AMD Radeon Pro W5500X vs NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data shows a single shared benchmark between these two GPUs: Geekbench Metal. In that test, the AMD Radeon Pro W5500X scored 27,973, while the NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile has no Metal score recorded in the database. The RTX A5000 Mobile instead carries OpenCL and Vulkan scores of 110,877 and 88,144 respectively, indicating a strong showing in those APIs, but the lack of a common benchmark prevents a direct head-to-head comparison on identical workloads.

For the AMD side, the Geekbench Metal result places it at the 73rd percentile among all GPUs in the database. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti at 28,020 (0.2% ahead), the AMD Radeon RX 7800M at 27,883 (0.3% behind), the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 20 at 27,839 (0.5% behind), and the AMD FirePro S7150 at 28,117 (0.5% ahead). The W5500X essentially sits in a dead heat with these cards, with all deltas under one percent. This suggests that in Metal workloads, the W5500X performs at a level nearly indistinguishable from those four rivals.

The NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile, meanwhile, shows a broader benchmark profile. Its Passmark G3D score is 15,779, while its Passmark GPU Compute score is 6,945. The DirectX 9 score is 169, DirectX 11 is 133, and DirectX 10 is 115, with DirectX 12 at 72. The G2D score is 629. Its average benchmark score across all recorded tests is 24,763, placing it at the 70th percentile. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 590 at 24,744 (0.1% ahead), the Intel Arc A350M at 24,647 (0.5% ahead), the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT at 24,442 (1.3% ahead), and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1630 at 24,277 (2% ahead). The RTX A5000 Mobile leads all four rivals in average score, though by margins of only 0.1% to 2%.

The most striking difference in the data is the raw compute potential. The RTX A5000 Mobile delivers 19.35 TFLOPS FP32 and 19.35 TFLOPS FP16 (1:1 ratio), while the W5500X delivers 5.398 TFLOPS FP32 and 10.80 TFLOPS FP16 (2:1 ratio). That is a 3.6x advantage in FP32 for the NVIDIA part. In FP16, the RTX A5000 Mobile still leads by roughly 1.8x, but the AMD card's 2:1 ratio means it can process FP16 at double its FP32 rate, a feature that narrows the gap in shader-heavy FP16 workloads.

Pixel and texture rates tell a similar story. The RTX A5000 Mobile achieves 151.2 GPixel/s and 302.4 GTexel/s, versus 56.22 GPixel/s and 168.7 GTexel/s for the W5500X. The NVIDIA part is 2.7x faster in pixel throughput and 1.8x faster in texture throughput. These are large, consistent margins across every raw throughput metric.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon Pro W5500X wins in the single recorded Metal benchmark, scoring 27,973, which is the only test where both cards appear in the database. That score is also higher than the RTX A5000 Mobile's average benchmark score of 24,763, but the comparison is not apples-to-apples because Metal is a macOS-specific API and the RTX A5000 Mobile lacks a Metal score entirely.

The RTX A5000 Mobile wins decisively in every other recorded metric. Its OpenCL score of 110,877 and Vulkan score of 88,144 are not just higher than the W5500X's Metal score; they are in a different performance class altogether. The Passmark suite shows strong DirectX 9 and G2D results, with the DirectX 9 score of 169 being the highest of its Passmark tests. The GPU compute score of 6,945 indicates solid compute throughput for non-graphics workloads.

For use-case segmentation, the data points to the W5500X as the choice for macOS environments where Metal is the primary API. The RTX A5000 Mobile, by contrast, appears better suited for cross-platform OpenCL or Vulkan workloads, and for DirectX-based applications, given its Passmark DirectX scores. The RTX A5000 Mobile's 16 GB memory capacity versus 8 GB also suggests an advantage in memory-intensive tasks, such as large model rendering or high-resolution texture sets. The 448.0 GB/s bandwidth versus 224.0 GB/s further reinforces that advantage.

The RTX A5000 Mobile also holds the edge in architectural features. It includes 48 RT cores and 192 tensor cores, neither of which the W5500X has. These enable hardware-accelerated ray tracing and AI-accelerated tensor operations, respectively. The W5500X has no equivalent hardware in the recorded data.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different manufacturers and architectures. The AMD Radeon Pro W5500X uses the Navi 14 chip built on RDNA 1.0 architecture, fabricated on a 7 nm process at TSMC. The NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile uses the GA104 chip built on Ampere architecture, fabricated on an 8 nm process at Samsung. The process node difference is small, but the transistor counts differ massively: the W5500X has 6,400 million transistors on a 158 mm² die, while the RTX A5000 Mobile has 17,400 million transistors on a 392 mm² die. That is a 2.7x transistor advantage and a 2.5x die size advantage for NVIDIA. Transistor density is similar, at 40.5M per mm² for AMD and 44.4M per mm² for NVIDIA.

Memory configurations diverge sharply. The W5500X has 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, yielding 224.0 GB/s bandwidth. The RTX A5000 Mobile has 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, yielding 448.0 GB/s bandwidth. Both run memory at 1750 MHz with 14 Gbps effective speed, but the wider bus doubles the bandwidth for NVIDIA.

The shading resources are also very different. The W5500X has 1,536 shading units, 96 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The RTX A5000 Mobile has 6,144 shading units, 192 TMUs, and 96 ROPs. That is a 4x increase in shading units, a 2x increase in TMUs, and a 3x increase in ROPs. The RTX A5000 Mobile also adds 48 RT cores and 192 tensor cores, features absent from the AMD part.

Clock speeds favor AMD in boost: the W5500X boosts to 1757 MHz versus 1575 MHz for the RTX A5000 Mobile, and its base clock is 1187 MHz versus 900 MHz. However, the massive difference in core count and memory bus width overcomes the clock disadvantage for NVIDIA. The power draw is also higher for NVIDIA at 150 W versus 125 W for AMD, but the performance per watt is not directly comparable from the recorded data.

Bus interfaces differ: the W5500X uses Apple MPX, while the RTX A5000 Mobile uses PCIe 4.0 x16. Display outputs also differ: the W5500X has 2x HDMI 2.0b, while the RTX A5000 Mobile's outputs are listed as portable device dependent. The API support is similar for OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.4, but DirectX support differs: the W5500X supports DirectX 12 (12_1), while the RTX A5000 Mobile supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2).

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher FP32 compute throughput?

A: The NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile delivers 19.35 TFLOPS FP32, while the AMD Radeon Pro W5500X delivers 5.398 TFLOPS FP32. The NVIDIA part is roughly 3.6x faster in FP32.

Q: Does the RTX A5000 Mobile support ray tracing?

A: Yes, the RTX A5000 Mobile has 48 RT cores. The AMD Radeon Pro W5500X has no RT cores listed in the database.

Q: What is the memory bandwidth difference?

A: The RTX A5000 Mobile has 448.0 GB/s bandwidth from a 256-bit bus, while the W5500X has 224.0 GB/s from a 128-bit bus. The NVIDIA part offers double the bandwidth.

Q: Which GPU is better for Metal-based workloads?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro W5500X is the only one of the two with a recorded Metal benchmark score, at 27,973. The RTX A5000 Mobile has no Metal score in the database.

Q: What is the core count difference?

A: The RTX A5000 Mobile has 6,144 shading units, 192 TMUs, and 96 ROPs. The W5500X has 1,536 shading units, 96 TMUs, and 32 ROPs.

Q: Which GPU has more memory?

A: The RTX A5000 Mobile has 16 GB of GDDR6, while the W5500X has 8 GB of GDDR6.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ across nearly every specification. The process node is 7 nm for AMD and 8 nm for NVIDIA. Transistors are 6,400 million versus 17,400 million, and die size is 158 mm² versus 392 mm². Transistor density is 40.5M per mm² versus 44.4M per mm². Base clocks are 1187 MHz versus 900 MHz, and boost clocks are 1757 MHz versus 1575 MHz. Memory size is 8 GB versus 16 GB, bus width is 128 bit versus 256 bit, and bandwidth is 224.0 GB/s versus 448.0 GB/s. Shading units are 1,536 versus 6,144, TMUs are 96 versus 192, and ROPs are 32 versus 96. The RTX A5000 Mobile adds 48 RT cores and 192 tensor cores, while the W5500X has none. Pixel rate is 56.22 GPixel/s versus 151.2 GPixel/s, texture rate is 168.7 GTexel/s versus 302.4 GTexel/s, and FP32 is 5.398 TFLOPS versus 19.35 TFLOPS. FP16 is 10.80 TFLOPS (2:1) versus 19.35 TFLOPS (1:1). TDP is 125 W versus 150 W. Bus interface is Apple MPX versus PCIe 4.0 x16. Display outputs are 2x HDMI 2.0b versus portable device dependent. DirectX support is 12 (12_1) versus 12 Ultimate (12_2). The W5500X has a launch MSRP of 599 USD, while the RTX A5000 Mobile has no launch MSRP recorded. Release dates are 2019-12-10 for AMD and 2021-04-11 for NVIDIA. The RTX A5000 Mobile lists a predecessor (Quadro Turing-M) and successor (Ada-MW), while the W5500X lists neither.

The Verdict

The data shows two GPUs with fundamentally different performance profiles. The AMD Radeon Pro W5500X is a compact, lower-power part (125 W) with a strong Metal score of 27,973, which places it at the 73rd percentile. It is competitive with the GTX 980 Ti and RX 7800M within 0.5% in Metal. Its 8 GB memory and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth are modest, and its FP32 of 5.398 TFLOPS is low by modern standards.

The NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile is a much larger and more capable part. Its 16 GB memory, 448.0 GB/s bandwidth, 19.35 TFLOPS FP32, and 48 RT cores with 192 tensor cores put it in a different performance tier. Its average benchmark score of 24,763 is lower than the W5500X's Metal score, but that average includes lightweight Passmark tests, whereas the W5500X has only one test. The RTX A5000 Mobile's OpenCL score of 110,877 and Vulkan score of 88,144 are far higher than anything the W5500X has recorded.

For users working in macOS with Metal as the primary API, the W5500X is the only option with a recorded score, and it performs well there. For users needing raw compute, ray tracing, tensor operations, or cross-platform APIs like OpenCL and Vulkan, the RTX A5000 Mobile is the clear choice from the data. The W5500X's lower TDP and smaller footprint may suit compact systems, but the RTX A5000 Mobile's specifications dominate in almost every measurable way except for clock speed and the single Metal benchmark. The verdict from the recorded data is straightforward: pick the W5500X for Metal-centric macOS workflows, and pick the RTX A5000 Mobile for everything else, especially if memory capacity, bandwidth, or hardware ray tracing matter.