GeForce RTX 2060 Mobile vs GTX 980 Mobile

VS

Aggregate performance score

We've compared GeForce GTX 980 Mobile and GeForce RTX 2060 Mobile, covering specs and all relevant benchmarks.

GTX 980 Mobile
2015
4 GB GDDR5, 100 Watt
21.57

RTX 2060 Mobile outperforms GTX 980 Mobile by a considerable 41% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

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

Place in the ranking256185
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation19.52no data
Power efficiency7.3918.13
ArchitectureMaxwell 2.0 (2014−2019)Turing (2018−2022)
GPU code nameGM204TU106
Market segmentLaptopLaptop
Release date21 September 2015 (9 years ago)29 January 2019 (5 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$395.82 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 cores20481920
Core clock speed1064 MHz960 MHz
Boost clock speed1216 MHz1200 MHz
Number of transistors5,200 million10,800 million
Manufacturing process technology28 nm12 nm
Power consumption (TDP)100-200 Watt115 Watt
Texture fill rate136.2144.0
Floating-point processing power4.358 TFLOPS4.608 TFLOPS
ROPs6448
TMUs128120
Tensor Coresno data240
Ray Tracing Coresno data30

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 sizelargelarge
Bus supportPCI Express 3.0no data
InterfaceMXM-B (3.0)PCIe 3.0 x16
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 typeGDDR5GDDR6
Maximum RAM amount4 GB6 GB
Memory bus width256 Bit192 Bit
Memory clock speed7.0 GB/s1750 MHz
Memory bandwidth224 GB/s336.0 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 ConnectorsDual Link DVI-I, HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.2No outputs
Multi monitor support4 displaysno data
VGA аnalog display support+no data
DisplayPort Multimode (DP++) support+no data
HDMI+-
HDCP+-
Maximum VGA resolution2048x1536no data
G-SYNC support++
Audio input for HDMIInternalno data

Supported technologies

Supported technological solutions. This information will prove useful if you need some particular technology for your purposes.

GameStream+-
GeForce ShadowPlay+-
GPU Boost2.0no data
GameWorks+-
H.264, VC1, MPEG2 1080p video decoder+-
Optimus+-
BatteryBoost+-
VR Readyno data+

API compatibility

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

DirectX12 (12_1)12 Ultimate (12_1)
Shader Model6.46.5
OpenGL4.54.6
OpenCL1.21.2
Vulkan1.1.1261.2.131
CUDA+7.5

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 980 Mobile 21.57
RTX 2060 Mobile 30.41
+41%

3DMark 11 Performance GPU

3DMark 11 is an obsolete DirectX 11 benchmark by Futuremark. It used four tests based on two scenes, one being few submarines exploring the submerged wreck of a sunken ship, the other is an abandoned temple deep in the jungle. All the tests are heavy with volumetric lighting and tessellation, and despite being done in 1280x720 resolution, are relatively taxing. Discontinued in January 2020, 3DMark 11 is now superseded by Time Spy.

GTX 980 Mobile 17201
RTX 2060 Mobile 21262
+23.6%

3DMark Vantage Performance

3DMark Vantage is an outdated DirectX 10 benchmark using 1280x1024 screen resolution. It taxes the graphics card with two scenes, one depicting a girl escaping some militarized base located within a sea cave, the other displaying a space fleet attack on a defenseless planet. It was discontinued in April 2017, and Time Spy benchmark is now recommended to be used instead.

GTX 980 Mobile 39702
RTX 2060 Mobile 57644
+45.2%

3DMark Fire Strike Graphics

Fire Strike is a DirectX 11 benchmark for gaming PCs. It features two separate tests displaying a fight between a humanoid and a fiery creature made of lava. Using 1920x1080 resolution, Fire Strike shows off some realistic graphics and is quite taxing on hardware.

GTX 980 Mobile 13047
RTX 2060 Mobile 16331
+25.2%

3DMark Cloud Gate GPU

Cloud Gate is an outdated DirectX 11 feature level 10 benchmark that was used for home PCs and basic notebooks. It displays a few scenes of some weird space teleportation device launching spaceships into unknown, using fixed resolution of 1280x720. Just like Ice Storm benchmark, it has been discontinued in January 2020 and replaced by 3DMark Night Raid.

GTX 980 Mobile 76705
RTX 2060 Mobile 99179
+29.3%

3DMark Ice Storm GPU

Ice Storm Graphics is an obsolete benchmark, part of 3DMark suite. Ice Storm was used to measure entry level laptops and Windows-based tablets performance. It utilizes DirectX 11 feature level 9 to display a battle between two space fleets near a frozen planet in 1280x720 resolution. Discontinued in January 2020, it is now superseded by 3DMark Night Raid.

GTX 980 Mobile 347481
RTX 2060 Mobile 411721
+18.5%

SPECviewperf 12 - Showcase

GTX 980 Mobile 59
RTX 2060 Mobile 76
+27.7%

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 HD98
−6.1%
104
+6.1%
1440p45−50
−48.9%
67
+48.9%
4K45
+18.4%
38
−18.4%

Cost per frame, $

1080p4.04no data
1440p8.80no data
4K8.80no data

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077 35−40
−36.1%
45−50
+36.1%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 45−50
−85.7%
91
+85.7%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 35−40
−86.8%
71
+86.8%
Battlefield 5 70−75
−63%
119
+63%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 45−50
−95.6%
88
+95.6%
Cyberpunk 2077 35−40
−36.1%
45−50
+36.1%
Far Cry 5 50−55
−106%
105
+106%
Far Cry New Dawn 55−60
−86.4%
110
+86.4%
Forza Horizon 4 130−140
−173%
366
+173%
Hitman 3 40−45
−88.6%
83
+88.6%
Horizon Zero Dawn 100−110
−112%
223
+112%
Metro Exodus 75−80
−68.8%
130
+68.8%
Red Dead Redemption 2 55−60
−69.5%
100
+69.5%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 70−75
−100%
148
+100%
Watch Dogs: Legion 95−100
−134%
227
+134%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 45−50
−118%
107
+118%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 35−40
−47.4%
56
+47.4%
Battlefield 5 70−75
−43.8%
105
+43.8%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 45−50
−75.6%
79
+75.6%
Cyberpunk 2077 35−40
−36.1%
45−50
+36.1%
Far Cry 5 50−55
−66.7%
85
+66.7%
Far Cry New Dawn 55−60
−39%
82
+39%
Forza Horizon 4 130−140
−109%
280
+109%
Hitman 3 40−45
−70.5%
75
+70.5%
Horizon Zero Dawn 100−110
−86.7%
196
+86.7%
Metro Exodus 75−80
−45.5%
112
+45.5%
Red Dead Redemption 2 55−60
−27.1%
75
+27.1%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 70−75
−66.2%
123
+66.2%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 124
+100%
60−65
−100%
Watch Dogs: Legion 95−100
−95.9%
190
+95.9%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 45−50
−2%
50
+2%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 35−40
−26.3%
48
+26.3%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 45−50
−28.9%
58
+28.9%
Cyberpunk 2077 35−40
−36.1%
45−50
+36.1%
Far Cry 5 50−55
−21.6%
62
+21.6%
Forza Horizon 4 130−140
+52.3%
88
−52.3%
Hitman 3 40−45
−50%
66
+50%
Horizon Zero Dawn 100−110
+11.7%
94
−11.7%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 70−75
−44.6%
107
+44.6%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 44
−36.4%
60
+36.4%
Watch Dogs: Legion 95−100
+155%
38
−155%

Full HD
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2 55−60
−33.9%
79
+33.9%

1440p
High Preset

Battlefield 5 40−45
−54.8%
65
+54.8%
Far Cry New Dawn 30−35
−58.8%
54
+58.8%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 21−24
−73.9%
40
+73.9%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 21−24
−81%
38
+81%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 24−27
−68%
42
+68%
Cyberpunk 2077 12−14
−53.8%
20−22
+53.8%
Far Cry 5 24−27
−61.5%
42
+61.5%
Forza Horizon 4 120−130
−96.8%
246
+96.8%
Hitman 3 24−27
−76.9%
46
+76.9%
Horizon Zero Dawn 45−50
−55.6%
70
+55.6%
Metro Exodus 40−45
−33.3%
55−60
+33.3%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 45−50
−42.6%
65−70
+42.6%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 24−27
−46.2%
35−40
+46.2%
Watch Dogs: Legion 120−130
−64.1%
210
+64.1%

1440p
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2 35−40
−67.6%
62
+67.6%

4K
High Preset

Battlefield 5 21−24
−45.5%
32
+45.5%
Far Cry New Dawn 16−18
−76.5%
30
+76.5%
Hitman 3 16−18
−64.7%
28
+64.7%
Horizon Zero Dawn 110−120
+33.7%
86
−33.7%
Metro Exodus 24−27
−45.8%
35−40
+45.8%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 30
−30%
39
+30%

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 12−14
−92.3%
25
+92.3%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 12−14
−83.3%
22
+83.3%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 12−14
−66.7%
20
+66.7%
Cyberpunk 2077 5−6
−60%
8−9
+60%
Far Cry 5 12−14
−75%
21
+75%
Forza Horizon 4 30−33
−33.3%
40−45
+33.3%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 24−27
−46.2%
35−40
+46.2%
Watch Dogs: Legion 10−11
−50%
15
+50%

4K
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2 18−20
−57.9%
30
+57.9%

This is how GTX 980 Mobile and RTX 2060 Mobile compete in popular games:

  • RTX 2060 Mobile is 6% faster in 1080p
  • RTX 2060 Mobile is 49% faster in 1440p
  • GTX 980 Mobile is 18% faster in 4K

Here's the range of performance differences observed across popular games:

  • in Watch Dogs: Legion, with 1080p resolution and the Ultra Preset, the GTX 980 Mobile is 155% faster.
  • in Forza Horizon 4, with 1080p resolution and the Medium Preset, the RTX 2060 Mobile is 173% faster.

All in all, in popular games:

  • GTX 980 Mobile is ahead in 5 tests (7%)
  • RTX 2060 Mobile is ahead in 67 tests (93%)

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 21.57 30.41
Recency 21 September 2015 29 January 2019
Maximum RAM amount 4 GB 6 GB
Chip lithography 28 nm 12 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 100 Watt 115 Watt

GTX 980 Mobile has 15% lower power consumption.

RTX 2060 Mobile, on the other hand, has a 41% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 3 years, a 50% higher maximum VRAM amount, and a 133.3% more advanced lithography process.

The GeForce RTX 2060 Mobile is our recommended choice as it beats the GeForce GTX 980 Mobile in performance tests.


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

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NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Mobile
GeForce GTX 980 Mobile
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 Mobile
GeForce RTX 2060 Mobile

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

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