GeForce GT 550M vs Radeon HD 3870

G3D Mark is a standard benchmark that measures graphics performance in real-world gaming scenarios. It simplifies comparing cards from different brands, where higher scores directly correlate with better fps and smoother gaming experiences.

GeForce GT 550M vs Radeon HD 3870 FPS Benchmarks

Predicted gaming performance across popular games. Tested paired with Ryzen 7 9800X3D to isolate GPU performance.

Search any supported game below to compare 1080p FPS for both components.

GeForce GT 550M vs Radeon HD 3870: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

See where each GPU makes more sense in practice: raw FPS, VRAM, features, power draw, pricing, and long-term headroom.

GeForce GT 550M

2013

Why buy it

✅Draws 50W instead of 200W, a 150W reduction.
✅More future proof: Kepler (2012−2018) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon HD 3870 across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌2013 hardware with 1 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 2.5 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $219 MSRP).

Radeon HD 3870

2012

Why buy it

✅69.1% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 2.5 vs 0 G3D/$ ($219 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).

Trade-offs

❌2012 hardware with 1 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
❌300% higher power demand at 200W vs 50W.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

Radeon HD 3870 is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 69.1% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. PassMark G3D leans toward GeForce GT 550M instead at 561 vs 552, so for this question the real-game FPS result matters more than the synthetic split.

Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?

GeForce GT 550M is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: a newer 2013 generation instead of 2012. That makes it the less risky pick as game demands keep moving.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

Radeon HD 3870 makes the most sense today based on the pricing and value data we have for this matchup. If you are mainly targeting 1080p and some 1440p, Radeon HD 3870 is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and some 1440p headroom, GeForce GT 550M has the stronger long-term case.

GeForce GT 550M vs Radeon HD 3870 Technical Specifications

Side-by-side specs, architecture details, clocks, memory, power, and platform differences.

GeForce GT 550M

The GeForce GT 550M is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in June 25 2013. It features the Kepler architecture. The core clock speed is 980 MHz. It has 384 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 50W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 561 points.

Radeon HD 3870

The Radeon HD 3870 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in March 5 2012. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The core clock speed is 1000 MHz. It has 1280 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 200W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 552 points. Launch price was $349.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The GeForce GT 550M scores 561 and the Radeon HD 3870 reaches 552 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 1.6% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GT 550M is built on Kepler while the Radeon HD 3870 uses GCN 1.0, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 384 (GeForce GT 550M) vs 1,280 (Radeon HD 3870). Raw compute: 0.7526 TFLOPS (GeForce GT 550M) vs 2.56 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 3870).

Feature	GeForce GT 550M	Radeon HD 3870
G3D Mark Score	561+2%	552
Architecture	Kepler	GCN 1.0
Process Node	28 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	384	1280+233%
Compute (TFLOPS)	0.7526 TFLOPS	2.56 TFLOPS+240%
ROPs	16	32+100%
TMUs	32	80+150%
L1 Cache	32 KB	320 KB+900%
L2 Cache	256 KB	512 KB+100%

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GT 550M gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Radeon HD 3870 leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

Feature	GeForce GT 550M	Radeon HD 3870
Upscaling Tech	Upscaling support	FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	NVIDIA Reflex	AMD Anti-Lag

💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards ship with 1 GB of GDDR5. Memory bus width is 128-bit on the GeForce GT 550M and 128-bit on the Radeon HD 3870. L2 Cache: 256 KB (GeForce GT 550M) vs 512 KB (Radeon HD 3870) — the Radeon HD 3870 has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce GT 550M	Radeon HD 3870
VRAM Capacity	1 GB	1 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth	Unknown	Unknown
Bus Width	128-bit	128-bit
L2 Cache	256 KB	512 KB+100%

🎬

Media & Encoding

Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1,MPEG-4 ASP (GeForce GT 550M) vs H.264 (Radeon HD 3870).

Feature	GeForce GT 550M	Radeon HD 3870
Encoder	No	—
Decoder	PureVideo HD VP4	—
Codecs	MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1,MPEG-4 ASP	H.264

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GT 550M draws 50W versus the Radeon HD 3870's 200W — a 120% difference. The GeForce GT 550M is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce GT 550M) vs 300W (Radeon HD 3870). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs 1x 6-pin.

Feature	GeForce GT 550M	Radeon HD 3870
TDP	50W-75%	200W
Recommended PSU	350W	300W-14%
Power Connector	PCIe-powered	1x 6-pin
Length	0mm	—
Height	0mm	—
Slots	0	—
Temp (Load)	85°C	—
Perf/Watt	11.2+300%	2.8

💰

Value Analysis

The newer card here is GeForce GT 550M (2013 vs 2012).

Feature	GeForce GT 550M	Radeon HD 3870
MSRP	—	$219
Codename	GK107	Pitcairn
Release	June 25 2013	March 5 2012
Ranking	#726	#460

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