GeForce GT 820M vs Radeon R5 M255

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 820M vs Radeon R5 M255 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 820M vs Radeon R5 M255: 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 820M

2014

Why buy it

✅47.5% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.

Trade-offs

❌Less VRAM, with 512 MB vs 4 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌2014 hardware with 512 MB 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 3.6 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $150 MSRP).
❌33.3% higher power demand at 100W vs 75W.

Radeon R5 M255

2014

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 3.6 vs 0 G3D/$ ($150 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
✅700% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (4 GB vs 512 MB).
✅Draws 75W instead of 100W, a 25W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than GeForce GT 820M across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌2014 hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

GeForce GT 820M is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 47.5% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. PassMark G3D leans toward Radeon R5 M255 instead at 543 vs 542, 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 820M is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond because it comes out ahead on the available hardware-headroom signals for this matchup.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

Radeon R5 M255 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 R5 M255 is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and some 1440p headroom, GeForce GT 820M has the stronger long-term case.

GeForce GT 820M vs Radeon R5 M255 Technical Specifications

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

GeForce GT 820M

The GeForce GT 820M is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in October 7 2014. It features the Maxwell 2.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 1038 MHz to 1127 MHz. It has 1536 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 100W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 542 points.

Radeon R5 M255

The Radeon R5 M255 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in January 28 2014. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 900 MHz to 925 MHz. It has 640 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 75W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 543 points. Launch price was $799.99.

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Graphics Performance

The GeForce GT 820M scores 542 and the Radeon R5 M255 reaches 543 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 0.2% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GT 820M is built on Maxwell 2.0 while the Radeon R5 M255 uses GCN 1.0, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 1,536 (GeForce GT 820M) vs 640 (Radeon R5 M255). Raw compute: 1.659 TFLOPS (GeForce GT 820M) vs 1.184 TFLOPS (Radeon R5 M255). Boost clocks: 1127 MHz vs 925 MHz.

Feature	GeForce GT 820M	Radeon R5 M255
G3D Mark Score	542	543
Architecture	Maxwell 2.0	GCN 1.0
Process Node	28 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	1536+140%	640
Compute (TFLOPS)	1.659 TFLOPS+40%	1.184 TFLOPS
Boost Clock	1127 MHz+22%	925 MHz
ROPs	64+300%	16
TMUs	96+140%	40
L1 Cache	576 KB+260%	160 KB
L2 Cache	2 MB+700%	0.25 MB

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Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GT 820M gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Radeon R5 M255 leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

Feature	GeForce GT 820M	Radeon R5 M255
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

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Video Memory (VRAM)

The GeForce GT 820M has 512 MB of VRAM, while the Radeon R5 M255 carries 4 GB. Radeon R5 M255 gives you 700% more memory capacity, which matters more once you move into heavier textures, mods, or higher resolutions. Memory bus width is 64-bit on the GeForce GT 820M and 128-bit on the Radeon R5 M255. L2 Cache: 2 MB (GeForce GT 820M) vs 0.25 MB (Radeon R5 M255) — the GeForce GT 820M has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce GT 820M	Radeon R5 M255
VRAM Capacity	0.5 GB	4 GB+700%
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth	Unknown	Unknown
Bus Width	64-bit	128-bit+100%
L2 Cache	2 MB+700%	0.25 MB

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Display & API Support

DirectX support: 11.0 (GeForce GT 820M) vs 12 (Radeon R5 M255). Vulkan: None vs 1.2. OpenGL: 4.0 vs 4.3. Maximum simultaneous displays: 1 vs 2.

Feature	GeForce GT 820M	Radeon R5 M255
DirectX	11.0	12+9%
Vulkan	None	1.2
OpenGL	4.0	4.3+7%
Max Displays	1	2+100%

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Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: No (GeForce GT 820M) vs VCE 3.0 (Radeon R5 M255). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP4 vs UVD 4.2. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1,MPEG-4 ASP (GeForce GT 820M) vs H.264,MPEG-4,MPEG-2,VC-1 (Radeon R5 M255).

Feature	GeForce GT 820M	Radeon R5 M255
Encoder	No	VCE 3.0
Decoder	PureVideo HD VP4	UVD 4.2
Codecs	MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1,MPEG-4 ASP	H.264,MPEG-4,MPEG-2,VC-1

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Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GT 820M draws 100W versus the Radeon R5 M255's 75W — a 28.6% difference. The Radeon R5 M255 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce GT 820M) vs 350W (Radeon R5 M255). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs Mobile. Typical load temperature: 70°C vs 80°C.