Radeon R9 280X vs RX 5500 XT

Place in the ranking	236	352
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	48.36	5.56
Power efficiency	12.50	4.15
Architecture	RDNA 1.0 (2019−2020)	GCN 1.0 (2011−2020)
GPU code name	Navi 14	Tahiti
Market segment	Desktop	Desktop
Design	no data	reference
Release date	12 December 2019 (5 years ago)	8 October 2013 (11 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$169	$299

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

RX 5500 XT has 770% better value for money than R9 280X.

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	1408	2048
Core clock speed	1607 MHz	no data
Boost clock speed	1845 MHz	1000 MHz
Number of transistors	6,400 million	4,313 million
Manufacturing process technology	7 nm	28 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	130 Watt	250 Watt
Texture fill rate	162.4	128.0
Floating-point processing power	5.196 TFLOPS	4.096 TFLOPS
ROPs	32	32
TMUs	88	128

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	no data	PCIe 3.0
Interface	PCIe 4.0 x8	PCIe 3.0 x16
Length	180 mm	275 mm
Width	2-slot	2-slot
Supplementary power connectors	1x 8-pin	1 x 6-pin + 1 x 8-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	GDDR6	GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount	8 GB	3 GB
Memory bus width	128 Bit	384 Bit
Memory clock speed	14000 MHz	no data
Memory bandwidth	224.0 GB/s	288 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	1x HDMI, 3x DisplayPort	2x DVI, 1x HDMI, 1x DisplayPort
Eyefinity	-	+
HDMI	+	+
DisplayPort support	-	+

Supported technologies

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

AppAcceleration	-	+
CrossFire	-	+
FreeSync	-	+
HD3D	-	+
LiquidVR	-	+
TressFX	-	+
TrueAudio	-	+
UVD	-	+
DDMA audio	no data	+

API compatibility

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

DirectX	12 (12_1)	DirectX® 12
Shader Model	6.5	5.1
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
OpenCL	2.0	1.2
Vulkan	1.2.131	+

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.

RX 5500 XT 23.70
+56.5%

R9 280X 15.14

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.

RX 5500 XT 9137
+56.5%

R9 280X 5837

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.

RX 5500 XT 19499
+80.7%

R9 280X 10792

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.

RX 5500 XT 68429
+107%

R9 280X 33045

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.

RX 5500 XT 14305
+71.5%

R9 280X 8343

3DMark Cloud Gate GPU

Cloud Gate is an outdated DirectX 11 feature level 10 benchmark that was used for home PCs and basic notebooks. It displays a few scenes of some weird space teleportation device launching spaceships into unknown, using fixed resolution of 1280x720. Just like Ice Storm benchmark, it has been discontinued in January 2020 and replaced by 3DMark Night Raid.

RX 5500 XT 86609
+66.2%

R9 280X 52117

3DMark Ice Storm GPU

Ice Storm Graphics is an obsolete benchmark, part of 3DMark suite. Ice Storm was used to measure entry level laptops and Windows-based tablets performance. It utilizes DirectX 11 feature level 9 to display a battle between two space fleets near a frozen planet in 1280x720 resolution. Discontinued in January 2020, it is now superseded by 3DMark Night Raid.

RX 5500 XT 560812
+96.5%

R9 280X 285376

Unigine Heaven 3.0

This is an old DirectX 11 benchmark using Unigine, a 3D game engine by eponymous Russian company. It displays a fantasy medieval town sprawling over several flying islands. Version 3.0 was released in 2012, and in 2013 it was superseded by Heaven 4.0, which introduced several slight improvements, including a newer version of Unigine.

RX 5500 XT 61298
+64289%

R9 280X 95

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 HD	76 +18.8%	64 −18.8%
1440p	42 +75%	24−27 −75%
4K	24 −29.2%	31 +29.2%

Cost per frame, $

1080p	2.22	4.67
1440p	4.02	12.46
4K	7.04	9.65

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077

78
+225%

24−27

−225%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	50−55 +52.9%	30−35 −52.9%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	72 +188%	24−27 −188%
Battlefield 5	75−80 +59.2%	45−50 −59.2%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	45−50 +60%	30−33 −60%
Cyberpunk 2077	61 +154%	24−27 −154%
Far Cry 5	55−60 +57.1%	35−40 −57.1%
Far Cry New Dawn	60−65 +51.2%	40−45 −51.2%
Forza Horizon 4	140−150 +42.9%	95−100 −42.9%
Hitman 3	64 +121%	27−30 −121%
Horizon Zero Dawn	110−120 +42.9%	75−80 −42.9%
Metro Exodus	132 +159%	50−55 −159%
Red Dead Redemption 2	108 +163%	40−45 −163%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	80−85 +63.3%	45−50 −63.3%
Watch Dogs: Legion	202 +159%	75−80 −159%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	66 +94.1%	30−35 −94.1%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	58 +132%	24−27 −132%
Battlefield 5	75−80 +59.2%	45−50 −59.2%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	45−50 +60%	30−33 −60%
Cyberpunk 2077	45 +87.5%	24−27 −87.5%
Far Cry 5	55−60 +57.1%	35−40 −57.1%
Far Cry New Dawn	60−65 +51.2%	40−45 −51.2%
Forza Horizon 4	140−150 +42.9%	95−100 −42.9%
Hitman 3	62 +114%	27−30 −114%
Horizon Zero Dawn	110−120 +42.9%	75−80 −42.9%
Metro Exodus	94 +84.3%	50−55 −84.3%
Red Dead Redemption 2	60−65 +51.2%	40−45 −51.2%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	108 +120%	45−50 −120%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	50−55 −112%	110 +112%
Watch Dogs: Legion	202 +159%	75−80 −159%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	50−55 +52.9%	30−35 −52.9%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	49 +96%	24−27 −96%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	45−50 +60%	30−33 −60%
Cyberpunk 2077	40 +66.7%	24−27 −66.7%
Far Cry 5	55−60 +57.1%	35−40 −57.1%
Forza Horizon 4	56 −75%	95−100 +75%
Hitman 3	55 +89.7%	27−30 −89.7%
Horizon Zero Dawn	87 +13%	75−80 −13%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	95 +93.9%	45−50 −93.9%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	58 +190%	20 −190%
Watch Dogs: Legion	36 −117%	75−80 +117%

Full HD
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

76
+85.4%

40−45

−85.4%

1440p
High Preset

Battlefield 5	45−50 +55.2%	27−30 −55.2%
Far Cry New Dawn	35−40 +56.5%	21−24 −56.5%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	24−27 +66.7%	14−16 −66.7%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	37 +208%	12−14 −208%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	27−30 +68.8%	16−18 −68.8%
Cyberpunk 2077	20 +150%	8−9 −150%
Far Cry 5	27−30 +58.8%	16−18 −58.8%
Forza Horizon 4	130−140 +70.9%	75−80 −70.9%
Hitman 3	36 +100%	18−20 −100%
Horizon Zero Dawn	65 +110%	30−35 −110%
Metro Exodus	60 +122%	27−30 −122%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	66 +144%	27−30 −144%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	27−30 +81.3%	16−18 −81.3%
Watch Dogs: Legion	184 +97.8%	90−95 −97.8%

1440p
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

49
+96%

24−27

−96%

4K
High Preset

Battlefield 5	21−24 +53.3%	14−16 −53.3%
Far Cry New Dawn	18−20 +63.6%	10−12 −63.6%
Hitman 3	26 +136%	10−12 −136%
Horizon Zero Dawn	120−130 +60.5%	75−80 −60.5%
Metro Exodus	37 +147%	14−16 −147%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	31 +121%	14−16 −121%

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	14−16 +55.6%	9−10 −55.6%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	19 +171%	7−8 −171%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	12−14 +62.5%	8−9 −62.5%
Cyberpunk 2077	8 +300%	2−3 −300%
Far Cry 5	12−14 +62.5%	8−9 −62.5%
Forza Horizon 4	21 +5%	20−22 −5%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	38 +153%	14−16 −153%
Watch Dogs: Legion	14 +133%	6−7 −133%

4K
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

24
+71.4%

14−16

−71.4%

This is how RX 5500 XT and R9 280X compete in popular games:

RX 5500 XT is 19% faster in 1080p
RX 5500 XT is 75% faster in 1440p
R9 280X is 29% faster in 4K

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

in Cyberpunk 2077, with 4K resolution and the Ultra Preset, the RX 5500 XT is 300% faster.
in Watch Dogs: Legion, with 1080p resolution and the Ultra Preset, the R9 280X is 117% faster.

All in all, in popular games:

RX 5500 XT is ahead in 69 tests (96%)
R9 280X is ahead in 3 tests (4%)

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	23.70	15.14
Recency	12 December 2019	8 October 2013
Maximum RAM amount	8 GB	3 GB
Chip lithography	7 nm	28 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	130 Watt	250 Watt

RX 5500 XT has a 56.5% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 6 years, a 166.7% higher maximum VRAM amount, a 300% more advanced lithography process, and 92.3% lower power consumption.

The Radeon RX 5500 XT is our recommended choice as it beats the Radeon R9 280X in performance tests.

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