AMD Radeon 780M vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile Comparison

The data presents a clear performance hierarchy between the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile and the AMD Radeon 780M, though the underlying architecture and intended use cases could not be more different. The RTX 3060 Mobile is a discrete graphics solution built for sustained performance, while the Radeon 780M is an integrated graphics processor (IGP) designed for efficiency and compactness. The benchmark results show a decisive victory for NVIDIA across every shared test, but the AMD part’s integrated nature and significantly lower power draw tell a more nuanced story about where each component belongs.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The head-to-head results are overwhelmingly one-sided. In the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, the RTX 3060 Mobile scores 1821, which is 279.4% higher than the Radeon 780M’s 480. This is not a marginal lead; it’s a near-fourfold difference in raw performance for this modern DirectX 12 workload. The delta is so large that it suggests the RTX 3060 Mobile operates in a completely different performance tier, likely due to its dedicated memory subsystem and higher power envelope.

The compute-oriented benchmarks tell a similar story. In Geekbench OpenCL, the NVIDIA part posts 79,483 points versus AMD’s 18,602, a delta of 327.3%. This is the largest relative gap in the entire dataset, indicating that the RTX 3060 Mobile’s 3840 shading units are far more effective at general-purpose compute tasks than the 780M’s 768. The Vulkan result is comparatively closer but still lopsided: 80,344 for NVIDIA against 33,683 for AMD, a 138.5% advantage. Notably, the Vulkan gap is less than half the OpenCL gap, which suggests the Radeon 780M’s RDNA 3.0 architecture handles Vulkan’s explicit control model relatively better than it handles OpenCL’s abstraction layer, though it still loses decisively.

Looking at the broader benchmark landscape, the RTX 3060 Mobile’s average benchmark score is 18,159, while the Radeon 780M averages 17,588. The overall percentile rankings are nearly identical: 62nd for NVIDIA and 61st for AMD. This is a curious discrepancy — the head-to-head tests show massive NVIDIA wins, yet the average scores are within 3.2% of each other. The explanation lies in the test coverage: the Radeon 780M only has three recorded benchmarks, all of which are modern 3DMark or Geekbench tests, while the RTX 3060 Mobile has ten, including legacy Passmark DirectX 9, 10, 11, and 12 tests where it scores 146, 90, 110, and 58 respectively. The Passmark G3D score of 13,230 and GPU compute score of 5,718 contribute heavily to NVIDIA’s average, but the Radeon 780M simply lacks these data points. The percentile similarity suggests that when averaged across all GPUs in the database, both parts land in the same broad performance band, but that band is wide enough to accommodate a discrete card and an iGPU.

Architecture Differences

The two chips are built on fundamentally different philosophies. The RTX 3060 Mobile uses the GA106 chip on NVIDIA’s Ampere architecture, manufactured on Samsung’s 8 nm process. It packs 12,000 million transistors on a 276 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 43.5 million per square millimeter. The Radeon 780M, by contrast, uses the Phoenix chip on AMD’s RDNA 3.0 architecture, built on TSMC’s 4 nm process. It contains 25,390 million transistors on a 178 mm² die, achieving 142.6 million transistors per square millimeter — over three times the density of the NVIDIA part. This is a direct consequence of the process node advantage: TSMC’s 4 nm is far more advanced than Samsung’s 8 nm, allowing AMD to cram more than twice the transistors into a smaller die.

The compute resources differ dramatically. The RTX 3060 Mobile has 3840 shading units, 120 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 48 render output units (ROPs). It also carries 30 ray tracing cores and 120 tensor cores, which are absent on the AMD side (tensor cores are listed as null). The Radeon 780M has 768 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 32 ROPs, along with 12 ray tracing cores. Despite having fewer than a quarter of the shading units, the Radeon 780M’s boost clock is far higher: 2900 MHz versus 1425 MHz for the RTX 3060 Mobile. The base clocks are 800 MHz for AMD and 900 MHz for NVIDIA. This clock speed advantage partially compensates for the core count disparity but not enough to close the performance gap.

Memory is where the two diverge most sharply. The RTX 3060 Mobile has 6 GB of dedicated GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The Radeon 780M uses System Shared memory, meaning its bandwidth is System Dependent — it has no dedicated VRAM. This architectural choice is typical for an integrated GPU, but it means the 780M’s performance is heavily influenced by the host system’s memory configuration, which is not captured in the benchmark data. The RTX 3060 Mobile’s dedicated memory also allows for a pixel rate of 68.40 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 171.0 GTexel/s, while the Radeon 780M posts 92.80 GPixel/s and 139.2 GTexel/s. The AMD part wins on pixel throughput but loses on texture throughput.

Power consumption is another stark differentiator. The RTX 3060 Mobile has a TDP of 80 W, while the Radeon 780M draws just 15 W. That’s a 65 W difference, which is substantial in any laptop design. The RTX 3060 Mobile also uses a PCIe 4.0 x16 interface, whereas the Radeon 780M uses PCIe 4.0 x8 — half the lanes, though for an IGP that communicates with the CPU via shared memory, the lane count matters less. Both support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, so feature-level API support is identical.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 3060 Mobile wins every benchmark where both parts have scores. It is 279.4% faster in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, 327.3% faster in Geekbench OpenCL, and 138.5% faster in Geekbench Vulkan. For gaming, content creation, or any compute-heavy workload, the NVIDIA part is the clear choice. Its dedicated 6 GB of GDDR6 memory and 336.0 GB/s bandwidth mean it can handle high-resolution textures and complex scenes without relying on system RAM. The 30 ray tracing cores and 120 tensor cores also give it hardware acceleration for ray-traced effects and AI-based features like DLSS, though the benchmark data does not directly measure these capabilities.

The Radeon 780M’s wins are more subtle and not reflected in the benchmark scores. Its 15 W TDP is a massive advantage for battery life and thermal management in ultra-thin laptops. The 4 nm process node and 142.6M transistors per mm² density indicate a much more power-efficient design. Its higher boost clock of 2900 MHz and superior pixel rate of 92.80 GPixel/s suggest that in lightweight, pixel-bound workloads — such as basic 2D rendering or older games running at low resolutions — it could be surprisingly competitive, though the data does not include such tests. The 780M is also an active product (production status: Active) while the RTX 3060 Mobile is End-of-life, meaning AMD’s part is still being shipped in new systems.

For users who prioritize raw performance, the RTX 3060 Mobile is the only choice. For users who prioritize portability, battery life, and the simplicity of an integrated solution, the Radeon 780M is the rational pick. The 780M’s System Shared memory is a double-edged sword: it eliminates the cost and complexity of dedicated VRAM but makes performance dependent on the host system’s memory speed and capacity, which the benchmark data cannot account for.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the RTX 3060 Mobile outperforms the Radeon 780M by margins ranging from 138.5% to 327.3% across all shared benchmarks. Its average benchmark score of 18,159 versus 17,588 for the 780M, combined with its 62nd percentile ranking versus 61st, confirms that even though both parts sit in a similar overall percentile band, the NVIDIA card is consistently faster in every measured test. The RTX 3060 Mobile is the superior choice for gaming, 3D rendering, and compute tasks that demand the 10.94 TFLOPS of FP32 performance it offers.

However, the Radeon 780M is not without merit. Its 15 W TDP is 65 W lower than the RTX 3060 Mobile’s 80 W, and its 4 nm process node gives it a significant efficiency advantage. For a thin-and-light laptop where battery life is paramount and gaming is a secondary concern, the 780M is the appropriate component. Its 8.909 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is still respectable for an integrated GPU, and its 12 ray tracing cores provide some hardware RT capability. The 780M’s active production status means it will continue to appear in new devices, while the RTX 3060 Mobile is end-of-life. But for anyone buying a laptop for gaming or content creation, the RTX 3060 Mobile’s benchmark dominance makes it the only sensible choice from this data.

FAQ

Q: How much faster is the RTX 3060 Mobile than the Radeon 780M in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12?

A: The RTX 3060 Mobile scores 1821 versus 480 for the Radeon 780M, a 279.4% advantage.

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The RTX 3060 Mobile has an average benchmark score of 18,159, while the Radeon 780M averages 17,588, a difference of 571 points.

Q: Do both GPUs support the same API feature level?

A: Yes, both support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

Q: What is the power consumption difference between the two?

A: The RTX 3060 Mobile has a TDP of 80 W, while the Radeon 780M has a TDP of 15 W, making the AMD part 65 W lower.

Q: How much more memory bandwidth does the RTX 3060 Mobile have?

A: The RTX 3060 Mobile has 336.0 GB/s of dedicated GDDR6 bandwidth, while the Radeon 780M uses System Shared memory with System Dependent bandwidth.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units?

A: The RTX 3060 Mobile has 3840 shading units, compared to 768 for the Radeon 780M.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile | AMD Radeon 780M |

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

| Architecture | Ampere | RDNA 3.0 |

| Process Node | 8 nm | 4 nm |

| Foundry | Samsung | TSMC |

| Transistors | 12,000 million | 25,390 million |

| Die Size | 276 mm² | 178 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 43.5M / mm² | 142.6M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 900 MHz | 800 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1425 MHz | 2900 MHz |

| Memory Size | 6 GB | System Shared |

| Memory Type | GDDR6 | System Shared |

| Memory Bus Width | 192 bit | System Shared |

| Memory Bandwidth | 336.0 GB/s | System Dependent |

| Shading Units | 3840 | 768 |

| TMUs | 120 | 48 |

| ROPs | 48 | 32 |

| RT Cores | 30 | 12 |

| Tensor Cores | 120 | null |

| Pixel Rate | 68.40 GPixel/s | 92.80 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 171.0 GTexel/s | 139.2 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Performance | 10.94 TFLOPS | 8.909 TFLOPS |

| TDP | 80 W | 15 W |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 4.0 x16 | PCIe 4.0 x8 |

| Production Status | End-of-life | Active |

| Release Date | 2021-01-11 | 2024-01-30 |

| Predecessor | GeForce 20 Mobile | Navi II IGP |

| Successor | null | Navi III IGP |