AMD Radeon RX 470 vs AMD Radeon RX 6700M Comparison

The Verdict

The recorded data paints a clear picture: the AMD Radeon RX 6700M dominates the AMD Radeon RX 470 in every benchmark test where both were measured. Across four head-to-head comparisons, the RX 6700M wins all four, with delta percentages ranging from -54.4% to -56.8%, meaning the RX 470 trails by over half in each test. The database shows the RX 6700M posting a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1845 versus 842 for the RX 470, a 54.4% gap. In Geekbench Metal, the RX 6700M scores 91911 against 41690, a 54.6% difference. Geekbench OpenCL shows 77666 versus 33568, a 56.8% gap, and Geekbench Vulkan records 90816 versus 39884, a 56.1% deficit.

The average benchmark scores confirm this trend. The RX 470 carries an average score of 28996, while the RX 6700M sits at 25633. Notably, the RX 470 actually holds a higher percentile ranking against all GPUs at 74, compared to 71 for the RX 6700M, which reflects the broader field of mobile and desktop parts included in the database. The nearest rivals for each card further illustrate the positioning. The RX 470 sits within 0.7% of the AMD Radeon RX 6800M, Intel Arc A370M, AMD Radeon RX Vega M GH, and AMD FirePro W8000, with delta percentages of 0.4%, -0.6%, -0.7%, and -0.7% respectively. The RX 6700M, meanwhile, is within 0.9% of the AMD Radeon Pro W5700, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Mobile, AMD FirePro D700, and AMD FirePro W7100.

Who should pick which? The data indicates the RX 6700M is the superior performer for any modern workload requiring high throughput in DX12, Metal, OpenCL, or Vulkan. Its wins are decisive, not marginal. The RX 470, despite its lower scores, remains a viable option only if the user is constrained to a desktop form factor with a dual-slot footprint and a 6-pin power connector, as it is an end-of-life desktop part. The RX 6700M is an integrated graphics processor (IGP) for mobile systems, so the choice is fundamentally about platform: a desktop user with legacy PCIe 3.0 slots would select the RX 470, while a laptop buyer would receive the RX 6700M. For pure compute performance, the RX 6700M is the clear winner. For a stationary desktop build, the RX 470 is the only physically compatible option of the two.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs are separated by five years of architectural evolution, which explains the performance chasm. The RX 470 uses the Ellesmere chip built on the GCN 4.0 architecture, manufactured on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. It packs 5,700 million transistors on a 232 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 24.6 million per square millimeter. The RX 6700M uses the Navi 22 chip on the RDNA 2.0 architecture, produced on a 7 nm process at TSMC. This newer node packs 17,200 million transistors onto a 335 mm² die, achieving a density of 51.3 million per square millimeter, more than double the density of the older part.

The RX 470 belongs to the Arctic Islands generation (RX 400), while the RX 6700M is part of the Navi Mobile generation (RX 6000M). The RX 470's GCN 4.0 architecture supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The RX 6700M's RDNA 2.0 architecture steps up to DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The newer card also introduces 36 ray tracing cores, a feature entirely absent from the RX 470, which lists no RT cores.

Clock speeds differ substantially. The RX 470 runs at a base clock of 926 MHz and a boost clock of 1206 MHz. The RX 6700M operates at a base of 1489 MHz, a boost of 2400 MHz, and a game clock of 2300 MHz. Memory configurations diverge as well: the RX 470 uses 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, while the RX 6700M uses 10 GB of GDDR6 on a 160-bit bus. The RX 470's memory runs at 1650 MHz (6.6 Gbps effective), the RX 6700M at 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective). Bandwidth figures follow: 211.2 GB/s for the RX 470, 320.0 GB/s for the RX 6700M.

Shading units, texture mapping units, and render output units all favor the newer card. The RX 470 has 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The RX 6700M has 2304 shading units, 144 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. Pixel rate jumps from 38.59 GPixel/s to 153.6 GPixel/s, a fourfold increase. Texture rate rises from 154.4 GTexel/s to 345.6 GTexel/s. FP32 compute scales from 4.940 TFLOPS to 11.06 TFLOPS. FP16 performance is telling: the RX 470 delivers 4.940 TFLOPS (1:1 ratio), while the RX 6700M delivers 22.12 TFLOPS (2:1 ratio), showing a fundamental change in compute capability.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 470 has a higher average benchmark score of 28996, compared to 25633 for the AMD Radeon RX 6700M. This is counterintuitive given the head-to-head results, but the average includes different test suites and the RX 470 sits in a different competitive neighborhood.

Q: What is the performance gap in the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test?

A: The RX 6700M scores 1845, while the RX 470 scores 842. The delta percentage is -54.4%, meaning the RX 470 trails by 54.4% in this specific test.

Q: Does the RX 470 support ray tracing?

A: No. The RX 470 lists no RT cores. The RX 6700M includes 36 ray tracing cores, which is a feature of the RDNA 2.0 architecture.

Q: Which card has a higher memory bandwidth?

A: The RX 6700M has a memory bandwidth of 320.0 GB/s, compared to 211.2 GB/s for the RX 470. The newer card uses 10 GB of GDDR6 on a 160-bit bus, while the older card uses 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus.

Q: What is the transistor density difference between the two chips?

A: The RX 6700M's Navi 22 chip has a transistor density of 51.3 million per square millimeter, more than double the RX 470's Ellesmere chip, which has 24.6 million per square millimeter. This reflects the 7 nm process versus the 14 nm process.

Q: Which card is a mobile part?

A: The RX 6700M is an integrated graphics processor (IGP) with a slot width of "IGP" and no power connectors, indicating a mobile design. The RX 470 is a dual-slot desktop card with a 1x 6-pin power connector and a 240 mm length.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ in nearly every specification field. The RX 470 uses the Ellesmere chip, while the RX 6700M uses Navi 22. The architecture is GCN 4.0 versus RDNA 2.0. The process node is 14 nm versus 7 nm, with foundries GlobalFoundries versus TSMC. Transistor count is 5,700 million versus 17,200 million, and die size is 232 mm² versus 335 mm². Transistor density is 24.6M per mm² versus 51.3M per mm².

Clock specifications diverge completely. The RX 470 has a base clock of 926 MHz and a boost of 1206 MHz, with no game clock listed. The RX 6700M has a base of 1489 MHz, a boost of 2400 MHz, and a game clock of 2300 MHz. Memory clocks are 1650 MHz (6.6 Gbps effective) versus 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective). Memory size is 4 GB GDDR5 versus 10 GB GDDR6. Bus width is 256 bit versus 160 bit. Bandwidth is 211.2 GB/s versus 320.0 GB/s.

Compute resources differ: shading units are 2048 versus 2304, TMUs are 128 versus 144, ROPs are 32 versus 64. The RX 6700M adds 36 RT cores, which the RX 470 lacks. Pixel rate is 38.59 GPixel/s versus 153.6 GPixel/s. Texture rate is 154.4 GTexel/s versus 345.6 GTexel/s. FP32 is 4.940 TFLOPS versus 11.06 TFLOPS. FP16 is 4.940 TFLOPS (1:1) versus 22.12 TFLOPS (2:1).

Power and physical dimensions also separate them. The RX 470 has a TDP of 120 W, a dual-slot footprint, a 1x 6-pin power connector, and a suggested PSU of 300 W. The RX 6700M has a TDP of 135 W, an IGP slot width, no power connectors, and no suggested PSU. The RX 470 uses PCIe 3.0 x16, the RX 6700M uses PCIe 4.0 x16. Display outputs are 1x HDMI 2.0b and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a for the RX 470, versus "Portable Device Dependent" for the RX 6700M. DirectX support is 12 (12_0) versus 12 Ultimate (12_2), and Vulkan is 1.3 versus 1.4. The RX 470 has physical dimensions of 240 mm length, 95 mm height, and 35 mm width; the RX 6700M has no listed dimensions.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The four recorded head-to-head tests show uniform dominance by the RX 6700M, with no wins for the RX 470. The largest gap appears in Geekbench OpenCL, where the RX 470 scores 33568 and the RX 6700M scores 77666, a delta of -56.8%. This test measures general compute throughput, and the RDNA 2.0 architecture's FP32 advantage (11.06 TFLOPS versus 4.940 TFLOPS) explains the magnitude of the deficit. The RX 470 trails by more than half, indicating a fundamental generational leap rather than a marginal improvement.

Geekbench Vulkan shows a similar pattern. The RX 470 records 39884, while the RX 6700M reaches 90816, a delta of -56.1%. Vulkan performance benefits from the newer architecture's improved command processing and the higher boost clock of 2400 MHz versus 1206 MHz. The RX 6700M's score is more than double the RX 470's, consistent with the FP32 compute ratio.

Geekbench Metal results are slightly less lopsided but still decisive. The RX 470 scores 41690, the RX 6700M scores 91911, a delta of -54.6%. Metal is Apple's graphics API, and the RX 6700M's 64 ROPs versus 32 ROPs likely contributes to the advantage, as pixel throughput doubles from 38.59 GPixel/s to 153.6 GPixel/s.

The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test shows the smallest relative gap, at -54.4%. The RX 470 scores 842, the RX 6700M scores 1845. Even here, the newer card more than doubles the older one's output. DX12 workloads leverage the RX 6700M's DirectX 12 Ultimate feature set and ray tracing cores, though the benchmark itself does not isolate RT performance.

Across all four tests, the RX 6700M's win margin is remarkably consistent, hovering between 54.4% and 56.8%. This uniformity suggests the performance difference is architectural and clock-driven rather than workload-specific. The RX 470's nearest rivals, including the RX 6800M with a score of 28874, sit within 0.7% of its average, showing that the RX 470 is competitive within its own era. The RX 6700M's rivals, like the RTX 3080 Ti Mobile at 25740, are within 0.9%, placing it in a different performance tier entirely. The data shows no scenario where the RX 470 closes the gap, making the RX 6700M the definitive choice for compute-intensive tasks on mobile platforms.