GeForce GTX 590 vs Radeon HD 5970

When comparing GeForce GTX 590 and Radeon HD 5970, we look primarily at benchmarks and game tests. But it is not only about the numbers. Often you can find third-party models with higher clock speeds, better cooling, or a customizable RGB lighting. Not all of them will have all the features you need. Another thing to consider is the port selection. Most graphics cards have at least one DisplayPort and HDMI interface, but some monitors require DVI. Before you buy, check the TDP of the graphics card - this characteristic will help you estimate the consumption of the graphics card. You may even have to upgrade your PSU to meet its requirements. An important factor when choosing between GeForce GTX 590 and Radeon HD 5970 is the price. Does the additional cost justify the performance hit? Our comparison should help you make the right decision.

Main Specs

  GeForce GTX 590 Radeon HD 5970
Power consumption (TDP) 365 Watt 294 Watt
Interface PCIe 2.0 x16 PCIe 2.0 x16
Supplementary power connectors Two 8-pin 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin
Memory type GDDR5 GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount 3072 MB (1536 MB per GPU) 1 GB
Display Connectors 3x DVI, 1x mini-DisplayPort 2x DVI, 1x mini-DisplayPort
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  • GeForce GTX 590 has 24% more power consumption, than Radeon HD 5970.
  • Both video cards are using PCIe 2.0 x16 interface connection to a motherboard.
  • GeForce GTX 590 has 3071 GB more memory, than Radeon HD 5970.
  • Both cards are used in Desktops.
  • GeForce GTX 590 is build with Fermi architecture, and Radeon HD 5970 - with TeraScale 2.
  • Core clock speed of GeForce GTX 590 is 490 MHz higher, than Radeon HD 5970.
  • GeForce GTX 590 and Radeon HD 5970 are manufactured by 40 nm process technology.
  • Radeon HD 5970 is 294 mm longer, than GeForce GTX 590.
  • Memory clock speed of Radeon HD 5970 is 2293 MHz higher, than GeForce GTX 590.

Game benchmarks

high / 1080p 16−18 10−12
ultra / 1080p 10−11 6−7
QHD / 1440p 4−5 1−2
low / 720p 35−40 24−27
medium / 1080p 21−24 14−16
The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 590 in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 63% more, than Radeon HD 5970.

Full Specs

  GeForce GTX 590 Radeon HD 5970
Architecture Fermi TeraScale 2
Code name GF110 Hemlock
Type Desktop Desktop
Release date 24 March 2011 18 November 2009
Pipelines 1024 1600
Core clock speed 1215 MHz 725 MHz
Transistor count 3,000 million 2,154 million
Manufacturing process technology 40 nm 40 nm
Texture fill rate 77.7 billion/sec 58.00
Floating-point performance 2x 1,244.2 gflops 2x 2,320.0 gflops
Length 11" (280 mm) (27.9 cm) 305 mm
Memory bus width 768-bit (384-bit per GPU) 256 Bit
Memory clock speed 1707 MHz 4000 MHz
Memory bandwidth 327.7 GB/s 128.0 GB/s
Shared memory -
DirectX 12 (11_0) 11.2 (11_0)
Shader Model 5.1 5.0
OpenGL 4.2 4.4
OpenCL 1.1 1.2
Vulkan N/A N/A
CUDA +
CUDA cores 1024
Bus support 16x PCI-E 2.0
Height 4.376" (111 mm) (11.1 cm)
SLI options +
Multi monitor support +
HDMI +
Maximum VGA resolution 2048x1536
Audio input for HDMI Internal
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256) 107 Mh/s
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