Radeon RX 6500 vs GeForce GTX 980M SLI
Aggregate performance score
We've compared GeForce GTX 980M SLI and Radeon RX 6500, covering specs and all relevant benchmarks.
GTX 980M SLI outperforms RX 6500 by a significant 24% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
GPU architecture, market segment, value for money and other general parameters compared.
| Place in performance ranking | 216 | 273 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Architecture | Maxwell (2014−2018) | no data |
| Market segment | Laptop | Laptop |
| Release date | 7 October 2014 (9 years ago) | no data |
Detailed specifications
General performance parameters such as number of shaders, GPU core base clock and boost clock speeds, manufacturing process, texturing and calculation speed. These parameters indirectly speak of performance, but for precise assessment you have to consider their benchmark and gaming test results. Note that power consumption of some graphics cards can well exceed their nominal TDP, especially when overclocked.
| Pipelines / CUDA cores | 3072 | no data |
| Core clock speed | 1038 MHz | no data |
| Boost clock speed | 1127 MHz | no data |
| Number of transistors | 2x 5200 Million | no data |
| Manufacturing process technology | 28 nm | no data |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 200 Watt | no data |
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 size | large | no data |
| 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 type | GDDR5 | no data |
| Maximum RAM amount | 2x 8 GB | no data |
| Memory bus width | 2x 256 Bit | no data |
| Memory clock speed | 5000 MHz | no data |
| Shared memory | - | no data |
Supported technologies
Supported technological solutions. This information will prove useful if you need some particular technology for your purposes.
| Optimus | + | - |
API compatibility
List of supported graphics and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.
| DirectX | 12_1 | no data |
| Vulkan | + | - |
| CUDA | + | - |
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:
| 900p | 135
+35%
| 100−110
−35%
|
| Full HD | 109
+28.2%
| 85−90
−28.2%
|
FPS performance in popular games
Full HD
Low Preset
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 40−45
+25%
|
30−35
−25%
|
Full HD
Medium Preset
| Assassin's Creed Odyssey | 50−55
+22.7%
|
40−45
−22.7%
|
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 40−45
+27.3%
|
30−35
−27.3%
|
| Battlefield 5 | 80−85
+24.6%
|
65−70
−24.6%
|
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 50−55
+25%
|
40−45
−25%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 40−45
+25%
|
30−35
−25%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 55−60
+23.9%
|
45−50
−23.9%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 65−70
+22.6%
|
50−55
−22.6%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 140−150
+17.9%
|
120−130
−17.9%
|
| Hitman 3 | 50−55
+28.2%
|
35−40
−28.2%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 110−120
+18.8%
|
95−100
−18.8%
|
| Metro Exodus | 85−90
+30.8%
|
65−70
−30.8%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 60−65
+20.8%
|
50−55
−20.8%
|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 80−85
+27.3%
|
65−70
−27.3%
|
| Watch Dogs: Legion | 100−110
+13.2%
|
90−95
−13.2%
|
Full HD
High Preset
| Assassin's Creed Odyssey | 50−55
+22.7%
|
40−45
−22.7%
|
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 40−45
+27.3%
|
30−35
−27.3%
|
| Battlefield 5 | 80−85
+24.6%
|
65−70
−24.6%
|
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 50−55
+25%
|
40−45
−25%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 40−45
+25%
|
30−35
−25%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 55−60
+23.9%
|
45−50
−23.9%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 65−70
+22.6%
|
50−55
−22.6%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 140−150
+17.9%
|
120−130
−17.9%
|
| Hitman 3 | 50−55
+28.2%
|
35−40
−28.2%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 110−120
+18.8%
|
95−100
−18.8%
|
| Metro Exodus | 85−90
+23.2%
|
65−70
−23.2%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 60−65
+20.8%
|
50−55
−20.8%
|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 80−85
+27.3%
|
65−70
−27.3%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 50−55
+20%
|
45−50
−20%
|
| Watch Dogs: Legion | 100−110
+13.2%
|
90−95
−13.2%
|
Full HD
Ultra Preset
| Assassin's Creed Odyssey | 50−55
+22.7%
|
40−45
−22.7%
|
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 40−45
+27.3%
|
30−35
−27.3%
|
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 50−55
+25%
|
40−45
−25%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 40−45
+25%
|
30−35
−25%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 55−60
+23.9%
|
45−50
−23.9%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 140−150
+17.9%
|
120−130
−17.9%
|
| Hitman 3 | 50−55
+25%
|
40−45
−25%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 110−120
+26.7%
|
90−95
−26.7%
|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 80−85
+29.2%
|
65−70
−29.2%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 50−55
+20%
|
45−50
−20%
|
| Watch Dogs: Legion | 100−110
+13.2%
|
90−95
−13.2%
|
Full HD
Epic Preset
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 60−65
+28%
|
50−55
−28%
|
1440p
High Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 45−50
+34.3%
|
35−40
−34.3%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 35−40
+26.7%
|
30−33
−26.7%
|
1440p
Ultra Preset
| Assassin's Creed Odyssey | 24−27
+30%
|
20−22
−30%
|
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 24−27
+33.3%
|
18−20
−33.3%
|
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 27−30
+33.3%
|
21−24
−33.3%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 16−18
+45.5%
|
10−12
−45.5%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 27−30
+26.1%
|
21−24
−26.1%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 140−150
+29.1%
|
110−120
−29.1%
|
| Hitman 3 | 30−33
+25%
|
24−27
−25%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 50−55
+27.5%
|
40−45
−27.5%
|
| Metro Exodus | 45−50
+34.3%
|
35−40
−34.3%
|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 50−55
+35%
|
40−45
−35%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 30−33
+25%
|
24−27
−25%
|
| Watch Dogs: Legion | 140−150
+19.7%
|
110−120
−19.7%
|
1440p
Epic Preset
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 40−45
+36.7%
|
30−33
−36.7%
|
4K
High Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 24−27
+33.3%
|
18−20
−33.3%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 18−20
+35.7%
|
14−16
−35.7%
|
| Hitman 3 | 18−20
+26.7%
|
14−16
−26.7%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 120−130
+23.3%
|
100−110
−23.3%
|
| Metro Exodus | 27−30
+33.3%
|
21−24
−33.3%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 27−30
+35%
|
20−22
−35%
|
4K
Ultra Preset
| Assassin's Creed Odyssey | 14−16
+25%
|
12−14
−25%
|
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 12−14
+30%
|
10−11
−30%
|
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 14−16
+40%
|
10−11
−40%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 6−7
+50%
|
4−5
−50%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 14−16
+27.3%
|
10−12
−27.3%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 30−35
+25.9%
|
27−30
−25.9%
|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 30−33
+25%
|
24−27
−25%
|
| Watch Dogs: Legion | 10−12
+37.5%
|
8−9
−37.5%
|
4K
Epic Preset
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 21−24
+31.3%
|
16−18
−31.3%
|
Full HD
Ultra Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 65−70
+0%
|
65−70
+0%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 50−55
+0%
|
50−55
+0%
|
1440p
High Preset
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 21−24
+0%
|
21−24
+0%
|
| Hitman 3 | 21−24
+0%
|
21−24
+0%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 40−45
+0%
|
40−45
+0%
|
| Metro Exodus | 35−40
+0%
|
35−40
+0%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 30−35
+0%
|
30−35
+0%
|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 40−45
+0%
|
40−45
+0%
|
1440p
Ultra Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 35−40
+0%
|
35−40
+0%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 30−33
+0%
|
30−33
+0%
|
4K
High Preset
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 10−12
+0%
|
10−12
+0%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 16−18
+0%
|
16−18
+0%
|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 21−24
+0%
|
21−24
+0%
|
4K
Ultra Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 20−22
+0%
|
20−22
+0%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 14−16
+0%
|
14−16
+0%
|
This is how GTX 980M SLI and RX 6500 compete in popular games:
- GTX 980M SLI is 35% faster in 900p
- GTX 980M SLI is 28% faster in 1080p
Here's the range of performance differences observed across popular games:
- in Cyberpunk 2077, with 4K resolution and the Ultra Preset, the GTX 980M SLI is 50% faster.
All in all, in popular games:
- GTX 980M SLI is ahead in 52 tests (78%)
- there's a draw in 15 tests (22%)
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 24.86 | 20.02 |
GTX 980M SLI has a 24.2% higher aggregate performance score.
The GeForce GTX 980M SLI is our recommended choice as it beats the Radeon RX 6500 in performance tests.
Should you still have questions concerning choice between the reviewed GPUs, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
Comparisons with similar GPUs
We selected several comparisons of graphics cards with performance close to those reviewed, providing you with more options to consider.
