AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Comparison

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 vs AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 is a matchup between two very different classes of hardware. The RTX 3090 is a desktop flagship built for maximum throughput, while the Radeon Pro Vega 16 is a low-power integrated graphics solution for Mac portables. The database shows a massive performance gulf, with the RTX 3090 winning 2 out of 2 common benchmark tests and holding an average score of 27,565 compared to 23,250 for the AMD part. The GeForce card sits at the 73rd percentile of all GPUs, while the Radeon Pro Vega 16 lands at the 68th percentile.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 wins every head-to-head benchmark recorded in the database. The data shows a decisive victory in Geekbench OpenCL, where the RTX 3090 scores 172,758 against 18,268 for the Radeon Pro Vega 16, a 845.7% advantage. The Vulkan test tells the same story: 53,927 for the GeForce card versus 21,832 for the AMD part, a 147% lead. The RTX 3090 also dominates in the wider benchmark suite, with a Passmark G3D score of 26,645 and a Passmark GPU Compute score of 15,356, while the Radeon Pro Vega 16 has no comparable results in those tests.

The Radeon Pro Vega 16 does not win any head-to-head test, but it has one exclusive measurement: a Geekbench Metal score of 29,650. That result does not directly translate to the RTX 3090, since the NVIDIA card has no Metal benchmark in the database. Outside of that single test, the AMD GPU is outclassed across the board. The RTX 3090 also shows its strength in raw compute, with an FP32 throughput of 35.58 TFLOPS versus 2.437 TFLOPS for the Vega 16.

For users, the use-case split is clear. The RTX 3090 is for high-end gaming, 3D rendering, and compute workloads that demand massive bandwidth and shading power. The Radeon Pro Vega 16 is a mobile solution, made for portability and basic graphics acceleration, not for heavy lifting. The benchmark data reflects this: the RTX 3090 is in the top 27% of all GPUs, while the Vega 16 sits lower, and its nearest rivals include the GTX-class NVIDIA P106-100 and older AMD R9 M290X.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from entirely different architectural generations. The RTX 3090 uses the Ampere architecture on the GA102 chip, built on an 8 nm process at Samsung. It packs 28,300 million transistors on a 628 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 45.1M per mm². The Radeon Pro Vega 16 uses the GCN 5.0 architecture on the Vega 12 chip, built on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. The database does not list transistor count, die size, or density for the AMD part.

The RTX 3090 features 10,496 shading units, 328 TMUs, and 112 ROPs. It also has dedicated ray tracing cores (82) and tensor cores (328), which the Radeon Pro Vega 16 lacks entirely. The AMD GPU has 1,024 shading units, 64 TMUs, and 32 ROPs, a fraction of the NVIDIA card's resources. Clock speeds differ significantly: the RTX 3090 runs at 1395 MHz base and 1695 MHz boost, while the Vega 16 runs at 815 MHz base and 1190 MHz boost.

Memory architecture is another major split. The RTX 3090 has 24 GB of GDDR6X on a 384-bit bus, delivering 936.2 GB/s of bandwidth. The Radeon Pro Vega 16 has 4 GB of HBM2 on a 1024-bit bus, but only achieves 307.2 GB/s due to much lower memory clocks (1200 MHz versus 1219 MHz for the GeForce). The RTX 3090 supports PCIe 4.0 x16, while the Vega 16 uses PCIe 3.0 x16. The NVIDIA card also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, while the AMD part only reaches DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.3.

Physical design differs completely. The RTX 3090 is a triple-slot card measuring 336 mm in length, 140 mm in height, and 61 mm in width, with a 350 W TDP and a single 12-pin power connector. The Radeon Pro Vega 16 is an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with a 75 W TDP, no power connectors, and dimensions that are portable-device dependent. The NVIDIA card requires a 750 W PSU, while the AMD part has no such requirement listed.

FAQ

Q: How much faster is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 in OpenCL?

A: The RTX 3090 scores 172,758 in Geekbench OpenCL, which is 845.7% higher than the Radeon Pro Vega 16's 18,268.

Q: Does the Radeon Pro Vega 16 support ray tracing?

A: No. The database lists no RT cores for the AMD GPU, while the RTX 3090 has 82 dedicated ray tracing cores.

Q: What is the memory capacity difference?

A: The RTX 3090 has 24 GB of GDDR6X memory, while the Radeon Pro Vega 16 has 4 GB of HBM2, a sixfold difference in capacity.

Q: Which card has a higher boost clock?

A: The RTX 3090 boosts to 1695 MHz, while the Radeon Pro Vega 16 boosts to 1190 MHz.

Q: Is the Radeon Pro Vega 16 a desktop card?

A: No. It is listed as an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with a 75 W TDP, designed for portable devices, whereas the RTX 3090 is a triple-slot desktop card with a 350 W TDP.

Q: What is the average benchmark score difference?

A: The RTX 3090 has an average benchmark score of 27,565, which is 4,315 points higher than the Radeon Pro Vega 16's 23,250.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ in nearly every measurable specification. The RTX 3090 uses an 8 nm process node from Samsung, while the Vega 16 uses 14 nm from GlobalFoundries. Transistor count is 28,300 million for the NVIDIA chip, with no data for the AMD chip. The GeForce die measures 628 mm², while the Vega 12 die size is not recorded.

Shading units: 10,496 for the RTX 3090 versus 1,024 for the Vega 16. TMUs: 328 versus 64. ROPs: 112 versus 32. The RTX 3090 has 82 RT cores and 328 tensor cores; the Vega 16 has none of either. Pixel rate is 189.8 GPixel/s for the GeForce versus 38.08 GPixel/s for the AMD part. Texture rate is 556.0 GTexel/s versus 76.16 GTexel/s. FP32 performance is 35.58 TFLOPS versus 2.437 TFLOPS, and FP16 is 35.58 TFLOPS (1:1) for NVIDIA versus 4.874 TFLOPS (2:1) for AMD.

Memory: 24 GB GDDR6X on a 384-bit bus with 936.2 GB/s bandwidth versus 4 GB HBM2 on a 1024-bit bus with 307.2 GB/s bandwidth. TDP: 350 W versus 75 W. Slot width: triple-slot versus IGP. Power connectors: 1x 12-pin versus none. Suggested PSU: 750 W versus none listed. Bus interface: PCIe 4.0 x16 versus PCIe 3.0 x16. Display outputs: 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a versus "Portable Device Dependent." DirectX support: 12 Ultimate (12_2) versus 12 (12_1). Vulkan: 1.4 versus 1.3. OpenGL is the same at 4.6.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database contains two direct comparisons between the RTX 3090 and the Radeon Pro Vega 16. The first is Geekbench OpenCL, where the NVIDIA card scores 172,758 and the AMD card scores 18,268. This gives the RTX 3090 a 845.7% advantage, the largest margin in any recorded test. The second is Geekbench Vulkan, where the RTX 3090 scores 53,927 versus 21,832 for the Vega 16, a 147% lead.

Looking at the broader benchmark picture, the RTX 3090 shows consistent strength across multiple APIs. In Passmark DirectX tests, it scores 182 in DX10, 220 in DX11, 110 in DX12, and 268 in DX9. Its Passmark G2D score is 1,063, and its G3D score is 26,645. The GPU compute score is 15,356. The Radeon Pro Vega 16 has no Passmark results in the database, so direct comparison in those tests is impossible.

The RTX 3090's nearest rivals in the database are the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Mobile (average score 27,435, 0.5% lower), the AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT (27,425, 0.5% lower), the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 20 (27,839, 1% higher), and the AMD Radeon RX 7800M (27,883, 1.1% higher). The Radeon Pro Vega 16's nearest rivals are the NVIDIA P106-100 (23,249, 0% difference), the AMD RX 6600M (23,273, 0.1% higher), the AMD R9 M290X (23,276, 0.1% higher), and the AMD Radeon AI PRO R9700 (23,315, 0.3% higher). This shows the Vega 16 is clustered with mid-range and older parts, while the RTX 3090 sits near modern upper-midrange cards, despite its age. The RTX 3090 was released in 2020 and is now end-of-life, while the Vega 16 came out in 2018 and is also end-of-life. The GeForce card has a launch MSRP of 1,499 USD; the AMD card has no recorded launch MSRP.