GeForce RTX 5090 vs Radeon HD 7970
Aggregate performance score
We've compared Radeon HD 7970 and GeForce RTX 5090, covering specs and all relevant benchmarks.
RTX 5090 outperforms HD 7970 by a whopping 634% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
GPU architecture, market segment, value for money and other general parameters compared.
| Place in the ranking | 387 | 1 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | 57 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | 2.46 | 10.80 |
| Power efficiency | 3.75 | 11.96 |
| Architecture | GCN 1.0 (2011−2020) | Blackwell 2.0 (2025) |
| GPU code name | Tahiti | GB202 |
| Market segment | Desktop | Desktop |
| Design | reference | no data |
| Release date | 22 December 2011 (13 years ago) | 30 January 2025 (recently) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $549 | $1,999 |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
The higher the performance-to-price ratio, the better. We use the manufacturer's recommended prices for comparison.
RTX 5090 has 339% better value for money than HD 7970.
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 | 2048 | 21760 |
| Core clock speed | no data | 2017 MHz |
| Boost clock speed | 925 MHz | 2407 MHz |
| Number of transistors | 4,313 million | 92,200 million |
| Manufacturing process technology | 28 nm | 5 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 300 Watt | 575 Watt |
| Texture fill rate | 118.4 | 1,637 |
| Floating-point processing power | 3.789 TFLOPS | 104.8 TFLOPS |
| ROPs | 32 | 176 |
| TMUs | 128 | 680 |
| Tensor Cores | no data | 680 |
| Ray Tracing Cores | no data | 170 |
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 | PCIe 2.1 x16 | no data |
| Interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | PCIe 5.0 x16 |
| Length | 274 mm | 304 mm |
| Width | 2-slot | 2-slot |
| Supplementary power connectors | 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin | 1x 16-pin |
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 | GDDR7 |
| Maximum RAM amount | 6 GB | 32 GB |
| Memory bus width | 384 Bit | 512 Bit |
| Memory clock speed | 1375 MHz | 1750 MHz |
| Memory bandwidth | 264 GB/s | 1.79 TB/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 | 1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 2x mini-DisplayPort | 1x HDMI 2.1b, 3x DisplayPort 2.1b |
| Eyefinity | + | - |
| HDMI | + | + |
Supported technologies
Supported technological solutions. This information will prove useful if you need some particular technology for your purposes.
| CrossFire | + | - |
| FreeSync | + | - |
API and SDK compatibility
List of supported 3D and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.
| DirectX | DirectX® 11 | 12 Ultimate (12_2) |
| Shader Model | 5.1 | 6.8 |
| OpenGL | 4.6 | 4.6 |
| OpenCL | 1.2 | 3.0 |
| Vulkan | - | 1.4 |
| CUDA | - | 10.1 |
| DLSS | - | + |
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.
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.
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 | 105
−614%
| 750−800
+614%
|
| Full HD | 93
−118%
| 203
+118%
|
| 1440p | 24−27
−675%
| 186
+675%
|
| 4K | 18−21
−722%
| 148
+722%
|
Cost per frame, $
| 1080p | 5.90
+66.8%
| 9.85
−66.8%
|
| 1440p | 22.88
−113%
| 10.75
+113%
|
| 4K | 30.50
−126%
| 13.51
+126%
|
- HD 7970 has 67% lower cost per frame in 1080p
- RTX 5090 has 113% lower cost per frame in 1440p
- RTX 5090 has 126% lower cost per frame in 4K
FPS performance in popular games
Full HD
Low Preset
| Atomic Heart | 30−35
−684%
|
250−260
+684%
|
| Counter-Strike 2 | 21−24
−826%
|
210−220
+826%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 24−27
−823%
|
240−250
+823%
|
Full HD
Medium Preset
| Atomic Heart | 30−35
−684%
|
250−260
+684%
|
| Battlefield 5 | 55−60
−252%
|
190−200
+252%
|
| Counter-Strike 2 | 21−24
−826%
|
210−220
+826%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 24−27
−823%
|
240−250
+823%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 40−45
−405%
|
210−220
+405%
|
| Fortnite | 70−75
−308%
|
300−350
+308%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 50−55
−537%
|
300−350
+537%
|
| Forza Horizon 5 | 30−35
−638%
|
250−260
+638%
|
| PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS | 45−50
−285%
|
170−180
+285%
|
| Valorant | 110−120
−518%
|
650−700
+518%
|
Full HD
High Preset
| Atomic Heart | 30−35
−684%
|
250−260
+684%
|
| Battlefield 5 | 55−60
−252%
|
190−200
+252%
|
| Counter-Strike 2 | 21−24
−826%
|
210−220
+826%
|
| Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | 212
−31.1%
|
270−280
+31.1%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 24−27
−823%
|
240−250
+823%
|
| Dota 2 | 80−85
−614%
|
600−650
+614%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 40−45
−405%
|
210−220
+405%
|
| Fortnite | 70−75
−308%
|
300−350
+308%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 50−55
−537%
|
300−350
+537%
|
| Forza Horizon 5 | 30−35
−638%
|
250−260
+638%
|
| Grand Theft Auto V | 45−50
−255%
|
170−180
+255%
|
| Metro Exodus | 24−27
−165%
|
69
+165%
|
| PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS | 45−50
−285%
|
170−180
+285%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 30−35
−1182%
|
400−450
+1182%
|
| Valorant | 110−120
−518%
|
650−700
+518%
|
Full HD
Ultra Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 55−60
−252%
|
190−200
+252%
|
| Counter-Strike 2 | 21−24
−778%
|
202
+778%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 24−27
−823%
|
240−250
+823%
|
| Dota 2 | 80−85
−614%
|
600−650
+614%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 40−45
−405%
|
210−220
+405%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 50−55
−537%
|
300−350
+537%
|
| Forza Horizon 5 | 30−35
−606%
|
240−250
+606%
|
| PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS | 45−50
−285%
|
170−180
+285%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 30−35
−929%
|
350
+929%
|
| Valorant | 110−120
−518%
|
650−700
+518%
|
Full HD
Epic Preset
| Fortnite | 70−75
−308%
|
300−350
+308%
|
1440p
High Preset
| Counter-Strike 2 | 16−18
−1044%
|
183
+1044%
|
| Counter-Strike: Global Offensive | 95−100
−438%
|
500−550
+438%
|
| Grand Theft Auto V | 20−22
−745%
|
160−170
+745%
|
| Metro Exodus | 14−16
−1247%
|
202
+1247%
|
| PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS | 100−110
−63.6%
|
170−180
+63.6%
|
| Valorant | 130−140
−257%
|
450−500
+257%
|
1440p
Ultra Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 35−40
−460%
|
190−200
+460%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 10−12
−1318%
|
150−160
+1318%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 27−30
−639%
|
200−210
+639%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 30−35
−887%
|
300−350
+887%
|
| Forza Horizon 5 | 21−24
−596%
|
160−170
+596%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 20−22
−1505%
|
321
+1505%
|
1440p
Epic Preset
| Fortnite | 27−30
−439%
|
150−160
+439%
|
4K
High Preset
| Atomic Heart | 10−12
−1064%
|
128
+1064%
|
| Counter-Strike 2 | 5−6
−3380%
|
174
+3380%
|
| Grand Theft Auto V | 24−27
−679%
|
180−190
+679%
|
| Metro Exodus | 9−10
−1756%
|
167
+1756%
|
| The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 16−18
−2124%
|
378
+2124%
|
| Valorant | 65−70
−381%
|
300−350
+381%
|
4K
Ultra Preset
| Battlefield 5 | 18−20
−656%
|
130−140
+656%
|
| Counter-Strike 2 | 5−6
−1000%
|
55
+1000%
|
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 5−6
−1460%
|
75−80
+1460%
|
| Dota 2 | 45−50
−552%
|
300−310
+552%
|
| Far Cry 5 | 12−14
−1208%
|
170−180
+1208%
|
| Forza Horizon 4 | 21−24
−1286%
|
300−350
+1286%
|
| Forza Horizon 5 | 10−11
−600%
|
70−75
+600%
|
| PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS | 12−14
−700%
|
95−100
+700%
|
4K
Epic Preset
| Fortnite | 12−14
−558%
|
75−80
+558%
|
This is how HD 7970 and RTX 5090 compete in popular games:
- RTX 5090 is 614% faster in 900p
- RTX 5090 is 118% faster in 1080p
- RTX 5090 is 675% faster in 1440p
- RTX 5090 is 722% faster in 4K
Here's the range of performance differences observed across popular games:
- in Counter-Strike 2, with 4K resolution and the High Preset, the RTX 5090 is 3380% faster.
All in all, in popular games:
- Without exception, RTX 5090 surpassed HD 7970 in all 61 of our tests.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 13.62 | 100.00 |
| Recency | 22 December 2011 | 30 January 2025 |
| Maximum RAM amount | 6 GB | 32 GB |
| Chip lithography | 28 nm | 5 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 300 Watt | 575 Watt |
HD 7970 has 91.7% lower power consumption.
RTX 5090, on the other hand, has a 634.2% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 13 years, a 433.3% higher maximum VRAM amount, and a 460% more advanced lithography process.
The GeForce RTX 5090 is our recommended choice as it beats the Radeon HD 7970 in performance tests.
Other comparisons
We selected several comparisons of graphics cards with performance close to those reviewed, providing you with more options to consider.
