Radeon Pro W5500 vs Radeon RX 480

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 W5500

2020

Why buy it

✅More future proof: RDNA 1.0 (2019−2020) on 7nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.
✅Draws 125W instead of 150W, a 25W reduction.
✅More future proof: RDNA 1.0 (2019−2020) on 7nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌
74.2% HIGHER MSRP
$399 MSRPvs$229 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 22.3 vs 37.3 G3D/$ ($399 MSRP vs $229 MSRP).

Radeon RX 480

2016

Why buy it

✅Costs $170 less on MSRP ($229 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅Delivers 67.1% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 37.3 vs 22.3 G3D/$ ($229 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅Measures 240mm instead of 241mm, a 1mm shorter card that is more SFF-friendly.

Trade-offs

❌Poor future-proofing: 2016-era hardware with 8 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌20% higher power demand at 150W vs 125W.

Radeon Pro W5500

2020

Radeon RX 480

2016

Why buy it

✅More future proof: RDNA 1.0 (2019−2020) on 7nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.
✅Draws 125W instead of 150W, a 25W reduction.
✅More future proof: RDNA 1.0 (2019−2020) on 7nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Why buy it

✅Costs $170 less on MSRP ($229 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅Delivers 67.1% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 37.3 vs 22.3 G3D/$ ($229 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
✅Measures 240mm instead of 241mm, a 1mm shorter card that is more SFF-friendly.

Trade-offs

❌
74.2% HIGHER MSRP
$399 MSRPvs$229 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 22.3 vs 37.3 G3D/$ ($399 MSRP vs $229 MSRP).

Trade-offs

❌Poor future-proofing: 2016-era hardware with 8 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌20% higher power demand at 150W vs 125W.

Quick Answers

So, is Radeon Pro W5500 better than Radeon RX 480?

Yes. Radeon Pro W5500 is clearly the better overall GPU here. You are also looking at 8,913 vs 8,546 in G3D Mark. On top of that, Radeon Pro W5500 is a 2020 card with FSR upscaling, while Radeon RX 480 is a 2016 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 W5500 is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer 2020 generation instead of 2016 and a 7nm process instead of 14nm. That makes it the safer long-run choice for modern games.

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

Radeon Pro W5500 is the smarter buy by a wide margin. Radeon Pro W5500 is about 74.2% more expensive on MSRP at $399 MSRP versus $229 MSRP, and you are getting 4.3% higher G3D Mark. Radeon RX 480 really only makes sense now as a very cheap stopgap or a used-market placeholder.

Is Radeon RX 480 still worth buying for gaming in 2026?

No, not for a fresh gaming build. Radeon RX 480 is 2016 hardware with 8 GB of VRAM, 8,546 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.

Radeon Pro W5500 Benchmark Check

Radeon RX 480 Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	Radeon Pro W5500	Radeon RX 480
1080p
low	102 FPS	134 FPS
medium	88 FPS	113 FPS
high	74 FPS	97 FPS
ultra	49 FPS	58 FPS
1440p
low	91 FPS	114 FPS
medium	77 FPS	96 FPS
high	57 FPS	72 FPS
ultra	37 FPS	42 FPS
4K
low	37 FPS	39 FPS
medium	34 FPS	36 FPS
high	21 FPS	23 FPS
ultra	18 FPS	19 FPS

Open Radeon Pro W5500 Open Radeon RX 480

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	Radeon Pro W5500	Radeon RX 480
1080p
low	137 FPS	156 FPS
medium	104 FPS	135 FPS
high	75 FPS	115 FPS
ultra	49 FPS	89 FPS
1440p
low	92 FPS	91 FPS
medium	63 FPS	71 FPS
high	47 FPS	56 FPS
ultra	34 FPS	44 FPS
4K
low	43 FPS	37 FPS
medium	32 FPS	29 FPS
high	26 FPS	23 FPS
ultra	19 FPS	18 FPS

Open Radeon Pro W5500 Open Radeon RX 480

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	Radeon Pro W5500	Radeon RX 480
1080p
low	401 FPS	385 FPS
medium	321 FPS	308 FPS
high	267 FPS	256 FPS
ultra	201 FPS	192 FPS
1440p
low	301 FPS	288 FPS
medium	241 FPS	231 FPS
high	201 FPS	192 FPS
ultra	150 FPS	144 FPS
4K
low	201 FPS	192 FPS
medium	160 FPS	154 FPS
high	134 FPS	128 FPS
ultra	100 FPS	96 FPS

Open Radeon Pro W5500 Open Radeon RX 480

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	Radeon Pro W5500	Radeon RX 480
1080p
low	227 FPS	290 FPS
medium	196 FPS	252 FPS
high	162 FPS	210 FPS
ultra	135 FPS	166 FPS
1440p
low	172 FPS	213 FPS
medium	151 FPS	190 FPS
high	120 FPS	153 FPS
ultra	98 FPS	118 FPS
4K
low	91 FPS	120 FPS
medium	75 FPS	98 FPS
high	60 FPS	80 FPS
ultra	47 FPS	62 FPS

Open Radeon Pro W5500 Open Radeon RX 480

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Radeon Pro W5500 and Radeon RX 480

Radeon Pro W5500

The Radeon Pro W5500 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in February 10 2020. It features the RDNA 1.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 1187 MHz to 1400 MHz. It has 1408 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 125W. Manufactured using 7 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 8,913 points. Launch price was $399.

Radeon RX 480

The Radeon RX 480 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in June 29 2016. It features the GCN 4.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 1120 MHz to 1266 MHz. It has 2304 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 150W. Manufactured using 14 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 8,546 points. Launch price was $229.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The Radeon Pro W5500 scores 8,913 and the Radeon RX 480 reaches 8,546 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 4.3% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Radeon Pro W5500 is built on RDNA 1.0 while the Radeon RX 480 uses GCN 4.0, both on 7 nm vs 14 nm. Shader units: 1,408 (Radeon Pro W5500) vs 2,304 (Radeon RX 480). Raw compute: 3.942 TFLOPS (Radeon Pro W5500) vs 5.834 TFLOPS (Radeon RX 480). Boost clocks: 1400 MHz vs 1266 MHz.

Feature	Radeon Pro W5500	Radeon RX 480
G3D Mark Score	8,913+4%	8,546
Architecture	RDNA 1.0	GCN 4.0
Process Node	7 nm	14 nm
Shading Units	1408	2304+64%
Compute (TFLOPS)	3.942 TFLOPS	5.834 TFLOPS+48%
Boost Clock	1400 MHz+11%	1266 MHz
ROPs	32	32
TMUs	88	144+64%
L2 Cache	2 MB	2 MB
Frame Generation	FSR upscaling + RSR	FSR upscaling

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

Feature	Radeon Pro W5500	Radeon RX 480
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 8 GB of video memory. Bus width: 128-bit vs 256-bit.

Feature	Radeon Pro W5500	Radeon RX 480
VRAM Capacity	8 GB	8 GB
Memory Type	GDDR6	GDDR5
Bus Width	128-bit	256-bit+100%
L2 Cache	2 MB	2 MB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12.1 (Radeon Pro W5500) vs 12.0 (Radeon RX 480). Vulkan: 1.2 vs 1.3. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 4.

Feature	Radeon Pro W5500	Radeon RX 480
DirectX	12.1	12.0
Vulkan	1.2	1.3+8%
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
Max Displays	4	4

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: VCN 2.0 (Radeon Pro W5500) vs VCE 3.4 (Radeon RX 480). Decoder: VCN 2.0 vs UVD 6.3. Supported codecs: HEVC,H.264,VP9 (Radeon Pro W5500) vs MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC (Radeon RX 480).

Feature	Radeon Pro W5500	Radeon RX 480
Encoder	VCN 2.0	VCE 3.4
Decoder	VCN 2.0	UVD 6.3
Codecs	HEVC,H.264,VP9	MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The Radeon Pro W5500 draws 125W versus the Radeon RX 480's 150W — a 18.2% difference. The Radeon Pro W5500 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 500W (Radeon Pro W5500) vs 500W (Radeon RX 480). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs 8-pin. Card length: 241mm vs 240mm, occupying 1 vs 2 slots. Typical load temperature: 75°C vs 85°C.

Feature	Radeon Pro W5500	Radeon RX 480
TDP	125W-17%	150W
Recommended PSU	500W	500W
Power Connector	PCIe-powered	8-pin
Length	241mm	240mm
Height	111mm	95mm
Slots	1-50%	2
Temp (Load)	75°C-12%	85°C
Perf/Watt	71.3+25%	57.0

💰

Value Analysis

The Radeon Pro W5500 launched at $399 MSRP, while the Radeon RX 480 launched at $229. The Radeon RX 480 costs 42.6% less ($170 savings) on MSRP. Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 22.3 (Radeon Pro W5500) vs 37.3 (Radeon RX 480) — the Radeon RX 480 offers 67.3% better value. The Radeon Pro W5500 is the newer GPU (2020 vs 2016).