AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database records two common benchmark tests for both cards, and the results are not close. In Geekbench OpenCL, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D scores 310674 against the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48's 53757. That is a 477.9% advantage for the NVIDIA card. The gap widens further in Geekbench Vulkan, where the RTX 5090 D posts 376915 versus 57653, a 553.8% lead. Both wins belong to the NVIDIA card; the AMD part does not take a single head-to-head test.

The RTX 5090 D also carries an average benchmark score of 77712 across all recorded tests, while the Radeon Pro Vega 48 averages 60140. That places the NVIDIA card in the 92nd percentile of all GPUs in the database, compared to the 88th percentile for the AMD card. Percentile rankings can compress large gaps, so the raw deltas matter more here: the RTX 5090 D is not merely a few percent faster, it is several multiples faster in compute and graphics workloads.

Looking at nearest rivals for context, the RTX 5090 D's average score sits 1.1% above the AMD Radeon RX 6650M XT and 1.6% below the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT. It is also 2.1% and 2.4% below the two Tesla P100 variants. These are small margins, which suggests the database's average score for the RTX 5090 D may be pulled down by tests that do not fully utilize its architecture. The Radeon Pro Vega 48, meanwhile, sits 0.3% below the Intel Arc Pro A60 and 0.3% below the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 in its own rival group, with the AMD Radeon PRO V710 2.5% below it and the NVIDIA P102-100 2.8% below.

The asymmetry is stark. In OpenCL, the RTX 5090 D delivers nearly six times the score of the Vega 48. In Vulkan, it delivers over six times. These are not incremental generational improvements; they represent a completely different performance class. The Vega 48's best recorded result is its Geekbench Metal score of 69010, but the database has no Metal result for the RTX 5090 D, so that cannot be compared directly.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 5090 D wins every benchmark where both cards have recorded results. That includes OpenCL and Vulkan, which are the only two overlapping tests. The NVIDIA card also has a substantial portfolio of additional benchmarks in the database: 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 at 14326, Geekbench OpenCL at 310674, Geekbench Vulkan at 376915, Passmark DirectX 10 at 231, DirectX 11 at 371, DirectX 12 at 219, DirectX 9 at 434, G2D at 1487, G3D at 44065, and GPU Compute at 28396.

The Radeon Pro Vega 48 has only three recorded benchmarks: Geekbench Metal at 69010, OpenCL at 53757, and Vulkan at 57653. The Metal result is not comparable to anything on the NVIDIA side, since the RTX 5090 D has no Metal score in the database. That said, the Vega 48's Metal score is higher than its own OpenCL and Vulkan scores, which suggests the card performs better under Apple's Metal API than under cross-platform APIs. This makes sense for a card whose generation is listed as "Radeon Pro Mac (Vega Series)" and whose display outputs are "Portable Device Dependent."

For practical use, the RTX 5090 D is the clear choice for any workload that uses DirectX, OpenCL, or Vulkan. The Vega 48's only potential niche is Metal-specific environments, where its 69010 score is the best result it can offer. However, the RTX 5090 D's OpenCL score alone is 4.5 times higher than the Vega 48's Metal score, so even in Apple-centric workflows, the NVIDIA card would likely dominate if it supported Metal at all.

Architecture Differences

The two cards come from entirely different architectural generations. The RTX 5090 D uses the GB202 chip built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture, manufactured on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It packs 92,200 million transistors into a 750 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 122.9 million per square millimeter. The Radeon Pro Vega 48 uses the Vega 10 chip on the GCN 5.0 architecture, built on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. It contains 12,500 million transistors on a 495 mm² die, with a density of 25.3 million per square millimeter.

The transistor count difference is enormous: the RTX 5090 D has roughly 7.4 times more transistors than the Vega 48. The process node advantage is also significant, with 5 nm versus 14 nm allowing far tighter packing. The RTX 5090 D has 21760 shading units, 680 TMUs, and 176 ROPs, along with 170 RT cores and 680 tensor cores. The Vega 48 has 3072 shading units, 192 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, with no dedicated RT or tensor cores at all.

Memory architecture differs as well. The RTX 5090 D uses 32 GB of GDDR7 on a 512 bit bus, yielding 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth. The Vega 48 uses 8 GB of HBM2 on a 2048 bit bus, yielding 402.4 GB/s. The RTX 5090 D's memory clock is listed as 1750 MHz with 28 Gbps effective, while the Vega 48's memory clock is 786 MHz with 1572 Mbps effective. The bus width is wider on the AMD card, but the much higher per-pin data rate on the NVIDIA card more than compensates.

API support also differs. The RTX 5090 D supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The Vega 48 supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The NVIDIA card has a higher DirectX feature level and a newer Vulkan version, both of which matter for modern game engines and compute frameworks.

Specification Differences

The RTX 5090 D has a base clock of 2017 MHz and a boost clock of 2407 MHz. The Vega 48 lists no base or boost clock in the database. The RTX 5090 D's pixel rate is 423.6 GPixel/s, its texture rate is 1,636.8 GTexel/s, and its FP32 throughput is 104.8 TFLOPS with FP16 at 104.8 TFLOPS (1:1). The Vega 48's pixel rate is 76.80 GPixel/s, texture rate is 230.4 GTexel/s, FP32 is 7.373 TFLOPS, and FP16 is 14.75 TFLOPS (2:1).

The power profile is also different. The RTX 5090 D has a TDP of 575 W, requires a single 16-pin power connector, and suggests a 950 W PSU. It is a dual-slot card measuring 304 mm in length, 137 mm in height, and 48 mm in width. The Vega 48 has no TDP listed, no power connectors, and is classified as an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with dimensions not recorded. The RTX 5090 D uses PCIe 5.0 x16, while the Vega 48 uses PCIe 3.0 x16.

Display outputs differ as well. The RTX 5090 D provides 1x HDMI 2.1b and 3x DisplayPort 2.1b. The Vega 48's outputs are listed as "Portable Device Dependent," which reflects its intended use in laptops or all-in-one systems. The RTX 5090 D's production status is "Active," while the Vega 48 is "End-of-life." The release dates are 2025-01-29 for the NVIDIA card and 2019-03-18 for the AMD card. The RTX 5090 D has a launch MSRP of 2,299 USD; the Vega 48 has no launch MSRP recorded.

FAQ

Q: Which card has more shading units?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D has 21760 shading units, while the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 48 has 3072 shading units.

Q: What is the memory bandwidth difference?

A: The RTX 5090 D offers 1.79 TB/s of bandwidth from 32 GB of GDDR7 on a 512 bit bus. The Vega 48 offers 402.4 GB/s from 8 GB of HBM2 on a 2048 bit bus.

Q: Does the AMD card support ray tracing or tensor cores?

A: No. The Vega 48 has no RT cores and no tensor cores listed. The RTX 5090 D has 170 RT cores and 680 tensor cores.

Q: Which card has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The RTX 5090 D averages 77712 across all recorded tests, placing it in the 92nd percentile. The Vega 48 averages 60140, placing it in the 88th percentile.

Q: How much faster is the RTX 5090 D in Vulkan?

A: In Geekbench Vulkan, the RTX 5090 D scores 376915 versus 57653 for the Vega 48, a 553.8% difference.

Q: What is the process node for each card?

A: The RTX 5090 D is built on a 5 nm process at TSMC. The Vega 48 is built on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous. The RTX 5090 D outperforms the Vega 48 in every overlapping benchmark by margins that exceed 400%. The NVIDIA card has more shading units, more memory, higher bandwidth, newer architecture, active production status, and a significantly higher average benchmark score. The Vega 48's only advantages are its lower power requirements (no TDP listed, no external power connectors) and its smaller form factor as an IGP, but those are irrelevant for performance comparisons.

Anyone choosing between these two cards should pick the RTX 5090 D for any workload where raw performance matters. The 477.9% OpenCL lead and 553.8% Vulkan lead are not subtle. The Vega 48 might still be found in older Mac systems, and its Metal score of 69010 shows it can handle Apple-specific tasks, but the RTX 5090 D's closest rivals in the database are all within 2.5% of its average score, while the Vega 48 sits near cards like the Intel Arc Pro A60 and the RTX 4090 in its own group. The performance class difference is massive, and the RTX 5090 D is the only reasonable choice for modern gaming, compute, or professional workloads.