Radeon R9 280 vs Radeon R9 390X

In this comparison between Radeon R9 280 and Radeon R9 390X 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 R9 280 will be the best choice, for others Radeon R9 390X will be their preference. Study the comparison tables below and make your choice.

Radeon R9 280 Check Price

Radeon R9 390X Check Price

Main Specs

	Radeon R9 280	Radeon R9 390X
Power consumption (TDP)	200 Watt	275 Watt
Interface	PCIe 3.0 x16	PCIe 3.0 x16
Supplementary power connectors	1 x 6-pin + 1 x 8-pin	1 x 6-pin, 1 x 8-pin
Memory type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount	3 GB
Display Connectors	2x DVI, 1x HDMI, 2x mini-DisplayPort	2x DVI, 1x HDMI, 1x DisplayPort
	Check Price	Check Price

Radeon R9 390X has 37% more power consumption, than Radeon R9 280.
Both video cards are using PCIe 3.0 x16 interface connection to a motherboard.
Both cards are used in Desktops.
Radeon R9 280 is build with GCN 1.0 architecture, and Radeon R9 390X - with GCN.
Radeon R9 280 and Radeon R9 390X are manufactured by 28 nm process technology.
Both graphics cards are the same length of 275 mm.
Memory clock speed of Radeon R9 280 is 200 MHz higher, than Radeon R9 390X.

Game benchmarks


high / 1080p	35−40	50−55
ultra / 1080p	21−24	30−35
QHD / 1440p	16−18	24−27
4K / 2160p	10−11	14−16
low / 720p	60−65	75−80
medium / 1080p	40−45	55−60
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 390X in Assassin's Creed Odyssey is 34% more, than Radeon R9 280.
high / 1080p	55−60	75−80
ultra / 1080p	45−50	65−70
QHD / 1440p	35−40	50−55
4K / 2160p	18−20	27−30
low / 720p	100−110	130−140
medium / 1080p	60−65	85−90
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 390X in Battlefield 5 is 37% more, than Radeon R9 280.
low / 768p	50−55	45−50
QHD / 1440p	0−1	45−50
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in Call of Duty: Warzone is 10% more, than Radeon R9 390X.
low / 768p	250−260	250−260
medium / 768p	220−230	230−240
ultra / 1080p	180−190	−
QHD / 1440p	110−120	150−160
4K / 2160p	70−75	100−110
high / 768p	210−220	220−230
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 390X in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is 10% more, than Radeon R9 280.
low / 768p	60−65	70−75
medium / 1080p	55−60	50−55
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 390X in Cyberpunk 2077 is 3% more, than Radeon R9 280.
low / 768p	120−130	120−130
medium / 768p	110−120	110−120
ultra / 1080p	100−110	110−120
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 390X in Dota 2 is 2% more, than Radeon R9 280.
high / 1080p	45−50	60−65
ultra / 1080p	40−45	60−65
QHD / 1440p	27−30	40−45
4K / 2160p	14−16	21−24
low / 720p	80−85	100−110
medium / 1080p	45−50	65−70
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 390X in Far Cry 5 is 39% more, than Radeon R9 280.
high / 1080p	60−65	90−95
ultra / 1080p	45−50	70−75
QHD / 1440p	27−30	45−50
4K / 2160p	27−30	21−24
low / 720p	180−190	210−220
medium / 1080p	110−120	140−150
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 390X in Fortnite is 28% more, than Radeon R9 280.
high / 1080p	60−65	80−85
ultra / 1080p	45−50	65−70
QHD / 1440p	30−35	45−50
4K / 2160p	24−27	30−35
low / 720p	100−110	130−140
medium / 1080p	65−70	90−95
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 390X in Forza Horizon 4 is 35% more, than Radeon R9 280.
low / 768p	140−150	160−170
medium / 768p	120−130	150−160
high / 1080p	70−75	95−100
ultra / 1080p	30−35	45−50
QHD / 1440p	21−24	35−40
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 390X in Grand Theft Auto V is 26% more, than Radeon R9 280.
high / 1080p	24−27	35−40
ultra / 1080p	20−22	30−35
QHD / 1440p	16−18	24−27
4K / 2160p	8−9	14−16
low / 720p	65−70	90−95
medium / 1080p	30−35	50−55
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 390X in Metro Exodus is 50% more, than Radeon R9 280.
low / 768p	130−140	120−130
medium / 1080p	120−130	−
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 280 in Minecraft is 8% more, than Radeon R9 390X.
high / 1080p	−	75−80
ultra / 1080p	14−16	50−55
4K / 2160p	−	18−20
low / 720p	100−110	120−130
medium / 1080p	18−20	85−90
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 390X in PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS is 91% more, than Radeon R9 280.
high / 1080p	24−27	35−40
ultra / 1080p	16−18	21−24
QHD / 1440p	10−11	16−18
4K / 2160p	7−8	10−11
low / 720p	65−70	90−95
medium / 1080p	35−40	50−55
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 390X in Red Dead Redemption 2 is 40% more, than Radeon R9 280.
low / 768p	130−140	180−190
medium / 768p	85−90	120−130
high / 1080p	45−50	70−75
ultra / 1080p	24−27	35−40
4K / 2160p	16−18	24−27
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 390X in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is 43% more, than Radeon R9 280.
low / 768p	90−95	120−130
medium / 768p	60−65	−
ultra / 1080p	50−55	65−70
high / 768p	60−65	120−130
The average gaming FPS of Radeon R9 390X in World of Tanks is 52% more, than Radeon R9 280.

Full Specs

	Radeon R9 280	Radeon R9 390X
Architecture	GCN 1.0	GCN
Code name	Tahiti	Grenada XT
Type	Desktop	Desktop
Release date	4 March 2014	16 June 2015
Pipelines	1792	2816
Boost Clock	933 MHz	1050 MHz
Transistor count	4,313 million	6,200 million
Manufacturing process technology	28 nm	28 nm
Texture fill rate	104.5	184.8
Floating-point performance	3,344 gflops	5,914 gflops
Length	275 mm	275 mm
Memory bus width	384 Bit	512 Bit
Memory clock speed	1250 MHz	1050 MHz
Memory bandwidth	240 GB/s	384 GB/s
Shared memory		-
Shader Model	5.1	6.3
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
OpenCL	1.2	2.0
Vulkan	+	+
FreeSync	+	+
Bus support	PCIe 3.0	PCIe 3.0
HDMI	+	+
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256)	408 Mh/s	684 Mh/s
Eyefinity	+	+
HD3D	+
PowerTune		+
TrueAudio	+	+
Mantle		+
Design	reference	reference
Bridgeless CrossFire		+
Number of Eyefinity displays		6
DisplayPort support		+
CrossFire	+	+
VCE		+
DDMA audio	+	+
Ethereum / ETH (DaggerHashimoto)	21.5 Mh/s	27.5 Mh/s
High bandwidth memory (HBM)		-
LiquidVR	+
TressFX	+
UVD	+
	Check Price	Check Price

Radeon R9 280 vs Radeon R9 390X

Main Specs

Game benchmarks

Full Specs

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