AMD Radeon 780M vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Comparison

The Verdict

The data presents an unusual split. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 wins two of the three head-to-head benchmarks decisively, while the AMD Radeon 780M claims a single but substantial victory. The RTX 3070's average benchmark score of 17,208 sits just 2.2% below the 780M's 17,588, yet the individual tests tell a very different story than the averages suggest. For users prioritizing raw DirectX 12 and OpenCL compute performance, the RTX 3070 is the clear choice. For Vulkan workloads specifically, the 780M holds a commanding lead. The RTX 3070 is an end-of-life discrete card with a 220 W TDP, while the 780M is an active integrated processor running at 15 W. The RTX 3070 delivers roughly 6.6 times the 3DMark Steel Nomad score and 6.1 times the OpenCL score of the 780M, but the 780M returns the favor with a 60.2% higher Vulkan score. The verdict hinges on workload: the RTX 3070 for sustained, high-throughput rendering and compute; the 780M for Vulkan-based applications and scenarios where the integrated form factor matters more than raw throughput.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Radeon 780M uses the Phoenix chip built on RDNA 3.0 architecture, fabricated on a 4 nm process at TSMC. It packs 25,390 million transistors into a 178 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 142.6M per mm². The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 uses the GA104 chip on Ampere architecture, fabricated on Samsung's 8 nm process. It contains 17,400 million transistors across a 392 mm² die, with a density of 44.4M per mm². The 780M's transistor density is 3.2 times higher than the RTX 3070's, reflecting the newer, denser manufacturing node.

The 780M is an integrated graphics processor with system-shared memory, while the RTX 3070 is a dual-slot discrete card with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The 780M's memory bandwidth is system-dependent, while the RTX 3070 has a fixed figure. The 780M operates with a base clock of 800 MHz and a boost clock of 2900 MHz, while the RTX 3070 runs at 1500 MHz base and 1725 MHz boost. The 780M has 768 shading units, 48 TMUs, 32 ROPs, and 12 ray tracing cores. The RTX 3070 has 5,888 shading units, 184 TMUs, 96 ROPs, and 46 ray tracing cores, plus 184 tensor cores. The RTX 3070 has 7.7 times the shading units, 3.8 times the TMUs, 3 times the ROPs, and 3.8 times the RT cores of the 780M.

Both support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The 780M uses a PCIe 4.0 x8 interface, while the RTX 3070 uses PCIe 4.0 x16. The 780M requires no power connectors and has a 15 W TDP; the RTX 3070 uses a single 12-pin connector and has a 220 W TDP. The RTX 3070's suggested PSU is 550 W. The 780M's display outputs are motherboard-dependent, while the RTX 3070 offers 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a. The RTX 3070 measures 242 mm in length and 112 mm in height. The 780M is an IGP with no slot width. The RTX 3070 launched on 2020-08-31 with a launch MSRP of 499 USD; the 780M released on 2024-01-30 with no listed MSRP.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon 780M has an average benchmark score of 17,588, which is 2.2% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070's 17,208. Both sit at the 61st percentile among all GPUs.

Q: How do the two GPUs compare in the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test?

A: The RTX 3070 scores 3,162 versus the 780M's 480, a delta of -84.8% for the 780M. The RTX 3070's score is approximately 6.6 times higher.

Q: Which GPU wins in Vulkan performance?

A: The 780M scores 33,683 in Geekbench Vulkan, while the RTX 3070 scores 21,022. The 780M leads by 60.2%, making this its only head-to-head victory.

Q: What are the memory configurations?

A: The RTX 3070 has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus with 448.0 GB/s bandwidth. The 780M uses system-shared memory, with type, bus width, and bandwidth all listed as system-dependent or shared.

Q: What is the TDP difference?

A: The RTX 3070 has a 220 W TDP, while the 780M has a 15 W TDP. The RTX 3070 also requires a 550 W suggested PSU and uses a 12-pin power connector, whereas the 780M uses no power connectors.

Q: How do their nearest rivals compare?

A: The 780M's closest rival is the AMD Radeon Pro 560 at 17,551 (0.2% behind), followed by the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 at 17,639 (0.3% ahead). The RTX 3070's nearest rival is the AMD Radeon RX 7600 XT at 17,083 (0.7% behind), with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690 at 17,037 (1% behind).

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ across nearly every specification field. The process node differs: 4 nm for the 780M versus 8 nm for the RTX 3070. The foundry differs: TSMC for the 780M, Samsung for the RTX 3070. Transistor count differs: 25,390 million versus 17,400 million. Die size differs: 178 mm² versus 392 mm². Transistor density differs: 142.6M per mm² versus 44.4M per mm².

Base clocks differ: 800 MHz versus 1500 MHz. Boost clocks differ: 2900 MHz versus 1725 MHz. Memory size differs: system-shared versus 8 GB. Memory type differs: system-shared versus GDDR6. Bus width differs: system-shared versus 256-bit. Bandwidth differs: system-dependent versus 448.0 GB/s. Shading units differ: 768 versus 5,888. TMUs differ: 48 versus 184. ROPs differ: 32 versus 96. RT cores differ: 12 versus 46. The RTX 3070 has 184 tensor cores; the 780M has none listed.

Pixel rate differs: 92.80 GPixel/s versus 165.6 GPixel/s. Texture rate differs: 139.2 GTexel/s versus 317.4 GTexel/s. FP32 compute differs: 8.909 TFLOPS versus 20.31 TFLOPS. FP16 differs: 8.909 TFLOPS versus 20.31 TFLOPS, both at 1:1 ratio. TDP differs: 15 W versus 220 W. Slot width differs: IGP versus dual-slot. Power connectors differ: none versus 1x 12-pin. Suggested PSU differs: not listed versus 550 W. Bus interface differs: PCIe 4.0 x8 versus PCIe 4.0 x16. Display outputs differ: motherboard-dependent versus 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a. Production status differs: active versus end-of-life. Release dates differ: 2024-01-30 versus 2020-08-31. Predecessors differ: Navi II IGP versus GeForce 20. Successors differ: Navi III IGP versus GeForce 40. The RTX 3070 has dimensions of 242 mm length and 112 mm height; the 780M has no listed dimensions.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test shows the most lopsided result. The RTX 3070 scores 3,162 against the 780M's 480, a delta of -84.8%. This is a 6.6-fold difference in favor of the discrete card. The Geekbench OpenCL test shows a similar pattern: the RTX 3070 scores 112,821 against 18,602, a delta of -83.5%, or roughly 6.1 times higher. These two tests dominate the overall comparison, representing the RTX 3070's clear strengths in DirectX 12 and OpenCL compute workloads.

The Geekbench Vulkan test flips the script. The 780M scores 33,683 against the RTX 3070's 21,022, a delta of 60.2% in favor of the integrated GPU. This is a substantial margin — the 780M outperforms the RTX 3070 by more than half in Vulkan. The RTX 3070 wins two of the three benchmarks; the 780M wins one. Yet the average scores nearly match: 17,588 for the 780M versus 17,208 for the RTX 3070. This near-parity in averages masks the wide divergence in individual tests. The 780M's Vulkan advantage is large enough to offset, in average terms, the RTX 3070's much larger wins in the other two tests.

The RTX 3070 also has additional benchmark data not available for the 780M: PassMark tests show scores of 150 in DirectX 10, 182 in DirectX 11, 85 in DirectX 12, 247 in DirectX 9, 1,001 in G2D, 22,214 in G3D, and 11,195 in GPU compute. These figures provide context for the RTX 3070's legacy API performance, but no direct comparison exists for the 780M in these tests.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 3070 wins in DirectX 12 rendering and OpenCL compute. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad score of 3,162 dwarfs the 780M's 480, making it the clear choice for DX12-based gaming and rendering workloads. Its OpenCL score of 112,821 versus 18,602 indicates dominant performance in OpenCL compute tasks — scientific computing, video encoding, and general GPU compute applications that rely on this API. The RTX 3070's 20.31 TFLOPS FP32 performance, 165.6 GPixel/s pixel rate, and 317.4 GTexel/s texture rate all point to raw throughput advantages. Its 448.0 GB/s memory bandwidth and 8 GB GDDR6 frame buffer provide dedicated resources that the 780M's system-shared memory cannot match. The RTX 3070 also offers tensor cores for AI-accelerated workloads, a feature entirely absent from the 780M's specification sheet.

The 780M wins in Vulkan performance. Its Geekbench Vulkan score of 33,683 beats the RTX 3070's 21,022 by 60.2%. This suggests the RDNA 3.0 architecture handles Vulkan workloads more efficiently than Ampere, despite the 780M's far lower raw specifications. The 780M's higher boost clock of 2900 MHz versus 1725 MHz may contribute to this efficiency. The 780M also wins on power efficiency by a wide margin: 15 W versus 220 W TDP. For battery-powered or thermally constrained systems, the 780M's integrated form factor and minimal power draw make it the only viable choice. Its 4 nm process and higher transistor density (142.6M per mm² versus 44.4M per mm²) indicate a more modern, efficient design. The 780M is active and current; the RTX 3070 is end-of-life.

For users building a new system in 2024 or later, the 780M represents current technology with Vulkan superiority. For users with existing desktop systems requiring maximum DX12 and OpenCL performance, the RTX 3070 remains the stronger option. The data does not support a single universal winner — it supports two distinct use cases. Vulkan-centric workloads favor the 780M; everything else heavily favors the RTX 3070.