GeForce GTX 980 vs Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)

NVIDIA

GeForce GTX 980

2014Core: 1064 MHzBoost: 1216 MHz
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VS
NVIDIA

Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)

2019Core: 945 MHzBoost: 1380 MHz
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GeForce GTX 980 vs Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel) 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 980 vs Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel) 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 980 vs Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel): 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 980

2014

Why buy it

  • Costs $51 less on MSRP ($549 MSRP vs $600 MSRP).
  • Delivers 11.8% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 20.2 vs 18.0 G3D/$ ($549 MSRP vs $600 MSRP).

Trade-offs

  • Lower average FPS than Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel) across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • No DLSS support; it relies on Upscaling support instead.
  • 2014 hardware with 4 GB of VRAM already sits in legacy territory for modern games.
  • 175% higher power demand at 220W vs 80W.

Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)

2019

Why buy it

  • 24.4% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • Access to DLSS 2 Super Resolution (2020).
  • Better long-term bet: Turing (2018−2022) on 12nm gives it a newer hardware base for upcoming games.
  • Draws 80W instead of 220W, a 140W reduction.

Trade-offs

  • 9.3% HIGHER MSRP
    $600 MSRPvs$549 MSRP
  • Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 18.0 vs 20.2 G3D/$ ($600 MSRP vs $549 MSRP).

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?
Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel) is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 24.4% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. PassMark G3D leans toward GeForce GTX 980 instead at 11,077 vs 10,829, 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?
Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel) is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: the newer upscaling stack, DLSS 2 Super Resolution (2020) instead of no meaningful modern upscaling stack, a 12nm process instead of 28nm, 36 vs 0 ray-tracing units, and a newer 2019 generation instead of 2014. That gives it the more rounded hardware package for newer games.
Which GPU is the better buy today?
GeForce GTX 980 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $51 cheaper on MSRP at $549 vs $600, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 11.8% (20.2 vs 18.0), which is enough to swing the recommendation its way. If you are mainly targeting 1080p and some 1440p, GeForce GTX 980 is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and some 1440p headroom, Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel) has the stronger long-term case.

GeForce GTX 980 vs Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel) Technical Specifications

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

NVIDIA

GeForce GTX 980

The GeForce GTX 980 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in September 19 2014. It features the Maxwell 2.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 1064 MHz to 1216 MHz. It has 2048 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 220W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 11,077 points. Launch price was $549.

NVIDIA

Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)

The Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel) is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in May 27 2019. It features the Turing architecture. The core clock ranges from 945 MHz to 1380 MHz. It has 2304 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 80W. Manufactured using 12 nm process technology. It features 36 dedicated ray tracing cores for enhanced lighting effects. G3D Mark benchmark score: 10,829 points.

Graphics Performance

The GeForce GTX 980 scores 11,077 and the Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel) reaches 10,829 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 2.3% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GTX 980 is built on Maxwell 2.0 while the Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel) uses Turing, both on 28 nm vs 12 nm. Shader units: 2,048 (GeForce GTX 980) vs 2,304 (Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)). Raw compute: 4.981 TFLOPS (GeForce GTX 980) vs 6.359 TFLOPS (Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)). Boost clocks: 1216 MHz vs 1380 MHz.

FeatureGeForce GTX 980Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)
G3D Mark Score
11,077+2%
10,829
Architecture
Maxwell 2.0
Turing
Process Node
28 nm
12 nm
Shading Units
2048
2304+13%
Compute (TFLOPS)
4.981 TFLOPS
6.359 TFLOPS+28%
Boost Clock
1216 MHz
1380 MHz+13%
ROPs
64
64
TMUs
128
144+13%
L1 Cache
0.75 MB
2.3 MB+207%
L2 Cache
2 MB
4 MB+100%

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel) supports the newer DLSS 2 Super Resolution, whereas the GeForce GTX 980 is capped at Upscaling support.

FeatureGeForce GTX 980Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)
Upscaling Tech
Upscaling support
DLSS 2 Super Resolution
Frame Generation
Not Supported
Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction
No
No
Low Latency
NVIDIA Reflex
NVIDIA Reflex
💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards ship with 4 GB of video memory. Memory bus width is 256-bit on the GeForce GTX 980 and 256-bit on the Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel). L2 Cache: 2 MB (GeForce GTX 980) vs 4 MB (Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)) — the Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel) has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

FeatureGeForce GTX 980Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)
VRAM Capacity
4 GB
4 GB
Memory Type
GDDR5
GDDR6
Bus Width
256-bit
256-bit
L2 Cache
2 MB
4 MB+100%
🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12.1 (GeForce GTX 980) vs 12.1 (Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)). Vulkan: 1.1 vs 1.0. OpenGL: 4.5 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 4.

FeatureGeForce GTX 980Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)
DirectX
12.1
12.1
Vulkan
1.1+10%
1.0
OpenGL
4.5
4.6+2%
Max Displays
4
4
🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC 3.0 (GeForce GTX 980) vs 7th Gen NVENC (Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP6 vs 5th Gen NVDEC. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC (GeForce GTX 980) vs MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC,VP9 (Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)).

FeatureGeForce GTX 980Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)
Encoder
NVENC 3.0
7th Gen NVENC
Decoder
PureVideo HD VP6
5th Gen NVDEC
Codecs
MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC
MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC,VP9
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 980 draws 220W versus the Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)'s 80W — a 93.3% difference. The Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel) is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 500W (GeForce GTX 980) vs 500W (Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)). Power connectors: 2x 6-pin vs PCIe-powered. Card length: 267mm vs 0mm, occupying 2 vs 0 slots. Typical load temperature: 80°C vs 85°C.

FeatureGeForce GTX 980Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)
TDP
220W
80W-64%
Recommended PSU
500W
500W
Power Connector
2x 6-pin
PCIe-powered
Length
267mm
0mm
Height
111mm
0mm
Slots
2
0-100%
Temp (Load)
80°C-6%
85°C
Perf/Watt
50.4
135.4+169%
💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the GeForce GTX 980 came in at $549, while the Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel) launched at $600. On MSRP, GeForce GTX 980 was 8.5% cheaper ($51 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 20.2 (GeForce GTX 980) vs 18.0 (Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)) — the GeForce GTX 980 offers 12.2% better value. The newer card here is Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel) (2019 vs 2014).

FeatureGeForce GTX 980Quadro RTX 3000 (móvel)
MSRP
$549-9%
$600
Performance per Dollar
20.2+12%
18.0
Codename
GM204
TU106
Release
September 19 2014
May 27 2019
Ranking
#245
#261

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