GeForce GTX 550 Ti vs Radeon HD 4890

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 550 Ti vs Radeon HD 4890 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 550 Ti vs Radeon HD 4890: 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 550 Ti

2011

Why buy it

✅Costs $100 less on MSRP ($149 MSRP vs $249 MSRP).
✅Delivers 68.4% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 10.5 vs 6.2 G3D/$ ($149 MSRP vs $249 MSRP).
✅50% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (3 GB vs 2 GB).
✅Draws 116W instead of 190W, a 74W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon HD 4890 across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌2011 hardware with 3 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.

Radeon HD 4890

2009

Why buy it

✅6.9% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.

Trade-offs

❌Less VRAM, with 2 GB vs 3 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌2009 hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
❌
67.1% HIGHER MSRP
$249 MSRPvs$149 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 6.2 vs 10.5 G3D/$ ($249 MSRP vs $149 MSRP).
❌63.8% higher power demand at 190W vs 116W.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

Radeon HD 4890 is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 6.9% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. PassMark G3D leans toward GeForce GTX 550 Ti instead at 1,558 vs 1,546, 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 GTX 550 Ti is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: 3 GB vs 2 GB of VRAM, a 40nm process instead of 55nm, and a newer 2011 generation instead of 2009. That gives it more room for heavier textures and higher settings over time.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

GeForce GTX 550 Ti makes the most sense to buy today. It is $100 cheaper on MSRP at $149 vs $249, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 68.4% (10.5 vs 6.2), which is enough to swing the recommendation its way. Radeon HD 4890 still makes more sense if max raw gaming performance matters more than value.

GeForce GTX 550 Ti vs Radeon HD 4890 Technical Specifications

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

GeForce GTX 550 Ti

The GeForce GTX 550 Ti is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in March 15 2011. It features the Fermi 2.0 architecture. The core clock speed is 900 MHz. It has 192 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 116W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 1,558 points. Launch price was $149.

Radeon HD 4890

The Radeon HD 4890 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in April 2 2009. It features the TeraScale architecture. The core clock speed is 850 MHz. It has 800 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 190W. Manufactured using 55 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 1,546 points. Launch price was $249.

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Graphics Performance

The GeForce GTX 550 Ti scores 1,558 and the Radeon HD 4890 reaches 1,546 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 0.8% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GTX 550 Ti is built on Fermi 2.0 while the Radeon HD 4890 uses TeraScale, both on 40 nm vs 55 nm. Shader units: 192 (GeForce GTX 550 Ti) vs 800 (Radeon HD 4890). Raw compute: 0.6912 TFLOPS (GeForce GTX 550 Ti) vs 1.36 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 4890).

Feature	GeForce GTX 550 Ti	Radeon HD 4890
G3D Mark Score	1,558	1,546
Architecture	Fermi 2.0	TeraScale
Process Node	40 nm	55 nm
Shading Units	192	800+317%
Compute (TFLOPS)	0.6912 TFLOPS	1.36 TFLOPS+97%
ROPs	24+50%	16
TMUs	32	40+25%
L1 Cache	256 KB+60%	160 KB
L2 Cache	384 KB+50%	256 KB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GTX 550 Ti gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Radeon HD 4890 leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

Feature	GeForce GTX 550 Ti	Radeon HD 4890
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 550 Ti has 3 GB of VRAM, while the Radeon HD 4890 carries 2 GB. GeForce GTX 550 Ti gives you 50% 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 550 Ti and 64-bit on the Radeon HD 4890. L2 Cache: 384 KB (GeForce GTX 550 Ti) vs 256 KB (Radeon HD 4890) — the GeForce GTX 550 Ti has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce GTX 550 Ti	Radeon HD 4890
VRAM Capacity	3 GB+50%	2 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth	Unknown	Unknown
Bus Width	128-bit+100%	64-bit
L2 Cache	384 KB+50%	256 KB

🎬

Media & Encoding

Supported codecs: H.264 (GeForce GTX 550 Ti) vs H.264 (Radeon HD 4890).

Feature	GeForce GTX 550 Ti	Radeon HD 4890
Codecs	H.264	H.264

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 550 Ti draws 116W versus the Radeon HD 4890's 190W — a 48.4% difference. The GeForce GTX 550 Ti is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 400W (GeForce GTX 550 Ti) vs 500W (Radeon HD 4890). Power connectors: 1x 6-pin vs 2x 6-pin.

Feature	GeForce GTX 550 Ti	Radeon HD 4890
TDP	116W-39%	190W
Recommended PSU	400W-20%	500W
Power Connector	1x 6-pin	2x 6-pin
Perf/Watt	13.4+65%	8.1

💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the GeForce GTX 550 Ti came in at $149, while the Radeon HD 4890 launched at $249. On MSRP, GeForce GTX 550 Ti was 40.2% cheaper ($100 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 10.5 (GeForce GTX 550 Ti) vs 6.2 (Radeon HD 4890) — the GeForce GTX 550 Ti offers 69.4% better value. The newer card here is GeForce GTX 550 Ti (2011 vs 2009).

Feature	GeForce GTX 550 Ti	Radeon HD 4890
MSRP	$149-40%	$249
Performance per Dollar	10.5+69%	6.2
Codename	GF116	RV790
Release	March 15 2011	April 2 2009
Ranking	#761	#762

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