GeForce GTX 870M vs GeForce GTX 960A

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.

Head-to-Head Verdict, Benchmarks, Value & Long-Term Outlook

This comparison brings together gaming FPS, raw graphics performance, VRAM, feature set, power efficiency, pricing context, and long-term value so you can see which GPU actually makes more sense.

GeForce GTX 870M

2014

Why buy it

✅200% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (6 GB vs 2 GB).

Trade-offs

❌Very weak future-proofing: 2014-era hardware with 6 GB of VRAM is already obsolete for modern gaming and is hard to recommend today.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 17.4 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $199 MSRP).
❌33.3% higher power demand at 100W vs 75W.

GeForce GTX 960A

2015

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 17.4 vs 0 G3D/$ ($199 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
✅Draws 75W instead of 100W, a 25W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Less VRAM, with 2 GB vs 6 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Very weak future-proofing: 2015-era hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already obsolete for modern gaming and is hard to recommend today.

GeForce GTX 870M

2014

GeForce GTX 960A

2015

Why buy it

✅200% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (6 GB vs 2 GB).

Why buy it

✅Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 17.4 vs 0 G3D/$ ($199 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).
✅Draws 75W instead of 100W, a 25W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Very weak future-proofing: 2014-era hardware with 6 GB of VRAM is already obsolete for modern gaming and is hard to recommend today.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 17.4 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $199 MSRP).
❌33.3% higher power demand at 100W vs 75W.

Trade-offs

❌Less VRAM, with 2 GB vs 6 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Very weak future-proofing: 2015-era hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already obsolete for modern gaming and is hard to recommend today.

Quick Answers

So, is GeForce GTX 870M better than GeForce GTX 960A?

Yes, but this is not really about a huge raw performance gap. The broader synthetic picture is also very close at 3,536 vs 3,465 in G3D Mark. The bigger reason to prefer GeForce GTX 870M is the overall package: you are getting no meaningful modern upscaling stack.

Which one is more future-proof for 2026 and beyond?

GeForce GTX 870M is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting more VRAM at 6 GB instead of 2 GB. That extra memory headroom makes it the safer pick for newer games, heavier textures, and higher settings over time.

Which one is the smarter buy today, not just the cheaper card?

GeForce GTX 870M is the smarter buy by a wide margin. GeForce GTX 870M is priced in an unclear MSRP range at an unclear MSRP versus $199 MSRP, and you are getting 2.0% higher G3D Mark. GeForce GTX 960A really only makes sense now as a very cheap stopgap or a used-market placeholder.

When does GeForce GTX 960A make more sense than GeForce GTX 870M?

Yes. GeForce GTX 960A is still an excellent gaming GPU in 2026: it is still comfortable for 1080p and decent for 1440p, though 4K is more situational. It makes more sense if your priority is newer architecture, lower power draw (75W vs 100W), and staying closer to $199 MSRP more than squeezing out the extra headroom of GeForce GTX 870M. The trade-off is that GeForce GTX 870M currently gives you 2.0% higher G3D Mark. GeForce GTX 960A still holds the G3D-per-dollar lead, so the performance win comes with a real value premium.

Games Benchmarks

Real-world benchmarks and performance projections based on comprehensive hardware analysis and comparative metrics. Values represent expected performance on High/Ultra settings at 1080p, 1440p, and 4K. Modeled using a Ryzen 7 9800X3D reference profile to minimize specific CPU bottlenecks.

Note: Performance behavior can vary per game. Specific architectures may perform better or worse depending on game engine optimizations and API implementation.

GeForce GTX 870M Benchmark Check

GeForce GTX 960A Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	GeForce GTX 870M	GeForce GTX 960A
1080p
low	39 FPS	29 FPS
medium	26 FPS	17 FPS
high	18 FPS	11 FPS
ultra	10 FPS	5 FPS
1440p
low	27 FPS	14 FPS
medium	17 FPS	7 FPS
high	9 FPS	3 FPS
ultra	5 FPS	2 FPS
4K
low	10 FPS	5 FPS
medium	7 FPS	3 FPS
high	4 FPS	2 FPS
ultra	3 FPS	1 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 870M Open GeForce GTX 960A

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	GeForce GTX 870M	GeForce GTX 960A
1080p
low	69 FPS	77 FPS
medium	41 FPS	48 FPS
high	30 FPS	35 FPS
ultra	19 FPS	22 FPS
1440p
low	34 FPS	34 FPS
medium	20 FPS	24 FPS
high	14 FPS	15 FPS
ultra	10 FPS	11 FPS
4K
low	10 FPS	11 FPS
medium	6 FPS	9 FPS
high	5 FPS	7 FPS
ultra	4 FPS	5 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 870M Open GeForce GTX 960A

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	GeForce GTX 870M	GeForce GTX 960A
1080p
low	159 FPS	156 FPS
medium	127 FPS	125 FPS
high	106 FPS	104 FPS
ultra	80 FPS	78 FPS
1440p
low	119 FPS	117 FPS
medium	95 FPS	94 FPS
high	80 FPS	78 FPS
ultra	60 FPS	58 FPS
4K
low	80 FPS	78 FPS
medium	64 FPS	62 FPS
high	53 FPS	52 FPS
ultra	40 FPS	39 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 870M Open GeForce GTX 960A

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	GeForce GTX 870M	GeForce GTX 960A
1080p
low	159 FPS	156 FPS
medium	127 FPS	125 FPS
high	106 FPS	104 FPS
ultra	80 FPS	78 FPS
1440p
low	119 FPS	117 FPS
medium	95 FPS	94 FPS
high	80 FPS	78 FPS
ultra	58 FPS	58 FPS
4K
low	64 FPS	72 FPS
medium	50 FPS	57 FPS
high	44 FPS	46 FPS
ultra	30 FPS	35 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 870M Open GeForce GTX 960A

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of GeForce GTX 870M and GeForce GTX 960A

GeForce GTX 870M

The GeForce GTX 870M is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in March 12 2014. It features the Kepler architecture. The core clock ranges from 941 MHz to 967 MHz. It has 1344 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 100W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 3,536 points.

GeForce GTX 960A

The GeForce GTX 960A is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in March 13 2015. It features the Maxwell architecture. The core clock ranges from 1029 MHz to 1085 MHz. It has 640 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 75W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 3,465 points.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The GeForce GTX 870M scores 3,536 and the GeForce GTX 960A reaches 3,465 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 2% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GTX 870M is built on Kepler while the GeForce GTX 960A uses Maxwell, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 1,344 (GeForce GTX 870M) vs 640 (GeForce GTX 960A). Raw compute: 2.599 TFLOPS (GeForce GTX 870M) vs 1.389 TFLOPS (GeForce GTX 960A). Boost clocks: 967 MHz vs 1085 MHz.

Feature	GeForce GTX 870M	GeForce GTX 960A
G3D Mark Score	3,536+2%	3,465
Architecture	Kepler	Maxwell
Process Node	28 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	1344+110%	640
Compute (TFLOPS)	2.599 TFLOPS+87%	1.389 TFLOPS
Boost Clock	967 MHz	1085 MHz+12%
ROPs	24+50%	16
TMUs	112+180%	40
L1 Cache	112 KB	320 KB+186%
L2 Cache	0.38 MB	2 MB+426%

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

Feature	GeForce GTX 870M	GeForce GTX 960A
Upscaling Tech	Upscaling support	Upscaling support
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	NVIDIA Reflex	NVIDIA Reflex

💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

The GeForce GTX 870M comes with 6 GB of VRAM, while the GeForce GTX 960A has 2 GB. The GeForce GTX 870M offers 200% more capacity, crucial for higher resolutions and texture-heavy games. Bus width: 128-bit vs 128-bit. L2 Cache: 0.38 MB (GeForce GTX 870M) vs 2 MB (GeForce GTX 960A) — the GeForce GTX 960A has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce GTX 870M	GeForce GTX 960A
VRAM Capacity	6 GB+200%	2 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth	Unknown	Unknown
Bus Width	128-bit	128-bit
L2 Cache	0.38 MB	2 MB+426%

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (11_0) (GeForce GTX 870M) vs 12 (GeForce GTX 960A). Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 0.

Feature	GeForce GTX 870M	GeForce GTX 960A
DirectX	12 (11_0)	12
Max Displays	4	0

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: 1st Gen NVENC (Kepler) (GeForce GTX 870M) vs NVENC 1st Gen (GeForce GTX 960A). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP5 vs NVDEC 1st Gen.

Feature	GeForce GTX 870M	GeForce GTX 960A
Encoder	1st Gen NVENC (Kepler)	NVENC 1st Gen
Decoder	PureVideo HD VP5	NVDEC 1st Gen
Codecs	H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2	—

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 870M draws 100W versus the GeForce GTX 960A's 75W — a 28.6% difference. The GeForce GTX 960A is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (GeForce GTX 870M) vs 350W (GeForce GTX 960A). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs 1x 6-pin.