AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64 vs NVIDIA A100 PCIe 40 GB Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data shows a decisive performance gap between the NVIDIA A100 PCIe 40 GB and the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64. In the two shared benchmark tests, the A100 wins both, and by substantial margins. This is not a close contest; the architectural gulf between a 2020 server accelerator and a 2017 workstation GPU is clearly reflected in the numbers.

In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the NVIDIA A100 PCIe 40 GB scores 178,627 points. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64 manages 71,094 points. That is a delta of 151.3% in favor of the A100. To put that in perspective, the A100 is not merely faster; it delivers more than two and a half times the raw OpenCL score of the Vega 64. The A100's score is so high that it sits in the 97th percentile of all GPUs in the database, while the Vega 64 sits in the 91st percentile. But percentile rank alone flatters the Vega 64, because the A100's absolute score is more than double.

The Vulkan test tells a similar story, though the gap narrows somewhat. The A100 scores 146,380, while the Vega 64 scores 74,174. The delta here is 97.3%, meaning the A100 is roughly twice as fast in Vulkan workloads. It is notably the Vega 64 has a dedicated Metal benchmark score of 71,868, which is not a test the A100 participates in (the A100 has no display outputs and is not designed for graphics APIs). The A100's Vulkan score is still nearly double the Vega 64's best showing across any API.

Looking at the average benchmark scores, the A100's average is 162,504, while the Vega 64's average is 72,379. That is a 124.5% advantage for the A100 on average, though the comparison is slightly skewed because the Vega 64 has an extra Metal benchmark in its average while the A100 does not. Even so, the head-to-head results are unambiguous: the A100 is the faster card in every test where both are measured.

The nearest rivals data reinforces the A100's positioning. The A100's closest competitor in the database is the AMD Radeon Pro W6800X, which scores 160,671, a 1.1% deficit. The AMD Radeon PRO W7800 scores 164,894, which is 1.4% behind the A100. The NVIDIA RTX A5500 is 1.6% behind, and the RTX 4500 Ada Generation is 2.2% behind. The A100 is the top dog in its immediate peer group.

The Vega 64, by contrast, sits in a much lower performance tier. Its nearest rival is the NVIDIA TITAN X Pascal, which scores 72,098, a 0.4% deficit. The AMD Radeon RX 6650M scores 71,768, a 0.9% deficit. The AMD Radeon Vega Frontier Edition scores 73,370, which is 1.4% ahead of the Vega 64, and the RX 6600 LE scores 70,829, a 2.2% deficit. The Vega 64 is competitive with its direct peers, but those peers are nowhere near the A100's performance class.

The Verdict

The data points to an obvious conclusion: the NVIDIA A100 PCIe 40 GB is the superior compute accelerator by a wide margin. If the workload is compute-heavy, particularly OpenCL or Vulkan-based, the A100 is the only rational choice between these two. The 151.3% lead in OpenCL and 97.3% lead in Vulkan are not edge cases; they are the entire head-to-head story.

The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64, however, is not without purpose. Its Metal benchmark score of 71,868 is a data point the A100 cannot match, because the A100 has no display outputs and is not built for graphics APIs. The Vega 64 is an integrated graphics processor (IGP) designed for portable devices, with display outputs that are "Portable Device Dependent". The A100 is a dual-slot PCIe card with no display outputs at all. These are fundamentally different products for different use cases.

Who should pick the A100? Anyone running server-side compute workloads: scientific simulation, AI training, data center inference. The A100's 97th percentile standing and its dominance over its nearest rivals (all within 2.2% of its score) show it is a top-tier accelerator. The 40 GB of HBM2e memory and 1.56 TB/s of bandwidth are far beyond what the Vega 64 offers.

Who should pick the Vega 64? Anyone who needs a GPU in a portable or integrated form factor, especially in a Mac environment (the generation is listed as "Radeon Pro Mac"). The Vega 64 supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3, whereas the A100 lists no API support at all. If the workload is graphics-oriented on a Mac or portable device, the Vega 64 is the only one of these two that can even display output.

The verdict is therefore split by form factor and API support, not by raw compute. On raw compute, the A100 wins every round. On compatibility and integrated deployment, the Vega 64 is the only option. The database records 2 wins for the A100 and 0 for the Vega 64 in head-to-head benchmarks, and that is the final word on performance.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA A100 PCIe 40 GB wins in every benchmark where both cards are measured. In Geekbench OpenCL, it is 151.3% ahead. In Geekbench Vulkan, it is 97.3% ahead. These are the only two head-to-head tests, and the A100 takes both.

The A100 also wins on memory capacity and bandwidth. It has 40 GB of HBM2e memory versus 16 GB of HBM2, and 1.56 TB/s of bandwidth versus 402.4 GB/s. That is a 3.9x bandwidth advantage. For memory-bound workloads, this is decisive. The A100 also has a 5120-bit memory bus versus 2048-bit, and a higher memory clock (1215 MHz versus 786 MHz).

The A100 wins on compute throughput as well. Its FP32 rate is 19.49 TFLOPS versus 11.06 TFLOPS for the Vega 64. Its FP16 rate is 77.97 TFLOPS (4:1) versus 22.12 TFLOPS (2:1). The A100 also has 432 tensor cores, while the Vega 64 has none. Tensor cores are a significant feature for AI workloads, and their absence in the Vega 64 is a clear differentiator.

The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64 wins on one specific benchmark: Geekbench Metal, where it scores 71,868. The A100 does not have a Metal score, so this is not a head-to-head comparison, but it is a data point that matters for Mac users. The Vega 64 also wins on API support: DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3 are all listed, while the A100 has null entries for all three. The Vega 64 has display outputs (Portable Device Dependent), while the A100 has none.

The Vega 64 wins on power connectors, or rather the lack thereof. It requires no external power connectors, while the A100 needs an 8-pin EPS connector. The Vega 64 is an IGP, meaning it is integrated into a portable device, while the A100 is a dual-slot card that is 267 mm long and 111 mm tall. For compact or integrated systems, the Vega 64 is the only viable option.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in OpenCL workloads?

A: The NVIDIA A100 PCIe 40 GB is significantly faster. It scores 178,627 in Geekbench OpenCL, while the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64 scores 71,094. This is a 151.3% advantage for the A100.

Q: Does the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64 have any benchmark where it beats the A100?

A: The only benchmark recorded for the Vega 64 that the A100 does not participate in is Geekbench Metal, where the Vega 64 scores 71,868. The A100 has no Metal score because it has no display outputs and does not support graphics APIs.

Q: What is the memory advantage of the A100?

A: The A100 has 40 GB of HBM2e memory with a 5120-bit bus and 1.56 TB/s of bandwidth. The Vega 64 has 16 GB of HBM2 memory with a 2048-bit bus and 402.4 GB/s of bandwidth. The A100 has roughly 3.9 times the bandwidth.

Q: Which GPU has better API support?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64 supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The NVIDIA A100 PCIe 40 GB lists no API support (all entries are null). The Vega 64 is the only one of the two with graphics API compatibility.

Q: How does the A100 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The A100's nearest rival is the AMD Radeon Pro W6800X, which scores 160,671, a 1.1% deficit. The AMD Radeon PRO W7800 is 1.4% behind, the NVIDIA RTX A5500 is 1.6% behind, and the RTX 4500 Ada Generation is 2.2% behind. The A100 leads its immediate peer group.

Q: What is the form factor difference?

A: The A100 is a dual-slot PCIe 4.0 x16 card measuring 267 mm by 111 mm, requiring an 8-pin EPS power connector and a 600 W suggested PSU. The Vega 64 is an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with no dimensions listed, no power connectors, and a PCIe 3.0 x16 interface. They are not physically interchangeable.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different eras and different design philosophies. The NVIDIA A100 PCIe 40 GB is built on the GA100 chip, using the Ampere architecture, and is fabricated on a 7 nm process at TSMC. It contains 54,200 million transistors on a die size of 826 mm², giving a transistor density of 65.6 million per mm². The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64 uses the Vega 10 chip, based on GCN 5.0 architecture, fabricated 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 mm².

The A100 has 6912 shading units, 432 TMUs, 160 ROPs, and 432 tensor cores. It has no RT cores listed. The Vega 64 has 4096 shading units, 256 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, with no tensor cores and no RT cores. The A100 has more than 1.5 times the shading units, 1.7 times the TMUs, and 2.5 times the ROPs. The tensor cores are the biggest architectural differentiator: the A100 is designed for AI and deep learning, while the Vega 64 has no such hardware.

The A100's FP16 rate is 77.97 TFLOPS with a 4:1 ratio, meaning it trades FP32 throughput for FP16. The Vega 64's FP16 rate is 22.12 TFLOPS with a 2:1 ratio. The A100's FP32 rate is 19.49 TFLOPS versus 11.06 TFLOPS. The pixel rate is 225.6 GPixel/s for the A100 versus 86.40 GPixel/s for the Vega 64. The texture rate is 609.1 GTexel/s versus 345.6 GTexel/s. Every throughput metric favors the A100.

The memory architecture also differs fundamentally. The A100 uses HBM2e with a 5120-bit bus and a memory clock of 1215 MHz (2.4 Gbps effective), achieving 1.56 TB/s. The Vega 64 uses HBM2 with a 2048-bit bus and a memory clock of 786 MHz (1572 Mbps effective), achieving 402.4 GB/s. The A100's memory subsystem is newer, wider, and faster.

The Vega 64 is from the "Radeon Pro Mac (Vega Series)" generation, released in June 2017. The A100 is from the "Server Ampere (Axx)" generation, released in June 2020. The A100's predecessor is Tesla Turing and its successor is Server Ada. The Vega 64 has no listed predecessor or successor.

Specification Differences

The most obvious difference is memory capacity. The A100 has 40 GB of HBM2e, while the Vega 64 has 16 GB of HBM2. The memory bus width is 5120-bit versus 2048-bit. The bandwidth is 1.56 TB/s versus 402.4 GB/s.

The process node differs: 7 nm for the A100 versus 14 nm for the Vega 64. The foundry is TSMC for the A100 and GlobalFoundries for the Vega 64. Transistor count is 54,200 million versus 12,500 million. Die size is 826 mm² versus 495 mm². Transistor density is 65.6M per mm² versus 25.3M per mm².

The clock speeds are notably different. The A100 has a base clock of 765 MHz and a boost clock of 1410 MHz. The Vega 64 has a base clock of 1250 MHz and a boost clock of 1350 MHz. The Vega 64 has a higher base clock, but the A100 has a higher boost clock. The memory clocks are 1215 MHz for the A100 and 786 MHz for the Vega 64.

The compute units differ: 6912 shading units, 432 TMUs, 160 ROPs, and 432 tensor cores for the A100 versus 4096 shading units, 256 TMUs, and 64 ROPs for the Vega 64. The A100 has no RT cores, and neither does the Vega 64. The Vega 64 has no tensor cores.

The TDP is identical at 250 W for both. However, the A100 is a dual-slot card requiring an 8-pin EPS power connector and a 600 W suggested PSU. The Vega 64 is an IGP with no power connectors and no suggested PSU listed. The bus interface is PCIe 4.0 x16 for the A100 and PCIe 3.0 x16 for the Vega 64.

Display outputs: the A100 has none, while the Vega 64 has "Portable Device Dependent" outputs. The API support is null for the A100, while the Vega 64 supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The A100 has dimensions of 267 mm by 111 mm, while the Vega 64 has no dimensions listed. The A100's production status is end-of-life, as is the Vega 64's. Neither has a launch MSRP in the database.