Radeon HD 6520G vs Radeon R5E

AMD

Radeon HD 6520G

2010Boost: 800 MHz
VS
AMD

Radeon R5E

2013Core: 800 MHz

Radeon HD 6520G vs Radeon R5E 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.

Radeon HD 6520G vs Radeon R5E 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.

Radeon HD 6520G vs Radeon R5E: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

See where each GPU makes more sense in practice: raw FPS, VRAM, features, power draw, pricing, and long-term headroom.

Radeon HD 6520G

2010

Why buy it

  • βœ…40.6% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • βœ…Delivers 100+% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 7.5 vs 0 G3D/$ ($40 MSRP vs Unknown MSRP).

Trade-offs

  • ❌2010 hardware with 512 MB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
  • ❌1233.3% higher power demand at 200W vs 15W.

Radeon R5E

2013

Why buy it

  • βœ…Draws 15W instead of 200W, a 185W reduction.
  • βœ…More future proof: GCN 1.0 (2012βˆ’2020) on 28nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

  • ❌Lower average FPS than Radeon HD 6520G across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • ❌2013 hardware with 512 MB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
  • ❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 0 vs 7.5 G3D/$ (Unknown MSRP vs $40 MSRP).

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?
Radeon HD 6520G is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 40.6% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. PassMark G3D leans toward Radeon R5E instead at 315 vs 300, 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?
Radeon HD 6520G 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 HD 6520G makes the most sense today based on the pricing and value data we have for this matchup.

Radeon HD 6520G vs Radeon R5E Technical Specifications

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

AMD

Radeon HD 6520G

The Radeon HD 6520G is manufactured by AMD. It was released in December 14 2010. It features the TeraScale 3 architecture. The boost clock speed is 800 MHz. It has 1408 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 200W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 300 points. Launch price was $299.

AMD

Radeon R5E

The Radeon R5E is manufactured by AMD. It was released in December 20 2013. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The core clock speed is 800 MHz. It has 512 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 15W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 315 points. Launch price was $109.

⚑

Graphics Performance

In G3D Mark, the Radeon HD 6520G scores 300 versus the Radeon R5E's 315 β€” the Radeon R5E leads by 5%. The Radeon HD 6520G is built on TeraScale 3 while the Radeon R5E uses GCN 1.0, both on 40 nm vs 28 nm. Shader units: 1,408 (Radeon HD 6520G) vs 512 (Radeon R5E). Raw compute: 2.253 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 6520G) vs 0.8192 TFLOPS (Radeon R5E).

FeatureRadeon HD 6520GRadeon R5E
G3D Mark Score
300
315+5%
Architecture
TeraScale 3
GCN 1.0
Process Node
40 nm
28 nm
Shading Units
1408+175%
512
Compute (TFLOPS)
2.253 TFLOPS+175%
0.8192 TFLOPS
ROPs
32+100%
16
TMUs
88+175%
32
L1 Cache
352 KB+175%
128 KB
L2 Cache
512 KB+100%
256 KB
Frame Generation
FSR upscaling
FSR upscaling
✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

FeatureRadeon HD 6520GRadeon R5E
Upscaling Tech
FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
Frame Generation
Not Supported
Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction
No
No
Low Latency
AMD Anti-Lag
AMD Anti-Lag
πŸ’Ύ

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards ship with 512 MB of GDDR5. Memory bus width is 128-bit on the Radeon HD 6520G and 64-bit on the Radeon R5E. L2 Cache: 512 KB (Radeon HD 6520G) vs 256 KB (Radeon R5E) β€” the Radeon HD 6520G has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

FeatureRadeon HD 6520GRadeon R5E
VRAM Capacity
0.5 GB
0.5 GB
Memory Type
GDDR5
GDDR5
Bus Width
128-bit+100%
64-bit
L2 Cache
512 KB+100%
256 KB
πŸ”Œ

Power & Dimensions

The Radeon HD 6520G draws 200W versus the Radeon R5E's 15W β€” a 172.1% difference. The Radeon R5E is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (Radeon HD 6520G) vs 0W (Radeon R5E). Power connectors: 1x 6-pin vs None.

FeatureRadeon HD 6520GRadeon R5E
TDP
200W
15W-93%
Recommended PSU
350W
0W-100%
Power Connector
1x 6-pin
None
Length
β€”
0mm
Height
β€”
0mm
Slots
β€”
0
Temp (Load)
β€”
75
Perf/Watt
1.5
21.0+1300%
πŸ’°

Value Analysis

At launch, the Radeon HD 6520G came in at $40, while the Radeon R5E launched at $0. On MSRP, Radeon R5E was 100+% cheaper ($40 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 7.5 (Radeon HD 6520G) vs Infinity (Radeon R5E) β€” the Radeon R5E offers Infinity% better value. The newer card here is Radeon R5E (2013 vs 2010).

FeatureRadeon HD 6520GRadeon R5E
MSRP
$40
$0-100%
Performance per Dollar
7.5
Infinity
Codename
Cayman
Cape Verde
Release
December 14 2010
December 20 2013
Ranking
#623
#738

Affiliate Disclosure

ChipVERSUS is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. We may earn a commission on qualifying purchases made through our links. This comes at no additional cost to you and helps support our work in providing comprehensive PC building guides and tools.

Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.