AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti and AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT represent two very different eras of GPU design, and the benchmark data reflects that chasm clearly. The GTX 1080 Ti wins 9 of 11 head-to-head tests, often by triple-digit margins, while the RX 5500 XT takes only 2 wins, both in Geekbench API tests. The GTX 1080 Ti’s average benchmark score of 15,548 places it in the 58th percentile of all GPUs, while the RX 5500 XT’s 14,692 average sits at the 57th percentile—nearly identical overall standing despite the massive per-test deltas. This is a contest between a flagship-class 2017 part with 11.34 TFLOPS of FP32 throughput and a 2020 entry-level card with 5.196 TFLOPS, and the data shows the older card’s raw compute advantage dominates most workloads.

The Verdict

The data points to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti as the clear performance winner in almost every measurable category. Its PassMark G3D score of 18,600 is 104.8% higher than the RX 5500 XT’s 9,083, and its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2,231 is 116.2% ahead of the AMD card’s 1,032. For users prioritizing raw rasterization, legacy DirectX performance, or compute-heavy tasks, the GTX 1080 Ti is the only choice from this data. It also wins PassMark GPU Compute with a 116.6% delta (9,632 vs 4,446), showing strength in non-graphics workloads.

However, the RX 5500 XT is not without its niche. It wins Geekbench Metal decisively, scoring 54,842 versus 30,624—a 44.2% advantage for AMD—and edges out the GTX 1080 Ti in Geekbench Vulkan with 44,191 versus 40,511, an 8.3% lead. These wins suggest that in specific API-level tests, particularly Metal on Apple platforms, the newer RDNA 1.0 architecture has an efficiency or driver advantage that the Pascal part cannot match. The RX 5500 XT also consumes less power per the spec sheet, though no wattage numbers are available in this data set for comparison.

For a buyer prioritizing maximum frame rates in DirectX titles, the GTX 1080 Ti is the obvious pick. For someone locked into Metal-centric workflows or Vulkan-specific applications where the 8.3% delta matters, the RX 5500 XT holds a narrow but real edge. The average scores are close, but the distribution is not—the GTX 1080 Ti’s wins are massive, while the RX 5500 XT’s are narrow.

Where Each One Wins

The GTX 1080 Ti dominates every PassMark DirectX test. In DirectX 9 it scores 231 versus 133, a 73.7% lead. In DirectX 10 the gap widens to 156.5% (118 vs 46). DirectX 11 shows the largest delta at 169.6% (151 vs 56), and even DirectX 12, where newer architectures often shine, the GTX 1080 Ti wins 65% higher (66 vs 40). These results indicate that the GTX 1080 Ti’s larger shader count (3,584 vs 1,408) and higher texture rate (354.4 GTexel/s vs 162.4 GTexel/s) translate directly into superior legacy API performance.

The RX 5500 XT’s wins are confined to Geekbench tests. Its Metal score of 54,842 is the single biggest win for either card, besting the GTX 1080 Ti by 44.2%. The Vulkan score of 44,191 is more modest, an 8.3% improvement. These are synthetic API benchmarks rather than full-game simulations, and they may reflect the RX 5500 XT’s newer RDNA 1.0 instruction set or better driver optimization for those specific APIs. The GTX 1080 Ti also wins 2D tests (PassMark G2D: 939 vs 774, a 21.3% delta), which covers desktop and 2D rendering workloads.

In compute, the GTX 1080 Ti’s FP32 throughput of 11.34 TFLOPS versus 5.196 TFLOPS is reflected in the PassMark GPU Compute score of 9,632 versus 4,446. The NVIDIA card’s OpenCL score of 67,929 also beats the AMD card’s 46,965 by 44.6%. For anyone running OpenCL-based rendering or physics, the GTX 1080 Ti is over twice as fast in PassMark’s compute test.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs are built on fundamentally different process technologies and architectures. The GTX 1080 Ti uses NVIDIA’s Pascal architecture on a 16 nm TSMC process, with a die size of 471 mm² containing 11,800 million transistors. The RX 5500 XT uses AMD’s RDNA 1.0 on a 7 nm TSMC process, with a much smaller die of 158 mm² and 6,400 million transistors. The transistor density tells the story: the RX 5500 XT packs 40.5M transistors per mm² versus the GTX 1080 Ti’s 25.1M, showing the newer process node’s advantage in density.

The memory subsystems are starkly different. The GTX 1080 Ti has 11 GB of GDDR5X on a 352-bit bus, yielding 484.4 GB/s of bandwidth. The RX 5500 XT offers 4 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, with 224.0 GB/s—less than half the bandwidth. This explains why the GTX 1080 Ti excels in high-resolution or texture-heavy workloads, though no resolution-specific benchmarks are in this data set.

Core counts heavily favor NVIDIA. The GTX 1080 Ti has 3,584 shading units, 224 texture mapping units, and 88 ROPs. The RX 5500 XT has 1,408 shading units, 88 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The pixel rate difference is 139.2 GPixel/s versus 59.04 GPixel/s, and the texture rate is 354.4 GTexel/s versus 162.4 GTexel/s. Clock speeds partially compensate: the RX 5500 XT boosts to 1845 MHz versus 1582 MHz for the GTX 1080 Ti, but the NVIDIA card’s massive core count overwhelms the frequency advantage.

Both cards support DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. Neither has ray tracing or tensor cores. The GTX 1080 Ti’s FP16 performance is anemic at 177.2 GFLOPS (1:64 ratio), while the RX 5500 XT delivers 10.39 TFLOPS FP16 (2:1 ratio)—this is a major architectural difference, though no FP16-specific benchmark appears in the data. The RX 5500 XT also uses PCIe 4.0 x8 versus the GTX 1080 Ti’s PCIe 3.0 x16, which could affect bandwidth in certain scenarios.

FAQ

Q: Which card has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The GTX 1080 Ti has an average benchmark score of 15,548, while the RX 5500 XT averages 14,692. This is a 5.8% difference in favor of NVIDIA.

Q: Does the newer RX 5500 XT win any tests?

A: Yes, it wins two of eleven head-to-head tests: Geekbench Metal (54,842 vs 30,624, a 44.2% lead) and Geekbench Vulkan (44,191 vs 40,511, an 8.3% lead). It also has a higher percentile ranking in Geekbench Metal relative to the GTX 1080 Ti’s score.

Q: How do the memory configurations compare?

A: The GTX 1080 Ti has 11 GB of GDDR5X on a 352-bit bus with 484.4 GB/s bandwidth. The RX 5500 XT has 4 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus with 224.0 GB/s. The NVIDIA card has over double the memory bandwidth.

Q: Which card is better for DirectX 11 gaming?

A: The GTX 1080 Ti wins PassMark DirectX 11 with a score of 151 versus 56 for the RX 5500 XT, a 169.6% advantage. This is the largest delta in any head-to-head test.

Q: What is the transistor count difference?

A: The GTX 1080 Ti has 11,800 million transistors on a 471 mm² die, while the RX 5500 XT has 6,400 million on a 158 mm² die. The RX 5500 XT has higher density at 40.5M per mm² versus 25.1M.

Q: Do both cards support the same APIs?

A: Yes, both support DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. Neither supports ray tracing or tensor cores, as those fields are null for both.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The largest win in the entire comparison belongs to the GTX 1080 Ti in PassMark DirectX 11, where it scores 151 versus 56—a 169.6% delta. This is followed by PassMark DirectX 10 at 156.5% (118 vs 46) and PassMark GPU Compute at 116.6% (9,632 vs 4,446). The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test shows a 116.2% lead (2,231 vs 1,032), and PassMark G3D shows 104.8% (18,600 vs 9,083). These are not marginal differences; they represent a doubling or more of performance in several key metrics.

The GTX 1080 Ti also wins PassMark DirectX 9 by 73.7% (231 vs 133) and DirectX 12 by 65% (66 vs 40). Even the 2D test shows a 21.3% lead (939 vs 774). In OpenCL, the GTX 1080 Ti scores 67,929 versus 46,965, a 44.6% advantage. Every NVIDIA win except the 2D test exceeds a 44% delta, and most exceed 100%.

The RX 5500 XT’s wins are concentrated in Geekbench. Its Metal score of 54,842 is the highest single score in the entire head-to-head set, surpassing every other benchmark result for either card. The GTX 1080 Ti’s Metal score of 30,624 is its lowest Geekbench result. The Vulkan win for AMD is narrower: 44,191 versus 40,511, an 8.3% delta. This suggests that in Metal, the RDNA architecture has a significant optimization advantage, possibly due to driver maturity or hardware design, but in Vulkan the gap is much smaller.

The overall pattern is clear: the GTX 1080 Ti wins on raw throughput, legacy API compatibility, and compute, while the RX 5500 XT wins only on specific modern API abstractions. The GTX 1080 Ti’s 9 wins versus 2 losses, combined with the magnitude of those wins, makes it the dominant card in this comparison. The RX 5500 XT’s 57th percentile ranking versus the GTX 1080 Ti’s 58th percentile shows that in aggregate, they are closer than the head-to-head results suggest, but that aggregate is pulled down by the GTX 1080 Ti’s poor Metal showing. For any workload outside of Metal or Vulkan, the GTX 1080 Ti is the clear choice based on this data.