Radeon R9 290X vs GeForce GTX 1660 Super

VS

Aggregate performance score

We've compared GeForce GTX 1660 Super and Radeon R9 290X, covering specs and all relevant benchmarks.

GTX 1660 Super
2019
6 GB GDDR6, 125 Watt
33.12
+71.5%

GTX 1660 Super outperforms R9 290X by an impressive 72% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

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

Place in the ranking163291
Place by popularity9not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation58.024.93
Power efficiency18.284.59
ArchitectureTuring (2018−2022)GCN 2.0 (2013−2017)
GPU code nameTU116Hawaii
Market segmentDesktopDesktop
Designno datareference
Release date29 October 2019 (5 years ago)24 October 2013 (11 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$229 $549

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

GTX 1660 Super has 1077% better value for money than R9 290X.

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 cores14082816
Core clock speed1530 MHzno data
Boost clock speed1785 MHz947 MHz
Number of transistors6,600 million6,200 million
Manufacturing process technology12 nm28 nm
Power consumption (TDP)125 Watt250 Watt
Texture fill rate157.1176.0
Floating-point processing power5.027 TFLOPS5.632 TFLOPS
ROPs4864
TMUs88176

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).

Bus supportno dataPCIe 3.0
InterfacePCIe 3.0 x16PCIe 3.0 x16
Length229 mm275 mm
Width2-slot2-slot
Supplementary power connectors1x 8-pin1 x 6-pin + 1 x 8-pin

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 typeGDDR6GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount6 GB4 GB
Memory bus width192 Bit512 Bit
Memory clock speed1750 MHz1250 MHz
Memory bandwidth336.0 GB/s320 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 Connectors1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 1x DisplayPort2x DVI, 1x HDMI, 1x DisplayPort
Eyefinity-+
HDMI++
HDCP+-
DisplayPort support-+
G-SYNC support+-

Supported technologies

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

AppAcceleration-+
CrossFire-+
FreeSync-+
HD3D-+
LiquidVR-+
TressFX-+
TrueAudio-+
UVD-+
DDMA audiono data+
NVENC+-
Ansel+-

API compatibility

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

DirectX12 (12_1)DirectX® 12
Shader Model6.56.3
OpenGL4.64.6
OpenCL1.22.0
Vulkan1.2.131+
CUDA7.5-

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 1660 Super 33.12
+71.5%
R9 290X 19.31

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 1660 Super 12735
+71.5%
R9 290X 7425

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 1660 Super 21981
+36%
R9 290X 16168

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 1660 Super 76654
+106%
R9 290X 37284

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 1660 Super 15995
+36.5%
R9 290X 11717

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 1660 Super 95473
+29%
R9 290X 73987

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 1660 Super 477037
+43.7%
R9 290X 332042

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 HD91
+7.1%
85
−7.1%
1440p55
+83.3%
30−35
−83.3%
4K30
−73.3%
52
+73.3%

Cost per frame, $

1080p2.52
+157%
6.46
−157%
1440p4.16
+340%
18.30
−340%
4K7.63
+38.3%
10.56
−38.3%
  • GTX 1660 Super has 157% lower cost per frame in 1080p
  • GTX 1660 Super has 340% lower cost per frame in 1440p
  • GTX 1660 Super has 38% lower cost per frame in 4K

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Counter-Strike 2 90
+165%
30−35
−165%
Cyberpunk 2077 76
+100%
35−40
−100%
Elden Ring 93
+52.5%
60−65
−52.5%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Battlefield 5 92
+50.8%
60−65
−50.8%
Counter-Strike 2 62
+82.4%
30−35
−82.4%
Cyberpunk 2077 59
+55.3%
35−40
−55.3%
Forza Horizon 4 163
+101%
80−85
−101%
Metro Exodus 108
+108%
50−55
−108%
Red Dead Redemption 2 80
+77.8%
45−50
−77.8%
Valorant 143
+83.3%
75−80
−83.3%

Full HD
High Preset

Battlefield 5 90−95
+54.1%
60−65
−54.1%
Counter-Strike 2 52
+52.9%
30−35
−52.9%
Cyberpunk 2077 49
+28.9%
35−40
−28.9%
Dota 2 166
+269%
45
−269%
Elden Ring 96
+57.4%
60−65
−57.4%
Far Cry 5 147
+126%
65−70
−126%
Fortnite 150−160
+48.5%
100−110
−48.5%
Forza Horizon 4 129
+59.3%
80−85
−59.3%
Grand Theft Auto V 133
+98.5%
67
−98.5%
Metro Exodus 73
+40.4%
50−55
−40.4%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS 233
+77.9%
130−140
−77.9%
Red Dead Redemption 2 43
−4.7%
45−50
+4.7%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 110−120
+88.3%
60−65
−88.3%
Valorant 77
−1.3%
75−80
+1.3%
World of Tanks 270−280
−1.1%
280
+1.1%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Battlefield 5 79
+29.5%
60−65
−29.5%
Counter-Strike 2 48
+41.2%
30−35
−41.2%
Cyberpunk 2077 44
+15.8%
35−40
−15.8%
Dota 2 211
+55.1%
136
−55.1%
Far Cry 5 85−90
+36.9%
65−70
−36.9%
Forza Horizon 4 112
+38.3%
80−85
−38.3%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS 180−190
+42%
130−140
−42%
Valorant 122
+56.4%
75−80
−56.4%

1440p
High Preset

Dota 2 62
+107%
30−33
−107%
Elden Ring 56
+75%
30−35
−75%
Grand Theft Auto V 62
+100%
30−35
−100%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS 162
−4.3%
160−170
+4.3%
Red Dead Redemption 2 27
+58.8%
16−18
−58.8%
World of Tanks 210−220
+60.6%
130−140
−60.6%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Battlefield 5 56
+43.6%
35−40
−43.6%
Counter-Strike 2 29
+81.3%
16−18
−81.3%
Cyberpunk 2077 25
+66.7%
14−16
−66.7%
Far Cry 5 100−110
+104%
50−55
−104%
Forza Horizon 4 80
+63.3%
45−50
−63.3%
Metro Exodus 67
+52.3%
40−45
−52.3%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 50−55
+108%
24−27
−108%
Valorant 73
+46%
50−55
−46%

4K
High Preset

Counter-Strike 2 16
+0%
16−18
+0%
Dota 2 60
+15.4%
52
−15.4%
Elden Ring 27
+92.9%
14−16
−92.9%
Grand Theft Auto V 60
+15.4%
52
−15.4%
Metro Exodus 22
+57.1%
14−16
−57.1%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS 101
+74.1%
55−60
−74.1%
Red Dead Redemption 2 21−24
+75%
12−14
−75%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 60
+15.4%
52
−15.4%

4K
Ultra Preset

Battlefield 5 29
+52.6%
18−20
−52.6%
Counter-Strike 2 30−35
+106%
16−18
−106%
Cyberpunk 2077 11
+83.3%
6−7
−83.3%
Dota 2 95
+13.1%
84
−13.1%
Far Cry 5 45−50
+84%
24−27
−84%
Fortnite 40−45
+91.3%
21−24
−91.3%
Forza Horizon 4 44
+57.1%
27−30
−57.1%
Valorant 34
+47.8%
21−24
−47.8%

This is how GTX 1660 Super and R9 290X compete in popular games:

  • GTX 1660 Super is 7% faster in 1080p
  • GTX 1660 Super is 83% faster in 1440p
  • R9 290X is 73% faster in 4K

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

  • in Dota 2, with 1080p resolution and the High Preset, the GTX 1660 Super is 269% faster.
  • in Red Dead Redemption 2, with 1080p resolution and the High Preset, the R9 290X is 5% faster.

All in all, in popular games:

  • GTX 1660 Super is ahead in 58 tests (92%)
  • R9 290X is ahead in 4 tests (6%)
  • there's a draw in 1 test (2%)

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 33.12 19.31
Recency 29 October 2019 24 October 2013
Maximum RAM amount 6 GB 4 GB
Chip lithography 12 nm 28 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 125 Watt 250 Watt

GTX 1660 Super has a 71.5% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 6 years, a 50% higher maximum VRAM amount, a 133.3% more advanced lithography process, and 100% lower power consumption.

The GeForce GTX 1660 Super is our recommended choice as it beats the Radeon R9 290X 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 1660 Super
GeForce GTX 1660 Super
AMD Radeon R9 290X
Radeon R9 290X

Other comparisons

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Community ratings

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