GeForce GTX 480M SLI vs 480
Aggregate performance score
480 outperforms 480M SLI by an impressive 65% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
GPU architecture, market segment, value for money and other general parameters compared.
| Place in performance ranking | 398 | 541 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | 1.27 | 4.21 |
| Architecture | Fermi (2010−2014) | Fermi (2010−2014) |
| GPU code name | GF100 | N11E-GTX-A3 |
| Market segment | Desktop | Laptop |
| Release date | 7 December 2010 (13 years ago) | 25 May 2010 (14 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $499 | no data |
| Current price | $15.99 (0x MSRP) | $149 |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.
GTX 480M SLI has 231% better value for money than GTX 480.
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 | 480 | 704 |
| CUDA cores | 480 | no data |
| Core clock speed | 700 MHz | 425 MHz |
| Number of transistors | 3,100 million | 6000 Million |
| Manufacturing process technology | 40 nm | 40 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 295 Watt | 100 Watt |
| Maximum GPU temperature | 105 °C | no data |
| Texture fill rate | 42 billion/sec | no data |
| Floating-point performance | 1,345.0 gflops | no data |
Form factor & compatibility
Information on GeForce GTX 480 and GeForce GTX 480M SLI compatibility with other computer components. Useful when choosing a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. For desktop video cards it's interface and bus (motherboard compatibility), additional power connectors (power supply compatibility). For notebook video cards it's notebook size, connection slot and bus, if the video card is inserted into a slot instead of being soldered to the notebook motherboard.
| Laptop size | no data | large |
| Bus support | 16x PCI-E 2.0 | no data |
| Interface | PCIe 2.0 x16 | no data |
| Length | 10.5" (267 mm) (26.7 cm) | no data |
| Height | 4.376" (111 mm) (11.1 cm) | no data |
| Width | 2-slot | no data |
| Supplementary power connectors | 6-pin & 8-pin | no data |
| SLI options | + | no data |
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 | GDDR5 |
| Maximum RAM amount | 1536 MB | 4 GB |
| Memory bus width | 384 Bit | 256 Bit |
| Memory clock speed | 1848 MHz (3696 data rate) | 1200 MHz |
| Memory bandwidth | 177.4 GB/s | no data |
| 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 Connectors | Two Dual Link DVI, Mini HDMI | no data |
| Multi monitor support | + | no data |
| HDMI | + | no data |
| HDCP | + | no data |
| Maximum VGA resolution | 2048x1536 | no data |
| Audio input for HDMI | Internal | no data |
API compatibility
List of supported graphics and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.
| DirectX | 12 (11_0) | 11 |
| Shader Model | 5.1 | no data |
| OpenGL | 4.2 | no data |
| OpenCL | 1.1 | no data |
| Vulkan | N/A | no data |
| CUDA | + | no data |
Synthetic benchmark performance
Non-gaming benchmark performance comparison. The combined score is measured on a 0-100 point scale.
Combined synthetic benchmark score
This is our combined benchmark performance 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.
480 outperforms 480M SLI by 65% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
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.
Benchmark coverage: 17%
480 outperforms 480M SLI by 19% in 3DMark 11 Performance GPU.
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 | 100−110
+63.9%
| 61
−63.9%
|
| Full HD | 100−110
+56.3%
| 64
−56.3%
|
FPS performance in popular games
Full HD
Low Preset
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 16−18
+60%
|
10−11
−60%
|
Full HD
Medium Preset
| Assassin's Creed Odyssey | 21−24
+69.2%
|
12−14
−69.2%
|
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 16−18
+129%
|
7−8
−129%
|
| Battlefield 5 | 30−35
+83.3%
|
18−20
−83.3%
|
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 21−24
+61.5%
|
12−14
−61.5%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 16−18
+60%
|
10−11
−60%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 24−27
+78.6%
|
14−16
−78.6%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 30−33
+66.7%
|
18−20
−66.7%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 50−55
+67.7%
|
30−35
−67.7%
|
| Hitman 3 | 20−22
+66.7%
|
12−14
−66.7%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 40−45
+46.7%
|
30−33
−46.7%
|
| Metro Exodus | 30−35
+106%
|
16−18
−106%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 30−33
+66.7%
|
18−20
−66.7%
|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 30−35
+57.1%
|
21−24
−57.1%
|
| Watch Dogs: Legion | 35−40
+42.3%
|
24−27
−42.3%
|
Full HD
High Preset
| Assassin's Creed Odyssey | 21−24
+69.2%
|
12−14
−69.2%
|
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 16−18
+129%
|
7−8
−129%
|
| Battlefield 5 | 30−35
+83.3%
|
18−20
−83.3%
|
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 21−24
+61.5%
|
12−14
−61.5%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 16−18
+60%
|
10−11
−60%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 24−27
+78.6%
|
14−16
−78.6%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 30−33
+66.7%
|
18−20
−66.7%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 50−55
+67.7%
|
30−35
−67.7%
|
| Hitman 3 | 20−22
+66.7%
|
12−14
−66.7%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 40−45
+46.7%
|
30−33
−46.7%
|
| Metro Exodus | 30−35
+106%
|
16−18
−106%
|
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 30−33
+66.7%
|
18−20
−66.7%
|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 30−35
+57.1%
|
21−24
−57.1%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 21−24
+57.1%
|
14−16
−57.1%
|
| Watch Dogs: Legion | 35−40
+42.3%
|
24−27
−42.3%
|
Full HD
Ultra Preset
| Assassin's Creed Odyssey | 21−24
+69.2%
|
12−14
−69.2%
|
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 16−18
+129%
|
7−8
−129%
|
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 21−24
+61.5%
|
12−14
−61.5%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 16−18
+60%
|
10−11
−60%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 24−27
+78.6%
|
14−16
−78.6%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 50−55
+67.7%
|
30−35
−67.7%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 40−45
+46.7%
|
30−33
−46.7%
|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 30−35
+57.1%
|
21−24
−57.1%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 21−24
+57.1%
|
14−16
−57.1%
|
| Watch Dogs: Legion | 35−40
+42.3%
|
24−27
−42.3%
|
Full HD
Epic Preset
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 30−33
+66.7%
|
18−20
−66.7%
|
1440p
High Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 21−24
+75%
|
12−14
−75%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 18−20
+100%
|
9−10
−100%
|
1440p
Ultra Preset
| Assassin's Creed Odyssey | 10−11
+66.7%
|
6−7
−66.7%
|
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 7−8
+600%
|
1−2
−600%
|
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 12−14
+62.5%
|
8−9
−62.5%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 5−6
+66.7%
|
3−4
−66.7%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 16−18
+70%
|
10−11
−70%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 20−22
+81.8%
|
10−12
−81.8%
|
| Hitman 3 | 14−16
+40%
|
10−11
−40%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 21−24
+57.1%
|
14−16
−57.1%
|
| Metro Exodus | 16−18
+167%
|
6−7
−167%
|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 14−16
+400%
|
3−4
−400%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 10−11
+100%
|
5−6
−100%
|
| Watch Dogs: Legion | 6−7
+100%
|
3−4
−100%
|
1440p
Epic Preset
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 18−20
+63.6%
|
10−12
−63.6%
|
4K
High Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 10−11
+100%
|
5−6
−100%
|
| Far Cry New Dawn | 8−9
+100%
|
4−5
−100%
|
| Hitman 3 | 7−8
+133%
|
3−4
−133%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 10−12
+57.1%
|
7−8
−57.1%
|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 6−7
+200%
|
2−3
−200%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 8−9
+167%
|
3−4
−167%
|
4K
Ultra Preset
| Assassin's Creed Odyssey | 6−7
+50%
|
4−5
−50%
|
| Assassin's Creed Valhalla | 5−6
+66.7%
|
3−4
−66.7%
|
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 5−6
+66.7%
|
3−4
−66.7%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 1−2 | 0−1 |
| Far Cry 5 | 6−7
+100%
|
3−4
−100%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 12−14
+85.7%
|
7−8
−85.7%
|
| Horizon Zero Dawn | 10−12
+57.1%
|
7−8
−57.1%
|
| Metro Exodus | 10−12
+57.1%
|
7−8
−57.1%
|
| Watch Dogs: Legion | 4−5
+100%
|
2−3
−100%
|
4K
Epic Preset
| Red Dead Redemption 2 | 10−11
+42.9%
|
7−8
−42.9%
|
This is how GTX 480 and GTX 480M SLI compete in popular games:
- GTX 480 is 64% faster in 900p
- GTX 480 is 56% faster in 1080p
Here's the range of performance differences observed across popular games:
- in Assassin's Creed Valhalla, with 1440p resolution and the Ultra Preset, the GTX 480 is 600% faster.
All in all, in popular games:
- Without exception, GTX 480 surpassed GTX 480M SLI in all 71 of our tests.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 10.63 | 6.45 |
| Recency | 7 December 2010 | 25 May 2010 |
| Maximum RAM amount | 1536 MB | 4 GB |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 295 Watt | 100 Watt |
The GeForce GTX 480 is our recommended choice as it beats the GeForce GTX 480M SLI in performance tests.
Be aware that GeForce GTX 480 is a desktop card while GeForce GTX 480M SLI is a notebook one.
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.
