GeForce GT 520 vs GT 540M

VS

Aggregate performance score

We've compared GeForce GT 540M with GeForce GT 520, including specs and performance data.

GT 540M
2011
2 GB DDR3, 35 Watt
1.24
+53.1%

GT 540M outperforms GT 520 by an impressive 53% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

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

Place in the ranking10421145
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluationno data0.01
Power efficiency2.431.91
ArchitectureFermi (2010−2014)Fermi 2.0 (2010−2014)
GPU code nameGF108GF119
Market segmentLaptopDesktop
Release date5 January 2011 (13 years ago)13 April 2011 (13 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)no data$59

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 cores9648
Core clock speed672 MHz810 MHz
Number of transistors585 million292 million
Manufacturing process technology40 nm40 nm
Power consumption (TDP)35 Watt29 Watt
Maximum GPU temperatureno data102 °C
Texture fill rate10.756.480
Floating-point processing power0.258 TFLOPS0.1555 TFLOPS
ROPs44
TMUs168

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 sizelargeno data
Bus supportno data16x PCI-E 2.0
InterfaceMXM-A (3.0)PCIe 2.0 x16
Lengthno data145 mm
Heightno data2.7" (6.9 cm)
Widthno data1-slot
Supplementary power connectorsno dataNone

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 typeDDR3DDR3
Maximum RAM amount2 GB1 GB (DDR3)
Memory bus width128 Bit64 Bit
Memory clock speed900 MHz900 MHz (DDR3)
Memory bandwidth28.8 GB/s14.4 GB/s
Shared memory-no data

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 ConnectorsNo outputsDual Link DVI-IHDMIVGA (optional)
Multi monitor supportno data+
HDMI-+
Maximum VGA resolutionno data2048x1536
Audio input for HDMIno dataInternal

Supported technologies

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

3D Blu-Ray+-
3D Gaming+-
Optimus+-

API compatibility

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

DirectX12 API12 (11_0)
Shader Model5.15.1
OpenGL4.54.2
OpenCL1.11.1
VulkanN/AN/A
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.

GT 540M 1.24
+53.1%
GT 520 0.81

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.

GT 540M 478
+53.7%
GT 520 311

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.

GT 540M 760
+100%
GT 520 380

GeekBench 5 OpenCL

Geekbench 5 is a widespread graphics card benchmark combined from 11 different test scenarios. All these scenarios rely on direct usage of GPU's processing power, no 3D rendering is involved. This variation uses OpenCL API by Khronos Group.

GT 540M 2149
+68.7%
GT 520 1274

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:

900p16
+60%
10−12
−60%
Full HD20
+66.7%
12−14
−66.7%

Cost per frame, $

1080pno data4.92

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077 3−4
+200%
1−2
−200%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 6−7
+100%
3−4
−100%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4−5
+100%
2−3
−100%
Cyberpunk 2077 3−4
+200%
1−2
−200%
Far Cry 5 1−2 0−1
Far Cry New Dawn 3−4
+200%
1−2
−200%
Forza Horizon 4 2−3
+100%
1−2
−100%
Hitman 3 6−7
+100%
3−4
−100%
Horizon Zero Dawn 14−16
+55.6%
9−10
−55.6%
Red Dead Redemption 2 2−3
+100%
1−2
−100%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 8−9
+60%
5−6
−60%
Watch Dogs: Legion 30−35
+57.1%
21−24
−57.1%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 6−7
+100%
3−4
−100%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4−5
+100%
2−3
−100%
Cyberpunk 2077 3−4
+200%
1−2
−200%
Far Cry 5 1−2 0−1
Far Cry New Dawn 3−4
+200%
1−2
−200%
Forza Horizon 4 2−3
+100%
1−2
−100%
Hitman 3 6−7
+100%
3−4
−100%
Horizon Zero Dawn 14−16
+55.6%
9−10
−55.6%
Red Dead Redemption 2 2−3
+100%
1−2
−100%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 8−9
+60%
5−6
−60%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 10−12
+57.1%
7−8
−57.1%
Watch Dogs: Legion 30−35
+57.1%
21−24
−57.1%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 6−7
+100%
3−4
−100%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4−5
+100%
2−3
−100%
Cyberpunk 2077 3−4
+200%
1−2
−200%
Far Cry 5 1−2 0−1
Forza Horizon 4 2−3
+100%
1−2
−100%
Hitman 3 6−7
+100%
3−4
−100%
Horizon Zero Dawn 14−16
+55.6%
9−10
−55.6%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 8−9
+60%
5−6
−60%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 10−12
+57.1%
7−8
−57.1%
Watch Dogs: Legion 30−35
+57.1%
21−24
−57.1%

Full HD
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2 2−3
+100%
1−2
−100%

1440p
High Preset

Battlefield 5 1−2 0−1
Far Cry New Dawn 2−3
+100%
1−2
−100%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 1−2 0−1
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 0−1 0−1
Cyberpunk 2077 1−2 0−1
Far Cry 5 1−2 0−1
Hitman 3 7−8
+75%
4−5
−75%
Horizon Zero Dawn 4−5
+100%
2−3
−100%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 0−1 0−1
Watch Dogs: Legion 6−7
+100%
3−4
−100%

1440p
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2 4−5
+100%
2−3
−100%

4K
High Preset

Far Cry New Dawn 0−1 0−1

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 1−2 0−1
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 1−2 0−1
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 0−1 0−1
Far Cry 5 0−1 0−1

4K
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2 3−4
+200%
1−2
−200%

This is how GT 540M and GT 520 compete in popular games:

  • GT 540M is 60% faster in 900p
  • GT 540M is 67% faster in 1080p

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 1.24 0.81
Recency 5 January 2011 13 April 2011
Maximum RAM amount 2 GB 1 GB (DDR3)
Power consumption (TDP) 35 Watt 29 Watt

GT 540M has a 53.1% higher aggregate performance score, and a 100% higher maximum VRAM amount.

GT 520, on the other hand, has an age advantage of 3 months, and 20.7% lower power consumption.

The GeForce GT 540M is our recommended choice as it beats the GeForce GT 520 in performance tests.

Be aware that GeForce GT 540M is a notebook card while GeForce GT 520 is a desktop one.


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 GT 540M
GeForce GT 540M
NVIDIA GeForce GT 520
GeForce GT 520

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.


3.4 915 votes

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3.1 770 votes

Rate GeForce GT 520 on a scale of 1 to 5:

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Questions & comments

Here you can ask a question about this comparison, agree or disagree with our judgements, or report an error or mismatch.