AMD Radeon Pro W6900X vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti Comparison

The AMD Radeon Pro W6900X and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti represent two divergent approaches to high-end graphics, with the data showing a clear performance gap in favor of the NVIDIA card. In the two directly comparable benchmark tests, the RTX 3090 Ti wins decisively, posting a 25.5% higher score in Geekbench OpenCL and a 31% higher score in Geekbench Vulkan. However, the W6900X holds its own in other respects, with a higher average benchmark score overall, a better percentile ranking, and a significantly higher launch MSRP, making the comparison more nuanced than raw speed alone.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The head-to-head data is unambiguous: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti outperforms the AMD Radeon Pro W6900X in both available tests. In Geekbench OpenCL, the RTX 3090 Ti scores 174,441 against the W6900X’s 130,035, a delta of -25.5% from the AMD card’s perspective. The margin widens in Geekbench Vulkan, where the RTX 3090 Ti reaches 215,633 while the W6900X manages 148,865, a 31% deficit. These are substantial gaps, not marginal differences, indicating that in compute-heavy workloads leveraging these APIs, the NVIDIA card holds a commanding lead.

Yet the broader benchmark picture tells a different story. The W6900X’s average benchmark score is 168,574, which is 27.7% higher than the RTX 3090 Ti’s average of 131,938. This discrepancy arises because the two cards were tested on different suites: the W6900X’s scores come from Geekbench Metal (226,821), OpenCL, and Vulkan, while the RTX 3090 Ti’s results include a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 5,741 alongside its OpenCL and Vulkan numbers. The Metal score, in particular, is a standout for the AMD card, reflecting its optimization for Apple’s ecosystem. When comparing the common tests, the NVIDIA card wins, but the W6900X’s higher average suggests it excels in other, non-overlapping workloads.

The percentile rankings reinforce this split. The W6900X sits at the 97th percentile among all GPUs, while the RTX 3090 Ti is at the 95th percentile. This means that despite losing the head-to-head tests, the AMD card is more competitive against the entire field of graphics processors. The nearest rivals for the W6900X include the NVIDIA RTX 4500 Ada Generation (1.5% behind), the NVIDIA RTX A5500 (2% behind), and the AMD Radeon PRO W7800 (2.2% behind). For the RTX 3090 Ti, its closest competitors are the NVIDIA L4 (0.7% behind), the NVIDIA RTX 4000 Ada Generation (-2.4% ahead), and the AMD Radeon PRO W6800 (-2.6% ahead). The W6900X’s rivals are closer in performance, while the RTX 3090 Ti’s nearest neighbors are either slightly faster or just behind, indicating a more crowded field at its performance level.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs are built on fundamentally different architectures and process nodes. The AMD Radeon Pro W6900X uses the Navi 21 chip based on RDNA 2.0, fabricated on TSMC’s 7 nm process. It packs 26,800 million transistors into a 520 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 51.5 million per mm². In contrast, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti uses the GA102 chip based on Ampere, built on Samsung’s 8 nm process. It contains 28,300 million transistors on a larger 628 mm² die, with a lower density of 45.1 million per mm². The AMD chip is more compact and denser, while NVIDIA’s design is larger but packs more raw silicon.

Memory configurations diverge sharply. The W6900X offers 32 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, delivering 512.0 GB/s of bandwidth with memory clocked at 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective). The RTX 3090 Ti counters with 24 GB of GDDR6X on a 384-bit bus, achieving a much higher 1.01 TB/s bandwidth at 1313 MHz (21 Gbps effective). The NVIDIA card has less capacity but nearly double the bandwidth, which benefits high-resolution textures and data-intensive workloads. The W6900X’s larger frame buffer is better suited for massive datasets that exceed 24 GB, but the RTX 3090 Ti’s speed advantage is clear.

Compute resources also differ. The W6900X has 5,120 shading units, 320 TMUs, and 128 ROPs, with 80 ray-tracing cores and no tensor cores. The RTX 3090 Ti features 10,752 shading units, 336 TMUs, and 112 ROPs, with 84 ray-tracing cores and 336 tensor cores. The NVIDIA card has more than double the shading units and a substantial tensor core array, which is absent on the AMD side. This translates to raw FP32 throughput: the RTX 3090 Ti delivers 40.00 TFLOPS versus the W6900X’s 22.23 TFLOPS. FP16 performance is also higher on NVIDIA at 40.00 TFLOPS (1:1 ratio), while AMD offers 44.46 TFLOPS (2:1 ratio), a rare win for the W6900X in peak FP16 throughput, though the NVIDIA figure is sustained at a 1:1 rate.

Other architectural differences include clock speeds. The W6900X has a base clock of 1825 MHz and a boost of 2171 MHz, while the RTX 3090 Ti runs at 1560 MHz base and 1860 MHz boost, lower clocks but with more cores. Pixel and texture rates favor AMD: 277.9 GPixel/s and 694.7 GTexel/s versus NVIDIA’s 208.3 GPixel/s and 625.0 GTexel/s. Power draw is also higher on the NVIDIA card at 450 W versus 300 W, with a suggested PSU of 850 W versus 700 W.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear choice for raw compute performance: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti wins every head-to-head benchmark, with margins of 25.5% in OpenCL and 31% in Vulkan. Its FP32 throughput of 40.00 TFLOPS is nearly double the AMD card’s 22.23 TFLOPS, and its memory bandwidth of 1.01 TB/s is roughly double. Anyone prioritizing maximum speed in cross-platform compute workloads should pick the RTX 3090 Ti, especially given its lower launch MSRP of 1,999 USD versus the W6900X’s 5,999 USD, though that metric is noted for reference only.

However, the AMD Radeon Pro W6900X is not without merit. Its 97th percentile ranking exceeds the RTX 3090 Ti’s 95th, and its average benchmark score of 168,574 is higher. The 32 GB memory capacity is a significant advantage for workloads that exceed 24 GB, and the Geekbench Metal score of 226,821 suggests strong performance in Apple-centric environments. The W6900X also has a lower TDP of 300 W and a smaller physical footprint at 267 mm length versus 336 mm, making it easier to integrate into compact systems. The verdict is situational: the RTX 3090 Ti for raw speed, the W6900X for capacity and specific ecosystem advantages.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon Pro W6900X | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti |

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

| Architecture | RDNA 2.0 | Ampere |

| Process Node | 7 nm | 8 nm |

| Foundry | TSMC | Samsung |

| Transistors | 26,800 million | 28,300 million |

| Die Size | 520 mm² | 628 mm² |

| Base Clock | 1825 MHz | 1560 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 2171 MHz | 1860 MHz |

| Memory Size | 32 GB | 24 GB |

| Memory Type | GDDR6 | GDDR6X |

| Memory Bus | 256 bit | 384 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 512.0 GB/s | 1.01 TB/s |

| Memory Clock | 2000 MHz (16 Gbps) | 1313 MHz (21 Gbps) |

| Shading Units | 5120 | 10752 |

| TMUs | 320 | 336 |

| ROPs | 128 | 112 |

| RT Cores | 80 | 84 |

| Tensor Cores | None | 336 |

| FP32 | 22.23 TFLOPS | 40.00 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 44.46 TFLOPS (2:1) | 40.00 TFLOPS (1:1) |

| Pixel Rate | 277.9 GPixel/s | 208.3 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 694.7 GTexel/s | 625.0 GTexel/s |

| TDP | 300 W | 450 W |

| Suggested PSU | 700 W | 850 W |

| Bus Interface | Apple MPX | PCIe 4.0 x16 |

| Display Outputs | 1x HDMI 2.1, 4x Thunderbolt | 1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a |

| Length | 267 mm (10.5 inches) | 336 mm (13.2 inches) |

| Height | 120 mm (4.7 inches) | 140 mm (5.5 inches) |

| Width | Not specified | 61 mm (2.4 inches) |

| Slot Width | Not specified | Triple-slot |

| Power Connectors | Not specified | 1x 16-pin |

| Release Date | 2021-08-02 | 2022-01-26 |

| Predecessor | None | GeForce 20 |

| Successor | None | GeForce 40 |

| Launch MSRP | 5,999 USD | 1,999 USD |

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has higher raw compute performance in FP32?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti delivers 40.00 TFLOPS FP32, while the AMD Radeon Pro W6900X offers 22.23 TFLOPS, making NVIDIA nearly twice as fast.

Q: How do the two cards compare in the shared Geekbench tests?

A: The RTX 3090 Ti wins both: 174,441 versus 130,035 in OpenCL (25.5% higher) and 215,633 versus 148,865 in Vulkan (31% higher).

Q: Which GPU has more memory capacity?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro W6900X has 32 GB of GDDR6, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti has 24 GB of GDDR6X.

Q: What is the advantage of the W6900X’s memory bandwidth configuration?

A: The W6900X has a 256-bit bus with 512.0 GB/s bandwidth, which is lower than the RTX 3090 Ti’s 384-bit bus and 1.01 TB/s, but its larger 32 GB capacity suits bigger datasets.

Q: Does the RTX 3090 Ti support tensor cores?

A: Yes, it has 336 tensor cores, whereas the W6900X has none, giving NVIDIA an edge in AI and machine learning workloads.

Q: Which card has a higher percentile ranking among all GPUs?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro W6900X ranks at the 97th percentile, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti ranks at the 95th percentile.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti is the clear winner in cross-platform compute benchmarks. Its 25.5% lead in OpenCL and 31% lead in Vulkan make it the superior choice for applications that rely on these APIs, such as general-purpose GPU computing, rendering, and scientific simulation. The 40.00 TFLOPS FP32 performance and 1.01 TB/s memory bandwidth are decisive for throughput-bound tasks. The presence of 336 tensor cores further extends its utility to AI inference and training, where the W6900X cannot compete. The RTX 3090 Ti also wins on power efficiency per unit of compute, delivering more than double the FP32 throughput at only 1.5 times the TDP (450 W versus 300 W).

The AMD Radeon Pro W6900X wins in niche but important areas. Its 32 GB memory capacity is a significant advantage for workloads that require holding large models or datasets in VRAM, such as 8K video editing, complex 3D scenes, or large language model inference. The Geekbench Metal score of 226,821 indicates strong performance in Apple’s ecosystem, making it the better fit for Mac Pro users or those leveraging Metal-optimized applications. Its higher average benchmark score of 168,574 and 97th percentile ranking show that it is more competitive across the entire GPU landscape. Additionally, its lower TDP of 300 W and shorter length of 267 mm make it easier to cool and fit in space-constrained systems. The W6900X’s FP16 throughput of 44.46 TFLOPS (2:1) also exceeds NVIDIA’s 40.00 TFLOPS (1:1), though the latter maintains the rate across all workloads.