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

The AMD Radeon Pro 580X and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB are both end-of-life graphics cards, but they serve very different masters. The Pro 580X is an integrated part of Apple's Mac Pro ecosystem, built for professional workflows, while the GTX 1060 5 GB is a mainstream desktop card aimed at standard PC gaming. The benchmark data shows a clear performance hierarchy, but the choice between them depends entirely on the system you are building and the software you run.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon Pro 580X wins every recorded head-to-head benchmark against the GTX 1060 5 GB. In the database, it takes 2 wins out of 2 tests, with no victories for the NVIDIA card. This is a straightforward sweep in raw compute performance. The Pro 580X posts a Geekbench OpenCL score of 36426 versus 33397 for the GTX 1060, a 9.1% advantage. In the Vulkan test, the gap widens dramatically: the AMD card scores 40115 against 33991, an 18% lead. If you are looking purely at these two tests, the Pro 580X is the faster card, period.

However, the GTX 1060 5 GB has its own territory. It is a dual-slot, 250 mm (9.8 inches) card that uses a single 6-pin power connector, and its 120 W TDP makes it a far easier fit for standard desktop builds. The Pro 580X is listed as an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with an Apple MPX bus interface and no power connectors, meaning it is not a drop-in card for a typical PC. The GTX 1060 5 GB also supports a higher DirectX feature level (12_1 versus 12_0) and a newer Vulkan version (1.4 versus 1.3), which can matter for compatibility with newer games. The NVIDIA card is the practical choice for a conventional gaming rig, while the AMD card wins on raw performance but only within its proprietary Apple ecosystem.

Architecture Differences

The two cards come from different foundries and use different architectures. AMD's Radeon Pro 580X is built on the Ellesmere chip using GCN 4.0 architecture, fabricated on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. It packs 5,700 million transistors into a 232 mm² die, resulting in a transistor density of 24.6 million per mm². NVIDIA's GTX 1060 5 GB uses the GP106 chip with Pascal architecture, made by TSMC on a 16 nm process. It contains 4,400 million transistors on a 200 mm² die, giving a density of 22.0 million per mm². The AMD chip is physically larger and denser, which helps explain its higher compute output.

The compute resources differ significantly. The Pro 580X has 2304 shading units, 144 texture mapping units, and 32 ROPs. The GTX 1060 5 GB has 1280 shading units, 80 TMUs, and 40 ROPs. AMD's card has nearly double the shading units and TMUs, but NVIDIA has more ROPs. This shows up in the pixel and texture rates: the Pro 580X delivers 38.40 GPixel/s and 172.8 GTexel/s, while the GTX 1060 5 GB outputs 68.36 GPixel/s and 136.7 GTexel/s. NVIDIA's card has a much higher pixel fill rate, but AMD wins on texture throughput.

Clock speeds also tell a story. The GTX 1060 5 GB runs at a base of 1506 MHz and boosts to 1709 MHz, much higher than the Pro 580X's 1100 MHz base and 1200 MHz boost. Despite the clock deficit, the AMD card's larger shader count gives it the edge in floating-point performance: 5.530 TFLOPS FP32 versus 4.375 TFLOPS for NVIDIA. The FP16 comparison is stark: AMD offers 5.530 TFLOPS at a 1:1 ratio, while NVIDIA offers only 68.36 GFLOPS at a 1:64 ratio, a massive difference in half-precision compute.

Memory configurations diverge as well. The Pro 580X has 8 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, delivering 218.9 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTX 1060 5 GB has 5 GB of GDDR5 on a narrower 160-bit bus, yielding 160.2 GB/s. AMD's card has 60% more memory and roughly 37% more bandwidth, which benefits large datasets and high-resolution textures.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded head-to-head data contains two tests, and the AMD Radeon Pro 580X wins both. In Geekbench OpenCL, the Pro 580X scores 36426 against the GTX 1060 5 GB's 33397. That is a 9.1% advantage for AMD. This result aligns with the FP32 compute gap: AMD has 5.530 TFLOPS versus NVIDIA's 4.375 TFLOPS, a 26% raw compute lead that does not fully translate to the benchmark, likely due to driver and workload factors, but the direction is consistent.

The Vulkan test shows a larger separation. The Pro 580X scores 40115, while the GTX 1060 5 GB manages 33991. That is an 18% difference. Vulkan tends to scale well with raw shader throughput and memory bandwidth, both of which favor the AMD card. The Pro 580X's 8 GB frame buffer and 218.9 GB/s bandwidth give it more headroom in memory-intensive workloads, and its 2304 shading units provide substantial parallel compute capacity.

Looking at the broader database context, the Pro 580X sits at the 82nd percentile of all GPUs with an average benchmark score of 38706. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce MX570 A at 38691 (0% delta), the RTX 5080 Mobile at 38349 (0.9% slower), and the MX570 at 38299 (1.1% slower). The AMD Radeon Pro 575X is marginally faster at 39116, a 1% delta. The GTX 1060 5 GB, by contrast, sits at the 78th percentile with an average score of 33694. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA RTX A5000 at 33622 (0.2% slower), the AMD Radeon RX 7700S at 33849 (0.5% faster), the AMD Radeon HD 7950 at 33951 (0.8% faster), and the AMD Radeon RX 480 at 33997 (0.9% faster). The percentile gap of 4 points between the two cards reflects the consistent performance difference seen in the head-to-head tests.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous about performance: the AMD Radeon Pro 580X is faster than the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB in every benchmark recorded. It wins OpenCL by 9.1% and Vulkan by 18%, and its higher average score (38706 versus 33694) and higher percentile (82 versus 78) confirm that this is not a fluke of a single test. If you are comparing these two purely on compute output, choose the Pro 580X.

But the system context matters more than raw scores. The Pro 580X is an Apple MPX card with an IGP slot width, no power connectors, and only 2x HDMI 2.0b outputs. It is designed for Mac Pro systems, not standard PCs. The GTX 1060 5 GB is a conventional dual-slot card with a 6-pin connector, a 300 W suggested PSU, PCIe 3.0 x16 interface, and a full set of outputs including DVI, HDMI 2.0, and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a. For a standard desktop build, the NVIDIA card is the only one that physically fits and connects normally.

The GTX 1060 5 GB also has advantages in software compatibility. It supports DirectX 12_1 versus the Pro 580X's 12_0, and Vulkan 1.4 versus 1.3. It has a significantly higher pixel fill rate (68.36 GPixel/s versus 38.40 GPixel/s) and a much faster boost clock (1709 MHz versus 1200 MHz). For gaming workloads that rely on pixel throughput and driver maturity, the NVIDIA card can be the better fit despite losing the compute benchmarks. The Pro 580X is the choice for Mac Pro users who need maximum compute and memory bandwidth, while the GTX 1060 5 GB is the choice for PC builders who need a compatible, efficient card with lower power draw (120 W versus 185 W).

FAQ

Q: Which card is faster in Geekbench Vulkan?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 580X scores 40115, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB scores 33991. The AMD card is 18% faster in this test.

Q: How much memory does each card have?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 580X has 8 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus with 218.9 GB/s bandwidth. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB has 5 GB of GDDR5 on a 160-bit bus with 160.2 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: What is the power consumption difference?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 580X has a 185 W TDP, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB has a 120 W TDP. The NVIDIA card also lists a suggested PSU of 300 W and uses a single 6-pin connector.

Q: Which card has more shading units?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 580X has 2304 shading units, compared to 1280 on the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB. The AMD card also has 144 TMUs versus 80, but NVIDIA has more ROPs (40 versus 32).

Q: Are both cards still in production?

A: No. Both the AMD Radeon Pro 580X and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB are listed as end-of-life products in the database.

Q: Which card has better DirectX support?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 5 GB supports DirectX 12 (12_1), while the AMD Radeon Pro 580X supports DirectX 12 (12_0). NVIDIA's implementation has a higher feature level.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon Pro 580X | 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 |

| Base Clock | 1100 MHz | 1506 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1200 MHz | 1709 MHz |

| Memory Size | 8 GB | 5 GB |

| Memory Bus | 256 bit | 160 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 218.9 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 Performance | 5.530 TFLOPS | 4.375 TFLOPS |

| FP16 Performance | 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 |

| Bus Interface | Apple MPX | PCIe 3.0 x16 |

| Display Outputs | 2x HDMI 2.0b | 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a |

| DirectX | 12 (12_0) | 12 (12_1) |

| Vulkan | 1.3 | 1.4 |