When you run games or do high-end creative work like 4K video editing, your graphics card plays the biggest role in determining performance. Get a good GPU, and you can play recent games at smooth frame rates; get one of the best GPUs for gaming and you can enjoy those games at high resolution, with the special effects turned all the way up.
To help you decide which graphics card you need, we've developed the GPU hierarchy below, which ranks all the current chips from fastest to slowest. We've assigned each a score for comparison purposes, where the fastest card gets 100 and all others are graded relative to it, based on our testing. These numbers are based on the geometric mean frames per second (fps) from our Far Cry 5, Forza Horizon 4 and Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation benchmarks, giving us a solid mix of game genres and APIs.
If you're curious about how your previous-generation Nvidia Pascal (10-series) card will handle cutting-edge ray tracing effects, check out our Ray Tracing On Nvidia’s Pascal Architecture, Benchmarked. Just keep in mind there were only a handful games (and a few demos) available with ray tracing support when we wrote this, although the number of upcoming titles supporting the technology is growing steadily. Future ray tracing-enabled games may be more (or less) demanding.
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In recent weeks, AMD made its mainstream Navi-based Radeon RX 5500 official, though we still don't know pricing or availability for the desktop version of this GPU. Perhaps AMD is awaiting the launch of Nvidia's GTX 1650 Super before putting a price on its replacement for its ageing Polaris parts.
But while we wait, recent mentions of Navi 22 and Navi 23 in a recent Linux driver (first spotted by 3DCenter forum veteran Berniyh) may (or may not) be our first glimpse of higher-end AMD GPUs that could compete with Nvidia's RTX 2080 Super and 2080 Ti.
While we await new GPU hardware, we've seen the launch of a few high-profile games, like Control and Borderlands 3. If you're wondering how the former performs, we've investigated how Control runs on integrated graphics, as well as several high-end graphics cards. We also took a look at how Borderlands 3 works on various graphics cards. Also, we've tested Red Dead Redemption 2 on integrated AMD graphics to high-end Nvidia cards.
Score | GPU | Base/Boost | Memory | Power | Buy | |
Nvidia Titan RTX | 100 | TU102 | 1350/1770 MHz | 24GB GDDR6 | 280W | |
Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Ti | 98.4 | TU102 | 1350/1635 MHz | 11GB GDDR6 | 260W | |
Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Super | 98.2 | TU104 | 1650/1815 MHz | 8GB GDDR6 | 250W | |
Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 | 96.1 | TU104 | 1515/1800 MHz | 8GB GDDR6 | 225W | |
Nvidia Titan X | 96.0 | GP102 | 1405/1480 MHz | 12GB GDDR5X | 250W | |
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 Ti | 96.0 | GP102 | 1480/1582 MHz | 11GB GDDR5X | 250W | |
AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT | 95.8 | Navi 10 | 1605/1905 MHz | 8GB GDDR6 | 225W | |
Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 Super | 94.1 | TU104 | 1605/1770 MHz | 8GB GDDR6 | 215W | |
AMD Radeon VII | 92.4 | Vega 20 | 1400/1750 MHz | 16GB HBM2 | 300W | |
AMD Radeon RX 5700 | 87.5 | Navi 10 | 1465/1725 MHz | 8GB GDDR6 | 185W | |
Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 | 87.2 | TU106 | 1410/1710 MHz | 8GB GDDR6 | 185W | |
Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 Super | 85.4 | TU106 | 1470/1650 MHz | 8GB GDDR6 | 175W | |
AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 | 84.4 | Vega 10 | 1274/1546 MHz | 8GB HBM2 | 295W | |
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 | 84.3 | GP104 | 1607/1733 MHz | 8GB GDDR5X | 295W | |
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 Ti | 78.5 | GP104 | 1607/1683 MHz | 8GB GDDR5 | 180W | |
Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 | 77.6 | TU106 | 1365/1680 MHz | 6GB GDDR6 | 160W | |
AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 | 76.7 | Vega 10 | 1156/1471 MHz | 8GB HBM2 | 210W | |
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti | 71.4 | TU116 | 1365/1680 MHz | 6GB GDDR6 | 120W | |
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 | 69.9 | GP104 | 1506/1683 MHz | 8GB GDDR5 | 150W | |
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 | 63.6 | TU116 | 1530/1785 MHz | 6GB GDDR5 | 120W | |
AMD Radeon RX 590 8GB | 60.7 | Polaris 30 | 1469/1545 MHz | 8GB GDDR5 | 225W | |
AMD Radeon RX 580 8GB | 57.9 | Polaris 10 | 1257/1340 MHz | 8GB GDDR5 | 185W | |
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 6GB | 53.2 | GP106 | 1506/1708 MHz | 6GB GDDR5 | 120W | |
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 3GB | 49.4 | GP106 | 1506/1708 MHz | 3GB GDDR5 | 120W | |
AMD Radeon RX 570 4GB | 48.3 | Polaris 10 | 1168/1244 MHz | 4GB GDDR5 | 150W | |
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 4GB | 42.2 | TU117 | 1485/1665 MHz | 4GB GDDR5 | 75W | |
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti | 33.1 | GP107 | 1290/1392 MHz | 4GB GDDR5 | 75W | |
AMD Radeon RX 560 | 28.6 | Polaris 11 | 1175/1275 MHz | 4GB GDDR5 | 80W | |
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 | 28.1 | GP107 | 1354/1455 MHz | 2GB GDDR5 | 75W | |
AMD Radeon RX 550 | 17.9 | Polaris 12 | 1100/1183 MHz | 4GB GDDR5 | 50W | |
Nvidia GeForce GT 1030 | 13.0 | GP108 | 1228/1468 MHz | 2GB GDDR5 | 30W |
Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 2080 Ti is the logical choice for uncompromising 4K gaming, though if you're willing to dial-back detail settings in some games for fluid gameplay, the Radeon VII, Radeon RX 5700 XT, GeForce RTX 2080 Super, and GeForce GTX 1080 Ti are 4K-capable as well.
AMD’s Radeon RX 5700 occupies a lower performance tier, along with Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 2070 Super, GeForce RTX 2060 Super, the older AMD Radeon RX Vega 64, and Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 1080. They’re ideal for running at 2560x1440 using the highest quality presets. And as you can see, they score similarly in our index.
The GeForce RTX 2060, GeForce GTX 1070 Ti, Radeon RX Vega 56 and GeForce GTX 1070 don’t land far from each other, either. All four cards are capable of great frame rates at 2560x1440, and they’re all good options for driving a VR head-mounted display.
There’s a larger group of Radeon RX 590, Radeon RX 580, GeForce GTX 1060 (6GB), GeForce GTX 1060 (3GB), GeForce GTX 1650 and Radeon RX 570 boards that excel at 1920x1080. They can even be made serviceable at 2560x1440 if you dial down your detail settings far enough. But beware: insufficient GDDR5 memory on cards like the 3GB GeForce GTX 1060 may cause severe performance issues at higher resolutions.
This also affects the next category, where GeForce GTX 1050 appears slower than Radeon RX 560 due to the former’s 2GB of memory, hurting it in some games, like Forza. Gaming at 1920x1080 or 1280x720 is far more realistic with these cards.
Finally, Radeon RX 550 and GeForce GT 1030 close out this generation’s hierarchy with performance well-suited to popular eSports titles.
Test System and Configuration
Test System | |
Processor | Intel Core i7-7700K |
Motherboard | MSI Z270 Gaming Pro Carbon |
Memory | 32GB G.Skill TridentZ DDR4-3200 (4x 8GB) |
Storage | 500GB Crucial MX200 SSD |
Operating System | Windows 10 Pro v.1803 |
Games | |
Far Cry 5 | v.1.06, Fullscreen, 1920x1080, High Graphics Quality, High Texture Filtering, High Shadows, High Geometry & Vegetation, High Environment, High Water, High Terrain, High Volumetric Fog, TAA Anti-Aliasing, Motion Blur On |
Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation | v.2.7532453, High Quality Profile, 2560x1440, Fullscreen, DirectX 12 |
Forza Horizon 4 | v.1.264.748.2, Ultra Dynamic Render Quality, 1920x1080, Ultra Quality Preset, Fullscreen, Unlocked Performance Target, 100% Resolution Scale, 16x Anisotropic Filtering, 2x MSAA Quality |
Legacy GPU Hierarchy
Tom's Hardware readers accustomed to referencing our legacy desktop GPU hierarchy with historical comparisons dating back to the 1990s will find them below Here we group cards into performance tiers, pairing disparate generations where overlap occurs.
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
Nvidia Titan RTX ($2874.00 On Amazon) | |
Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 ($738.73 On Walmart) | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
Nvidia Titan XP ($1690.00 On Walmart) | |
Titan X (Pascal) ($1,649.99 On Amazon) | AMD RX Vega 64 ($550.99 On Amazon) |
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 Ti ($839.58 On Amazon) | |
Asus GTX 1080 ($899.00 On Walmart) | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
GTX Titan X (Maxwell) | R9 295X2 |
GTX 1070 Ti ($469.99) | RX Vega 56 ($469.99 On Newegg) |
Nvidia EVGA GTX 1070 ($599.99 On Amazon) | R9 Fury X |
Nvidia GeForce GTX 980 Ti ($248.07 On Amazon) | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
GTX Titan Black | R9 Fury |
GTX 980 ($539.99 On Amazon) | R9 Fury Nano |
GTX 690 | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
AMD Radeon RX 580 ($94.30 On Walmart) | |
MSI RX 570 Gaming X 4G ($219.99 On Walmart) | |
GTX Titan | RX 480 ($194.97 On Amazon) |
GTX 1060 ($249.99 On Newegg) | Radeon RX 470 4GB ($199.99 On Amazon) |
GTX 970 | R9 390X ($429.99 On Amazon) |
GTX 780 Ti | Radeon R9 390 ($499.00 On Amazon) |
GTX 780 | R9 290X |
R9 290 | |
HD 7990 | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
R9 380X | |
GTX 770 | AMD Radeon R9 380 ($446.44 On Amazon) |
GTX 680 | R9 280X |
GTX 590 | HD 7970 GHz Edition |
HD 6990 | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 ($142.47 On Amazon) | R9 285 |
GTX 960 ($199.99 On Amazon) | R9 280 |
GTX 670 | HD 7950 |
GTX 580 | HD 7870 LE (XT) |
HD 5970 | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
Geforce GTX 1050 ($139.97 On Amazon) | MSI RX 560 4G Aero ($160.41 On Amazon) |
GTX 950 | RX 460 |
GTX 760 | R7 370 |
GTX 660 Ti | R9 270X |
R9 270 | |
HD 7870 | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
GTX 660 | R7 265 |
GTX 570 | HD 7850 |
GTX 480 | HD 6970 |
GTX 295 | HD 4870 X2 |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
GTX 750 Ti | |
GTX 650 Ti Boost | R7 260X |
GTX 560 Ti (448 Core) | HD 6950 |
GTX 560 Ti | HD 5870 |
GTX 470 | HD 4850 X2 |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
GTX 750 | HD 7790 |
GTX 650 Ti | HD 6870 |
GTX 560 | HD 5850 |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
GT 1030 ( On -) | RX 550 ($79.99 On Amazon) |
GTX 465 | R7 360 |
GTX 460 (256-bit) | R7 260 |
GTX 285 | HD 7770 |
9800 GX2 | HD 6850 |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
GT 740 GDDR5 | R7 250E |
GT 650 | R7 250 (GDDR5) |
GTX 560 SE | HD 7750 (GDDR5) |
GTX 550 Ti | HD 6790 |
GTX 460 SE | HD 6770 |
GTX 460 (192-bit) | HD 5830 |
GTX 280 | HD 5770 |
GTX 275 | HD 4890 |
GTX 260 | HD 4870 |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
GTS 450 | R7 250 (DDR3) |
GTS 250 | HD 7750 (DDR3) |
9800 GTX+ | HD 6750 |
9800 GTX | HD 5750 |
8800 Ultra | HD 4850 |
HD 3870 X2 | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
GT 730 (64-bit, GDDR5) | |
GT 545 (GDDR5) | HD 4770 |
8800 GTS (512MB) | |
8800 GTX | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
GT 740 DDR3 | HD 7730 (GDDR5) |
GT 640 (DDR3) | HD 6670 (GDDR5) |
GT 545 (DDR3) | HD 5670 |
9800 GT | HD 4830 |
8800 GT (512MB) | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
GT 240 (GDDR5) | HD 6570 (GDDR5) |
9600 GT | HD 5570 (GDDR5) |
8800 GTS (640MB) | HD 3870 |
HD 2900 XT | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
R7 240 | |
GT 240 (DDR3) | HD 7730 (DDR3) |
9600 GSO | HD 6670 (DDR3) |
8800 GS | HD 6570 (DDR3) |
HD 5570 (DDR3) | |
HD 4670 | |
HD 3850 (512MB) | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
GT 730 (128-bit, GDDR5) | |
GT 630 (GDDR5) | HD 5550 (GDDR5) |
GT 440 (GDDR5) | HD 3850 (256MB) |
8800 GTS (320MB) | HD 2900 Pro |
8800 GT (256MB) | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
GT 730 (128-bit, DDR3) | HD 7660D (integrated) |
GT 630 (DDR3) | HD 5550 (DDR3) |
GT 440 (DDR3) | HD 4650 (DDR3) |
7950 GX2 | X1950 XTX |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
GT 530 | |
GT 430 | |
7900 GTX | X1900 XTX |
7900 GTO | X1950 XT |
7800 GTX 512 | X1900 XT |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
HD 7560D (integrated) | |
GT 220 (DDR3) | HD 5550 (DDR2) |
7950 G | HD 2900 GT |
7900 GT | X1950 Pro |
7800 GTX | X1900 GT |
X1900 AIW | |
X1800 XT | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
HD 7540D (integrated) | |
GT 220 (DDR2) | HD 6550D (integrated) |
9500 GT (GDDR3) | HD 6620G (integrated) |
8600 GTS | R5 230 |
7900 GS | HD 6450 |
7800 GT | HD 4650 (DDR2) |
X1950 GT | |
X1800 XL | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
7480D (integrated) | |
6530D (integrated) | |
9500 GT (DDR2) | 6520G (integrated) |
8600 GT (GDDR3) | HD 3670 |
8600 GS | HD 3650 (DDR3) |
7800 GS | HD 2600 XT |
7600 GT | X1800 GTO |
6800 Ultra | X1650 XT |
X850 XT PE | |
X800 XT PE | |
X850 XT | |
X800 XT | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
GT 520 | 6480G (integrated) |
8600 GT (DDR2) | 6410D (integrated) |
6800 GS (PCIe) | HD 3650 (DDR2) |
6800 GT | HD 2600 Pro |
X800 GTO2/GTO16 | |
X800 XL | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
6380G (integrated) | |
6370D (integrated) | |
6800 GS (AGP) | X1650 GT |
X850 Pro | |
X800 Pro | |
X800 GTO (256MB) | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
8600M GS | X1650 Pro |
7600 GS | X1600 XT |
7300 GT (GDDR3) | X800 GTO (128MB) |
6800 | X800 |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
HD 6320 (integrated) | |
HD 6310 (integrated) | |
HD 5450 | |
9400 GT | HD 4550 |
8500 GT | HD 4350 |
7300 GT (DDR2) | HD 2400 XT |
6800 XT | X1600 Pro |
6800LE | X1300 XT |
6600 GT | X800 SE |
X800 GT | |
X700 Pro | |
9800 XT | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
HD 6290 (integrated) | |
HD 6250 (integrated) | |
9400 (integrated) | HD 4290 (integrated) |
9300 (integrated) | HD 4250 (integrated) |
6600 (128-bit) | HD 4200 (integrated) |
FX 5950 Ultra | HD 3300 (integrated) |
FX 5900 Ultra | HD 3200 (integrated) |
FX 5900 | HD 2400 Pro |
X1550 | |
X1300 Pro | |
X700 | |
9800 Pro | |
9800 | |
9700 Pro | |
9700 | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
X1050 (128-bit) | |
FX 5900 XT | X600 XT |
FX 5800 Ultra | 9800 Pro (128-bit) |
9600 XT | |
9500 Pro | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
G 310 | |
G 210 | |
8400 G | Xpress 1250 (integrated) |
8300 | HD 2300 |
6200 | X600 Pro |
FX 5700 Ultra | 9800 LE |
4 Ti 4800 | 9600 Pro |
4 Ti 4600 | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
9300M GS | |
9300M G | |
8400M GS | X1050 (64-bit) |
7300 GS | X300 |
FX 5700, 6600 (64-bit) | 9600 |
FX 5600 Ultra | 9550 |
4 Ti4800 SE | 9500 |
4 Ti4400 | |
4 Ti4200 | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
8300 (integrated) | |
8200 (integrated) | |
7300 LE | X1150 |
7200 GS | X300 SE |
6600 LE | 9600 LE |
6200 TC | 9100 |
FX 5700 LE | 8500 |
FX 5600 | |
FX 5200 Ultra | |
3 Ti500 | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
FX 5500 | 9250 |
FX 5200 (128-bit) | 9200 |
3 Ti200 | 9000 |
3 | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
FX 7050 (integrated) | Xpress 1150 (integrated) |
FX 7025 (integrated) | Xpress 1000 (integrated) |
FX 6150 (integrated) | Xpress 200M (integrated) |
FX 6100 (integrated) | 9200 SE |
FX 5200 (64-bit) | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
2 Ti 200 | |
2 Ti | 7500 |
2 Ultra | |
4 MX 440 | |
2 GTS | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
2 MX 400 | 7200 |
4 MX 420 | 7000 |
2 MX 200 | DDR |
256 | LE |
SDR | |
Nvidia GeForce | AMD Radeon |
Nvidia TNT | Rage 128 |
For even more information, check out our Graphics Card Buyer's Guide.
MORE: Best Graphics Cards for the Gaming in 2019
MORE: How to Stress-Test Graphics Cards (Like We Do)
MORE: AMD Radeon RX 480 Roundup
MORE: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 Roundup
MORE: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 Roundup
MORE: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 Roundup
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And also the radeon VII
Considering a 2080 is only slightly faster than a 1080 Ti, it seems a bit weird placing them in different tiers in the legacy chart. And why is the 2080 grouped in with the 2080 Ti, which can be upward of 30% faster at high resolutions? Likewise, it the 1080 shouldn't be with the 1080 Ti, as there's a similar performance difference between those two as well. And seeing as the RTX 2070, 2060, RX 590 and Radeon VII are not included in that chart, I take it these weird groupings may have been this way for a while. I think there needs to be a couple more tiers tucked in there.
Also, since when does Vega 64 have a 180 watt TDP? That would be lower than Vega 56, or even the RX 580.
There appears to be a few discrepancies regarding the wattage requirements of some GPUs. Thank you.
Thanks for these lists
Will
In any case, the legacy list itself has been a bit of a mess lately. As I mentioned back in February, the 2080 and 2080 Ti are still listed together in the same performance tier, while the 1080 and 1080 Ti are in another, despite those cards having a notable difference in performance between them. The 2080 should be dropped into the 1080 Ti's tier, the 1080 (and Vega 64) should be dropped into the 1070 Ti's tier, and the 1070 and 980 Ti should be dropped into another tier. And of course, none of the new cards have been added to the legacy list since the 2080 launched half a year ago.
This list was nice to have as a rough comparison of how graphics cards compared across generations, but at this point, especially seeing as it's been neglected lately, there are better options. One can go to UserBenchmark, enter their GPU section, and sort the list by "average bench %" to get a more complete overview of how graphics cards roughly compare to one another. And that list also includes entries for mobile and integrated graphics hardware.