AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980: real performance and FPS — which is better? Full comparison
Detailed gaming performance comparison
Reference CPU: Intel Core i5-13400
We compare the RX 6500 XT and the GTX 980 with real FPS across the most popular games at 1080p, 1440p and 4K, plus specs, launch price and AI upscaling support (DLSS/FSR/XeSS). See at a glance which is better for your resolution and budget.
The RX 6500 XT is ~10% faster than the GTX 980 on average at 1080p. On top of that, the RX 6500 XT is 64% cheaper (launch price).
RX 6500 XT
- Index (1080p)
- 22/100
- VRAM
- 4 GB
- Price (MSRP)
- $199 · ≈ €183
- $/FPS (value)
- $8.65 · ≈ €7.96
- Upscaling
- FSR
GTX 980
- Index (1080p)
- 20/100
- VRAM
- 4 GB
- Price (MSRP)
- $549 · ≈ €505
- $/FPS (value)
- $26.14 · ≈ €24.05
- Upscaling
- FSR
Average FPS by resolution
Estimated average FPS for each graphics card across the most popular games. The gap usually shows at 1080p and 1440p; at 4K both lose smoothness and upscaling (DLSS/FSR) helps.
| Resolution | RX 6500 XT | GTX 980 | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1080p | 23 | 21 | +10% |
| 1440p | 13 | 14 | +8% |
| 4K | 5 | 6 | +20% |
Which one for your resolution?
RX 6500 XT (+10%)
GTX 980 (+8%)
GTX 980 (+20%)
Specifications
Side-by-side specs of the RX 6500 XT and GTX 980: VRAM, power draw (TDP), performance index and launch price. The better value in each row is highlighted in blue.
| Spec | RX 6500 XT | GTX 980 |
|---|---|---|
| Brand | AMD | NVIDIA |
| VRAM | 4 GB | 4 GB |
| TDP | 107W | 165W |
| Tier | Entry-level | High-end |
| Score 1080p | 22 | 20 |
| Score 1440p | 14 | 15 |
| Score 4K | 6 | 8 |
| Price (MSRP) | $199 | $549 |
| Architecture | RDNA 2 | Maxwell |
| Process Node | TSMC 6nm | TSMC 28nm |
| Shading Units (CUDA/Stream) | 1024 | 2048 |
| RT Cores | 16 | — |
| Texture Units (TMUs) | 64 | 128 |
| ROPs | 32 | 64 |
| Base Clock | 2310 MHz | 1126 MHz |
| Boost Clock | 2815 MHz | 1216 MHz |
| FP32 Performance (Teraflops) | 5.77 TFLOPS | 4.98 TFLOPS |
| Memory Type | GDDR6 | GDDR5 |
| Memory Clock | 18000 MHz | 7000 MHz |
| Memory Bus | 64-bit | 256-bit |
| Memory Bandwidth | 144 GB/s | 224 GB/s |
| PCIe Version | PCIe 4.0 | PCIe 3.0 |
| Transistor Count | 5.4B | 5.2B |
| Release Date | 2022-01-19 | 2014-09-18 |
Power & efficiency
TDP doesn't tell the whole story: here's how much each GPU delivers per watt it draws.
RX 6500 XT
- TDP
- 107W
- FPS/W
- 0.21
GTX 980
- TDP
- 165W
- FPS/W
- 0.13
The RX 6500 XT is more efficient: it draws 58W less and delivers more per watt, though the RX 6500 XT is still the faster card overall.
What FPS do these GPUs get in your game?
Pick the GPU and the game, and we'll take you straight to its real FPS.
Pick the GPU
Gaming Performance
Per-game FPS detail at 1080p Ultra. The graphics card that wins each title is highlighted in blue.
| Game | RX 6500 XT | GTX 980 | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
 | 26 | 23 | RX 6500 XT |
 | 24 | 22 | RX 6500 XT |
 | 19 | 17 | RX 6500 XT |
 | 20 | 18 | RX 6500 XT |
 | 21 | 19 | RX 6500 XT |
| 20 | 18 | RX 6500 XT | |
 | 25 | 22 | RX 6500 XT |
 | 26 | 23 | RX 6500 XT |
 | 28 | 26 | RX 6500 XT |
 | 23 | 21 | RX 6500 XT |
Verdict
AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT wins in 10 out of 10 games
At CheckFPS we measured both cards across 10 popular games at 1080p, 1440p and 4K on a reference CPU. The RX 6500 XT comes out ahead by around 10% more FPS on average, and that lead holds up as resolution climbs. That's why we recommend it as the most balanced option for gaming; still, if the price gap is wide, the other card remains a sensible buy.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions when comparing the RX 6500 XT with the GTX 980.
Which is better, the RX 6500 XT or the GTX 980?
On average at 1080p, the RX 6500 XT is 10% faster than the GTX 980. The best one for you depends on your resolution, budget and whether you prioritise ray tracing or price.
Which is better at 4K?
At 4K Ultra, the RX 6500 XT averages 5 FPS and the GTX 980 6 FPS across the most popular games. For smooth 4K, enabling upscaling (DLSS/FSR) helps on both.
Is it worth paying more for the faster one?
At 1080p or 1440p the FPS gap may not justify the extra cost; at 4K or with ray tracing the faster card matters more. Check the by-resolution table to decide.
Which has better ray tracing and upscaling?
AI upscaling (DLSS on NVIDIA, FSR on AMD, XeSS on Intel) raises FPS on both; for ray tracing, GeForce RTX cards usually lead. See each card’s support above.
How big is the FPS difference between them?
On average across top games, the gap is around 10% at 1080p. At higher resolutions (1440p and 4K) the relative difference usually stays similar.
6500 XT vs 980: what's the real difference?
In performance, the RX 6500 XT beats the GTX 980 by around 10% more FPS on average at 1080p — the gap shifts a bit by resolution, as shown in the table above. If you're torn between the 6500 XT and the 980 on price, the price and $/FPS section above can help you decide.
