AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark database contains two shared tests between the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050, and the results are decisively one-sided. In Geekbench OpenCL, the RTX 5050 scores 90,334 against the Radeon Pro Vega 16's 18,268. That is a 79.8% advantage for the NVIDIA part, meaning the RTX 5050 delivers roughly five times the compute throughput in this workload. The Geekbench Vulkan result tells the same story, with the RTX 5050 posting 89,381 versus 21,832 for the AMD card, a 75.6% lead. These are not marginal gains; the gap is so wide that the Radeon Pro Vega 16's scores fall into a different performance class entirely.

Looking at the broader database, the Radeon Pro Vega 16 has an average benchmark score of 23,250, which places it in the 68th percentile of all GPUs. The RTX 5050, despite its much higher individual test scores, averages 21,035 and sits in the 66th percentile. This apparent contradiction resolves when considering the test suites: the RTX 5050's average is dragged down by its Passmark results, which include very low DirectX scores (66 in DirectX 12, 103 in DirectX 10), while the Radeon Pro Vega 16's three Geekbench tests are all relatively consistent. The head-to-head data, however, only includes the two Geekbench tests, and in both of those the NVIDIA card wins outright.

The nearest rivals in the database further contextualize the AMD card's standing. The Radeon Pro Vega 16 is statistically tied with the NVIDIA P106-100 (delta of 0%), the AMD Radeon RX 6600M (0.1% behind), and the AMD Radeon R9 M290X (0.1% behind). The RTX 5050, by contrast, sits near the AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL (0.6% ahead), the AMD Radeon HD 8970M (1% ahead), and the NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile (1.6% behind). These rival clusters show that the Radeon Pro Vega 16 competes with older mid-range parts, while the RTX 5050 aligns with a slightly higher tier of mobile and desktop GPUs.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins in the shared Geekbench OpenCL test?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 wins decisively. It scores 90,334 compared to the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16's 18,268, a delta of 79.8% in favor of the NVIDIA card.

Q: How does the Radeon Pro Vega 16 compare in Vulkan performance?

A: The RTX 5050 also dominates Vulkan, scoring 89,381 against the Radeon Pro Vega 16's 21,832. This represents a 75.6% advantage for the NVIDIA GPU.

Q: What is the average benchmark score for each card?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 has an average benchmark score of 23,250, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 averages 21,035. Despite winning the head-to-head tests, the RTX 5050's overall average is lower due to weak Passmark scores.

Q: Which GPU has a higher percentile ranking among all GPUs?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 ranks in the 68th percentile, slightly above the RTX 5050's 66th percentile. This ranking is based on the average of all recorded benchmarks for each card.

Q: Are there any benchmark tests where the AMD card wins?

A: No. In the two head-to-head tests recorded in the database (Geekbench OpenCL and Geekbench Vulkan), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 wins both. The AMD card has zero wins in the head-to-head comparison.

Q: What is the delta percentage between the two cards in the closest head-to-head test?

A: The closest result is in Geekbench Vulkan, where the RTX 5050 leads by 75.6%. The OpenCL test shows a larger gap of 79.8%. Neither test is remotely close.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 is the superior GPU for raw compute and graphics workloads covered by the shared benchmarks. In Geekbench OpenCL, it outperforms the Radeon Pro Vega 16 by 79.8%, and in Vulkan, by 75.6%. Anyone choosing between these two strictly on benchmark performance should select the RTX 5050 without hesitation.

However, the Radeon Pro Vega 16 has a higher average benchmark score (23,250 versus 21,035) and a better percentile ranking (68th versus 66th). This is because the RTX 5050's Passmark results are inconsistent, with particularly low DirectX scores. The AMD card's three Geekbench tests are all within a reasonable range (18,268 to 29,650), so its average is not dragged down by any single weak result. If the workload relies on the specific tests where the RTX 5050 excels, the NVIDIA card is the clear pick. If the workload depends on the broader set of benchmarks, the Radeon Pro Vega 16's consistency gives it an edge in the overall database ranking.

The RTX 5050 also carries modern feature support that matters for current software: DirectX 12 Ultimate, Vulkan 1.4, and dedicated ray tracing and tensor cores. The Radeon Pro Vega 16 supports DirectX 12 (12_1), Vulkan 1.3, and has no ray tracing or tensor hardware. For users running contemporary games or compute applications that leverage these features, the RTX 5050 is the only viable choice. For legacy workloads or scenarios where the AMD card's specific driver optimizations apply, the Radeon Pro Vega 16 remains functional but is clearly outclassed in the head-to-head metrics.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ across nearly every measurable specification. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 uses a Vega 12 chip on a 14 nm process from GlobalFoundries. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 uses a GB207 chip on a 5 nm process from TSMC. Clock speeds are substantially different: the AMD card runs at a base of 815 MHz and a boost of 1190 MHz, while the RTX 5050 runs at 2317 MHz base and 2572 MHz boost.

Memory configurations diverge sharply. The Radeon Pro Vega 16 has 4 GB of HBM2 on a 1024-bit bus, delivering 307.2 GB/s of bandwidth. The RTX 5050 has 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, with 320.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The AMD card has 1024 shading units, 64 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The RTX 5050 has 2560 shading units, 80 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The NVIDIA GPU also includes 20 ray tracing cores and 80 tensor cores; the AMD GPU has none.

Pixel and texture rates reflect the architectural gap. The Radeon Pro Vega 16 achieves 38.08 GPixel/s and 76.16 GTexel/s. The RTX 5050 reaches 82.30 GPixel/s and 205.8 GTexel/s. FP32 throughput is 2.437 TFLOPS for the AMD card versus 13.17 TFLOPS for the NVIDIA card. FP16 performance is 4.874 TFLOPS (2:1 ratio) for AMD, while NVIDIA delivers 13.17 TFLOPS (1:1 ratio).

Power and physical specifications also differ. The Radeon Pro Vega 16 has a 75 W TDP and is an integrated graphics processor (IGP) with no power connectors. The RTX 5050 has a 130 W TDP, is dual-slot, requires a single 8-pin power connector, and has a suggested PSU of 300 W. The AMD card uses PCIe 3.0 x16; the NVIDIA card uses PCIe 5.0 x8. Display outputs are portable-device dependent for the AMD part, while the RTX 5050 offers 1x HDMI 2.1b and 3x DisplayPort 2.1b. The release dates are 2018-11-13 for AMD and 2025-06-30 for NVIDIA. The AMD card is end-of-life; the RTX 5050 is active.

Architecture Differences

The architectural divide is fundamental. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 is built on GCN 5.0, a graphics-focused design from 2018. GCN 5.0 uses a 14 nm process and is optimized for compute workloads of that era, with no dedicated ray tracing or tensor hardware. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 is built on Blackwell 2.0, a 2025 architecture on a 5 nm process. Blackwell 2.0 includes 20 ray tracing cores and 80 tensor cores, enabling hardware-accelerated ray tracing and AI-driven features like DLSS. The RTX 5050's transistor count is 16,900 million on a 149 mm² die, giving a density of 113.4M transistors per mm². The AMD chip has no disclosed transistor or die size data.

The memory architectures also reflect different design philosophies. HBM2 on the Radeon Pro Vega 16 provides a very wide 1024-bit bus, which is typical for high-bandwidth compute accelerators. The RTX 5050 uses GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, but achieves comparable bandwidth (320.0 GB/s versus 307.2 GB/s) through higher clock speeds. The RTX 5050's FP16 throughput is identical to its FP32 throughput (13.17 TFLOPS for both), indicating a 1:1 ratio, while the AMD card's FP16 is exactly double its FP32 (4.874 versus 2.437 TFLOPS), indicating a 2:1 ratio.

API support differs in key areas. The AMD card supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The NVIDIA card supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. DirectX 12 Ultimate includes features like ray tracing and mesh shaders, which the RTX 5050 can handle through its dedicated hardware. The Radeon Pro Vega 16 lacks these capabilities. The RTX 5050's newer Vulkan 1.4 support also provides access to more recent extensions and optimizations.

The production status and generation markers tell the full story. The Radeon Pro Vega 16 belongs to the Radeon Pro Mac (Vega Series) generation and is end-of-life. The RTX 5050 belongs to the GeForce 50-series, has a predecessor in the GeForce 40 series and a successor in the GeForce 60 series, and is actively produced. The RTX 5050's launch MSRP is 249 USD. The AMD card has no recorded launch MSRP, reflecting its status as a mobile integrated part sold as part of a system rather than as a standalone product. The RTX 5050 is a discrete dual-slot card with standard display outputs, while the AMD part is an IGP with outputs dependent on the host device.