Radeon HD 7870 vs GeForce GTX 570

Place in the ranking	444	403
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	2.07	2.91
Power efficiency	3.24	4.79
Architecture	Fermi 2.0 (2010−2014)	GCN 1.0 (2011−2020)
GPU code name	GF110	Pitcairn
Market segment	Desktop	Desktop
Release date	7 December 2010 (13 years ago)	5 March 2012 (12 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$349	$349

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

HD 7870 has 41% better value for money than GTX 570.

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 cores	480	1280
Core clock speed	732 MHz	1000 MHz
Number of transistors	3,000 million	2,800 million
Manufacturing process technology	40 nm	28 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	219 Watt	175 Watt
Maximum GPU temperature	97 °C	no data
Texture fill rate	43.92	80.00
Floating-point processing power	1.405 TFLOPS	2.56 TFLOPS
ROPs	40	32
TMUs	60	80

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 support	PCI-E 2.0 x 16	no data
Interface	PCIe 2.0 x16	PCIe 3.0 x16
Length	267 mm	241 mm
Height	4.376" (111 mm) (11.1 cm)	no data
Width	2-slot	2-slot
Supplementary power connectors	2x 6-pin	2x 6-pin
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	GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount	1280 MB	2 GB
Memory bus width	320 Bit	256 Bit
Memory clock speed	1900 MHz (3800 data rate)	1200 MHz
Memory bandwidth	152.0 GB/s	153.6 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 Connectors	Mini HDMITwo Dual Link DVI	1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 2x mini-DisplayPort
Multi monitor support	+	no data
Eyefinity	-	+
HDMI	+	+
Maximum VGA resolution	2048x1536	no data
Audio input for HDMI	Internal	no data

API compatibility

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

DirectX	12 (11_0)	12 (11_1)
Shader Model	5.1	5.1
OpenGL	4.2	4.6
OpenCL	1.1	1.2
Vulkan	N/A	1.2.131
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.

GTX 570 10.18

HD 7870 12.02
+18.1%

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 570 3928

HD 7870 4637
+18%

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 570 5033

HD 7870 6194
+23.1%

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 570 17632

HD 7870 21348
+21.1%

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	70−75 −20%	84 +20%
Full HD	80 +17.6%	68 −17.6%

Cost per frame, $

1080p

4.36

5.13

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077

16−18

−18.8%

18−20
+18.8%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	24−27 −16.7%	27−30 +16.7%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	14−16 −26.7%	18−20 +26.7%
Battlefield 5	30−35 −18.8%	35−40 +18.8%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	21−24 −14.3%	24−27 +14.3%
Cyberpunk 2077	16−18 −18.8%	18−20 +18.8%
Far Cry 5	24−27 −16.7%	27−30 +16.7%
Far Cry New Dawn	27−30 −17.9%	30−35 +17.9%
Forza Horizon 4	65−70 −17.6%	80−85 +17.6%
Hitman 3	18−20 −21.1%	21−24 +21.1%
Horizon Zero Dawn	55−60 −14.3%	60−65 +14.3%
Metro Exodus	30−35 −25%	40−45 +25%
Red Dead Redemption 2	27−30 −17.9%	30−35 +17.9%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	30−35 −18.2%	35−40 +18.2%
Watch Dogs: Legion	60−65 −7.8%	65−70 +7.8%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	24−27 −16.7%	27−30 +16.7%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	14−16 −26.7%	18−20 +26.7%
Battlefield 5	30−35 −18.8%	35−40 +18.8%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	21−24 −14.3%	24−27 +14.3%
Cyberpunk 2077	16−18 −18.8%	18−20 +18.8%
Far Cry 5	24−27 −16.7%	27−30 +16.7%
Far Cry New Dawn	27−30 −17.9%	30−35 +17.9%
Forza Horizon 4	65−70 −17.6%	80−85 +17.6%
Hitman 3	18−20 −21.1%	21−24 +21.1%
Horizon Zero Dawn	55−60 −14.3%	60−65 +14.3%
Metro Exodus	30−35 −25%	40−45 +25%
Red Dead Redemption 2	27−30 −17.9%	30−35 +17.9%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	30−35 −18.2%	35−40 +18.2%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	27−30 −11.1%	30−33 +11.1%
Watch Dogs: Legion	60−65 −7.8%	65−70 +7.8%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	24−27 −16.7%	27−30 +16.7%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	14−16 −26.7%	18−20 +26.7%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	21−24 −14.3%	24−27 +14.3%
Cyberpunk 2077	16−18 −18.8%	18−20 +18.8%
Far Cry 5	24−27 −16.7%	27−30 +16.7%
Forza Horizon 4	65−70 −17.6%	80−85 +17.6%
Hitman 3	18−20 −21.1%	21−24 +21.1%
Horizon Zero Dawn	55−60 −14.3%	60−65 +14.3%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	30−35 −18.2%	35−40 +18.2%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	27−30 +35%	20 −35%
Watch Dogs: Legion	60−65 −7.8%	65−70 +7.8%

Full HD
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

27−30

−17.9%

30−35
+17.9%

1440p
High Preset

Battlefield 5	20−22 −15%	21−24 +15%
Far Cry New Dawn	16−18 −12.5%	18−20 +12.5%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	10−11 −20%	12−14 +20%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	6−7 −33.3%	8−9 +33.3%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	10−11 −30%	12−14 +30%
Cyberpunk 2077	5−6 −20%	6−7 +20%
Far Cry 5	12−14 −16.7%	14−16 +16.7%
Forza Horizon 4	45−50 −26.1%	55−60 +26.1%
Hitman 3	12−14 −15.4%	14−16 +15.4%
Horizon Zero Dawn	21−24 −19%	24−27 +19%
Metro Exodus	14−16 −26.7%	18−20 +26.7%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	12−14 −46.2%	18−20 +46.2%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	10−11 −20%	12−14 +20%
Watch Dogs: Legion	60−65 −17.2%	75−80 +17.2%

1440p
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

16−18

−17.6%

20−22
+17.6%

4K
High Preset

Battlefield 5	9−10 −22.2%	10−12 +22.2%
Far Cry New Dawn	7−8 −28.6%	9−10 +28.6%
Hitman 3	6−7 −33.3%	8−9 +33.3%
Horizon Zero Dawn	40−45 −27.3%	55−60 +27.3%
Metro Exodus	8−9 −37.5%	10−12 +37.5%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	8−9 −25%	10−11 +25%

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	6−7 −16.7%	7−8 +16.7%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	5−6 +0%	5−6 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	5−6 −20%	6−7 +20%
Cyberpunk 2077	1−2 −100%	2−3 +100%
Far Cry 5	5−6 −20%	6−7 +20%
Forza Horizon 4	12−14 −23.1%	16−18 +23.1%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	7−8 −42.9%	10−11 +42.9%
Watch Dogs: Legion	4−5 −25%	5−6 +25%

4K
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

10−11

−10%

10−12
+10%

This is how GTX 570 and HD 7870 compete in popular games:

HD 7870 is 20% faster in 900p
GTX 570 is 18% faster in 1080p

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

in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, with 1080p resolution and the Ultra Preset, the GTX 570 is 35% faster.
in Cyberpunk 2077, with 4K resolution and the Ultra Preset, the HD 7870 is 100% faster.

All in all, in popular games:

GTX 570 is ahead in 1 test (1%)
HD 7870 is ahead in 70 tests (97%)
there's a draw in 1 test (1%)

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	10.18	12.02
Recency	7 December 2010	5 March 2012
Maximum RAM amount	1280 MB	2 GB
Chip lithography	40 nm	28 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	219 Watt	175 Watt

HD 7870 has a 18.1% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 1 year, a 60% higher maximum VRAM amount, a 42.9% more advanced lithography process, and 25.1% lower power consumption.

The Radeon HD 7870 is our recommended choice as it beats the GeForce GTX 570 in performance tests.

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