RX M 6800 XT vs R9 380
Head-to-head specifications
| Metric | RX M 6800 XT | R9 380 | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3DMark Time Spy | 7,400 | 1,218 | +507.6% |
| Avg FPS @ 1080p | 69 | 28 | +146.4% |
| Avg FPS @ 1440p | 42 | 15 | +180.0% |
| Avg FPS @ 4K | 23 | 8 | +187.5% |
| FP32 compute (TFLOPS) | 17.6 | 3.5 | +406.3% |
| VRAM | 16 GB GDDR6 | 4 GB GDDR5 | — |
| Memory bandwidth (GB/s) | 448 | 224 | +100.0% |
| TDP (W) | 195 | 190 | — |
- RX M 6800 XT averages 42 fps at 1440p versus 15 fps — about 180% faster.
- R9 380 draws less power (190W vs 195W).
Verdict: RX M 6800 XT or R9 380?
RX M 6800 XT advantages
- 1440p gaming (+64%)
- 4K gaming (+65%)
- Synthetic benchmark performance (+84%)
- Video memory (+75%)
- Memory bandwidth (+50%)
R9 380 advantages
- No decisive advantage on the tracked metrics.
Which should you choose?
- Choose the RX M 6800 XT if you game at 1440p.
- Choose the RX M 6800 XT if you game at 4K or drive a high-resolution display.
RX M 6800 XT vs R9 380: which should you choose?
RX M 6800 XT — AMD desktop graphics card (2020, RDNA 2) with 16 GB of GDDR6, averaging 42 fps at 1440p.
R9 380 — AMD desktop graphics card (2015, GCN 3.0) with 4 GB of GDDR5, averaging 15 fps at 1440p; launched at $199.
RX M 6800 XT vs R9 380: RX M 6800 XT is faster for gaming. RX M 6800 XT averages 42 fps at 1440p versus 15 fps — about 180% faster. R9 380 draws less power (190W vs 195W).
1080p, 1440p and 4K
At 1440p — the most common enthusiast resolution — the RX M 6800 XT averages 42 fps against 15. At 4K (23 vs 8 fps) VRAM (16GB vs 4GB) and memory bandwidth matter more.
Power and value
Board power is 195 W versus 190 W, which affects PSU headroom, case cooling and noise.
The verdict
Both are credible choices in the graphics card comparison space; the specification table above lays out every metric so you can weigh the trade-offs that matter to you. Pick the one whose strengths line up with how you will actually use it.
Frequently asked questions
Is the RX M 6800 XT better than the R9 380?
RX M 6800 XT is the clearly stronger overall choice, winning most of the dimensions that matter. RX M 6800 XT averages 42 fps at 1440p versus 15 fps — about 180% faster.
What is the main difference between the RX M 6800 XT and the R9 380?
RX M 6800 XT averages 42 fps at 1440p versus 15 fps — about 180% faster. R9 380 draws less power (190W vs 195W).
Which should I choose?
Choose the RX M 6800 XT if you game at 1440p. Choose the RX M 6800 XT if you game at 4K or drive a high-resolution display.
Methodology
Graphics cards are compared on 3DMark Time Spy scores, average gaming frame rates at 1080p/1440p/4K, FP32 compute throughput, VRAM capacity and type, memory bandwidth, board power (TDP) and launch MSRP — plus AI workload throughput (Stable Diffusion iterations/s and local LLM tokens/s) where measured. Vintage and server GPUs without modern benchmark results are compared on specifications only, clearly labelled. Frame rates are averages across a game suite at high settings; specific titles vary.