GeForce GTS 250 vs Quadro 500M

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 GTS 250 vs Quadro 500M 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 GTS 250 vs Quadro 500M: 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 GTS 250

2010

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 4.4 vs 0 G3D/$ ($129 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Quadro 500M across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌2010 hardware with 1 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.

Quadro 500M

2010

Why buy it

✅39.6% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.

Trade-offs

❌2010 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 4.4 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $129 MSRP).

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

Quadro 500M is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 39.6% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and by 0.4% in PassMark G3D (571 vs 569), so the answer here is pretty clean.

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

GeForce GTS 250 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?

GeForce GTS 250 makes the most sense today based on the pricing and value data we have for this matchup. Quadro 500M still makes more sense if max raw gaming performance matters more than value.

GeForce GTS 250 vs Quadro 500M Technical Specifications

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

GeForce GTS 250

The GeForce GTS 250 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in September 13 2010. It features the Fermi architecture. The core clock speed is 783 MHz. It has 192 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 106W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 569 points. Launch price was $129.

Quadro 500M

The Quadro 500M is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in July 27 2010. It features the Fermi architecture. The core clock speed is 405 MHz. It has 320 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 100W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 571 points.

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Graphics Performance

The GeForce GTS 250 scores 569 and the Quadro 500M reaches 571 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 0.4% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GTS 250 is built on Fermi while the Quadro 500M uses Fermi, both on a 40 nm process. Shader units: 192 (GeForce GTS 250) vs 320 (Quadro 500M). Raw compute: 0.6013 TFLOPS (GeForce GTS 250) vs 0.5184 TFLOPS (Quadro 500M).

Feature	GeForce GTS 250	Quadro 500M
G3D Mark Score	569	571
Architecture	Fermi	Fermi
Process Node	40 nm	40 nm
Shading Units	192	320+67%
Compute (TFLOPS)	0.6013 TFLOPS+16%	0.5184 TFLOPS
ROPs	16	32+100%
TMUs	32	40+25%
L1 Cache	256 KB	640 KB+150%
L2 Cache	256 KB	512 KB+100%

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Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GTS 250 gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Quadro 500M leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

Feature	GeForce GTS 250	Quadro 500M
Upscaling Tech	Upscaling support	Upscaling support
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	NVIDIA Reflex	Standard

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Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards ship with 1 GB of GDDR5. Memory bus width is 128-bit on the GeForce GTS 250 and 64-bit on the Quadro 500M. L2 Cache: 256 KB (GeForce GTS 250) vs 512 KB (Quadro 500M) — the Quadro 500M has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce GTS 250	Quadro 500M
VRAM Capacity	1 GB	1 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Bus Width	128-bit+100%	64-bit
L2 Cache	256 KB	512 KB+100%

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Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTS 250 draws 106W versus the Quadro 500M's 100W — a 5.8% difference. The Quadro 500M is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 450W (GeForce GTS 250) vs 350W (Quadro 500M). Power connectors: 1x 6-pin vs PCIe-powered.

Feature	GeForce GTS 250	Quadro 500M
TDP	106W	100W-6%
Recommended PSU	450W	350W-22%
Power Connector	1x 6-pin	PCIe-powered
Length	229mm	—
Height	111mm	—
Slots	2	—
Temp (Load)	90°C	—
Perf/Watt	5.4	5.7+6%