Radeon 550X vs Radeon R9 280

In this comparison between Radeon 550X and Radeon R9 280 you will find out which graphics card performs better in today's games. Bear in mind that third-party versions may have more efficient cooling and higher clock speeds. This will increase cards' performance, though not by much. In addition to raw power you should also take into account the dimensions. Thicker models simply will not fit into a small mini-ITX case. The resolution of your monitor also affects the choice, since 4K gameplay requires a more powerful GPU. And don't overspend on the graphics card. Other parts of your build may also need to be upgraded, save some money for the CPU or power supply. For some people Radeon 550X will be the best choice, for others Radeon R9 280 will be their preference. Study the comparison tables below and make your choice.

Radeon 550X

Radeon R9 280 Check Price

Main Specs

	Radeon 550X	Radeon R9 280
Power consumption (TDP)	50 Watt	200 Watt
Interface	PCIe 3.0 x8	PCIe 3.0 x16
Supplementary power connectors	None	1 x 6-pin + 1 x 8-pin
Memory type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount	2 GB	3 GB
Display Connectors	1x DVI, 1x HDMI, 1x DisplayPort	2x DVI, 1x HDMI, 2x mini-DisplayPort
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Radeon R9 280 has 300% more power consumption, than Radeon 550X.
Radeon 550X is connected by PCIe 3.0 x8, and Radeon R9 280 uses PCIe 3.0 x16 interface.
Radeon R9 280 has 1 GB more memory, than Radeon 550X.
Both cards are used in Desktops.
Radeon 550X is build with GCN 4.0 architecture, and Radeon R9 280 - with GCN 1.0.
Radeon 550X is manufactured by 14 nm process technology, and Radeon R9 280 - by 28 nm process technology.
Radeon R9 280 is 130 mm longer, than Radeon 550X.
Memory clock speed of Radeon 550X is 5750 MHz higher, than Radeon R9 280.

Game benchmarks


high / 1080p	7−8	35−40
ultra / 1080p	4−5	21−24
QHD / 1440p	0−1	16−18
4K / 2160p	−	10−11
low / 720p	16−18	60−65
medium / 1080p	9−10	40−45
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 355% more, than Radeon 550X.
high / 1080p	12−14	55−60
ultra / 1080p	10−12	45−50
QHD / 1440p	0−1	35−40
4K / 2160p	−	18−20
low / 720p	24−27	100−110
medium / 1080p	12−14	60−65
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in Battlefield 5 is 353% more, than Radeon 550X.
low / 768p	45−50	50−55
high / 1080p	45−50	−
QHD / 1440p	0−1	0−1
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in Call of Duty: Warzone is 10% more, than Radeon 550X.
low / 768p	140−150	250−260
medium / 768p	110−120	220−230
ultra / 1080p	55−60	180−190
QHD / 1440p	30−35	110−120
4K / 2160p	27−30	70−75
high / 768p	85−90	210−220
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is 129% more, than Radeon 550X.
low / 768p	55−60	60−65
ultra / 1080p	20−22	−
medium / 1080p	45−50	55−60
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in Cyberpunk 2077 is 15% more, than Radeon 550X.
low / 768p	80−85	120−130
medium / 768p	60−65	110−120
ultra / 1080p	35−40	100−110
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in Dota 2 is 91% more, than Radeon 550X.
high / 1080p	8−9	45−50
ultra / 1080p	8−9	40−45
QHD / 1440p	−	27−30
4K / 2160p	4−5	14−16
low / 720p	20−22	80−85
medium / 1080p	9−10	45−50
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in Far Cry 5 is 370% more, than Radeon 550X.
high / 1080p	14−16	60−65
ultra / 1080p	10−12	45−50
QHD / 1440p	−	27−30
4K / 2160p	−	27−30
low / 720p	60−65	180−190
medium / 1080p	24−27	110−120
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in Fortnite is 264% more, than Radeon 550X.
high / 1080p	12−14	60−65
ultra / 1080p	10−12	45−50
QHD / 1440p	1−2	30−35
4K / 2160p	−	24−27
low / 720p	27−30	100−110
medium / 1080p	14−16	65−70
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in Forza Horizon 4 is 384% more, than Radeon 550X.
low / 768p	55−60	140−150
medium / 768p	45−50	120−130
high / 1080p	12−14	70−75
ultra / 1080p	6−7	30−35
QHD / 1440p	0−1	21−24
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in Grand Theft Auto V is 200% more, than Radeon 550X.
high / 1080p	5−6	24−27
ultra / 1080p	3−4	20−22
QHD / 1440p	−	16−18
4K / 2160p	0−1	8−9
low / 720p	12−14	65−70
medium / 1080p	7−8	30−35
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in Metro Exodus is 414% more, than Radeon 550X.
low / 768p	95−100	130−140
high / 1080p	90−95	−
ultra / 1080p	80−85	−
medium / 1080p	90−95	120−130
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in Minecraft is 36% more, than Radeon 550X.
high / 1080p	16−18	−
ultra / 1080p	14−16	14−16
low / 720p	30−35	100−110
medium / 1080p	18−20	18−20
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS is 109% more, than Radeon 550X.
high / 1080p	−	24−27
ultra / 1080p	7−8	16−18
QHD / 1440p	0−1	10−11
4K / 2160p	−	7−8
low / 720p	12−14	65−70
medium / 1080p	10−12	35−40
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in Red Dead Redemption 2 is 300% more, than Radeon 550X.
low / 768p	24−27	130−140
medium / 768p	16−18	85−90
high / 1080p	10−11	45−50
ultra / 1080p	6−7	24−27
4K / 2160p	6−7	16−18
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is 376% more, than Radeon 550X.
low / 768p	85−90	90−95
medium / 768p	45−50	60−65
ultra / 1080p	20−22	50−55
high / 768p	35−40	60−65
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in World of Tanks is 39% more, than Radeon 550X.

Full Specs

	Radeon 550X	Radeon R9 280
Architecture	GCN 4.0	GCN 1.0
Code name	Lexa	Tahiti
Type	Desktop	Desktop
Release date	27 March 2019	4 March 2014
Pipelines	512	1792
Core clock speed	1082 MHz
Boost Clock	1218 MHz	933 MHz
Transistor count	2,200 million	4,313 million
Manufacturing process technology	14 nm	28 nm
Texture fill rate	38.98	104.5
Floating-point performance		3,344 gflops
Length	145 mm	275 mm
Memory bus width	128 Bit	384 Bit
Memory clock speed	7000 MHz	1250 MHz
Memory bandwidth	112.0 GB/s	240 GB/s
DirectX	12 (12_0)
Shader Model	6.4	5.1
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
OpenCL	2.0	1.2
Vulkan	1.2.131	+
FreeSync		+
Bus support		PCIe 3.0
HDMI		+
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256)		408 Mh/s
Eyefinity		+
HD3D		+
TrueAudio		+
Design		reference
CrossFire		+
DDMA audio		+
Ethereum / ETH (DaggerHashimoto)		21.5 Mh/s
LiquidVR		+
TressFX		+
UVD		+
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Radeon 550X vs Radeon R9 280

Main Specs

Game benchmarks

Full Specs

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