Radeon HD 7870 vs GeForce GTX 680

Place in the ranking	363	409
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	2.95	2.89
Power efficiency	5.13	4.73
Architecture	Kepler (2012−2018)	GCN 1.0 (2011−2020)
GPU code name	GK104	Pitcairn
Market segment	Desktop	Desktop
Release date	22 March 2012 (12 years ago)	5 March 2012 (12 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$499	$349

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

GTX 680 has 2% better value for money than HD 7870.

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	1536	1280
Core clock speed	1006 MHz	1000 MHz
Boost clock speed	1058 MHz	no data
Number of transistors	3,540 million	2,800 million
Manufacturing process technology	28 nm	28 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	195 Watt	175 Watt
Texture fill rate	135.4	80.00
Floating-point processing power	3.25 TFLOPS	2.56 TFLOPS
ROPs	32	32
TMUs	128	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 Express 3.0	no data
Interface	PCIe 3.0 x16	PCIe 3.0 x16
Length	254 mm	241 mm
Height	4.376" (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	2048 MB	2 GB
Memory bus width	256-bit GDDR5	256 Bit
Memory clock speed	1502 MHz	1200 MHz
Memory bandwidth	192.2 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	One Dual Link DVI-I, One Dual Link DVI-D, One HDMI, One DisplayPort	1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 2x mini-DisplayPort
Multi monitor support	4 displays	no data
Eyefinity	-	+
HDMI	+	+
HDCP	+	-
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	1.2	1.2
Vulkan	1.1.126	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 680 13.97
+20.8%

HD 7870 11.56

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 680 5581
+20.8%

HD 7870 4619

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 680 10217
+64.9%

HD 7870 6194

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 680 29702
+39.1%

HD 7870 21348

Unigine Heaven 4.0

This is an old DirectX 11 benchmark, a newer version of Unigine 3.0 with relatively small differences. It displays a fantasy medieval town sprawling over several flying islands. The benchmark is still sometimes used, despite its significant age, as it was released back in 2013.

GTX 680 964
+27.5%

HD 7870 756

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	45 −86.7%	84 +86.7%
Full HD	75 +13.6%	66 −13.6%
4K	26 +23.8%	21−24 −23.8%

Cost per frame, $

1080p	6.65 −25.8%	5.29 +25.8%
4K	19.19 −15.5%	16.62 +15.5%

HD 7870 has 26% lower cost per frame in 1080p
HD 7870 has 15% lower cost per frame in 4K

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Counter-Strike 2	24−27 +18.2%	21−24 −18.2%
Cyberpunk 2077	27−30 +20.8%	24−27 −20.8%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Battlefield 5	45−50 +20.5%	35−40 −20.5%
Counter-Strike 2	24−27 +18.2%	21−24 −18.2%
Cyberpunk 2077	27−30 +20.8%	24−27 −20.8%
Forza Horizon 4	55−60 +22.9%	45−50 −22.9%
Forza Horizon 5	35−40 +22.6%	30−35 −22.6%
Metro Exodus	40−45 +21.2%	30−35 −21.2%
Red Dead Redemption 2	35−40 +16.1%	30−35 −16.1%
Valorant	55−60 +20.8%	45−50 −20.8%

Full HD
High Preset

Battlefield 5	45−50 +20.5%	35−40 −20.5%
Counter-Strike 2	24−27 +18.2%	21−24 −18.2%
Cyberpunk 2077	27−30 +20.8%	24−27 −20.8%
Dota 2	37 −16.2%	40−45 +16.2%
Far Cry 5	50−55 +14.9%	45−50 −14.9%
Fortnite	80−85 +17.4%	65−70 −17.4%
Forza Horizon 4	55−60 +22.9%	45−50 −22.9%
Forza Horizon 5	35−40 +22.6%	30−35 −22.6%
Grand Theft Auto V	56 +30.2%	40−45 −30.2%
Metro Exodus	40−45 +21.2%	30−35 −21.2%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS	100−110 +16.7%	90−95 −16.7%
Red Dead Redemption 2	35−40 +16.1%	30−35 −16.1%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	47 +30.6%	35−40 −30.6%
Valorant	55−60 +20.8%	45−50 −20.8%
World of Tanks	224 +34.9%	160−170 −34.9%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Battlefield 5	45−50 +20.5%	35−40 −20.5%
Counter-Strike 2	24−27 +18.2%	21−24 −18.2%
Cyberpunk 2077	27−30 +20.8%	24−27 −20.8%
Dota 2	50−55 +20.9%	40−45 −20.9%
Far Cry 5	50−55 +14.9%	45−50 −14.9%
Forza Horizon 4	55−60 +22.9%	45−50 −22.9%
Forza Horizon 5	35−40 +22.6%	30−35 −22.6%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS	100−110 +16.7%	90−95 −16.7%
Valorant	55−60 +20.8%	45−50 −20.8%

1440p
High Preset

Dota 2	21−24 +31.3%	16−18 −31.3%
Grand Theft Auto V	21−24 +29.4%	16−18 −29.4%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS	120−130 +81.2%	65−70 −81.2%
Red Dead Redemption 2	12−14 +30%	10−11 −30%
World of Tanks	100−110 +20%	85−90 −20%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Battlefield 5	27−30 +20.8%	24−27 −20.8%
Counter-Strike 2	12−14 +20%	10−11 −20%
Cyberpunk 2077	10−12 +22.2%	9−10 −22.2%
Far Cry 5	35−40 +29.6%	27−30 −29.6%
Forza Horizon 4	35−40 +28.6%	27−30 −28.6%
Forza Horizon 5	21−24 +27.8%	18−20 −27.8%
Metro Exodus	30−35 +24%	24−27 −24%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	18−20 +18.8%	16−18 −18.8%
Valorant	35−40 +20%	30−33 −20%

4K
High Preset

Counter-Strike 2	16−18 +6.7%	14−16 −6.7%
Dota 2	21 −4.8%	21−24 +4.8%
Grand Theft Auto V	21 −4.8%	21−24 +4.8%
Metro Exodus	10−11 +42.9%	7−8 −42.9%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS	40−45 +22.9%	35−40 −22.9%
Red Dead Redemption 2	9−10 +12.5%	8−9 −12.5%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	21 −4.8%	21−24 +4.8%

4K
Ultra Preset

Battlefield 5	14−16 +27.3%	10−12 −27.3%
Counter-Strike 2	16−18 +6.7%	14−16 −6.7%
Cyberpunk 2077	4−5 +33.3%	3−4 −33.3%
Dota 2	24−27 +18.2%	21−24 −18.2%
Far Cry 5	18−20 +20%	14−16 −20%
Fortnite	16−18 +23.1%	12−14 −23.1%
Forza Horizon 4	21−24 +31.3%	16−18 −31.3%
Forza Horizon 5	10−12 +22.2%	9−10 −22.2%
Valorant	16−18 +33.3%	12−14 −33.3%

This is how GTX 680 and HD 7870 compete in popular games:

HD 7870 is 87% faster in 900p
GTX 680 is 14% faster in 1080p
GTX 680 is 24% faster in 4K

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

in PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS, with 1440p resolution and the High Preset, the GTX 680 is 81% faster.
in Dota 2, with 1080p resolution and the High Preset, the HD 7870 is 16% faster.

All in all, in popular games: