GeForce GTX 460 vs Radeon HD 5970

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 GTX 460 vs Radeon HD 5970 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 GTX 460 vs Radeon HD 5970: 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 GTX 460

2010

Why buy it

✅Costs $500 less on MSRP ($199 MSRP vs $699 MSRP).
✅Delivers 247.9% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 11.4 vs 3.3 G3D/$ ($199 MSRP vs $699 MSRP).
✅Draws 160W instead of 294W, a 134W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon HD 5970 across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌Less VRAM, with 768 MB vs 2 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌2010 hardware with 768 MB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.

Radeon HD 5970

2009

Why buy it

✅3.4% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅166.7% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (2 GB vs 768 MB).

Trade-offs

❌2009 hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
❌
251.3% HIGHER MSRP
$699 MSRPvs$199 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 3.3 vs 11.4 G3D/$ ($699 MSRP vs $199 MSRP).
❌83.8% higher power demand at 294W vs 160W.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

Radeon HD 5970 is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 3.4% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and by 1% in PassMark G3D (2,297 vs 2,275), so the answer here is pretty clean.

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

GeForce GTX 460 is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: a newer 2010 generation instead of 2009. That makes it the less risky pick as game demands keep moving.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

GeForce GTX 460 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $500 cheaper on MSRP at $199 vs $699, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 247.9% (11.4 vs 3.3), which is enough to swing the recommendation its way. Radeon HD 5970 still makes more sense if max raw gaming performance matters more than value.

GeForce GTX 460 vs Radeon HD 5970 Technical Specifications

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

GeForce GTX 460

The GeForce GTX 460 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in July 12 2010. It features the Fermi architecture. The core clock speed is 675 MHz. It has 336 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 160W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 2,275 points. Launch price was $229.

Radeon HD 5970

The Radeon HD 5970 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in November 18 2009. It features the TeraScale 2 architecture. The core clock speed is 725 MHz. It has 1600 ×2 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 294W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 2,297 points. Launch price was $699.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The GeForce GTX 460 scores 2,275 and the Radeon HD 5970 reaches 2,297 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 1% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GTX 460 is built on Fermi while the Radeon HD 5970 uses TeraScale 2, both on a 40 nm process. Shader units: 336 (GeForce GTX 460) vs 1,600 (Radeon HD 5970). Raw compute: 0.9072 TFLOPS (GeForce GTX 460) vs 2.32 TFLOPS ×2 (Radeon HD 5970).

Feature	GeForce GTX 460	Radeon HD 5970
G3D Mark Score	2,275	2,297
Architecture	Fermi	TeraScale 2
Process Node	40 nm	40 nm
Shading Units	336	1600 ×2+376%
Compute (TFLOPS)	0.9072 TFLOPS	2.32 TFLOPS ×2+156%
ROPs	32	32 ×2
TMUs	56	80 ×2+43%
L1 Cache	448 KB+40%	320 KB
L2 Cache	512 KB	512 KB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GTX 460 gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Radeon HD 5970 leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

Feature	GeForce GTX 460	Radeon HD 5970
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 GTX 460 has 768 MB of VRAM, while the Radeon HD 5970 carries 2 GB. Radeon HD 5970 gives you 166.7% more memory capacity, which matters more once you move into heavier textures, mods, or higher resolutions. Memory bus width is 128-bit on the GeForce GTX 460 and 128-bit on the Radeon HD 5970.

Feature	GeForce GTX 460	Radeon HD 5970
VRAM Capacity	0.75 GB	2 GB+167%
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth	Unknown	Unknown
Bus Width	128-bit	128-bit
L2 Cache	512 KB	512 KB

🎬

Media & Encoding

Supported codecs: H.264 (GeForce GTX 460) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2 (Radeon HD 5970).

Feature	GeForce GTX 460	Radeon HD 5970
Encoder	—	None
Decoder	—	UVD 2.2
Codecs	H.264	H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 460 draws 160W versus the Radeon HD 5970's 294W — a 59% difference. The GeForce GTX 460 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 450W (GeForce GTX 460) vs 650W (Radeon HD 5970). Power connectors: 2x 6-pin vs 6-pin + 8-pin.

Feature	GeForce GTX 460	Radeon HD 5970
TDP	160W-46%	294W
Recommended PSU	450W-31%	650W
Power Connector	2x 6-pin	6-pin + 8-pin
Length	—	305mm
Height	—	111mm
Slots	—	2
Temp (Load)	—	90
Perf/Watt	14.2+82%	7.8

💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the GeForce GTX 460 came in at $199, while the Radeon HD 5970 launched at $699. On MSRP, GeForce GTX 460 was 71.5% cheaper ($500 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 11.4 (GeForce GTX 460) vs 3.3 (Radeon HD 5970) — the GeForce GTX 460 offers 245.5% better value. The newer card here is GeForce GTX 460 (2010 vs 2009).

Feature	GeForce GTX 460	Radeon HD 5970
MSRP	$199-72%	$699
Performance per Dollar	11.4+245%	3.3
Codename	GF104	Hemlock
Release	July 12 2010	November 18 2009
Ranking	#652	#651

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