GeForce GTX 860M vs Radeon R9 290X

Find out if it is worth upgrading your current GPU setup by comparing GeForce GTX 860M and Radeon R9 290X. Here you can take a closer look at graphics cards specs, such as core clock speed, memory type and size, display connectors, etc. The price, overall benchmark and gaming performances are usually defining factors when it comes to choosing between GeForce GTX 860M and Radeon R9 290X. Make sure that the graphics card has compatible dimensions and will properly fit in your new or current computer case. Also these graphics cards may have different system power recommendations, so take that into consideration and upgrade your PSU if necessary.

GeForce GTX 860M is a Laptop Graphics Card

Note: GeForce GTX 860M is only used in laptop graphics. It has lower GPU clock speed compared to the desktop variant, which results in lower power consumption, but also 10-30% lower gaming performance. Check available laptop models with GeForce GTX 860M here:

Main Specs

  GeForce GTX 860M Radeon R9 290X
Power consumption (TDP) 75 Watt 250 Watt
Interface MXM-B (3.0) PCIe 3.0 x16
Supplementary power connectors None 1 x 6-pin + 1 x 8-pin
Memory type GDDR5 GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount 4 GB 4 GB
Display Connectors No outputs 2x DVI, 1x HDMI, 1x DisplayPort
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  • Radeon R9 290X has 233% more power consumption, than GeForce GTX 860M.
  • GeForce GTX 860M is connected by MXM-B (3.0), and Radeon R9 290X uses PCIe 3.0 x16 interface.
  • GeForce GTX 860M and Radeon R9 290X have maximum RAM of 4 GB.
  • GeForce GTX 860M is used in Laptops, and Radeon R9 290X - in Desktops.
  • GeForce GTX 860M is build with Maxwell architecture, and Radeon R9 290X - with GCN.
  • GeForce GTX 860M and Radeon R9 290X are manufactured by 28 nm process technology.

Game benchmarks

high / 1080p 16−18 35−40
ultra / 1080p 10−11 24−27
QHD / 1440p 5−6 18−20
4K / 2160p 4−5 10−11
low / 720p 30−35 60−65
medium / 1080p 21−24 45−50
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 290X in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 120% more, than GeForce GTX 860M.

Full Specs

  GeForce GTX 860M Radeon R9 290X
Architecture Maxwell GCN
Code name N15P-GX Hawaii XT
Type Laptop Desktop
Release date 12 March 2014 24 October 2013
Pipelines 640 2816
Core clock speed 797 MHz
Boost Clock 915 MHz 947 MHz
Transistor count 1,870 million 6,200 million
Manufacturing process technology 28 nm 28 nm
Texture fill rate 43.40 176.0
Floating-point performance 1,389 gflops 5,632 gflops
Length 275 mm
Memory bus width 128 Bit 512 Bit
Memory clock speed 1250 MHz
Memory bandwidth 80.0 GB/s 320 GB/s
Shared memory - -
DirectX 12 (11_0)
Shader Model 5.1 6.3
OpenGL 4.5 4.6
OpenCL 1.1 2.0
Vulkan 1.1.126 +
CUDA +
Monero / XMR (CryptoNight) 0.76 kh/s
FreeSync +
CUDA cores 1152 or 640
Bus support PCI Express 2.0, PCI Express 3.0 PCIe 3.0
SLI options +
HDMI + +
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256) 163 Mh/s 623 Mh/s
Laptop size medium sized
Standard memory configuration GDDR5
eDP 1.2 signal support Up to 3840x2160
LVDS signal support Up to 1920x1200
DisplayPort Multimode (DP++) support Up to 3840x2160
HDCP content protection +
7.1 channel HD audio on HDMI +
TrueHD and DTS-HD audio bitstreaming +
H.264, VC1, MPEG2 1080p video decoder +
Optimus +
Eyefinity +
HD3D +
TrueAudio +
Design reference
DisplayPort support +
CrossFire +
DDMA audio +
Decred / DCR (Decred) 1.07 Gh/s
Ethereum / ETH (DaggerHashimoto) 25.75 Mh/s
Zcash / ZEC (Equihash) 350 Sol/s
AppAcceleration +
LiquidVR +
TressFX +
UVD +
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