AMD Radeon HD 7950 vs AMD Radeon R9 280

These two cards score identically in our gaming index. The decision comes down to VRAM, power draw and price.

Dead heat — both cards score 9/100
Specification AMD Radeon HD 7950 AMD Radeon R9 280
Performance score 9/100 9/100
Tier D D
VRAM 3 GB 3 GB
Power draw (TDP) 200 W 250 W
Launch MSRP $449 $279
Performance per $100 2.0 3.2
Release year 2012 2014
DLSS — No — No
FSR ✓ Yes ✓ Yes
XeSS — No — No
Ray tracing — No — No

Which should you buy?

Performance is a tie, so the tie-breakers below decide it. The AMD Radeon HD 7950 draws 50W less, so it is easier on your power supply and case cooling — check the PSU calculator before committing. On launch pricing, the AMD Radeon R9 280 offers better performance per dollar.