GeForce GTX 980M vs Radeon HD 7870 XT
When comparing GeForce GTX 980M and Radeon HD 7870 XT, 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 980M and Radeon HD 7870 XT is the price. Does the additional cost justify the performance hit? Our comparison should help you make the right decision.
Radeon HD 7870 XT
GeForce GTX 980M is a Laptop Graphics Card
Note: GeForce GTX 980M 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 980M here:
Main Specs
| GeForce GTX 980M | Radeon HD 7870 XT | |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 185 Watt | |
| Interface | MXM-B (3.0) | PCIe 3.0 x16 |
| Supplementary power connectors | None | 2x 6-pin |
| Memory type | GDDR5 | GDDR5 |
| Maximum RAM amount | 8 GB | 2 GB |
| Display Connectors | No outputs | 1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 2x mini-DisplayPort |
| Check Price |
- GeForce GTX 980M is connected by MXM-B (3.0), and Radeon HD 7870 XT uses PCIe 3.0 x16 interface.
- GeForce GTX 980M has 6 GB more memory, than Radeon HD 7870 XT.
- GeForce GTX 980M is used in Laptops, and Radeon HD 7870 XT - in Desktops.
- GeForce GTX 980M is build with Maxwell architecture, and Radeon HD 7870 XT - with GCN 1.0.
- Core clock speed of GeForce GTX 980M is 113 MHz higher, than Radeon HD 7870 XT.
- GeForce GTX 980M and Radeon HD 7870 XT are manufactured by 28 nm process technology.
- Memory clock speed of Radeon HD 7870 XT is 3500 MHz higher, than GeForce GTX 980M.
Game benchmarks
| high / 1080p | 35−40 | 35−40 |
| ultra / 1080p | 24−27 | 21−24 |
| QHD / 1440p | 18−20 | 16−18 |
| 4K / 2160p | 10−11 | 10−11 |
| low / 720p | 60−65 | 60−65 |
| medium / 1080p | 45−50 | 40−45 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 980M in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 3% more, than Radeon HD 7870 XT. | ||
| high / 1080p | 55−60 | 55−60 |
| ultra / 1080p | 50−55 | 45−50 |
| QHD / 1440p | 35−40 | 35−40 |
| 4K / 2160p | 18−20 | 18−20 |
| low / 720p | 110−120 | 100−110 |
| medium / 1080p | 65−70 | 60−65 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 980M in Battlefield 5 is 7% more, than Radeon HD 7870 XT. | ||
| low / 768p | 50−55 | 50−55 |
| QHD / 1440p | 0−1 | 0−1 |
| GeForce GTX 980M and Radeon HD 7870 XT have the same average FPS in Call of Duty: Warzone. | ||
| low / 768p | 250−260 | 250−260 |
| medium / 768p | 220−230 | 220−230 |
| ultra / 1080p | 180−190 | 180−190 |
| QHD / 1440p | 110−120 | 110−120 |
| 4K / 2160p | 70−75 | 70−75 |
| high / 768p | 210−220 | 210−220 |
| GeForce GTX 980M and Radeon HD 7870 XT have the same average FPS in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. | ||
| low / 768p | 60−65 | 60−65 |
| medium / 1080p | 55−60 | 55−60 |
| GeForce GTX 980M and Radeon HD 7870 XT have the same average FPS in Cyberpunk 2077. | ||
| low / 768p | 120−130 | 120−130 |
| medium / 768p | 110−120 | 110−120 |
| ultra / 1080p | 100−110 | 100−110 |
| GeForce GTX 980M and Radeon HD 7870 XT have the same average FPS in Dota 2. | ||
| high / 1080p | 45−50 | 45−50 |
| ultra / 1080p | 45−50 | 40−45 |
| QHD / 1440p | 30−35 | 27−30 |
| 4K / 2160p | 16−18 | 14−16 |
| low / 720p | 85−90 | 80−85 |
| medium / 1080p | 50−55 | 45−50 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 980M in Far Cry 5 is 9% more, than Radeon HD 7870 XT. | ||
| high / 1080p | 65−70 | 60−65 |
| ultra / 1080p | 50−55 | 45−50 |
| QHD / 1440p | 30−33 | 27−30 |
| 4K / 2160p | 27−30 | 27−30 |
| low / 720p | 180−190 | 180−190 |
| medium / 1080p | 120−130 | 110−120 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 980M in Fortnite is 5% more, than Radeon HD 7870 XT. | ||
| high / 1080p | 60−65 | 60−65 |
| ultra / 1080p | 45−50 | 45−50 |
| QHD / 1440p | 35−40 | 30−35 |
| 4K / 2160p | 24−27 | 24−27 |
| low / 720p | 110−120 | 100−110 |
| medium / 1080p | 70−75 | 65−70 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 980M in Forza Horizon 4 is 7% more, than Radeon HD 7870 XT. | ||
| low / 768p | 140−150 | 140−150 |
| medium / 768p | 130−140 | 120−130 |
| high / 1080p | 75−80 | 70−75 |
| ultra / 1080p | 30−35 | 30−35 |
| QHD / 1440p | 24−27 | 21−24 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 980M in Grand Theft Auto V is 5% more, than Radeon HD 7870 XT. | ||
| high / 1080p | 27−30 | 24−27 |
| ultra / 1080p | 21−24 | 20−22 |
| QHD / 1440p | 18−20 | 16−18 |
| 4K / 2160p | 9−10 | 8−9 |
| low / 720p | 70−75 | 65−70 |
| medium / 1080p | 35−40 | 30−35 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 980M in Metro Exodus is 10% more, than Radeon HD 7870 XT. | ||
| low / 768p | 130−140 | 130−140 |
| medium / 1080p | 120−130 | 120−130 |
| GeForce GTX 980M and Radeon HD 7870 XT have the same average FPS in Minecraft. | ||
| ultra / 1080p | 14−16 | 14−16 |
| low / 720p | 100−110 | 100−110 |
| medium / 1080p | 18−20 | 18−20 |
| GeForce GTX 980M and Radeon HD 7870 XT have the same average FPS in PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS. | ||
| high / 1080p | 27−30 | 24−27 |
| ultra / 1080p | 16−18 | 16−18 |
| QHD / 1440p | 12−14 | 10−11 |
| 4K / 2160p | 8−9 | 7−8 |
| low / 720p | 70−75 | 65−70 |
| medium / 1080p | 35−40 | 35−40 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 980M in Red Dead Redemption 2 is 7% more, than Radeon HD 7870 XT. | ||
| low / 768p | 140−150 | 130−140 |
| medium / 768p | 90−95 | 85−90 |
| high / 1080p | 50−55 | 45−50 |
| ultra / 1080p | 27−30 | 24−27 |
| 4K / 2160p | 16−18 | 16−18 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 980M in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is 8% more, than Radeon HD 7870 XT. | ||
| low / 768p | 90−95 | 90−95 |
| medium / 768p | 60−65 | 60−65 |
| ultra / 1080p | 55−60 | 50−55 |
| high / 768p | − | 60−65 |
| The average gaming FPS of GeForce GTX 980M in World of Tanks is 1% more, than Radeon HD 7870 XT. | ||
Full Specs
| GeForce GTX 980M | Radeon HD 7870 XT | |
| Architecture | Maxwell | GCN 1.0 |
| Code name | GM204 | Tahiti |
| Type | Laptop | Desktop |
| Release date | 7 October 2014 | 19 November 2012 |
| Pipelines | 1536 | 1536 |
| Core clock speed | 1038 MHz | 925 MHz |
| Boost Clock | 1127 MHz | 975 MHz |
| Transistor count | 5,200 million | 4,313 million |
| Manufacturing process technology | 28 nm | 28 nm |
| Texture fill rate | 51.84 | 93.60 |
| Floating-point performance | 3,462 gflops | 2,995 gflops |
| Length | 267 mm | |
| Memory bus width | 256 Bit | 256 Bit |
| Memory clock speed | 2500 MHz | 6000 MHz |
| Memory bandwidth | 160 GB/s | 192.0 GB/s |
| Shared memory | - | |
| G-SYNC support | + | |
| DirectX | 12 (12_1) | 12 (11_1) |
| Shader Model | 6.4 | 5.1 |
| OpenGL | 4.5 | 4.6 |
| OpenCL | 1.1 | 1.2 |
| Vulkan | 1.1.126 | 1.2.131 |
| CUDA | + | |
| CUDA cores | 1536 | |
| Bus support | PCI Express 3.0 | |
| SLI options | + | |
| HDMI | + | |
| Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256) | 383 Mh/s | 346 Mh/s |
| Laptop size | large | |
| DisplayPort Multimode (DP++) support | + | |
| H.264, VC1, MPEG2 1080p video decoder | + | |
| Optimus | + | |
| Ethereum / ETH (DaggerHashimoto) | 14.5 Mh/s | |
| GameStream | + | |
| GeForce ShadowPlay | + | |
| GPU Boost | 2.0 | |
| GameWorks | + | |
| BatteryBoost | + | |
| Check Price |