GPU Comparison
Select up to 2 GPUs to analyze their pricing, performance, and specifications side-by-side.
The Radeon RX 590 is dramatically faster than the GeForce GTX 970, leading by roughly 43% in our performance index. The GeForce GTX 970, however, delivers more performance per dollar — $607 USD cheaper.
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Radeon RX 590 vs GeForce GTX 970: In-Depth Breakdown
Performance: Radeon RX 590 vs GeForce GTX 970
The Radeon RX 590 is dramatically faster, around 43% ahead of the GeForce GTX 970. Both cards sit in the same broad class, well suited to entry-level 1080p.
Price & Value
Right now the GeForce GTX 970 starts at $90 USD against $697 USD for the Radeon RX 590. Despite being slower, the GeForce GTX 970 offers the better performance-per-dollar (~442% better value), so budget-focused buyers should weigh it carefully. The GeForce GTX 970 is trading below its $329 USD MSRP — a genuine deal. The Radeon RX 590 still sits about $418 USD above its $279 USD MSRP.
Power & Efficiency
The GeForce GTX 970 draws just 145W versus 225W for the Radeon RX 590, 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 4GB, the Radeon RX 590 has more headroom for 4K textures and memory-hungry creative/AI tasks where the GeForce GTX 970's 4GB can fall short.
Generation & Longevity
The Radeon RX 590 is roughly 4 years newer than the GeForce GTX 970, so it generally benefits from a more modern architecture and longer driver-support runway.
Features & Ecosystem
Beyond raw numbers, the GeForce GTX 970 brings NVIDIA DLSS upscaling/frame generation and stronger ray tracing, while the Radeon RX 590 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 970 or Radeon RX 590?
Choose the Radeon RX 590 if you want the most performance and can absorb the higher price. If you're optimizing for value, the GeForce GTX 970 stretches your money further for only slightly lower performance.