AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER and AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 occupy opposite ends of the GPU spectrum, yet both hold the 69th and 68th percentiles among all GPUs, respectively. The data shows a stark performance chasm, with the RTX 2080 SUPER delivering a 443.2% higher Geekbench OpenCL score and a 409.7% higher Vulkan score than the Pro Vega 16. However, the Pro Vega 16 is an integrated-class part for portable Mac systems, while the RTX 2080 SUPER is a dual-slot desktop behemoth, so their real-world roles rarely overlap.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark results are decisively one-sided, with the RTX 2080 SUPER winning both shared tests outright. In Geekbench OpenCL, the NVIDIA card scores 99,226 against the AMD card's 18,268, a delta of 443.2%. This means the RTX 2080 SUPER is roughly 5.4 times faster in raw compute throughput, reflecting its 11.15 TFLOPS FP32 rating versus the Pro Vega 16's 2.437 TFLOPS. The Vulkan test shows a similar pattern: the RTX 2080 SUPER achieves 111,284 points while the Pro Vega 16 manages 21,832, a 409.7% advantage. That gap is slightly narrower than OpenCL, suggesting the AMD architecture holds up marginally better under Vulkan's lower-level API, but the absolute difference remains overwhelming.

Looking at the broader benchmark picture, the RTX 2080 SUPER's average benchmark score is 24,170, slightly below the 24,236 of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti and the 24,277 of the GTX 1630, but above the 24,063 of the AMD Radeon RX 6800S. Its nearest rival, the RX 6600 XT, posts 24,442, a 1.1% lead over the RTX 2080 SUPER. The Pro Vega 16's average score of 23,250 places it just 0.1% behind the NVIDIA P106-100 and 0.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6600M, showing that it sits at the edge of a performance tier far below the RTX 2080 SUPER. Despite the Pro Vega 16's lower absolute scores, its 68th percentile is nearly identical to the RTX 2080 SUPER's 69th, because the percentile measures rank across all GPUs, not raw performance.

The RTX 2080 SUPER also flexes its muscle in DirectX workloads, scoring 75 in Passmark DirectX 12, 165 in DirectX 11, and 140 in DirectX 10, while the Pro Vega 16 has no comparable Passmark entries. The NVIDIA card's Passmark G3D score of 19,490 and GPU compute score of 8,290 further underscore its compute-heavy design. For the Pro Vega 16, the only other benchmark is Geekbench Metal, where it scores 29,650 — a test the RTX 2080 SUPER cannot run, as it lacks Metal support. That single win for the AMD part is irrelevant in cross-vendor comparisons, but it does indicate the Pro Vega 16's optimization for Apple's ecosystem.

Architecture Differences

The architectural divide is fundamental. The RTX 2080 SUPER uses NVIDIA's Turing architecture on a 12 nm TSMC process, packing 13,600 million transistors onto a 545 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 25.0M per mm². The Pro Vega 16 uses AMD's GCN 5.0 architecture on a 14 nm GlobalFoundries process, with no transistor count or die size listed. The process node difference — 12 nm versus 14 nm — gives the NVIDIA chip a density advantage, though the older GCN design compensates with a simpler, more power-efficient integrated form factor.

Compute resources diverge sharply. The RTX 2080 SUPER has 3,072 shading units, 192 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, while the Pro Vega 16 has 1,024 shading units, 64 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The NVIDIA card also includes 48 RT cores and 384 Tensor cores, dedicated hardware for ray tracing and AI workloads that the AMD part lacks entirely. This is a generational feature gap: the RTX 2080 SUPER supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, while the Pro Vega 16 is limited to DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.3. The RTX 2080 SUPER's pixel rate of 116.2 GPixel/s and texture rate of 348.5 GTexel/s dwarf the Pro Vega 16's 38.08 GPixel/s and 76.16 GTexel/s, respectively.

Memory architecture is another stark contrast. The RTX 2080 SUPER uses 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, delivering 495.9 GB/s bandwidth. The Pro Vega 16 uses 4 GB of HBM2 on a 1024-bit bus, with 307.2 GB/s bandwidth. The RTX 2080 SUPER's bandwidth is 61% higher, despite a narrower bus, because GDDR6 runs at 15.5 Gbps effective versus HBM2's 2.4 Gbps effective. The HBM2's wider bus is a legacy advantage for power efficiency, but it cannot match the raw throughput of the newer GDDR6 implementation. The RTX 2080 SUPER's memory clock is listed at 1937 MHz, while the Pro Vega 16's sits at 1200 MHz.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 2080 SUPER wins in every scenario that demands raw compute, high frame rates, or modern API features. Its 11.15 TFLOPS FP32 and 22.30 TFLOPS FP16 (2:1) make it suited for gaming at high resolutions, content creation, and machine learning inference, aided by its Tensor cores. The 48 RT cores enable hardware-accelerated ray tracing, a feature absent from the Pro Vega 16. For desktop users with a PCIe 3.0 x16 slot and a 600 W PSU, the RTX 2080 SUPER is a capable choice, though its 250 W TDP and dual-slot cooler require ample case space.

The Pro Vega 16 wins in portability and integration. As an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with a 75 W TDP, it is designed for laptops, specifically Radeon Pro Mac systems. Its compact form factor and lack of external power connectors make it ideal for thin-and-light workstations where the RTX 2080 SUPER's 267 mm length and 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin connectors would be impossible. The 4 GB HBM2 memory, while smaller, offers 307.2 GB/s bandwidth, which is ample for 1080p professional workloads like CAD or video editing in macOS. The Pro Vega 16's Metal score of 29,650 indicates it is optimized for Apple's API, a domain where NVIDIA drivers are absent.

In terms of API support, the RTX 2080 SUPER is future-proof with DirectX 12 Ultimate and Vulkan 1.4, while the Pro Vega 16 caps at DirectX 12_1 and Vulkan 1.3. The NVIDIA card also offers display outputs including 1x HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, and 1x USB Type-C, versus the Pro Vega 16's "Portable Device Dependent" outputs, which are tied to the host laptop.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher Geekbench OpenCL score?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER scores 99,226, which is 443.2% higher than the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16's 18,268.

Q: Does the Pro Vega 16 support ray tracing?

A: No, the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 has no RT cores listed, while the RTX 2080 SUPER includes 48 RT cores for hardware-accelerated ray tracing.

Q: What is the memory bandwidth difference?

A: The RTX 2080 SUPER delivers 495.9 GB/s over a 256-bit GDDR6 bus, while the Pro Vega 16 provides 307.2 GB/s over a 1024-bit HBM2 bus.

Q: Which GPU has a higher transistor density?

A: The RTX 2080 SUPER has a density of 25.0M transistors per mm² on a 12 nm process, while the Pro Vega 16's transistor count and die size are not listed.

Q: Can the Pro Vega 16 run DirectX 12 Ultimate?

A: No, it supports DirectX 12 (12_1) only, whereas the RTX 2080 SUPER supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2).

Q: What is the average benchmark score difference?

A: The RTX 2080 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 24,170, which is 920 points higher than the Pro Vega 16's 23,250.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER | AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 |

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

| Architecture | Turing | GCN 5.0 |

| Process Node | 12 nm | 14 nm |

| Transistors | 13,600 million | Not listed |

| Die Size | 545 mm² | Not listed |

| Shading Units | 3072 | 1024 |

| TMUs | 192 | 64 |

| ROPs | 64 | 32 |

| RT Cores | 48 | None |

| Tensor Cores | 384 | None |

| Base Clock | 1650 MHz | 815 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1815 MHz | 1190 MHz |

| Memory Size | 8 GB GDDR6 | 4 GB HBM2 |

| Memory Bus | 256 bit | 1024 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 495.9 GB/s | 307.2 GB/s |

| FP32 Performance | 11.15 TFLOPS | 2.437 TFLOPS |

| FP16 Performance | 22.30 TFLOPS (2:1) | 4.874 TFLOPS (2:1) |

| TDP | 250 W | 75 W |

| Slot Width | Dual-slot | IGP |

| Power Connectors | 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin | None |

| Suggested PSU | 600 W | Not listed |

| DirectX Support | 12 Ultimate (12_2) | 12 (12_1) |

| Vulkan Support | 1.4 | 1.3 |

| Display Outputs | 1x HDMI 2.0, 3x DP 1.4a, 1x USB-C | Portable Device Dependent |

| Dimensions | 267 mm x 116 mm x 35 mm | Not listed |

| Release Date | 2019-07-22 | 2018-11-13 |

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER is superior in every measurable metric except power consumption and form factor. It offers 443.2% higher OpenCL performance and 409.7% higher Vulkan performance than the Pro Vega 16, with 3x the shading units, 2x the ROPs, and 8 GB versus 4 GB of memory. If you need desktop gaming, ray tracing, or compute workloads, the RTX 2080 SUPER is the only choice, and its 69th percentile rank confirms it sits in the upper tier of all GPUs.

The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 is not a competitor; it is a specialized IGP for Apple laptops. Its 75 W TDP and lack of power connectors make it the only viable option for ultra-portable Mac systems, and its 68th percentile shows it is competitive for its class. Its 4.874 TFLOPS FP16 performance and 307.2 GB/s bandwidth are respectable for a 4 GB integrated part, but they cannot touch the RTX 2080 SUPER's 22.30 TFLOPS and 495.9 GB/s.

Buy the RTX 2080 SUPER if you are building a desktop and need maximum performance, ray tracing, or DirectX 12 Ultimate support. Buy the Pro Vega 16 only if you are constrained to a Mac laptop with integrated graphics and need a GPU that sips power. There is no scenario where the Pro Vega 16 outperforms the RTX 2080 SUPER in shared benchmarks, so the decision rests entirely on platform and power constraints, not performance.