AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT vs AMD Radeon RX 6600 Comparison

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 and AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT are two very different interpretations of Radeon graphics, separated by a full architecture generation and aimed at different workloads. The RX 6600, built on RDNA 2.0, wins eight of the ten head-to-head benchmarks, while the older RDNA 1.0-based Pro 5700 XT takes two. The data shows a clear split: the RX 6600 dominates in graphics and gaming-oriented tests, while the Pro 5700 XT shows surprising strength in a specific compute workload. This analysis walks through the benchmark results, architectural differences, and specification gaps to determine which card is better suited for which task.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The most lopsided result in the entire comparison comes from the Geekbench Metal test, where the RX 6600 scores 88,398 against the Pro 5700 XT’s 51,272. That is a 72.4% advantage for the RX 6600, the single largest delta in any test. This is a massive margin, indicating that in Metal-based applications, the RX 6600 is in a completely different performance class. The second-largest win for the RX 6600 is in Passmark DirectX 11, where it scores 152 versus 85, a 78.8% lead. These two tests alone establish the RX 6600 as the superior graphics processor for the vast majority of rendering workloads.

However, the Pro 5700 XT strikes back decisively in Geekbench OpenCL. Here, the Pro card scores 59,467, while the RX 6600 manages only 28,850. This is a 51.5% deficit for the RX 6600, meaning the Pro 5700 XT is more than twice as fast in this specific compute API test. It is a stark reversal of the Metal results and suggests that the Pro card’s higher raw compute resources (more shading units and TMUs) are being leveraged effectively in this OpenCL workload. The other win for the Pro 5700 XT is far narrower: in Passmark DirectX 12, it scores 59 against the RX 6600’s 51, a 13.6% edge. This is a modest victory, but it shows that in the latest DirectX API at the time, the Pro card is not entirely obsolete.

Beyond those two wins, the RX 6600 sweeps the rest of the field. In Geekbench Vulkan, it scores 67,623 versus 56,593, a 19.5% lead. In the legacy API tests, the margins are equally clear: Passmark DirectX 10 shows a 25% advantage (95 vs 76), and Passmark DirectX 9 shows a 28.8% edge (197 vs 153). The RX 6600 also wins the more general performance tests: Passmark G3D (15,096 vs 12,547, a 20.3% lead) and Passmark GPU Compute (6,554 vs 5,787, a 13.3% edge). Even the 2D test, Passmark G2D, goes to the RX 6600 with a 9.8% margin (889 vs 810). Overall, the RX 6600 wins 8 out of 10 benchmarks, with an average benchmark score of 19,036 compared to the Pro 5700 XT’s 18,685, a difference of roughly 1.9%.

FAQ

Q: Which card has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6600 has an average benchmark score of 19,036, which is higher than the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT’s 18,685.

Q: In which benchmark does the Radeon Pro 5700 XT have its largest victory?

A: The Pro 5700 XT’s largest victory is in Geekbench OpenCL, where it scores 59,467 against the RX 6600’s 28,850, a 51.5% difference.

Q: How does the RX 6600 perform in DirectX 11 compared to the Pro 5700 XT?

A: The RX 6600 scores 152 in Passmark DirectX 11, while the Pro 5700 XT scores 85, giving the RX 6600 a 78.8% advantage.

Q: Are both cards in the same performance percentile among all GPUs?

A: Yes, both the RX 6600 and the Pro 5700 XT are listed at the 63rd percentile of all GPUs.

Q: What is the closest rival to the RX 6600 based on average score?

A: The closest rival to the RX 6600 is the NVIDIA Quadro K6000, with an average score of 19,030, just 0% difference from the RX 6600’s 19,036.

Q: What is the closest rival to the Pro 5700 XT based on average score?

A: The closest rival to the Pro 5700 XT is the AMD Radeon RX 560X, with an average score of 18,626, a 0.3% difference from the Pro card’s 18,685.

Architecture Differences

The two cards are built on different generations of AMD’s RDNA architecture. The RX 6600 uses RDNA 2.0, while the Pro 5700 XT uses the original RDNA 1.0. This single fact explains many of the performance discrepancies. The RX 6600 is based on the Navi 23 chip, which is manufactured on a 7 nm process at TSMC, with a die size of 237 mm². The Pro 5700 XT, in contrast, uses the larger Navi 10 chip, also on a 7 nm process, but with a bigger die at 251 mm². Interestingly, the smaller chip packs more transistors: the RX 6600 has 11,060 million transistors compared to the Pro 5700 XT’s 10,300 million. This results in a higher transistor density for the RX 6600 (46.7M / mm²) versus the Pro card (41.0M / mm²).

The most critical architectural difference is the inclusion of ray tracing cores. The RX 6600 features 28 RT cores, which are completely absent from the Pro 5700 XT (listed as null). This makes the RX 6600 a DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) part, while the Pro 5700 XT is limited to DirectX 12 (12_1). The RX 6600 also has a higher boost clock of 2491 MHz versus the Pro 5700 XT’s 1499 MHz, and a base clock of 1626 MHz versus 1243 MHz. The RX 6600 also has a "game" clock of 2044 MHz, a feature not present in the Pro card’s specifications. These clock advantages, combined with the newer architecture, drive the RX 6600’s superior graphics performance.

Despite having fewer shading units (1792 vs 2560) and TMUs (112 vs 160), the RX 6600 achieves higher pixel and texture rates. Its pixel rate is 159.4 GPixel/s versus the Pro card’s 95.94 GPixel/s, and its texture rate is 279.0 GTexel/s versus 239.8 GTexel/s. This is a direct result of the much higher clocks on the RX 6600. The FP32 compute is also higher on the RX 6600 at 8.928 TFLOPS versus 7.675 TFLOPS, and FP16 is similarly higher at 17.86 TFLOPS versus 15.35 TFLOPS. The Pro 5700 XT’s higher core count cannot overcome its lower clock speeds.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ significantly in memory configuration. The RX 6600 has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, yielding 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The Pro 5700 XT has double the memory at 16 GB of GDDR6, on a 256-bit bus, resulting in 384.0 GB/s of bandwidth. This is a major advantage for the Pro card in memory-heavy workloads, but it does not translate into wins in most benchmarks. Memory clocks also differ: the RX 6600 runs at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective), while the Pro card runs at 1500 MHz (12 Gbps effective).

The physical and power specifications diverge sharply. The RX 6600 is a dual-slot card with a 1x 8-pin power connector and a TDP of 132 W. The Pro 5700 XT is an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with no power connectors and no display outputs, also with a TDP of 130 W. Both have a suggested PSU of 300 W. The bus interface also differs: the RX 6600 uses PCIe 4.0 x8, while the Pro 5700 XT uses PCIe 4.0 x16. The RX 6600 has physical dimensions (190 mm length, 110 mm height, 40 mm width) and display outputs (1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a), while the Pro card has no listed dimensions or outputs. The RX 6600 has a launch MSRP of 329 USD; the Pro 5700 XT has no launch MSRP listed.

Where Each One Wins

The RX 6600 wins in every graphics-oriented benchmark. It is the clear choice for any workload that utilizes Metal, Vulkan, DirectX 9, 10, or 11, and the general 3D performance test (Passmark G3D). Its 72.4% lead in Metal and 78.8% lead in DirectX 11 make it the dominant card for gaming and standard rendering tasks. The 19.5% lead in Vulkan and 20.3% lead in G3D further cement its position as the superior all-around graphics processor. The RX 6600 also wins the Passmark G2D test, indicating better 2D performance. For any user running modern games or graphics applications that leverage these APIs, the RX 6600 is unequivocally the faster card.

The Pro 5700 XT wins in exactly two scenarios. The first is Geekbench OpenCL, where its 51.5% advantage is substantial. This suggests that in compute-heavy OpenCL workloads, the Pro card’s higher number of shading units (2560) and TMUs (160) are more valuable than the RX 6600’s clock speed advantage. The second win is in Passmark DirectX 12, albeit by a smaller 13.6% margin. This could indicate that the Pro card’s 16 GB of memory and 256-bit bus provide a benefit in certain DirectX 12 scenarios that are memory-intensive. However, these two wins are isolated and do not overcome the RX 6600’s dominance in the other eight tests.

The Verdict

Based strictly on the benchmark data, the AMD Radeon RX 6600 is the superior graphics card for nearly all purposes. It wins 8 out of 10 head-to-head benchmarks, including all of the most common gaming APIs (DirectX 9, 10, 11, and Vulkan) and the Metal API. Its average benchmark score is higher (19,036 vs 18,685), and it offers the modern features of RDNA 2.0, including ray tracing cores and DirectX 12 Ultimate support. The RX 6600 is the card to choose for anyone building a gaming PC or a workstation that relies on standard graphics acceleration, as its performance leads are decisive in most tests.

The AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT should only be considered for a very specific use case: compute workloads that heavily utilize OpenCL. Its 51.5% victory in that single test is remarkable and shows that its higher core count and memory bandwidth (384.0 GB/s) are valuable in that context. It also has 16 GB of VRAM, which is double the RX 6600’s 8 GB, making it potentially more suitable for large data sets that fit in memory. However, its lower clock speeds and lack of modern features like ray tracing mean it loses in virtually every other scenario. For a general-purpose graphics card, the RX 6600 is the clear winner; the Pro 5700 XT is a niche product for OpenCL compute tasks.