GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2 vs Radeon R9 285

NVIDIA

GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2

2013Core: 863 MHzBoost: 902 MHz
Similar parts
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VS
AMD

Radeon R9 285

2014Core: 918 MHz
Similar parts
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GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2 vs Radeon R9 285 Performance Spectrum

About G3D Mark

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 780 Rev. 2 vs Radeon R9 285 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 780 Rev. 2 vs Radeon R9 285: 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 780 Rev. 2

2013

Why buy it

  • 2.5% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.

Trade-offs

  • 2013 hardware with 4 GB of VRAM already sits in legacy territory for modern games.
  • 160.6% HIGHER MSRP
    $649 MSRPvs$249 MSRP
  • Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 10.0 vs 26.8 G3D/$ ($649 MSRP vs $249 MSRP).
  • 31.6% higher power demand at 250W vs 190W.

Radeon R9 285

2014

Why buy it

  • Costs $400 less on MSRP ($249 MSRP vs $649 MSRP).
  • Delivers 167.9% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 26.8 vs 10.0 G3D/$ ($249 MSRP vs $649 MSRP).
  • Draws 190W instead of 250W, a 60W reduction.

Trade-offs

  • Lower average FPS than GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2 across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • 2014 hardware with 4 GB of VRAM already sits in legacy territory for modern games.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?
GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2 is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 2.5% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. PassMark G3D leans toward Radeon R9 285 instead at 6,680 vs 6,500, 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 780 Rev. 2 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 R9 285 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $400 cheaper on MSRP at $249 vs $649, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 167.9% (26.8 vs 10.0), which is enough to swing the recommendation its way. If you are mainly targeting 1080p and some 1440p, Radeon R9 285 is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and some 1440p headroom, GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2 has the stronger long-term case.

GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2 vs Radeon R9 285 Technical Specifications

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

NVIDIA

GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2

The GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in September 10 2013. It features the Kepler architecture. The core clock ranges from 863 MHz to 902 MHz. It has 2304 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 250W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 6,500 points. Launch price was $649.

AMD

Radeon R9 285

The Radeon R9 285 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in September 2 2014. It features the GCN 3.0 architecture. The core clock speed is 918 MHz. It has 1792 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 190W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 6,680 points. Launch price was $249.

Graphics Performance

The GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2 scores 6,500 and the Radeon R9 285 reaches 6,680 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 2.8% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2 is built on Kepler while the Radeon R9 285 uses GCN 3.0, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 2,304 (GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2) vs 1,792 (Radeon R9 285). Raw compute: 4.156 TFLOPS (GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2) vs 3.29 TFLOPS (Radeon R9 285).

FeatureGeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2Radeon R9 285
G3D Mark Score
6,500
6,680+3%
Architecture
Kepler
GCN 3.0
Process Node
28 nm
28 nm
Shading Units
2304+29%
1792
Compute (TFLOPS)
4.156 TFLOPS+26%
3.29 TFLOPS
ROPs
48+50%
32
TMUs
192+71%
112
L1 Cache
192 KB
448 KB+133%
L2 Cache
1.5 MB+200%
0.5 MB

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2 gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Radeon R9 285 leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

FeatureGeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2Radeon R9 285
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 4 GB of GDDR5. Memory bandwidth: 288 GB/s (GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2) vs 176 GB/s (Radeon R9 285) — a 63.6% advantage for the GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2. Memory bus width is 384-bit on the GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2 and 256-bit on the Radeon R9 285. L2 Cache: 1.5 MB (GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2) vs 0.5 MB (Radeon R9 285) — the GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2 has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

FeatureGeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2Radeon R9 285
VRAM Capacity
4 GB
4 GB
Memory Type
GDDR5
GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth
288 GB/s+64%
176 GB/s
Bus Width
384-bit+50%
256-bit
L2 Cache
1.5 MB+200%
0.5 MB
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2 draws 250W versus the Radeon R9 285's 190W — a 27.3% difference. The Radeon R9 285 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 600W (GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2) vs 500W (Radeon R9 285). Power connectors: 6-pin + 8-pin vs 2x 6-pin.

FeatureGeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2Radeon R9 285
TDP
250W
190W-24%
Recommended PSU
600W
500W-17%
Power Connector
6-pin + 8-pin
2x 6-pin
Length
221mm
Height
109mm
Slots
2
Temp (Load)
65°C
Perf/Watt
26.0
35.2+35%
💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2 came in at $649, while the Radeon R9 285 launched at $249. On MSRP, Radeon R9 285 was 61.6% cheaper ($400 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 10.0 (GeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2) vs 26.8 (Radeon R9 285) — the Radeon R9 285 offers 168% better value. The newer card here is Radeon R9 285 (2014 vs 2013).

FeatureGeForce GTX 780 Rev. 2Radeon R9 285
MSRP
$649
$249-62%
Performance per Dollar
10.0
26.8+168%
Codename
GK110B
Tonga
Release
September 10 2013
September 2 2014
Ranking
#487
#365

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