When it comes to budget friendly graphics cards that yet give good performance for 1080p gaming the AMD Radeon RX 580 and RX 590 have long been favorites with gamers and PC builders Both cards belong to AMD’s Polaris architecture and share many similarities but important variances in clock speed efficiency and overall performance might affect your selection based on your demands
Let’s go down the comparison of RX 580 8GB 256 bit vs RX 590 to help you select the right card for your setup
Architecture and Specifications
The RX 580 and RX 590 are also based on AMD’s Polaris architecture The RX 580 utilizes the Polaris 20 GPU whereas the RX 590 boasts an upgraded Polaris 30 GPU Although the core count memory configuration and bandwidth remain the same the RX 590 is constructed on a lower 12nm manufacturing node compared to the 14nm of the RX 580
As you can see both cards share the same number of cores and memory specifications but the RX 590 operates at faster clock speeds delivering somewhat greater performance out of the box However it also uses more power and may run warmer under load
Performance in Gaming
In real life gaming evaluations the RX 590 typically gives approximately 10 to 15 percent greater performance compared to the RX 580 This makes the RX 590 a better pick if you want a tiny edge in demanding games or are seeking for additional future proofing at 1080p resolution
For example in popular titles
Here are some crucial specifications
RX 580 8GB 256 bit
Stream Processors 2304
Base Clock roughly 1257 MHz
Boost Clock roughly 1340 MHz
Memory 8GB GDDR5
Memory Interface 256 bit
TDP 185W
RX 590 8GB 256 bit
Stream Processors 2304
Base Clock roughly 1469 MHz
Boost Clock roughly 1545 MHz
Memory 8GB GDDR5
Memory Interface 256 bit
TDP 225W
As you can see both cards share the same number of cores and memory specifications but the RX 590 operates at faster clock speeds delivering somewhat greater performance out of the box However it also uses more power and may run warmer under load
Performance in Gaming
In real life gaming evaluations the RX 590 typically gives approximately 10 to 15 percent greater performance compared to the RX 580 This makes the RX 590 a better pick if you want a tiny edge in demanding games or are seeking for additional future proofing at 1080p resolution
For example in popular titles
Thermals and Power Consumption
One area where the RX 580 frequently has an edge is thermals and efficiency The RX 580 generally operates cooler and consumes somewhat less power than the RX 590 Because the RX 590 works at faster speeds its TDP is larger and it may need better case ventilation or a more powerful PSU suggested 500W or more
If your system has restricted airflow or a lower wattage power supply the RX 580 could be the safest pick On the other hand if you have a strong cooling system and enough power headroom the RX 590’s higher performance might be worth it
Overclocking Potential
Both the RX 580 and RX 590 have decent overclocking potential The RX 580 can frequently be pushed closer to RX 590 levels with custom tuning especially if you have a nicely cooled model Meanwhile the RX 590 has less headroom because it already comes factory overclocked
For individuals who love customizing performance and maximizing value an overclocked RX 580 may give performance comparable to the RX 590 with somewhat reduced power drain
Price and Availability in 2025
As of 2025 both the RX 580 and RX 590 are outdated GPUs and may be found primarily in the secondhand market Their costs have reduced dramatically since their introduction yet demand still persists owing to their solid 1080p performance Depending on your area and vendor RX 580 units are generally cheaper than RX 590 units This makes the RX 580 a better bargain if you are on a limited budget and do not mind slightly lower frame rates
Conclusion Which One Should You Choose
If you are searching for the best price to performance ratio and want to economize on power usage the RX 580 8GB 256 bit is still a wonderful choice for 1080p gaming and light video production However if you want a little more performance and have the power and cooling setup to handle it the RX 590 provides you more headroom in contemporary games
Both cards are capable performers and either will suffice well for budget gaming setups in 2025 The selection ultimately boils down to cost availability and your unique system demands