NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M (DDR3) vs GeForce 940M – benchmarks and real gaming performance comparison

GeForce-GTX-950M-vs-940m-cover

Last week we showed you a detailed performance comparison between the cheapest gaming GPU from NVIDIA – GeForce GTX 950M and perhaps the most worthy (but still more expensive by far) – GeForce GTX 960M. But what’s the difference between the entry-level GTX (950M) and the most powerful non-GTX (940M) GPU in terms of graphics performance? What are you getting if you save some of your budget and go with a mainstream card instead of a gaming one, and would you be able to play the latest games at least at low graphics settings?

We’re going to check that today using an ASUS N751JX (950M, DDR3) and Acer Aspire V15 (940M, DDR3). Both GPUs are part of the Maxwell family and feature NVIDIA Optimus and NVIDIA GPU Boost 2.0. However, GTX 950M has 640 shader units (384 for 940M), a 128-bit memory bus (64-bit for 940M) and higher power consumption – about 50 watts (~30W for 940M).

Don’t forget to check out our Laptop Graphics Ranking table which features our own database with results of the GPUs we have tested so far:
http://laptopmedia.com/top-laptop-graphics-ranking/

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Synthetic benchmarks

Results are from the 3DMark: Fire Strike (Graphics) benchmark (higher the score, the better)

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Gaming tests

tomb-raider-2013-wallpaper1

Tomb Raider (1080p, Low)Tomb Raider (1080p, Medium)Tomb Raider (1080p, Max)
NVIDIA GeForce 940M102 fps34 fps18 fps
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M190 fps (+86%)69 fps (+103%)27 fps (+50%)

f1-2014-940x156

F1 2014 (1080p, Low)F1 2014 (1080p, Medium)F1 2014 (1080p, Max)
NVIDIA GeForce 940M52 fps38 fps37 fps
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M114 fps (+119%)97 fps (+155%)92 fps (+149%)

thief_4_wallpaper_by_christian2506-d5x4ppb1

Thief (1080p, Low)Thief (1080p, Medium)Thief (1080p, Max)
NVIDIA GeForce 940M35 fps25 fps15 fps
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M52 fps (+49%)48 fps (+92%)31 fps (+107%)

As you can see, you won’t get an awesome gaming experience with GeForce 940M, but you’re still going to play games like Tomb Raider at Medium settings or even F1 2014 at high settings. Going to GTX 950M gives you up to 155% performance boost, so if you’re going to mostly play games on your next computer, you should try getting a GTX-equipped laptop. If you’re looking for a machine for everyday use (and gaming is not that important for you), NVIDIA GeForce 940M will do just fine.

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John Young
8 years ago

What about graphics programs like photoshop – would the 940M be good for that.

I have the choice of two laptops one with the GTX 950M and one with the 940M but the one with the 950M has a smaller screen (15″) were the 940M has a 17″ screen so would be better suited to photo work but just concerned over the weaker graphics card

Rossen Pandev
8 years ago
Reply to  John Young

Both GPUs will do just fine, but be careful with the screen quality. If the 15-inch display has better IPS panel and the 17-incher has TN, you will be better off with the 15-incher. (:

John Young
8 years ago
Reply to  Rossen Pandev

Thank you……. These are the laptop specs below – I suppose I could add a monitor (or two) to the 15″ laptop but it might be easier if I just used the 17″ HP Pavilion 16” Intel® Core™ i7-6700HQ Quad-Core Processor with Intel® HD Graphics 4600 • 2.6GHz, 6MB Smart Cache (Turbo Boost up to 3.5GHz) • Windows 10 Home 64-bit ● 8GB DDR3L SDRAM • 1TB 5400 rpm SATA; 128 GB M.2 Solid State Drive ● SuperMulti DVD Burner • 15.6-inch Full HD IPS anti-glare WLED-backlit (1920 x 1080 pixels resolution) • NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M dedicated 4GB DDR3L… Read more »

Rossen Pandev
8 years ago
Reply to  John Young

Both seem okay, so if you prefer the 17-inch model, go with it. Still, tests need to be run to see if there’s any significant difference between the picture quality of both panels. But since they both have IPS, it’s a good bargain. (:

John Young
8 years ago
Reply to  Rossen Pandev

Thanks for your help

Kim
Kim
8 years ago

Can I ask? which one would I choose?
acer v nitro 15
5500u i7
950m 2gb

or
acer v15-v3
6500 i7
940m 4gb?
I need your advice and nitro is not that durable compared to acer v15 but v nitro is more lighter and thinner which onee? thanks

Peter
Peter
7 years ago

If the 950M has higher power consumption then the 940M, does that mean it will run hotter in a laptop and the fans will have to work harder and be more noisy to keep the laptop cool? The Asus K501 is for sale with both nvidia configurations.

Ren Ren Cleofe
7 years ago

I am using now NVIDIA 940M (4GB) for my rendering work, it is not fast than I thought. Now I have planned to change from NVIDIA 940M (4GB) to NVIDIA GTX 950M (4GB), does it make a big difference for my rendering work?
I did not consider before when Im buying laptop the GTX and Non-GTX Video Card, I thought 4GB are all the same.