Really having trouble picking a graphics card

On the computer that I'll be building (First build) I plan to game, do software development, and other productivity things. But I don't know exactly what piece I should get. I have a single monitor right now (1920x1080) but I plan to get two more eventually (not necessarily 2 more of this model). I've been leaning towards GTX 970 or an XFX Radeon 290X but I really don't know what to do. Price range is about 250-350$ Recommendations welcome.

I can't say you would be disappointed with either (well, there seem to be a few disappointed GTX 970 owners out there for some strange reason) but I would lean towards the R9-290X right now because they are usually cheaper, and you really do get 4GB of ram :-P

I'm really impressed with my new Saphire R9-290 which many on here recommend - its a long card but is quiet and was much cheaper than a GTX 970. I'd imagine that the R9-290X version will give much better performance for similar price to the 970.

 

Pick up a R9 290X, I recommend the XFX Double Dissipation Black Edition.

http://pcpartpicker.com/part/xfx-video-card-r9290xedbd

I recently was reading review on the 970. It trades blows with the 290x, so they're more or less equal depending on the game. However, with the 290x's recent price drop, it's the better price/performance value.

But, looking at the 290x prices currently, it doesn't look like the price drop has taken effect. The cheapest 970 is the MSI non gaming version which is still very good. It's 329.99 on newegg.

Personally, I'd choose Nvidia due to the driver and application stability. This, coming from a guy who used 2 generations of AMD cards for 4 years. AMD driver's aren't bad at all, sometimes ther are just some hiccups. I've experienced none with Nvidia's.

The 290X also does a better job at higher resolutions, with higher res textures and filtering and has 4GB of VRAM you can actually use. 

Honestly, Nvidia is working on a driver solution ot alleviate that last 500MB lag. But generally, the 970 performs admirably. Just look at all the reviews.

No one is saying it doesn't. However, the 290X is both cheaper and does a better job at high resolutions.