AMD’s new Radeon RX 5500 XT graphics card is available with both 4gb and 8gb options,
but what are the differences between these and which should you get? I’ve compared
17 games at 1080p and 1440p resolutions to help you decide!
In terms of specs both are the same with the only difference being the memory sizes. The
4gb model starts at $170 USD, while the 8gb model starts at $200 USD.
For the testing I’m using the Gigabyte Gaming OC 8GB and the Sapphire Pulse 4GB.
The system that I’m testing with has an Intel i7-8700K CPU overclocked to 5GHz on
all cores in an MSI Z390 ACE motherboard, along with 16GB of DDR4-3200 CL14 memory in
dual channel. You can check the links in the description for details on all of the components
as well as for up to date pricing.
Testing was done with the latest Windows 1909 fully up to date, and with the latest Radeon
drivers available at the time of testing, so with all of that out of the way let’s
get into the results.
COD Modern Warfare was tested in campaign mode. I’ve got the 1080p results on the
lower half of the graph, and the 1440p results towards the upper half. In this test the 8gb
card was 9% ahead in average FPS at 1080p, increasing to a higher 17.6% increase at 1440p.
Control is an example of a game where the extra memory doesn’t really seem to matter
too much. At 1080p the results were extremely close together and within margin of error
range. At 1440p though the 8gb was now almost 2% ahead in average frame rate, granted with
these frame rates you wouldn’t be playing at 1440p high settings anyway.
Red Dead Redemption 2 was tested using the games built in benchmark tool. The 8gb option
had a significant 33% higher average frame rate over the 4gb, lowering a little to a
28.5% lead at 1440p, so the extra memory seemed quite beneficial in this test.
Battlefield V was tested in campaign mode, and saw the largest difference out of all
17 titles tested. I triple checked these results and consistently got the same numbers, it
seems that this game greatly favours additional VRAM, or at least the area I test in. At 1080p
the 8gb 5500 XT was 58% higher in terms of average FPS, rising up to a huge 63% boost
at 1440p. Even the 1% low from the 8gb card was ahead of the averages the 4gb was able
to offer.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider was tested with the games benchmark tool, and was another
test that heavily favoured the 8gb 5500 XT. At 1080p the average FPS on the 8gb was 25%
higher than the 4gb, rising up to a 34% lead at 1440p.
Apex Legends was tested with all graphical settings at maximum, however the memory limit
in the game’s settings was set to 4gb for the 4gb card, or 8gb for the 8gb card. At
1080p the 1% low from the 8gb wasn’t too far off the average FPS from the 4gb, and
it came out 22% ahead in average frame rate. At 1440p though the difference dropped, with
the 8gb now 11.5% ahead of the 4gb, though both were still delivering above 60 FPS averages.
Borderlands 3 was tested with the game’s benchmark tool, and was another title where
the 1% low performance from the 8gb card was near the average FPS from the 4gb. At 1080p
the 8gb 5500 XT was scoring 16% higher average FPS when compared to the 4gb, rising to almost
a 19% increase at 1440p.
Fortnite was tested using the replay feature, with the exact same replay file used for all
testing. This was another case where there was no major difference between the two, with
just a one to two percent increase with the 8gb version, so basically margin of error
stuff.
PUBG was also tested using the replay feature, with the same replay file again. The results
were kind of similar, no major differences regardless of using the 4gb or 8gb 5500 XT.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey was tested using the built in benchmark, and this was another
test that saw big gains from the 8gb variant, at least with the very high setting preset
anyway. At 1080p the 8gb version was 23% ahead of the 4gb, and then it was 30% faster at
1440p, where the 1% low was now ahead of the average FPS from the 4gb.
The Witcher 3 tends to be a fairly GPU heavy game, however the memory difference didn’t
really seem to be a factor at ultra settings, as there was very little difference between
the two in this title.
The Division 2 was tested with the games benchmark tool, and at 1080p the 8gb version was just
3% ahead of the 4gb, but then at 1440p there’s a much bigger difference where the 8gb was
now almost 27% higher in average frame rate, with a 1% low ahead of the 4gb’s average.
Ghost Recon Breakpoint was also tested using the built in benchmark, and the 8gb 5500XT
had an 8% lead in average FPS at 1080p over the 4gb, increasing significantly to a 21%
lead at 1440p, so another where the extra memory was more beneficial above 1080p.
Overwatch was tested in the practice range, so while not quite the same as actual gameplay,
it allows me to perform the same test pass more accurately which is ideal for comparison
purposes. In any case there was minimal difference between the two in this test, not enough that
you’d actually notice a difference in practice anyway.
Rainbow Six Siege was tested with the games benchmark tool. Again the results were pretty
similar between the two and well within margin of error ranges, so it doesn’t seem to matter
which you pick here.
Strange Brigade was tested using Vulkan and also with the built in benchmark, and was
another where there was almost zero difference between the two, in fact there was actually
zero difference at 1440p in terms of average FPS.
I’ve tested CS:GO with the Ulletical FPS benchmark, and this was another test where
the extra memory hardly made a practical difference, you could just as easily go the 4gb option
in this title and save the money.
Over all 17 games tested the 8gb card was performing around 12% better in terms of average
FPS. As you can see though, it really depends on the specific game. The bottom 9 games are
only seeing a zero to three percent performance improvement with the 8gb model, so clearly
the extra VRAM isn’t very beneficial in these titles at this resolution with the settings
I’m using. Some of the games like Battlefield 5 saw a huge improvement with the extra VRAM
though, and these titles with larger gains are clearly influencing the overall average.
At 1440p the average improvement seen with the 8gb increases to 15%. While neither of
these are really meant for 1440p gaming, it should be possible with lower settings in
some titles, and the extra VRAM with the 8gb model is offering more of a benefit compared
to 1080p. That said though, 8 of the games still only saw a zero to two percent increase
on the 8gb.
Here’s what total system power draw from the wall looks like during two different games.
In the Witcher 3, there was only a 0.5% improvement to average FPS with the 8gb card, and this
was resulting in about 3% more power used. In Battlefield 5 though, there was a much
larger 60% boost with the 8gb card, and this time the 8gb card was using 13.6% more power.
As both cards I’m testing with have different cooling solutions I haven’t looked at thermals
as it would be less of a fair comparison.
Now for the final difference, the price. You can find updated prices linked in the description.
At the time of recording, the 4gb version starts at $170 USD, while the 8gb version
starts at $200 USD, so 17.6% more money for the 8gb. Here in Australia the 4gb starts
at $299 AUD while the 8gb goes for $349 AUD, or 16.7% more money, so a similar ratio.
In terms of cost per frame the 4gb is winning as it’s better value. I had the 8gb averaging
95 FPS over all 17 games and the 4gb averaging 88 FPS, so not that big of a difference compared
to the price difference.
If you’re playing games that won’t really benefit from the extra VRAM then you can definitely
save some money by just sticking with the 4gb model, at least for today. Games that
do take advantage of the extra memory and perform better though could see the 8gb being
worthwhile, but it’s really going to depend on the specific game. Over time future games
will tend to make use of more memory, so the 8gb model would likely last you longer, but
of course you could save some money today then just upgrade in future when something
better exists.
With the specific cards I’m testing, the Sapphire Pulse with 4gb memory goes for $180
USD, while the 8gb Gigabyte card I’m using is $220 USD, so 22% more money in this instance.
If you’re considering either of these options, you’re also going to want to investigate
the 1650 Super, which tends to be better value than the 5500 XT. I’ve already compared
the 8gb 5500 XT with the 1650 Super, and I’ll compare the 4gb model in a future video.
So with all of that in mind which would you pick? The 4gb or 8gb version of the Radeon
RX 5500 XT? Let me know in the comments, and if you’re new to the channel consider getting
subscribed for future comparisons and tech videos like this one.