AMD Radeon PRO W7500 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The head-to-head data shows a clear split: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile dominates in compute-oriented and modern API workloads, while the AMD Radeon PRO W7500 counters in legacy DirectX and 2D tests. Out of nine recorded benchmarks, AMD wins five and NVIDIA wins four, but the margins tell a more nuanced story.

NVIDIA’s strongest showing is in Geekbench OpenCL, where it scores 79,483 against AMD’s 58,213, a 36.5% advantage. This is its largest win in any test. The Vulkan result is also decisive: 80,344 versus 68,634, a 17.1% lead. These two results alone suggest the RTX 3060 Mobile has a substantial edge in general-purpose GPU compute and cross-platform graphics APIs.

In DirectX 12, NVIDIA wins 58 to 46, a 26.1% margin. This is notable because DirectX 12 is the primary modern gaming and workstation API in the database. The DirectX 10 test also favors NVIDIA, 90 to 65, a 38.5% gap, which is its second-largest win. These results indicate that NVIDIA’s architecture handles newer, lower-level APIs more efficiently.

AMD’s wins are mostly in older or less compute-intensive workloads. The largest is in Passmark G2D (2D graphics), where AMD scores 1,174 versus NVIDIA’s 588, a 49.9% advantage. That is the single biggest delta in either direction across all tests. DirectX 9 also goes to AMD, 200 versus 146, a 27% lead. DirectX 11 favors AMD by 12% (125 versus 110). The remaining two wins are narrow: Passmark G3D (13,368 versus 13,230, a 1% lead) and GPU Compute (5,910 versus 5,718, a 3.2% lead).

Interpreting the G3D and compute results is important. The overall 3D score is essentially a tie, with AMD ahead by just 1%. The GPU compute test is also close, with AMD ahead by 3.2%. This means that in raw rasterization throughput and pure compute, the two cards are near-parity, despite NVIDIA’s large leads in Geekbench. The difference is that Geekbench OpenCL and Vulkan tests may stress different aspects of the hardware, such as driver optimization or specific instruction paths.

The average benchmark score in the database tells a slightly different story. NVIDIA’s average is 18,159, while AMD’s is 16,415. However, the head-to-head results show AMD winning more individual tests. This discrepancy is explainable: NVIDIA’s Geekbench scores are much higher than AMD’s, and those two tests (OpenCL and Vulkan) contribute heavily to the average. AMD’s wins are in tests with smaller absolute score ranges, so they pull the average less.

NVIDIA’s percentile ranking is 62nd among all GPUs, while AMD sits at 59th. The nearest rivals for NVIDIA include the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 (average score 18,189, delta -0.2%) and the Intel Arc A770M (18,383, delta -1.2%). AMD’s nearest rivals include the NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell (16,408, delta 0%) and the AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT (16,361, delta 0.3%). These rival comparisons show both cards are positioned in a similar performance tier, with NVIDIA holding a slight overall average edge.

FAQ

Q: Which card is faster in modern DirectX 12 workloads?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile wins the DirectX 12 test with a score of 58 versus AMD’s 46, a 26.1% advantage.

Q: Does the AMD card win any compute tests?

A: Yes, the AMD Radeon PRO W7500 wins the Passmark GPU Compute test with 5,910 against NVIDIA’s 5,718, a 3.2% lead. However, NVIDIA wins Geekbench OpenCL by 36.5% (79,483 versus 58,213).

Q: How do the cards compare in 2D performance?

A: The AMD Radeon PRO W7500 is decisively ahead in 2D, scoring 1,174 in Passmark G2D versus NVIDIA’s 588, a 49.9% margin. This is the largest performance gap in any test.

Q: Which card has better Vulkan performance?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile leads Vulkan with 80,344 against AMD’s 68,634, a 17.1% difference.

Q: Are the overall 3D scores similar?

A: Yes, the Passmark G3D scores are nearly identical. AMD scores 13,368 and NVIDIA scores 13,230, a difference of just 1%. This suggests comparable raw 3D rendering capability.

Q: What do the average benchmark scores indicate?

A: The database shows NVIDIA’s average benchmark score is 18,159, while AMD’s is 16,415. This is driven largely by NVIDIA’s strong Geekbench results, despite AMD winning more individual head-to-head tests (5 versus 4).

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from fundamentally different architectures. NVIDIA uses the GA106 chip built on the Ampere architecture, manufactured on an 8 nm process at Samsung. AMD uses the Navi 33 chip with the RDNA 3.0 architecture, codenamed "Hotpink Bonefish," manufactured on a 6 nm process at TSMC. The process node difference is significant: 6 nm versus 8 nm allows AMD to pack more transistors into a smaller die.

The transistor counts reflect this. AMD’s Navi 33 has 13,300 million transistors on a 204 mm² die, while NVIDIA’s GA106 has 12,000 million on a 276 mm² die. This gives AMD a much higher transistor density: 65.2M per mm² versus NVIDIA’s 43.5M per mm². The die size difference is notable, with NVIDIA’s chip being 35% larger physically but containing fewer transistors.

The compute unit layouts differ substantially. NVIDIA’s GA106 has 3,840 shading units, 120 texture mapping units, and 48 ROPs. It also includes 30 ray tracing cores and 120 tensor cores, reflecting Ampere’s focus on both ray tracing and AI acceleration. AMD’s Navi 33 has 1,792 shading units, 112 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. It includes 28 ray tracing cores but no tensor cores. Instead, RDNA 3.0 relies on shader-based compute for AI tasks.

The FP16 (half-precision) performance reveals a major architectural difference. NVIDIA’s FP16 throughput is 10.94 TFLOPS, which is a 1:1 ratio with its FP32 performance. AMD’s FP16 is 24.37 TFLOPS, a 2:1 ratio, meaning it can process half-precision data twice as fast as full precision. This makes AMD better suited for workloads that can use FP16, such as certain AI inference or image processing tasks.

Memory architecture also differs. NVIDIA uses a 192-bit bus with 6 GB of GDDR6 memory, while AMD uses a narrower 128-bit bus with 8 GB of GDDR6. Despite the narrower bus, AMD’s higher memory clock (2000 MHz versus 1750 MHz) results in a bandwidth of 256.0 GB/s, compared to NVIDIA’s 336.0 GB/s. NVIDIA has higher raw bandwidth, but AMD has more capacity.

The bus interfaces differ: NVIDIA uses PCIe 4.0 x16, while AMD uses PCIe 4.0 x8. This means NVIDIA has double the PCIe lanes, which can matter for data transfer in bandwidth-sensitive workloads. AMD’s display outputs are specified as 4x DisplayPort 2.1, while NVIDIA’s are listed as "Portable Device Dependent," reflecting its mobile heritage.

Specification Differences

The most obvious difference is the process node: NVIDIA uses 8 nm, AMD uses 6 nm. The foundry also differs (Samsung versus TSMC). Die size is 276 mm² for NVIDIA versus 204 mm² for AMD. Transistor count is 12,000 million versus 13,300 million, and transistor density is 43.5M/mm² versus 65.2M/mm².

Clock speeds differ. NVIDIA’s base clock is 900 MHz with a boost of 1425 MHz. AMD’s base clock is 1500 MHz with a boost of 1700 MHz. AMD runs at significantly higher clocks, which partially compensates for its lower shading unit count.

Memory configuration differs in size and bus width. NVIDIA has 6 GB on a 192-bit bus, AMD has 8 GB on a 128-bit bus. Memory clock is 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) for NVIDIA versus 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective) for AMD. Bandwidth favors NVIDIA: 336.0 GB/s versus 256.0 GB/s.

The render output units differ: NVIDIA has 48 ROPs, AMD has 64 ROPs. This helps explain AMD’s higher pixel rate of 108.8 GPixel/s versus NVIDIA’s 68.40 GPixel/s. Texture rate is closer: 190.4 GTexel/s for AMD versus 171.0 GTexel/s for NVIDIA.

FP32 performance favors AMD: 12.19 TFLOPS versus 10.94 TFLOPS. FP16 performance is 24.37 TFLOPS for AMD versus 10.94 TFLOPS for NVIDIA, a 2:1 versus 1:1 ratio.

Power consumption differs slightly: NVIDIA’s TDP is 80 W, AMD’s is 70 W. AMD is a single-slot card with dimensions of 216 mm length, 115 mm height, and 20 mm width. NVIDIA has no listed dimensions, consistent with its mobile form factor. AMD’s suggested PSU is 250 W. Neither card requires external power connectors. AMD has 4x DisplayPort 2.1 outputs, while NVIDIA’s outputs are portable device dependent.

Production status differs: NVIDIA is end-of-life, AMD is active. Release dates are January 2021 for NVIDIA and August 2023 for AMD. AMD’s predecessor is the Radeon Pro Vega, while NVIDIA’s is the GeForce 20 Mobile series. AMD’s launch MSRP is 429 USD.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile wins in scenarios that stress modern compute APIs and high-bandwidth memory access. The Geekbench OpenCL and Vulkan results, with leads of 36.5% and 17.1%, indicate strong general-purpose compute and cross-platform graphics performance. The DirectX 12 win (26.1%) makes it the better choice for applications that rely on the latest Microsoft graphics API. The DirectX 10 win (38.5%) is also substantial. The higher memory bandwidth (336.0 GB/s versus 256.0 GB/s) likely contributes to these wins, especially in memory-bound compute tasks. The tensor cores provide dedicated hardware for AI workloads, which the AMD card lacks. For users running modern game engines, machine learning inference, or compute-heavy applications that favor NVIDIA’s CUDA-like architecture, the RTX 3060 Mobile is the stronger option.

The AMD Radeon PRO W7500 wins in legacy graphics APIs and 2D workloads. The DirectX 9 win (27%) and DirectX 11 win (12%) suggest better compatibility or optimization for older software. The G2D result (49.9% ahead) is the standout, making this card the clear choice for 2D-heavy applications like CAD drafting, desktop compositing, or spreadsheet-heavy productivity. The narrow wins in G3D (1%) and GPU Compute (3.2%) show that AMD is competitive in raw 3D rendering, despite the larger compute API gaps. The 8 GB memory capacity (versus 6 GB) is an advantage for workloads that exceed 6 GB VRAM, such as large textures or multi-monitor setups. The higher pixel rate (108.8 GPixel/s versus 68.40 GPixel/s) suggests better fill-rate-bound performance. The single-slot design and DisplayPort 2.1 outputs make it a practical choice for professional workstation environments where space and display connectivity matter.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear division of labor. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile is the pick for users who prioritize modern API performance, high-bandwidth compute, and AI-accelerated workloads. Its wins in OpenCL, Vulkan, DirectX 12, and DirectX 10, coupled with its higher average benchmark score (18,159 versus 16,415) and higher percentile ranking (62nd versus 59th), make it the stronger all-around performer in the database’s modern test suite. The 36.5% OpenCL lead and 17.1% Vulkan lead are substantial margins that cannot be ignored. The presence of tensor cores gives it a hardware advantage for AI tasks, even though the database does not directly test them.

The AMD Radeon PRO W7500 is the pick for users who need legacy API support, 2D performance, or larger memory capacity. The 49.9% G2D win is the largest margin in any test, and the DirectX 9 and DirectX 11 wins (27% and 12%) show AMD’s strength in older software environments. The 8 GB VRAM capacity is a practical advantage for memory-hungry professional applications. The active production status and newer release date (August 2023 versus January 2021) mean it is still a current product, while NVIDIA’s mobile chip is end-of-life. The single-slot form factor and DisplayPort 2.1 outputs make it a better fit for fixed workstation installations.

For a builder deciding between these two, the choice hinges on software environment. If the workload is built around DirectX 12, Vulkan, or compute APIs, the RTX 3060 Mobile wins decisively. If the workload involves older DirectX versions, heavy 2D rendering, or needs more than 6 GB of VRAM, the Radeon PRO W7500 is the better choice. The overall 3D performance is essentially tied (1% difference in G3D), so neither card offers a significant rasterization advantage. The database shows NVIDIA winning 4 tests and AMD winning 5, but NVIDIA’s wins are generally larger in magnitude, which is why its average score is higher. Final recommendation: pick the RTX 3060 Mobile for modern compute and gaming, pick the Radeon PRO W7500 for legacy compatibility and professional 2D/display-focused tasks.