AMD Radeon R7 250 vs AMD Radeon HD 6870

The AMD Radeon HD 6870 is the faster card by roughly 33%. Here is how the two compare across every spec that matters for gaming.

AMD Radeon HD 6870 wins — about 33% faster in gaming workloads
Specification AMD Radeon R7 250 AMD Radeon HD 6870
Performance score 3/100 4/100
Tier F F
VRAM 1 GB 1 GB
Power draw (TDP) 65 W 151 W
Launch MSRP $89 $239
Performance per $100 3.4 1.7
Release year 2013 2010
DLSS — No — No
FSR ✓ Yes ✓ Yes
XeSS — No — No
Ray tracing — No — No

Which should you buy?

The AMD Radeon HD 6870 is the stronger performer of the two, and it is the default choice if raw frame rate is what you care about. The AMD Radeon R7 250 draws 86W less, so it is easier on your power supply and case cooling — check the PSU calculator before committing. On launch pricing, the AMD Radeon R7 250 offers better performance per dollar.