GeForce GTX 960 vs Radeon R9 390
The Radeon R9 390 is a massive performance leap — leading the GeForce GTX 960 by roughly 67% in our performance index. The GeForce GTX 960, however, delivers more performance per dollar — $256 EUR cheaper.
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Radeon R9 390 vs GeForce GTX 960: In-Depth Breakdown
Performance: Radeon R9 390 vs GeForce GTX 960
The Radeon R9 390 is dramatically faster, around 67% ahead of the GeForce GTX 960. Both cards sit in the same broad class, well suited to entry-level 1080p.
Price & Value
On price, expect to pay $326 EUR for the GeForce GTX 960 versus $583 EUR for the Radeon R9 390. Despite being slower, the GeForce GTX 960 offers the better performance-per-dollar (~7% better value), so budget-focused buyers should weigh it carefully. The GeForce GTX 960 still sits about $127 EUR above its $199 EUR MSRP. The Radeon R9 390 still sits about $254 EUR above its $329 EUR MSRP.
Power & Efficiency
The GeForce GTX 960 draws just 120W versus 275W for the Radeon R9 390, and it also delivers more performance per watt — so it runs cooler and quieter and needs less PSU headroom.
VRAM & Future-Proofing
With 8GB against 2GB, the Radeon R9 390 has more headroom for 4K textures and memory-hungry creative/AI tasks where the GeForce GTX 960's 2GB can fall short.
Features & Ecosystem
Beyond raw numbers, the GeForce GTX 960 brings NVIDIA DLSS upscaling/frame generation and stronger ray tracing, while the Radeon R9 390 offers AMD FSR upscaling and strong rasterization value. If you lean on upscaling or ray tracing, that ecosystem difference can matter as much as the frame-rate gap.
Which should you buy: GeForce GTX 960 or Radeon R9 390?
Choose the Radeon R9 390 if you want the most performance and can absorb the higher price. If you're optimizing for value, the GeForce GTX 960 stretches your money further for only slightly lower performance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Radeon R9 390 better than the GeForce GTX 960?
Which is better for 4K gaming, the GeForce GTX 960 or the Radeon R9 390?
Is the Radeon R9 390 worth the extra $256 EUR over the GeForce GTX 960?
Does the Radeon R9 390 have enough VRAM advantage to matter?
Which should you buy: GeForce GTX 960 or Radeon R9 390?
Technical Specifications Comparison
Architecture & Cores
| Specification | GeForce GTX 960 | Radeon R9 390 |
|---|---|---|
| Architecture | Maxwell | GCN 2.0 |
| Process Node | TSMC 28nm | TSMC 28nm |
| CUDA Cores (CUDA Cores / Stream Processors) | 1,024 | 2,560✓ |
Clock Speeds
| Specification | GeForce GTX 960 | Radeon R9 390 |
|---|---|---|
| Base Clock | 1,127 MHz✓ | 1,000 MHz |
| Boost Clock | 1,178 MHz✓ | 1,000 MHz |
Memory
| Specification | GeForce GTX 960 | Radeon R9 390 |
|---|---|---|
| VRAM Capacity | 2 GB | 8 GB✓ |
| Memory Type | GDDR5 | GDDR5 |
| Memory Bus | 128-bit | 512-bit✓ |
| Memory Speed | 7 Gbps✓ | 6 Gbps |
| Bandwidth | 112 GB/s | 384 GB/s✓ |
Connectivity & Power
| Specification | GeForce GTX 960 | Radeon R9 390 |
|---|---|---|
| Interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | PCIe 3.0 x16 |
| TDP | 120 W✓ | 275 W |
| Power Connectors | 1x 6-pin | 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin |
| Released | Jan 2015 | Jun 2015 |