Radeon RX 5500vsGeForce RTX 5090
The GeForce RTX 5090 is an enthusiast-grade GPU for high-end gaming and professional workloads, while the Radeon RX 5500 is a budget-friendly card for basic 1080p gaming.
Radeon RX 5500
RDNA 1.0 · TSMC 7 nm · 2019
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GeForce RTX 5090
Blackwell 2.0 · TSMC 5 nm · 2025
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Overall Performance Score
A unified score from combined synthetic and real-world benchmarks. 100 represents the fastest consumer GPU available.
Side-by-Side Specs
Every detail compared. Highlighted cells indicate the leading value for that metric.
Which should you buy?
The GeForce RTX 5090 is the clear winner for anyone needing top-tier performance, while the Radeon RX 5500 is not in the same league.
For budget buyers, the Radeon RX 5500 is the smarter pick due to its much lower cost and adequate performance for basic tasks.
The weaker Radeon RX 5500 is right for an old office PC that just needs basic display output and low power draw.
Frequently asked questions
Is the RX 5500 better than the RTX 5090?
Overall the RTX 5090 is the stronger graphics card: it ranks higher in our aggregate performance score (94 vs 21 out of 100), so it leads the RX 5500 in most workloads.
How much faster is the RTX 5090 than the RX 5500?
Based on our aggregated benchmark scores the RTX 5090 is roughly 348% faster than the RX 5500 overall. The real-world gap varies by game, resolution and settings.
Which should you buy, the RX 5500 or the RTX 5090?
If you want the most performance, pick the RTX 5090. If the RX 5500 is meaningfully cheaper where you shop, it can be the better value for similar real-world results — check current prices and the full spec comparison above before deciding.