Iris Xe Graphics MAX vs GeForce GTX 970

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Aggregate performance score

We've compared GeForce GTX 970 and Iris Xe Graphics MAX, covering specs and all relevant benchmarks.

GTX 970
2014
4 GB GDDR5, 148 Watt
25.06
+388%

GTX 970 outperforms Iris Xe Graphics MAX by a whopping 388% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

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

Place in the ranking218624
Place by popularity78not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation13.85no data
Power efficiency11.6814.16
ArchitectureMaxwell 2.0 (2014−2019)Generation 12.1 (2020−2021)
GPU code nameGM204DG1
Market segmentDesktopDesktop
Release date19 September 2014 (10 years ago)31 October 2020 (4 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$329 no data

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

no data

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 cores1664768
Core clock speed1050 MHzno data
Boost clock speed1178 MHz1650 MHz
Number of transistors5,200 millionno data
Manufacturing process technology28 nm10 nm
Power consumption (TDP)148 Watt25 Watt
Maximum GPU temperature98 °Cno data
Texture fill rate122.579.20
Floating-point processing power3.92 TFLOPS2.534 TFLOPS
ROPs5624
TMUs10448

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 supportPCI Express 3.0no data
InterfacePCIe 3.0 x16PCIe 4.0 x4
Length267 mmno data
Height4.376" (11.1 cm)no data
Width2-slotIGP
Recommended system power (PSU)500 Wattno data
Supplementary power connectors2x 6-pinno data
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 typeGDDR5LPDDR4X
Maximum RAM amount4 GB4 GB
Memory bus width256 Bit128 Bit
Memory clock speed7.0 GB/s4.3 GB/s
Memory bandwidth224 GB/s68.26 GB/s
Shared memory-no data

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 ConnectorsDual Link DVI-I, HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.2No outputs
Multi monitor support4 displaysno data
HDMI+-
HDCP+-
Maximum VGA resolution2048x1536no data
G-SYNC support+-
Audio input for HDMIInternalno data

Supported technologies

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

GameStream+-
GeForce ShadowPlay+-
GPU Boost2.0no data
GameWorks+-

API compatibility

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

DirectX12 (12_1)12 (12_1)
Shader Model6.46.4
OpenGL4.44.6
OpenCL1.23.0
Vulkan1.1.1261.2
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 970 25.06
+388%
Iris Xe Graphics MAX 5.13

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 970 9636
+389%
Iris Xe Graphics MAX 1971

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 HD80
+400%
16−18
−400%
1440p52
+420%
10−12
−420%
4K40
+400%
8−9
−400%

Cost per frame, $

1080p4.11no data
1440p6.33no data
4K8.23no data

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Counter-Strike 2 45−50
+422%
9−10
−422%
Cyberpunk 2077 50−55
+410%
10−11
−410%
Elden Ring 80−85
+413%
16−18
−413%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Battlefield 5 75−80
+450%
14−16
−450%
Counter-Strike 2 45−50
+422%
9−10
−422%
Cyberpunk 2077 50−55
+410%
10−11
−410%
Forza Horizon 4 110−120
+424%
21−24
−424%
Metro Exodus 65−70
+450%
12−14
−450%
Red Dead Redemption 2 55−60
+450%
10−11
−450%
Valorant 100−110
+461%
18−20
−461%

Full HD
High Preset

Battlefield 5 75−80
+450%
14−16
−450%
Counter-Strike 2 45−50
+422%
9−10
−422%
Cyberpunk 2077 50−55
+410%
10−11
−410%
Dota 2 47
+422%
9−10
−422%
Elden Ring 80−85
+413%
16−18
−413%
Far Cry 5 75−80
+450%
14−16
−450%
Fortnite 120−130
+421%
24−27
−421%
Forza Horizon 4 110−120
+424%
21−24
−424%
Grand Theft Auto V 71
+407%
14−16
−407%
Metro Exodus 16
+433%
3−4
−433%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS 63
+425%
12−14
−425%
Red Dead Redemption 2 55−60
+450%
10−11
−450%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 70
+400%
14−16
−400%
Valorant 100−110
+461%
18−20
−461%
World of Tanks 250−260
+416%
50−55
−416%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Battlefield 5 60
+400%
12−14
−400%
Counter-Strike 2 45−50
+422%
9−10
−422%
Cyberpunk 2077 50−55
+410%
10−11
−410%
Dota 2 85−90
+438%
16−18
−438%
Far Cry 5 75−80
+450%
14−16
−450%
Forza Horizon 4 110−120
+424%
21−24
−424%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS 47
+422%
9−10
−422%
Valorant 100−110
+461%
18−20
−461%

1440p
High Preset

Dota 2 40−45
+425%
8−9
−425%
Elden Ring 40−45
+389%
9−10
−389%
Grand Theft Auto V 40−45
+425%
8−9
−425%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS 170−180
+400%
35−40
−400%
Red Dead Redemption 2 21−24
+475%
4−5
−475%
World of Tanks 160−170
+453%
30−33
−453%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Battlefield 5 50−55
+400%
10−11
−400%
Counter-Strike 2 21−24
+425%
4−5
−425%
Cyberpunk 2077 21−24
+425%
4−5
−425%
Far Cry 5 70−75
+421%
14−16
−421%
Forza Horizon 4 65−70
+458%
12−14
−458%
Metro Exodus 55−60
+470%
10−11
−470%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 35−40
+429%
7−8
−429%
Valorant 65−70
+467%
12−14
−467%

4K
High Preset

Counter-Strike 2 21−24
+475%
4−5
−475%
Dota 2 46
+411%
9−10
−411%
Elden Ring 20−22
+400%
4−5
−400%
Grand Theft Auto V 46
+411%
9−10
−411%
Metro Exodus 13
+550%
2−3
−550%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS 61
+408%
12−14
−408%
Red Dead Redemption 2 16−18
+433%
3−4
−433%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 46
+411%
9−10
−411%

4K
Ultra Preset

Battlefield 5 24−27
+420%
5−6
−420%
Counter-Strike 2 21−24
+475%
4−5
−475%
Cyberpunk 2077 8−9
+700%
1−2
−700%
Dota 2 40−45
+389%
9−10
−389%
Far Cry 5 30−35
+450%
6−7
−450%
Fortnite 25
+400%
5−6
−400%
Forza Horizon 4 35−40
+443%
7−8
−443%
Valorant 30−35
+450%
6−7
−450%

This is how GTX 970 and Iris Xe Graphics MAX compete in popular games:

  • GTX 970 is 400% faster in 1080p
  • GTX 970 is 420% faster in 1440p
  • GTX 970 is 400% faster in 4K

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 25.06 5.13
Recency 19 September 2014 31 October 2020
Chip lithography 28 nm 10 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 148 Watt 25 Watt

GTX 970 has a 388.5% higher aggregate performance score.

Iris Xe Graphics MAX, on the other hand, has an age advantage of 6 years, a 180% more advanced lithography process, and 492% lower power consumption.

The GeForce GTX 970 is our recommended choice as it beats the Iris Xe Graphics MAX in performance tests.


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

Vote for your favorite

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NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970
GeForce GTX 970
Intel Iris Xe Graphics MAX
Iris Xe Graphics MAX

Other comparisons

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Community ratings

Here you can see the user ratings of the compared graphics cards, as well as rate them yourself.


4.2 4899 votes

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Questions & comments

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