AMD Radeon Pro 580 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB Comparison

Where Each One Wins

The data is unambiguous: the AMD Radeon Pro 580 wins both recorded head-to-head benchmarks against the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB. In Geekbench OpenCL, the AMD card scores 38,457 versus 33,397 for the NVIDIA card, a 15.2% advantage. The gap widens considerably in Geekbench Vulkan, where the Radeon Pro 580 posts 43,285 against 33,991, a 27.3% lead. That means the AMD part is not merely faster in one API; it dominates in both compute environments.

Looking at the broader database context, the Radeon Pro 580 sits at the 82nd percentile of all GPUs, while the GTX 1060 5 GB sits at the 78th percentile. That four-point gap in percentile ranking reflects a consistent performance tier difference, not a narrow or workload-specific edge. The average benchmark score for the AMD card is 40,318, which is 19.7% higher than the NVIDIA card's 33,694. No recorded benchmark in the database shows the NVIDIA card winning.

The use-case split is therefore straightforward: if the workload runs in OpenCL or Vulkan, the Radeon Pro 580 is the stronger choice. The GTX 1060 5 GB does not claim a single victory in the recorded measurements. For compute-oriented tasks such as rendering, machine learning inference, or GPGPU acceleration, the AMD card's higher shading unit count and superior memory subsystem give it a clear functional edge. The NVIDIA card's strengths, if any, do not appear in the benchmark data provided.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different fabs and design philosophies. The AMD Radeon Pro 580 uses the Ellesmere chip built on GCN 4.0 architecture, manufactured by GlobalFoundries on a 14 nm process. It packs 5,700 million transistors into a 232 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 24.6 million per square millimeter. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB uses the GP106 chip on the Pascal architecture, built by TSMC on a 16 nm process. It contains 4,400 million transistors on a 200 mm² die, for a density of 22.0 million per square millimeter. The AMD chip is larger in both absolute transistor count and density.

Compute resources differ sharply. The Radeon Pro 580 has 2,304 shading units, 144 texture mapping units, and 32 ROPs. The GTX 1060 5 GB has 1,280 shading units, 80 TMUs, and 40 ROPs. That means AMD has 80% more shaders and 80% more TMUs, while NVIDIA has 25% more ROPs. The ROP advantage helps NVIDIA in pixel throughput, but the shader and texture advantages put AMD far ahead in general compute and texture-heavy work.

Clock speeds tell a different story. The NVIDIA card runs at a base clock of 1506 MHz with a boost of 1709 MHz. The AMD card runs at 1100 MHz base and 1200 MHz boost. Despite the lower clocks, the AMD card achieves higher aggregate throughput: 5.530 TFLOPS FP32 versus 4.375 TFLOPS for NVIDIA. The AMD card also has a 1:1 FP16 ratio, meaning 5.530 TFLOPS in half precision, while the NVIDIA card's FP16 throughput is a negligible 68.36 GFLOPS (1:64 ratio). For any workload using FP16, the AMD card is orders of magnitude ahead.

Memory configurations also diverge. The Radeon Pro 580 has 8 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, delivering 217.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTX 1060 5 GB has 5 GB of GDDR5 on a 160-bit bus, delivering 160.2 GB/s. AMD has 35.4% more bandwidth and 60% more capacity. The NVIDIA card's memory clock is higher at 2002 MHz (8 Gbps effective) versus 1695 MHz (6.8 Gbps effective), but the narrower bus negates that advantage.

API support differs slightly. Both support DirectX 12 and OpenGL 4.6. The AMD card supports Vulkan 1.3, while the NVIDIA card supports Vulkan 1.4. NVIDIA also has a higher DirectX feature level (12_1 versus 12_0). The AMD card is integrated into a portable form factor (IGP, no power connectors), while the NVIDIA card is a dual-slot discrete card with a 1x 6-pin connector and a 250 mm length. The AMD card's TDP is 185 W versus 120 W for NVIDIA.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded head-to-head results show a decisive AMD victory in both tests. In Geekbench OpenCL, the Radeon Pro 580 scores 38,457. The GTX 1060 5 GB scores 33,397. That is a delta of 15.2% in favor of AMD. OpenCL is a cross-platform compute API used in many professional and scientific workloads, so this result indicates a meaningful real-world advantage in compute-heavy tasks.

In Geekbench Vulkan, the gap is even more pronounced. The AMD card scores 43,285, while the NVIDIA card scores 33,991. That is a 27.3% delta. Vulkan is a low-overhead graphics and compute API increasingly used in modern game engines and compute applications. A lead of more than a quarter in this benchmark is substantial and suggests the AMD architecture scales better with the API's parallel execution model.

The average benchmark scores confirm the pattern. The Radeon Pro 580's average is 40,318, placing it near the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 (40,377, a 0.1% difference) and above the AMD Radeon Pro WX 7100 (40,063, a 0.6% advantage for the Pro 580). The GTX 1060 5 GB's average of 33,694 puts it in company with the NVIDIA RTX A5000 (33,622, a 0.2% edge for the GTX) and the AMD Radeon RX 480 (33,997, a 0.9% edge for the RX 480). In other words, the Radeon Pro 580 competes with much newer and higher-tier parts, while the GTX 1060 5 GB trades blows with older mid-range cards.

The percentile data reinforces this: the Radeon Pro 580 at the 82nd percentile outperforms roughly four-fifths of all GPUs in the database. The GTX 1060 5 GB at the 78th percentile is still above average but clearly a tier lower. The benchmark results indicate that for anyone choosing between these two specifically, the AMD card is the faster option across every measured dimension.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 580 has an average benchmark score of 40,318, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB has an average of 33,694. That puts the AMD card 19.7% ahead.

Q: How do the two GPUs compare in Vulkan performance?

A: In Geekbench Vulkan, the Radeon Pro 580 scores 43,285 versus 33,991 for the GTX 1060 5 GB. The AMD card leads by 27.3%.

Q: Is the GTX 1060 5 GB competitive in any recorded benchmark?

A: No. The database shows two head-to-head benchmarks (Geekbench OpenCL and Geekbench Vulkan), and the NVIDIA card loses both. Its win count is zero.

Q: What is the memory size difference?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 580 has 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB has 5 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 160-bit bus. The AMD card also delivers 217.0 GB/s bandwidth versus 160.2 GB/s.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 580 has 2,304 shading units. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB has 1,280. The AMD card has 80% more shading units.

Q: How does FP16 compute compare?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 580 delivers 5.530 TFLOPS in FP16 with a 1:1 ratio. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB delivers 68.36 GFLOPS in FP16 with a 1:64 ratio. The AMD card is dramatically faster in half-precision workloads.

The Verdict

The data makes the choice clear. The AMD Radeon Pro 580 is the faster GPU in every recorded benchmark, with a 15.2% lead in OpenCL and a 27.3% lead in Vulkan. Its average benchmark score of 40,318 places it in a performance tier that includes the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 (40,377) and the AMD Radeon Pro WX 7100 (40,063). The GTX 1060 5 GB, with an average of 33,694, sits alongside the NVIDIA RTX A5000 (33,622) and the AMD Radeon HD 7950 (33,951). These are not adjacent tiers; the gap between the two GPUs is roughly equivalent to the gap between a modern high-end card and a seven-year-old mid-range card.

For compute-heavy workloads, the choice is straightforward. The Radeon Pro 580 has 2,304 shading units, 217.0 GB/s of memory bandwidth, and 8 GB of VRAM. The GTX 1060 5 GB has 1,280 shading units, 160.2 GB/s, and 5 GB. The AMD card also has a massive FP16 advantage, making it far more suitable for machine learning or any half-precision compute task.

For gaming or pixel-bound workloads, the GTX 1060 5 GB does have 40 ROPs versus 32, and its higher clock speeds (1506 MHz base, 1709 MHz boost) help in rasterization. Its pixel rate of 68.36 GPixel/s is nearly double the Radeon Pro 580's 38.40 GPixel/s. However, the NVIDIA card has no recorded benchmark wins, and its lower shader count and memory bandwidth limit its overall performance. The Radeon Pro 580's higher texture rate (172.8 GTexel/s versus 136.7 GTexel/s) and FP32 throughput (5.530 TFLOPS versus 4.375 TFLOPS) give it a broader advantage.

The production status of both cards is end-of-life, so this comparison is relevant for existing systems or secondhand purchases. The AMD card's IGP form factor means it is not a drop-in replacement for a discrete slot, while the NVIDIA card is a standard dual-slot design. Users with a compatible portable or integrated system should favor the Radeon Pro 580. Users with a standard desktop should note that the GTX 1060 5 GB, despite its lower absolute performance, is a conventional discrete card with a 120 W TDP and a 300 W suggested PSU.

The verdict from the database is unambiguous: the AMD Radeon Pro 580 wins on raw compute, memory capacity, bandwidth, and API-specific performance. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB wins only on pixel rate and clock speed, which do not translate into any recorded benchmark victory. For anyone prioritizing compute performance, the Radeon Pro 580 is the superior part.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon Pro 580 | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB |

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

| Architecture | GCN 4.0 | Pascal |

| Process Node | 14 nm | 16 nm |

| Foundry | GlobalFoundries | TSMC |

| Transistors | 5,700 million | 4,400 million |

| Die Size | 232 mm² | 200 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 24.6M / mm² | 22.0M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1100 MHz | 1506 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1200 MHz | 1709 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1695 MHz (6.8 Gbps effective) | 2002 MHz (8 Gbps effective) |

| Memory Size | 8 GB | 5 GB |

| Memory Bus Width | 256 bit | 160 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 217.0 GB/s | 160.2 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 2304 | 1280 |

| TMUs | 144 | 80 |

| ROPs | 32 | 40 |

| Pixel Rate | 38.40 GPixel/s | 68.36 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 172.8 GTexel/s | 136.7 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 5.530 TFLOPS | 4.375 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 5.530 TFLOPS (1:1) | 68.36 GFLOPS (1:64) |

| TDP | 185 W | 120 W |

| Slot Width | IGP | Dual-slot |

| Power Connectors | None | 1x 6-pin |

| Suggested PSU | Not specified | 300 W |

| Display Outputs | Portable Device Dependent | 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a |

| Vulkan Version | 1.3 | 1.4 |

| DirectX Feature Level | 12 (12_0) | 12 (12_1) |

| Release Date | 2017-06-04 | 2017-12-25 |

| Predecessor | Not specified | GeForce 900 |

| Successor | Not specified | GeForce 20 |