low	72 FPS	122 FPS
medium	64 FPS	100 FPS
high	47 FPS	84 FPS
ultra	30 FPS	76 FPS
4K
low	26 FPS	71 FPS
medium	25 FPS	60 FPS
high	17 FPS	46 FPS
ultra	14 FPS	40 FPS

Open Radeon R9 290 Open Radeon RX590 GME

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX590 GME
1080p
low	185 FPS	209 FPS
medium	156 FPS	179 FPS
high	129 FPS	145 FPS
ultra	100 FPS	115 FPS
1440p
low	132 FPS	143 FPS
medium	103 FPS	118 FPS
high	83 FPS	97 FPS
ultra	64 FPS	79 FPS
4K
low	60 FPS	81 FPS
medium	49 FPS	69 FPS
high	44 FPS	57 FPS
ultra	36 FPS	45 FPS

Open Radeon R9 290 Open Radeon RX590 GME

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX590 GME
1080p
low	368 FPS	376 FPS
medium	295 FPS	301 FPS
high	246 FPS	250 FPS
ultra	184 FPS	188 FPS
1440p
low	276 FPS	282 FPS
medium	221 FPS	225 FPS
high	184 FPS	188 FPS
ultra	138 FPS	141 FPS
4K
low	184 FPS	188 FPS
medium	147 FPS	150 FPS
high	123 FPS	125 FPS
ultra	92 FPS	94 FPS

Open Radeon R9 290 Open Radeon RX590 GME

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX590 GME
1080p
low	152 FPS	376 FPS
medium	123 FPS	301 FPS
high	105 FPS	250 FPS
ultra	87 FPS	188 FPS
1440p
low	110 FPS	282 FPS
medium	90 FPS	225 FPS
high	78 FPS	188 FPS
ultra	62 FPS	141 FPS
4K
low	64 FPS	176 FPS
medium	49 FPS	138 FPS
high	39 FPS	122 FPS
ultra	28 FPS	94 FPS

Open Radeon R9 290 Open Radeon RX590 GME

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Radeon R9 290 and Radeon RX590 GME

Radeon R9 290

The Radeon R9 290 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in November 5 2013. It features the GCN 2.0 architecture. The core clock speed is 947 MHz. It has 2560 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 275W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 8,184 points. Launch price was $399.

Radeon RX590 GME

The Radeon RX590 GME is manufactured by AMD. It was released in November 15 2018. It features the GCN 4.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 1469 MHz to 1545 MHz. It has 2304 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 175W. Manufactured using 12 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 8,349 points. Launch price was $279.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The Radeon R9 290 scores 8,184 and the Radeon RX590 GME reaches 8,349 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 2% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Radeon R9 290 is built on GCN 2.0 while the Radeon RX590 GME uses GCN 4.0, both on 28 nm vs 12 nm. Shader units: 2,560 (Radeon R9 290) vs 2,304 (Radeon RX590 GME). Raw compute: 4.849 TFLOPS (Radeon R9 290) vs 7.119 TFLOPS (Radeon RX590 GME).

Feature	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX590 GME
G3D Mark Score	8,184	8,349+2%
Architecture	GCN 2.0	GCN 4.0
Process Node	28 nm	12 nm
Shading Units	2560+11%	2304
Compute (TFLOPS)	4.849 TFLOPS	7.119 TFLOPS+47%
ROPs	64+100%	32
TMUs	160+11%	144
L1 Cache	640 KB+11%	576 KB
L2 Cache	1 MB	2 MB+100%
Frame Generation	FSR upscaling	FSR upscaling

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

Feature	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX590 GME
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)

The Radeon R9 290 comes with 4 GB of VRAM, while the Radeon RX590 GME has 8 GB. The Radeon RX590 GME offers 100% more capacity, crucial for higher resolutions and texture-heavy games. Bus width: 512-bit vs 128-bit. L2 Cache: 1 MB (Radeon R9 290) vs 2 MB (Radeon RX590 GME) — the Radeon RX590 GME has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX590 GME
VRAM Capacity	4 GB	8 GB+100%
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR6
Bus Width	512-bit+300%	128-bit
L2 Cache	1 MB	2 MB+100%

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12.0 (Radeon R9 290) vs 12.0 (Radeon RX590 GME). Vulkan: 1.2 vs 1.3. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 6 vs 4.

Feature	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX590 GME
DirectX	12.0	12.0
Vulkan	1.2	1.3+8%
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
Max Displays	6+50%	4

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: VCE 2.0 (Radeon R9 290) vs VCE 3.4 (Radeon RX590 GME). Decoder: UVD 4.2 vs UVD 6.3. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1 (Radeon R9 290) vs MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC (Radeon RX590 GME).

Feature	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX590 GME
Encoder	VCE 2.0	VCE 3.4
Decoder	UVD 4.2	UVD 6.3
Codecs	MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1	MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The Radeon R9 290 draws 275W versus the Radeon RX590 GME's 175W — a 44.4% difference. The Radeon RX590 GME is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 750W (Radeon R9 290) vs 500W (Radeon RX590 GME). Power connectors: 6-pin + 8-pin vs 8-pin. Card length: 275mm vs 241mm, occupying 2 vs 2 slots. Typical load temperature: 95°C vs 80°C.

Feature	Radeon R9 290	Radeon RX590 GME
TDP	275W	175W-36%
Recommended PSU	750W	500W-33%
Power Connector	6-pin + 8-pin	8-pin
Length	275mm	241mm
Height	109mm	111mm
Slots	2	2
Temp (Load)	95°C	80°C-16%
Perf/Watt	29.8	47.7+60%

💰

Value Analysis

The Radeon R9 290 launched at $399 MSRP, while the Radeon RX590 GME launched at $173. The Radeon RX590 GME costs 56.6% less ($226 savings) on MSRP. Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 20.5 (Radeon R9 290) vs 48.3 (Radeon RX590 GME) — the Radeon RX590 GME offers 135.6% better value. The Radeon RX590 GME is the newer GPU (2018 vs 2013).