AMD Radeon Pro W5700X vs Intel Arc Pro A60 Comparison

Intel Arc Pro A60 versus AMD Radeon Pro W5700X: the data delivers a decisive verdict. Based on head-to-head benchmark results, the Intel Arc Pro A60 is the outright winner in compute workloads, taking both available tests with commanding leads. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X, while offering a larger memory pool and higher raw shader counts, falls significantly behind in the measured Geekbench tests. For users prioritizing raw compute performance in OpenCL and Vulkan, the Intel card is the clear choice; for those needing more VRAM and a legacy Mac ecosystem fit, the AMD card remains relevant, though its end-of-life status and lower scores are notable drawbacks.

The Verdict

The benchmark data is unambiguous: the Intel Arc Pro A60 leads the head-to-head battle with 2 wins against 0 for the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X. In Geekbench OpenCL, the Intel card scores 63,485 versus 43,810 for AMD, a 44.9% advantage. In Vulkan, Intel again wins with 57,166 against 45,246, a 26.3% margin. This is a comprehensive sweep.

However, the verdict is not purely about speed. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X carries 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, yielding 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth, compared to the Intel’s 12 GB on a 192-bit bus with 384.0 GB/s. For workloads that are memory-capacity-bound rather than compute-bound, the AMD card holds a structural edge. The W5700X also has a higher average benchmark score of 54,828, though this is dragged down by its weaker Vulkan and OpenCL results; its Geekbench Metal score of 75,427 is exceptional. The Intel card’s average score is 60,326, placing it at the 88th percentile of all GPUs, versus the AMD’s 87th percentile.

Thus, the verdict splits: pick the Intel Arc Pro A60 for raw compute throughput, modern API support, and a lower power draw; pick the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X if your priority is memory capacity, higher bandwidth, or Mac-specific compatibility, accepting its slower compute and end-of-life production status. The data does not support a single universal winner—it supports a workload-dependent choice.

Architecture Differences

The two cards represent fundamentally different architectural generations. The Intel Arc Pro A60 uses the DG2-256 chip built on the Xe-HPG architecture, fabricated on a 6 nm process at TSMC. It packs 11,500 million transistors on a 269 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 42.8M per mm². The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X uses the Navi 10 chip on the RDNA 1.0 architecture, also from TSMC but on a 7 nm process. It contains 10,300 million transistors on a 251 mm² die, with a slightly lower density of 41.0M per mm².

The Intel card is from the Alchemist generation (Pro Series), while the AMD card is from the Radeon Pro Mac (Navi Series). The Intel card includes 16 ray-tracing cores, a feature entirely absent from the AMD card, which lists no RT cores. This is a critical architectural differentiator for modern rendering workloads. In terms of compute units, the AMD card has more shading units (2,560 versus 2,048) and more texture mapping units (160 versus 128), but both have identical ROP counts at 64. The Intel card compensates with higher boost clocks? No—the AMD card boosts higher at 2040 MHz versus Intel’s 2050 MHz, which are nearly identical, but the AMD base clock is higher at 1243 MHz versus 900 MHz.

The memory architectures diverge sharply. The Intel card uses 12 GB GDDR6 at 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective), while the AMD uses 16 GB GDDR6 at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective). The AMD’s wider 256-bit bus gives it 448.0 GB/s bandwidth versus Intel’s 384.0 GB/s. API support also differs: Intel supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, while AMD supports DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.4; both support OpenGL 4.6. The Intel card is built for PCIe 4.0 x16, whereas the AMD uses the Apple MPX bus interface, a clear sign of its Mac-oriented design.

Where Each One Wins

The Intel Arc Pro A60 wins decisively in compute-bound tasks using OpenCL and Vulkan. Its OpenCL score of 63,485 is 44.9% higher than the AMD’s 43,810, making it the stronger choice for GPU compute in scientific, engineering, or rendering applications that leverage these APIs. Its Vulkan score of 57,166 is 26.3% higher, indicating better performance in cross-platform graphics workloads that use Vulkan. The Intel card also has a lower TDP at 130 W versus AMD’s 205 W, suggesting better power efficiency for sustained compute, and it is a single-slot card compared to the AMD’s quad-slot design, which is a significant physical footprint advantage.

The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X wins in scenarios where memory capacity and bandwidth are paramount. Its 16 GB VRAM is 33% larger than Intel’s 12 GB, and its 448.0 GB/s bandwidth is 16.7% higher. This makes it preferable for large dataset manipulation, high-resolution texture loading, or multi-display setups that exhaust the Intel card’s memory. The AMD card also has a higher texture fill rate (326.4 GTexel/s versus 262.4 GTexel/s) and higher FP32 throughput (10.44 TFLOPS versus 8.397 TFLOPS), indicating superior raw math capability per clock. However, these advantages do not translate into benchmark wins in the tests available. The AMD card’s Geekbench Metal score of 75,427 is its standout result, suggesting strong performance in Apple’s Metal API, which is irrelevant for the Intel card as it lacks a Metal benchmark.

FAQ

Q: Which card has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The Intel Arc Pro A60 has an average benchmark score of 60,326, which is higher than the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X’s 54,828. The Intel card also sits at the 88th percentile of all GPUs, one point above the AMD card’s 87th percentile.

Q: Why does the AMD card have a higher FP32 throughput but lose in OpenCL?

A: The AMD card’s FP32 throughput is 10.44 TFLOPS versus Intel’s 8.397 TFLOPS, but the OpenCL benchmark result shows Intel winning 63,485 to 43,810. This suggests that raw FLOP counts do not directly translate to real-world compute performance, as factors like driver optimization, memory latency, and API implementation play significant roles.

Q: Is the AMD card still in production?

A: No, the AMD Radeon Pro W5700X is marked as end-of-life in the data, while the Intel Arc Pro A60 is listed as active. This means the Intel card is likely easier to source new, while the AMD card may be limited to existing stock or used markets.

Q: What is the difference in memory bandwidth?

A: The AMD card has a bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s, while the Intel card has 384.0 GB/s. The AMD card achieves this with a 256-bit bus and 16 GB of GDDR6, whereas the Intel card uses a 192-bit bus and 12 GB of GDDR6.

Q: Which card supports ray tracing?

A: Only the Intel Arc Pro A60 lists ray-tracing cores, with 16 RT cores. The AMD Radeon Pro W5700X has no RT cores listed, indicating no hardware ray-racing support.

Q: How do their power requirements differ?

A: The Intel card has a TDP of 130 W and a suggested PSU of 300 W, while the AMD card has a TDP of 205 W and a suggested PSU of 550 W. The AMD card also requires a quad-slot form factor, whereas the Intel card is single-slot.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The head-to-head data reveals a dominant performance from the Intel Arc Pro A60. In Geekbench OpenCL, Intel scores 63,485 against AMD’s 43,810, a delta of 44.9%. This is a massive margin, indicating that the Intel card’s compute architecture is far more efficient in this API, despite having fewer shading units (2,048 versus 2,560) and lower FP32 throughput (8.397 TFLOPS versus 10.44 TFLOPS). The Intel card’s advantage likely stems from its newer 6 nm process and Xe-HPG architecture, which may have better driver optimization for OpenCL.

In Geekbench Vulkan, the Intel card again wins, scoring 57,166 versus AMD’s 45,246, a 26.3% delta. While the margin is smaller than OpenCL, it is still a substantial win. The AMD card’s Vulkan score is notably lower than its Metal score, suggesting that its performance is highly API-dependent. The Intel card’s Vulkan score is also higher than its own OpenCL score, indicating strong Vulkan implementation.

The AMD card’s best result is its Geekbench Metal score of 75,427, which is not part of the head-to-head comparison because the Intel card has no corresponding benchmark. This score is higher than Intel’s OpenCL or Vulkan results, but it is irrelevant for cross-vendor comparison. The head-to-head table lists only two tests, both won by Intel, making the final tally 2 wins for Intel and 0 for AMD.

Specification Differences

The specifications differ across nearly every major category. The process node differs: Intel uses 6 nm, AMD uses 7 nm, both from TSMC. Transistor counts are close, with Intel at 11,500 million and AMD at 10,300 million, but die sizes are similar at 269 mm² and 251 mm² respectively, giving Intel a slightly higher density of 42.8M/mm² versus 41.0M/mm². Clock speeds show AMD with a higher base clock (1243 MHz versus 900 MHz) and a nearly identical boost clock (2040 MHz versus 2050 MHz).

Memory is a key differentiator: Intel has 12 GB GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus with 384.0 GB/s bandwidth, while AMD has 16 GB GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus with 448.0 GB/s. The AMD card’s memory clock is lower at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) versus Intel’s 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective). Compute units favor AMD: 2560 shading units versus 2048, 160 TMUs versus 128, but both have 64 ROPs. The Intel card has 16 RT cores; AMD has none. Pixel rates are nearly identical (131.2 GPixel/s for Intel versus 130.6 GPixel/s for AMD), but texture rates favor AMD (326.4 GTexel/s versus 262.4 GTexel/s). FP32 and FP16 throughput both favor AMD: 10.44 TFLOPS versus 8.397 TFLOPS for FP32, and 20.89 TFLOPS versus 16.79 TFLOPS for FP16.

Power and physical design differ greatly: Intel has a 130 W TDP and is single-slot, while AMD has a 205 W TDP and is quad-slot. The suggested PSU is 300 W for Intel and 550 W for AMD. Bus interface also differs: Intel uses PCIe 4.0 x16, while AMD uses Apple MPX. Display outputs: Intel has 4x DisplayPort 2.0, AMD has 1x HDMI 2.0b and 4x Thunderbolt. API support is similar but not identical: both have OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.4, but Intel has DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) while AMD has DirectX 12 (12_1). The AMD card has a launch MSRP of 999 USD, while the Intel card has no listed MSRP. Production status: Intel is active, AMD is end-of-life. Release dates differ by over three years: Intel was released on 2023-06-05, AMD on 2019-12-10.