Radeon RX 6550M vs GeForce GTX 280

Aggregate performance score

We've compared GeForce GTX 280 with Radeon RX 6550M, including specs and performance data.

GTX 280
2008
1 GB GDDR3, 236 Watt
3.37

RX 6550M outperforms GTX 280 by a whopping 641% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

GPU architecture, market segment, value for money and other general parameters compared.

Place in the ranking732214
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation0.11no data
Power efficiency0.9921.69
ArchitectureTesla 2.0 (2007−2013)RDNA 2.0 (2020−2024)
GPU code nameGT200Navi 24
Market segmentDesktopLaptop
Release date16 June 2008 (16 years ago)4 January 2023 (1 year ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$649 no data

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

no data

Detailed specifications

General parameters such as number of shaders, GPU core base clock and boost clock speeds, manufacturing process, texturing and calculation speed. Note that power consumption of some graphics cards can well exceed their nominal TDP, especially when overclocked.

Pipelines / CUDA cores2401024
Core clock speed602 MHz2000 MHz
Boost clock speedno data2840 MHz
Number of transistors1,400 million5,400 million
Manufacturing process technology65 nm6 nm
Power consumption (TDP)236 Watt80 Watt
Maximum GPU temperature105 °Cno data
Texture fill rate48.16181.8
Floating-point processing power0.6221 TFLOPS5.816 TFLOPS
ROPs3232
TMUs8064
Ray Tracing Coresno data16

Form factor & compatibility

Information on compatibility with other computer components. Useful when choosing a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. For desktop graphics cards it's interface and bus (motherboard compatibility), additional power connectors (power supply compatibility).

Laptop sizeno datamedium sized
InterfacePCIe 2.0 x16PCIe 4.0 x4
Length267 mmno data
Height4.376" (111 mm) (11.1 cm)no data
Width2-slotno data
Supplementary power connectors1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pinNone
SLI options+-

VRAM capacity and type

Parameters of VRAM installed: its type, size, bus, clock and resulting bandwidth. Integrated GPUs have no dedicated video RAM and use a shared part of system RAM.

Memory typeGDDR3GDDR6
Maximum RAM amount1 GB4 GB
Memory bus width512 Bit64 Bit
Memory clock speed1107 MHz2250 MHz
Memory bandwidth141.7 GB/s144.0 GB/s
Shared memory--

Connectivity and outputs

Types and number of video connectors present on the reviewed GPUs. As a rule, data in this section is precise only for desktop reference ones (so-called Founders Edition for NVIDIA chips). OEM manufacturers may change the number and type of output ports, while for notebook cards availability of certain video outputs ports depends on the laptop model rather than on the card itself.

Display ConnectorsHDTVDual Link DVIPortable Device Dependent
Multi monitor support+no data
Maximum VGA resolution2048x1536no data
Audio input for HDMIS/PDIFno data

API compatibility

List of supported 3D and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.

DirectX11.1 (10_0)12 Ultimate (12_2)
Shader Model4.06.7
OpenGL2.14.6
OpenCL1.12.2
VulkanN/A1.3
CUDA+-

Synthetic benchmark performance

Non-gaming benchmark results comparison. The combined score is measured on a 0-100 point scale.


Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark score. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

GTX 280 3.37
RX 6550M 24.96
+641%

Passmark

This is the most ubiquitous GPU benchmark. It gives the graphics card a thorough evaluation under various types of load, providing four separate benchmarks for Direct3D versions 9, 10, 11 and 12 (the last being done in 4K resolution if possible), and few more tests engaging DirectCompute capabilities.

GTX 280 1299
RX 6550M 9629
+641%

Gaming performance

Let's see how good the compared graphics cards are for gaming. Particular gaming benchmark results are measured in FPS.

Average FPS across all PC games

Here are the average frames per second in a large set of popular games across different resolutions:

Full HD10−12
−650%
75
+650%
1440p3−4
−667%
23
+667%

Cost per frame, $

1080p64.90no data
1440p216.33no data

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077 40−45
+0%
40−45
+0%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 50−55
+0%
50−55
+0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 40−45
+0%
40−45
+0%
Battlefield 5 80−85
+0%
80−85
+0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 50−55
+0%
50−55
+0%
Cyberpunk 2077 40−45
+0%
40−45
+0%
Far Cry 5 55−60
+0%
55−60
+0%
Far Cry New Dawn 60−65
+0%
60−65
+0%
Forza Horizon 4 140−150
+0%
140−150
+0%
Hitman 3 45−50
+0%
45−50
+0%
Horizon Zero Dawn 110−120
+0%
110−120
+0%
Metro Exodus 80−85
+0%
80−85
+0%
Red Dead Redemption 2 60−65
+0%
60−65
+0%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 80−85
+0%
80−85
+0%
Watch Dogs: Legion 100−110
+0%
100−110
+0%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 50−55
+0%
50−55
+0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 40−45
+0%
40−45
+0%
Battlefield 5 80−85
+0%
80−85
+0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 50−55
+0%
50−55
+0%
Cyberpunk 2077 40−45
+0%
40−45
+0%
Far Cry 5 55−60
+0%
55−60
+0%
Far Cry New Dawn 60−65
+0%
60−65
+0%
Forza Horizon 4 140−150
+0%
140−150
+0%
Hitman 3 45−50
+0%
45−50
+0%
Horizon Zero Dawn 110−120
+0%
110−120
+0%
Metro Exodus 80−85
+0%
80−85
+0%
Red Dead Redemption 2 60−65
+0%
60−65
+0%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 101
+0%
101
+0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 50−55
+0%
50−55
+0%
Watch Dogs: Legion 100−110
+0%
100−110
+0%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 50−55
+0%
50−55
+0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 40−45
+0%
40−45
+0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 50−55
+0%
50−55
+0%
Cyberpunk 2077 40−45
+0%
40−45
+0%
Far Cry 5 55−60
+0%
55−60
+0%
Forza Horizon 4 140−150
+0%
140−150
+0%
Hitman 3 45−50
+0%
45−50
+0%
Horizon Zero Dawn 110−120
+0%
110−120
+0%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 88
+0%
88
+0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 49
+0%
49
+0%
Watch Dogs: Legion 100−110
+0%
100−110
+0%

Full HD
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2 60−65
+0%
60−65
+0%

1440p
High Preset

Battlefield 5 45−50
+0%
45−50
+0%
Far Cry New Dawn 35−40
+0%
35−40
+0%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 24−27
+0%
24−27
+0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 24−27
+0%
24−27
+0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 27−30
+0%
27−30
+0%
Cyberpunk 2077 14−16
+0%
14−16
+0%
Far Cry 5 27−30
+0%
27−30
+0%
Forza Horizon 4 140−150
+0%
140−150
+0%
Hitman 3 27−30
+0%
27−30
+0%
Horizon Zero Dawn 50−55
+0%
50−55
+0%
Metro Exodus 45−50
+0%
45−50
+0%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 50−55
+0%
50−55
+0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 30−33
+0%
30−33
+0%
Watch Dogs: Legion 130−140
+0%
130−140
+0%

1440p
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2 40−45
+0%
40−45
+0%

4K
High Preset

Battlefield 5 24−27
+0%
24−27
+0%
Far Cry New Dawn 18−20
+0%
18−20
+0%
Hitman 3 18−20
+0%
18−20
+0%
Horizon Zero Dawn 120−130
+0%
120−130
+0%
Metro Exodus 27−30
+0%
27−30
+0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 24−27
+0%
24−27
+0%

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 14−16
+0%
14−16
+0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 12−14
+0%
12−14
+0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 14−16
+0%
14−16
+0%
Cyberpunk 2077 6−7
+0%
6−7
+0%
Far Cry 5 14−16
+0%
14−16
+0%
Forza Horizon 4 30−35
+0%
30−35
+0%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 30−33
+0%
30−33
+0%
Watch Dogs: Legion 10−12
+0%
10−12
+0%

4K
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2 21−24
+0%
21−24
+0%

This is how GTX 280 and RX 6550M compete in popular games:

  • RX 6550M is 650% faster in 1080p
  • RX 6550M is 667% faster in 1440p

All in all, in popular games:

  • there's a draw in 72 tests (100%)

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 3.37 24.96
Recency 16 June 2008 4 January 2023
Maximum RAM amount 1 GB 4 GB
Chip lithography 65 nm 6 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 236 Watt 80 Watt

RX 6550M has a 640.7% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 14 years, a 300% higher maximum VRAM amount, a 983.3% more advanced lithography process, and 195% lower power consumption.

The Radeon RX 6550M is our recommended choice as it beats the GeForce GTX 280 in performance tests.

Be aware that GeForce GTX 280 is a desktop card while Radeon RX 6550M is a notebook one.


Should you still have questions concerning choice between the reviewed GPUs, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

Vote for your favorite

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NVIDIA GeForce GTX 280
GeForce GTX 280
AMD Radeon RX 6550M
Radeon RX 6550M

Comparisons with similar GPUs

We selected several comparisons of graphics cards with performance close to those reviewed, providing you with more options to consider.

Community ratings

Here you can see the user ratings of the compared graphics cards, as well as rate them yourself.


3.6 105 votes

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4.2 149 votes

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Questions & comments

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