AMD Radeon Pro W5500X vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Comparison

FAQ

Q: How do the two GPUs compare in overall benchmark positioning?

A: Both cards sit at the 73rd percentile against all GPUs in the database. The AMD Radeon Pro W5500X holds an average benchmark score of 27,973, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 posts a slightly lower average of 27,565 — a difference of roughly 1.5% in AMD's favor based on their respective aggregate scores.

Q: What is the most significant architectural gap between them?

A: The RTX 3090 uses the GA102 chip on Samsung's 8 nm process with 28,300 million transistors, while the W5500X uses the Navi 14 chip on TSMC's 7 nm node with 6,400 million transistors. The RTX 3090 also carries 82 dedicated ray tracing cores and 328 tensor cores, which the W5500X lacks entirely.

Q: Which card has higher memory capacity and bandwidth?

A: The RTX 3090 dominates here with 24 GB of GDDR6X on a 384-bit bus delivering 936.2 GB/s, versus the W5500X's 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus at 224.0 GB/s. That is 3x the capacity and over 4x the bandwidth for the NVIDIA card.

Q: How do compute workloads compare on paper?

A: The RTX 3090's FP32 throughput is 35.58 TFLOPS, while the W5500X delivers 5.398 TFLOPS — a 6.6x advantage for NVIDIA. The RTX 3090 also matches its FP16 rating at 35.58 TFLOPS (1:1), whereas the W5500X achieves 10.80 TFLOPS FP16 via a 2:1 ratio.

Q: What are the power and physical requirements?

A: The W5500X is a 125 W dual-slot card with a 300 W suggested PSU, while the RTX 3090 is a 350 W triple-slot card requiring a 750 W PSU and a single 12-pin power connector. The RTX 3090 measures 336 mm in length, 140 mm in height, and 61 mm in width.

Q: Which API feature levels do they support?

A: The W5500X supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The RTX 3090 supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4 — the higher DirectX feature level being the key differentiator.

Architecture Differences

The architectural chasm between these two GPUs is profound. The AMD Radeon Pro W5500X is built on RDNA 1.0 using the Navi 14 chip, fabricated by TSMC on a 7 nm process. It packs 6,400 million transistors into a 158 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 40.5M per mm². The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090, in contrast, uses the Ampere architecture with the GA102 chip, manufactured by Samsung on an 8 nm node. It crams 28,300 million transistors into a 628 mm² die, for a density of 45.1M per mm². The RTX 3090's die is nearly four times larger, and its transistor count is over 4.4x higher.

The compute layout diverges sharply. The W5500X features 1,536 shading units, 96 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The RTX 3090 scales this up to 10,496 shading units, 328 TMUs, and 112 ROPs — roughly 6.8x, 3.4x, and 3.5x respectively. Critically, the RTX 3090 adds dedicated hardware the W5500X simply does not have: 82 ray tracing cores and 328 tensor cores. This makes the NVIDIA card a fundamentally different class of processor for modern workloads that leverage RT and AI acceleration.

Clock behavior also differs. The W5500X runs a base clock of 1187 MHz and boosts to 1757 MHz. The RTX 3090 has a higher base clock at 1395 MHz but a slightly lower boost at 1695 MHz. Memory clocks tell a similar story: the W5500X's memory runs at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective), while the RTX 3090's memory runs at 1219 MHz but achieves 19.5 Gbps effective thanks to GDDR6X technology. The bus interface differs as well — the W5500X uses Apple MPX, while the RTX 3090 uses PCIe 4.0 x16.

Display outputs are another split: the W5500X offers 2x HDMI 2.0b, whereas the RTX 3090 provides 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a. The API support reflects the newer architecture, with the RTX 3090 hitting DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) versus the W5500X's DirectX 12 (12_1).

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon Pro W5500X wins in the narrow slice of Metal benchmark performance. Its Geekbench Metal score of 27,973 places it essentially at parity with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti (28,020, -0.2% delta) and slightly ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 7800M (27,883, +0.3% delta) and Radeon Pro Vega 20 (27,839, +0.5% delta). For Apple-centric workflows that rely on Metal, the W5500X holds its ground despite its modest specifications.

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 wins in nearly every other measurable category. Its average benchmark score of 27,565 is competitive with the Radeon RX 6700 XT (27,425, +0.5% delta) and the RTX 4070 Mobile (27,435, +0.5% delta), while trailing the Radeon Pro Vega 20 (27,839, -1% delta) and RX 7800M (27,883, -1.1% delta) by small margins. But the real story is in its raw compute and memory capabilities: the RTX 3090's 35.58 TFLOPS FP32, 936.2 GB/s bandwidth, and 24 GB capacity make it a workstation-class card for rendering, simulation, and AI inference. The W5500X cannot compete in these domains — its 5.398 TFLOPS and 224.0 GB/s are an order of magnitude lower.

The RTX 3090 also wins on raw throughput metrics: its pixel rate of 189.8 GPixel/s is 3.4x the W5500X's 56.22 GPixel/s, and its texture rate of 556.0 GTexel/s is 3.3x the W5500X's 168.7 GTexel/s. For gaming and real-time graphics, the RTX 3090's DirectX 12 Ultimate support and ray tracing cores provide a clear edge that the W5500X cannot match.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon Pro W5500X | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 |

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

| Architecture | RDNA 1.0 | Ampere |

| Process Node | 7 nm (TSMC) | 8 nm (Samsung) |

| Transistors | 6,400 million | 28,300 million |

| Die Size | 158 mm² | 628 mm² |

| Base Clock | 1187 MHz | 1395 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1757 MHz | 1695 MHz |

| Memory | 8 GB GDDR6 | 24 GB GDDR6X |

| Memory Bus | 128 bit | 384 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 224.0 GB/s | 936.2 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 1536 | 10496 |

| TMUs | 96 | 328 |

| ROPs | 32 | 112 |

| RT Cores | — | 82 |

| Tensor Cores | — | 328 |

| Pixel Rate | 56.22 GPixel/s | 189.8 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 168.7 GTexel/s | 556.0 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 5.398 TFLOPS | 35.58 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 10.80 TFLOPS (2:1) | 35.58 TFLOPS (1:1) |

| TDP | 125 W | 350 W |

| Slot Width | Dual-slot | Triple-slot |

| Power Connectors | — | 1x 12-pin |

| Suggested PSU | 300 W | 750 W |

| Bus Interface | Apple MPX | PCIe 4.0 x16 |

| Display Outputs | 2x HDMI 2.0b | 1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a |

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

| Dimensions | — | 336 mm x 140 mm x 61 mm |

| Launch MSRP | 599 USD | 1,499 USD |

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

There are no direct head-to-head benchmark results in the database between these two cards, and the win counts are 0 for both. However, the available individual benchmark data paints a decisive picture. The W5500X's only benchmark is Geekbench Metal, where it scores 27,973. The RTX 3090 has a broader suite of results, headlined by a Geekbench OpenCL score of 172,758 — which is over 6x the W5500X's Metal score, albeit across different APIs.

The RTX 3090's Geekbench Vulkan score of 53,927 is also substantial. In Passmark tests, the RTX 3090 scores 26,645 in G3D, 15,356 in GPU Compute, 1,063 in G2D, 268 in DirectX 9, 220 in DirectX 11, 182 in DirectX 10, and 110 in DirectX 12. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 result of 5,118 further underscores its modern gaming capability.

The W5500X's 27,973 Metal score is competitive in that specific API — its nearest rival is the GTX 980 Ti at 28,020 (-0.2% delta), and it edges out the RX 7800M (27,883, +0.3%) and Radeon Pro Vega 20 (27,839, +0.5%). But the RTX 3090's nearest rivals include the RTX 4070 Mobile (27,435, +0.5%) and RX 6700 XT (27,425, +0.5%), showing it sits in a similar aggregate performance tier despite its vastly superior raw specifications.

The compute discrepancy is the headline. At 35.58 TFLOPS FP32, the RTX 3090 delivers 6.6x the raw compute of the W5500X's 5.398 TFLOPS. Memory bandwidth is 4.2x higher on the RTX 3090. Pixel throughput is 3.4x higher. Texture throughput is 3.3x higher. These are not marginal deltas — they represent entirely different performance classes.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 is the overwhelmingly more capable GPU in nearly every technical dimension. It offers 6.6x the FP32 compute, 4.2x the memory bandwidth, 3x the memory capacity, and adds ray tracing and tensor cores that the AMD Radeon Pro W5500X simply does not have. For any workload involving large datasets, heavy compute, real-time ray tracing, or AI inference, the RTX 3090 is the only rational choice from this comparison.

The AMD Radeon Pro W5500X's sole advantage lies in its Metal benchmark score of 27,973, which is competitive with the RTX 3090's average of 27,565. In Apple MPX-based systems where Metal is the primary API, the W5500X can hold its own. Its 125 W TDP and 300 W suggested PSU also make it far easier to integrate into compact or power-constrained systems, and its dual-slot form factor contrasts with the RTX 3090's triple-slot, 336 mm length requiring 750 W.

The launch MSRP difference reflects the performance gap: 599 USD for the W5500X versus 1,499 USD for the RTX 3090. That said, the RTX 3090's raw capabilities justify the premium for users who need them. For professionals working in Apple ecosystems with Metal-accelerated apps, the W5500X is a capable, efficient option. For anyone needing maximum compute throughput, memory bandwidth, or modern API features like DirectX 12 Ultimate, the RTX 3090 is the definitive pick. The verdict is not close on paper — the RTX 3090 wins on nearly every measurable metric, with the W5500X only carving out a niche in Metal-specific scenarios.