GeForce RTX 4090 vs GTX 590

Place in performance ranking	460	1
Place by popularity	not in top-100	2
Cost-Effectiveness Evaluation	0.47	15.05
Architecture	Fermi (2010−2014)	Ada Lovelace
GPU code name	GF110	AD102-300-A1
Market segment	Desktop	Desktop
Release date	24 March 2011 (13 years ago)	20 September 2022 (1 year ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$699	$1,599
Current price	$600 (0.9x MSRP)	$1756 (1.1x MSRP)

Cost-Effectiveness Evaluation

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

RTX 4090 has 3102% better value for money than GTX 590.

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	1024	16384
CUDA cores	1024	no data
Core clock speed	607 MHz	2235 MHz
Boost clock speed	no data	2520 MHz
Number of transistors	3,000 million	76,300 million
Manufacturing process technology	40 nm	5 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	365 Watt	450 Watt
Maximum GPU temperature	97 °C	no data
Texture fill rate	77.7 billion/sec	1,290
Floating-point performance	2x 1,244.2 gflops	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).

Bus support	16x PCI-E 2.0	no data
Interface	PCIe 2.0 x16	PCIe 4.0 x16
Length	11" (280 mm) (27.9 cm)	304 mm
Height	4.376" (111 mm) (11.1 cm)	no data
Width	2-slot	3-slot
Supplementary power connectors	Two 8-pin	1x 16-pin
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	GDDR6X
Maximum RAM amount	3072 MB (1536 MB per GPU)	24 GB
Memory bus width	768-bit (384-bit per GPU)	384 Bit
Memory clock speed	1707 MHz	21000 MHz
Memory bandwidth	327.7 GB/s	1,008 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	Three Dual Link DVI-IMini DisplayPort	1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a
Multi monitor support	+	no data
HDMI	+	+
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)	12 Ultimate (12_2)
Shader Model	5.1	6.6
OpenGL	4.2	4.6
OpenCL	1.1	3.0
Vulkan	N/A	1.3
CUDA	+	8.9

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.

GTX 590 8.63

RTX 4090 100.00
+1059%

RTX 4090 outperforms GTX 590 by 1059% based on our aggregated benchmark results.

Passmark

This is the most ubiquitous GPU benchmark, part of Passmark PerformanceTest suite. 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.

Benchmark coverage: 25%

GTX 590 3341

RTX 4090 38711
+1059%

RTX 4090 outperforms GTX 590 by 1059% in Passmark.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 17%

GTX 590 25720

RTX 4090 137170
+433%

RTX 4090 outperforms GTX 590 by 433% in 3DMark Vantage Performance.

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%

GTX 590 9167

RTX 4090 104937
+1045%

RTX 4090 outperforms GTX 590 by 1045% in 3DMark 11 Performance GPU.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 14%

GTX 590 6680

RTX 4090 73174
+995%

RTX 4090 outperforms GTX 590 by 995% in 3DMark Fire Strike Graphics.

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	47 −964%	500−550 +964%
Full HD	109 −143%	265 +143%
1200p	112 −1016%	1250−1300 +1016%
1440p	18−20 −1078%	212 +1078%
4K	12−14 −1150%	150 +1150%

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077

12−14

−1631%

225
+1631%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	18−20 −1206%	235 +1206%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	12−14 −2292%	287 +2292%
Battlefield 5	27−30 −566%	190−200 +566%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	24−27 −642%	170−180 +642%
Cyberpunk 2077	12−14 −1608%	222 +1608%
Far Cry 5	21−24 −895%	209 +895%
Far Cry New Dawn	21−24 −709%	178 +709%
Forza Horizon 4	30−33 −943%	300−350 +943%
Hitman 3	21−24 −943%	210−220 +943%
Horizon Zero Dawn	16−18 −1518%	275 +1518%
Red Dead Redemption 2	14−16 −1113%	180−190 +1113%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	18−20 −1447%	294 +1447%
Watch Dogs: Legion	14−16 −1153%	188 +1153%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	18−20 −1128%	221 +1128%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	12−14 −1967%	248 +1967%
Battlefield 5	27−30 −566%	190−200 +566%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	24−27 −642%	170−180 +642%
Cyberpunk 2077	12−14 −1546%	214 +1546%
Far Cry 5	21−24 −857%	201 +857%
Far Cry New Dawn	21−24 −677%	171 +677%
Forza Horizon 4	30−33 −943%	300−350 +943%
Hitman 3	21−24 −943%	210−220 +943%
Horizon Zero Dawn	16−18 −1371%	250 +1371%
Metro Exodus	12−14 −1638%	226 +1638%
Red Dead Redemption 2	14−16 −1113%	180−190 +1113%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	18−20 −1416%	288 +1416%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	18−20 −3083%	573 +3083%
Watch Dogs: Legion	14−16 −1053%	173 +1053%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	18−20 −894%	179 +894%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	12−14 −1733%	220 +1733%
Battlefield 5	27−30 −566%	190−200 +566%
Cyberpunk 2077	12−14 −1515%	210 +1515%
Far Cry 5	21−24 −790%	187 +790%
Far Cry New Dawn	21−24 −600%	154 +600%
Forza Horizon 4	30−33 −943%	300−350 +943%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	18−20 −1594%	305 +1594%
Watch Dogs: Legion	14−16 −920%	153 +920%

1440p
High Preset

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	12−14 −1046%	140−150 +1046%
Hitman 3	12−14 −1538%	210−220 +1538%
Horizon Zero Dawn	14−16 −1593%	237 +1593%
Metro Exodus	7−8 −2429%	177 +2429%
Red Dead Redemption 2	6−7 −1450%	90−95 +1450%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	12−14 −2158%	271 +2158%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	8−9 −1838%	155 +1838%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	4−5 −4475%	183 +4475%
Battlefield 5	12−14 −1408%	190−200 +1408%
Cyberpunk 2077	4−5 −3750%	154 +3750%
Far Cry 5	14−16 −1229%	186 +1229%
Far Cry New Dawn	12−14 −1069%	152 +1069%
Forza Horizon 4	14−16 −1793%	280−290 +1793%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	8−9 −3250%	268 +3250%
Watch Dogs: Legion	3−4 −4967%	152 +4967%

4K
High Preset

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	6−7 −1500%	95−100 +1500%
Hitman 3	8−9 −1500%	120−130 +1500%
Horizon Zero Dawn	8−9 −2238%	187 +2238%
Metro Exodus	2−3 −6750%	137 +6750%
Red Dead Redemption 2	5−6 −1180%	60−65 +1180%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	4−5 −4550%	186 +4550%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	6−7 −4567%	280 +4567%

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	5−6 −2300%	120 +2300%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	4−5 −2900%	120 +2900%
Battlefield 5	6−7 −2167%	130−140 +2167%
Cyberpunk 2077	1−2 −7900%	80 +7900%
Far Cry 5	7−8 −2371%	173 +2371%
Far Cry New Dawn	10−11 −1350%	145 +1350%
Forza Horizon 4	10−11 −2450%	250−260 +2450%
Watch Dogs: Legion	2−3 −5750%	117 +5750%

This is how GTX 590 and RTX 4090 compete in popular games:

RTX 4090 is 964% faster than GTX 590 in 900p
RTX 4090 is 143% faster than GTX 590 in 1080p
RTX 4090 is 1016% faster than GTX 590 in 1200p
RTX 4090 is 1078% faster than GTX 590 in 1440p
RTX 4090 is 1150% faster than GTX 590 in 4K

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

in Cyberpunk 2077, with 4K resolution and the Ultra Preset, the RTX 4090 is 7900% faster than the GTX 590.

All in all, in popular games:

Without exception, RTX 4090 surpassed GTX 590 in all 68 of our tests.

Pros & Cons Summary

Performance score	8.63	100.00
Recency	24 March 2011	20 September 2022
Cost	$699	$1599
Maximum RAM amount	3072 MB (1536 MB per GPU)	24 GB
Chip lithography	40 nm	5 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	365 Watt	450 Watt