NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 vs AMD Radeon R9 290X
These two cards score identically in our gaming index. The decision comes down to VRAM, power draw and price.
| Specification | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 | AMD Radeon R9 290X |
|---|---|---|
| Performance score | 15/100 | 15/100 |
| Tier | D | D |
| VRAM | 4 GB | 4 GB |
| Power draw (TDP) | 145 W | 290 W |
| Launch MSRP | $329 | $549 |
| Performance per $100 | 4.6 | 2.7 |
| Release year | 2014 | 2013 |
| 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 NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 draws 145W less, so it is easier on your power supply and case cooling — check the PSU calculator before committing. On launch pricing, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 offers better performance per dollar.