AMD Instinct MI300 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Comparison

FAQ

Q: What is the architecture of each product?

A: The AMD Instinct MI300 uses CDNA 3.0 architecture on the Aqua Vanjaram chip. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 uses Blackwell 2.0 architecture on the GB202 chip.

Q: How do their memory configurations differ?

A: The AMD Instinct MI300 has 128 GB of HBM3 memory on an 8192-bit bus with 5.32 TB/s bandwidth. The RTX 5090 has 32 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 512-bit bus with 1.79 TB/s bandwidth.

Q: Which product has higher FP32 compute?

A: The RTX 5090 delivers 104.8 TFLOPS FP32, which is more than double the MI300's 47.87 TFLOPS. Both achieve their FP16 at a 1:1 ratio to FP32.

Q: What is the release date difference?

A: The MI300 released on January 3, 2023. The RTX 5090 released on January 29, 2025, roughly two years later.

Q: What display outputs does each card support?

A: The MI300 has no display outputs. The RTX 5090 has 1x HDMI 2.1b and 3x DisplayPort 2.1b connections.

Q: How do the API support levels compare?

A: The MI300 lists no DirectX, OpenGL, or Vulkan support. The RTX 5090 supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Instinct MI300 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 represent two fundamentally different design philosophies. The MI300 is built on CDNA 3.0, an architecture focused on compute acceleration, while the RTX 5090 uses Blackwell 2.0, designed for graphics and consumer workloads.

The manufacturing process is identical at 5 nm from TSMC, but the chip implementations diverge sharply. The MI300 packs 153,000 million transistors onto a 1017 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 150.4M per mm². The RTX 5090 uses 92,200 million transistors on a 750 mm² die, with a density of 122.9M per mm². The MI300's larger die and higher transistor count reflect its data-center compute orientation.

Memory architecture separates these two products decisively. The MI300 uses 128 GB of HBM3 with an 8192-bit memory bus, delivering 5.32 TB/s of bandwidth. This massive memory pool and bus width target large-scale compute workloads where capacity and bandwidth dominate. The RTX 5090 instead uses 32 GB of GDDR7 on a 512-bit bus, providing 1.79 TB/s. The bandwidth difference is a factor of roughly three in favor of the MI300, while the capacity difference is a factor of four.

Shader configurations tell a different story. The MI300 has 14,080 shading units, 880 texture mapping units, and zero ROPs. The RTX 5090 has 21,760 shading units, 680 TMUs, and 176 ROPs. The RTX 5090 also includes 170 ray tracing cores and 680 tensor cores, features entirely absent from the MI300's specification sheet. This confirms the MI300 has no graphics pipeline, while the RTX 5090 carries the full complement of modern GPU features.

Clock speeds favor the NVIDIA part substantially. The MI300 runs at a 1000 MHz base and 1700 MHz boost. The RTX 5090 runs at 2017 MHz base and 2407 MHz boost. The higher clocks, combined with more shading units, produce the RTX 5090's significant FP32 advantage: 104.8 TFLOPS versus 47.87 TFLOPS.

Power requirements are similar in magnitude. The MI300 draws 600 W with a suggested 1000 W PSU and two 8-pin connectors. The RTX 5090 draws 575 W with a suggested 950 W PSU and a single 16-pin connector. The MI300 measures 267 mm in length and 111 mm in height, while the RTX 5090 is longer at 304 mm, taller at 137 mm, and adds a 40 mm width dimension for a dual-slot design.

The Verdict

The data shows two products with almost no overlap in intended use. The AMD Instinct MI300 is a compute accelerator with no display outputs, no graphics API support, and no raster operations. Its 128 GB HBM3 memory and 5.32 TB/s bandwidth position it for data-center workloads where memory capacity and bandwidth are the primary constraints. The RTX 5090, by contrast, is a complete graphics card with display outputs, DirectX 12 Ultimate support, ray tracing cores, and 176 ROPs.

For any graphics-oriented task, the RTX 5090 is the only viable option from these two. The MI300 cannot output video, run DirectX, OpenGL, or Vulkan workloads. The RTX 5090 also holds a 2.2x advantage in FP32 compute, a 4.6x advantage in texture fill rate (1,636.8 GTexel/s versus 1,496.0 GTexel/s), and a 423.6 GPixel/s pixel rate versus zero for the MI300.

For compute-centric workloads, the MI300's memory subsystem is the decisive factor. Its 5.32 TB/s bandwidth and 128 GB capacity dwarf the RTX 5090's 1.79 TB/s and 32 GB. The MI300 also uses less power per memory capacity, though both cards sit in the 575-600 W range.

The recorded benchmark data only covers the RTX 5090, which holds a 92nd percentile ranking among all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 79,842. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB at 79,605 (0.3% behind), the Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB at 79,396 (0.6% behind), the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT at 78,940 (1.1% behind), and the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64X at 80,959 (1.4% ahead). The MI300 has no benchmark scores recorded and sits at the 50th percentile, suggesting the database has insufficient data to rank it meaningfully.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Instinct MI300 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 |

|---|---|---|

| Architecture | CDNA 3.0 | Blackwell 2.0 |

| Chip | Aqua Vanjaram | GB202 |

| Transistors | 153,000 million | 92,200 million |

| Die Size | 1017 mm² | 750 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 150.4M / mm² | 122.9M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1000 MHz | 2017 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1700 MHz | 2407 MHz |

| Memory Size | 128 GB | 32 GB |

| Memory Type | HBM3 | GDDR7 |

| Memory Bus | 8192 bit | 512 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 5.32 TB/s | 1.79 TB/s |

| Memory Clock | 1300 MHz 5.2 Gbps effective | 1750 MHz 28 Gbps effective |

| Shading Units | 14,080 | 21,760 |

| TMUs | 880 | 680 |

| ROPs | 0 | 176 |

| RT Cores | None | 170 |

| Tensor Cores | None | 680 |

| Pixel Rate | 0 MPixel/s | 423.6 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 1,496.0 GTexel/s | 1,636.8 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 47.87 TFLOPS | 104.8 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 47.87 TFLOPS (1:1) | 104.8 TFLOPS (1:1) |

| TDP | 600 W | 575 W |

| Power Connectors | 2x 8-pin | 1x 16-pin |

| Suggested PSU | 1000 W | 950 W |

| Display Outputs | No outputs | 1x HDMI 2.1b, 3x DisplayPort 2.1b |

| DirectX | N/A | 12 Ultimate (12_2) |

| OpenGL | N/A | 4.6 |

| Vulkan | N/A | 1.4 |

| Length | 267 mm | 304 mm |

| Height | 111 mm | 137 mm |

| Width | Not specified | 40 mm |

| Release Date | 2023-01-03 | 2025-01-29 |

| Production Status | Not specified | Active |

| Predecessor | Radeon Instinct | GeForce 40 |

| Successor | Not specified | GeForce 60 |

| Launch MSRP | None listed | 1,999 USD |

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database contains benchmark results only for the RTX 5090. The MI300 has no recorded benchmark scores, making direct numerical comparison impossible for standard tests. The RTX 5090's average benchmark score stands at 79,842, with a percentile ranking of 92 among all GPUs.

In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, the RTX 5090 scores 18,355. This test exercises DirectX 12 rendering, a workload the MI300 cannot run due to its lack of DirectX support. The MI300's absence from this benchmark reflects its hardware design, which includes no ROPs and no graphics API compatibility.

Geekbench results for the RTX 5090 show 334,370 in OpenCL and 376,728 in Vulkan. These compute-oriented tests demonstrate the RTX 5090's capability in general-purpose GPU workloads, but the MI300's absence from the same tests leaves a gap in the comparison. The MI300's FP32 output of 47.87 TFLOPS versus the RTX 5090's 104.8 TFLOPS suggests the NVIDIA part would likely lead in raw compute benchmarks, but no direct measurement exists in the database.

PassMark tests provide a range of scores for the RTX 5090: 226 in DirectX 10, 341 in DirectX 11, 185 in DirectX 12, 395 in DirectX 9, 1,413 in G2D, 39,650 in G3D, and 26,756 in GPU Compute. The G3D score of 39,650 and GPU Compute score of 26,756 represent the more demanding workloads. The DirectX-specific tests reinforce that the RTX 5090 is a graphics card, while the MI300 has no DirectX implementation at all.

The nearest rivals to the RTX 5090 in the database are all older or lower-tier products. The Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB scores 79,605, just 0.3% below the RTX 5090. The Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB scores 79,396, 0.6% below. The AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT scores 78,940, 1.1% below. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64X scores 80,959, 1.4% above the RTX 5090. This clustering of scores within a 2.5% band suggests the RTX 5090's 92nd percentile ranking places it among capable performers, but the margin over these rivals is narrow in aggregate benchmark terms.

Where Each One Wins

The MI300 wins decisively in memory capacity and bandwidth. Its 128 GB HBM3 configuration with 8,192-bit bus width produces 5.32 TB/s bandwidth, approximately three times the RTX 5090's 1.79 TB/s. For workloads that fit within 32 GB, the RTX 5090's lower bandwidth may suffice, but beyond that threshold, the MI300 is the only option. The MI300 also has a higher transistor count at 153,000 million versus 92,200 million, and a larger die at 1017 mm² versus 750 mm².

The RTX 5090 wins in every graphics-related category. Its 104.8 TFLOPS FP32 is 2.2 times the MI300's 47.87 TFLOPS. Its texture rate of 1,636.8 GTexel/s exceeds the MI300's 1,496.0 GTexel/s. Its pixel rate of 423.6 GPixel/s versus zero for the MI300 makes it the only card capable of rasterization. The RTX 5090 also has 21,760 shading units versus 14,080, 176 ROPs versus zero, and 170 RT cores plus 680 tensor cores where the MI300 has none.

The RTX 5090 carries full API support with DirectX 12 Ultimate, OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The MI300 lists no API support. The RTX 5090 provides display outputs, while the MI300 has none. The RTX 5090 runs at higher clocks, 2017 MHz base and 2407 MHz boost versus 1000 MHz and 1700 MHz. It also uses slightly less power at 575 W versus 600 W, and it has a smaller physical footprint in width at 40 mm, though it is longer at 304 mm versus 267 mm.

The RTX 5090's release date of January 2025 places it two years newer than the MI300. Its production status is Active, while the MI300's status is not specified. The RTX 5090 has a defined successor in GeForce 60, while the MI300's successor is not listed.

For compute workloads where memory capacity is the constraint, the MI300's 128 GB and 5.32 TB/s bandwidth define its advantage. For any workload requiring graphics output, ray tracing, tensor operations, or standard GPU APIs, the RTX 5090 is the only functional choice. The benchmark data confirms the RTX 5090 performs at the 92nd percentile with an average score of 79,842, while the MI300 has no recorded benchmarks to establish its standing. The database's percentile field ranks the MI300 at 50, but without measurement data, this ranking carries limited interpretive weight.