AMD Radeon RX 5600 OEM vs AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT Comparison

AMD Radeon RX 5600 OEM and AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT are two very different GPUs from two successive AMD architectures, and the benchmark data confirms they occupy entirely different performance tiers. The RX 5600 OEM, built on RDNA 1.0, delivers a 6.390 TFLOPS FP32 compute rating, while the RX 6800 XT, built on RDNA 2.0, delivers 20.74 TFLOPS. The data shows the RX 6800 XT is overwhelmingly faster in compute workloads, with the RX 5600 OEM trailing by 63.6% in OpenCL and 60.7% in Vulkan. The two cards also differ dramatically in memory capacity, bandwidth, and feature support, making the choice between them straightforward for most use cases.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 5600 OEM has a higher average benchmark score of 58085, while the AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT has an average of 48477. This is an unusual outcome given the RX 6800 XT's much higher raw compute rating.

Q: How do the two cards compare in the head-to-head Geekbench tests?

A: The RX 6800 XT wins both head-to-head tests decisively. In Geekbench OpenCL, it scores 171304 versus 62427 for the RX 5600 OEM, a 63.6% difference. In Geekbench Vulkan, the RX 6800 XT scores 136875 versus 53743, a 60.7% difference.

Q: What are the memory specifications for each card?

A: The RX 5600 OEM has 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, yielding 288.0 GB/s bandwidth. The RX 6800 XT has 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, yielding 512.0 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Do both cards support the same DirectX version?

A: No. The RX 5600 OEM supports DirectX 12 (12_1), while the RX 6800 XT supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2). Both support OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.4.

Q: Which card has more shading units and texture mapping units?

A: The RX 6800 XT has 4608 shading units and 288 TMUs, while the RX 5600 OEM has 2048 shading units and 128 TMUs. The RX 6800 XT also has 72 ray tracing cores, which the RX 5600 OEM lacks entirely.

Q: What is the launch MSRP of the RX 6800 XT?

A: The RX 6800 XT has a launch MSRP of 649 USD. The RX 5600 OEM has no launch MSRP listed in the data.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different generations of AMD's RDNA architecture. The RX 5600 OEM uses RDNA 1.0 on the Navi 10 chip, while the RX 6800 XT uses RDNA 2.0 on the Navi 21 chip. Both are fabricated on TSMC's 7 nm process, but the chip sizes and transistor counts differ substantially. The Navi 10 chip has 10,300 million transistors on a 251 mm² die, while the Navi 21 chip packs 26,800 million transistors onto a 520 mm² die. This translates to a higher transistor density for the newer chip: 51.5M per mm² for the RX 6800 XT versus 41.0M per mm² for the RX 5600 OEM.

The architectural leap from RDNA 1.0 to RDNA 2.0 brings several key feature additions. The RX 6800 XT includes 72 ray tracing cores, a feature entirely absent from the RX 5600 OEM. The RX 6800 XT also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the RX 5600 OEM is limited to DirectX 12 (12_1). Both cards share the same PCIe 4.0 x16 bus interface and support OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.4, but the DX12 capability gap is significant for modern game compatibility.

Clock speeds also differ noticeably. The RX 5600 OEM has a base clock of 1130 MHz, a game clock of 1375 MHz, and a boost clock of 1560 MHz. The RX 6800 XT runs much higher, with a base clock of 1825 MHz, a game clock of 2015 MHz, and a boost clock of 2250 MHz. Memory clocks follow the same pattern: the RX 5600 OEM operates at 1500 MHz (12 Gbps effective), while the RX 6800 XT runs at 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective). The power delivery and cooling requirements scale accordingly, with the RX 5600 OEM rated at 125 W TDP with a single 8-pin connector, while the RX 6800 XT demands 300 W TDP and two 8-pin connectors. The suggested PSU ratings are 300 W and 700 W, respectively.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The head-to-head data contains only two benchmark comparisons, both of which the RX 6800 XT wins convincingly. In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the RX 6800 XT scores 171304, which is 108877 points higher than the RX 5600 OEM's 62427. The delta percentage of -63.6% means the RX 5600 OEM achieves only about 36.4% of the RX 6800 XT's score. This is a massive gap that reflects the nearly 3.25x difference in FP32 compute throughput (6.390 TFLOPS versus 20.74 TFLOPS).

The Geekbench Vulkan test tells a similar story. The RX 6800 XT scores 136875, while the RX 5600 OEM manages 53743. The delta percentage here is -60.7%, meaning the RX 5600 OEM reaches only about 39.3% of the RX 6800 XT's Vulkan performance. While the margin is slightly narrower than in OpenCL, the RX 6800 XT still more than doubles the RX 5600 OEM's score in this API.

These two tests, while limited in scope, are consistent with the broader specification differences. The RX 6800 XT's higher clock speeds, more than double the shading units (4608 versus 2048), double the TMUs (288 versus 128), and double the ROPs (128 versus 64) all contribute to its dominance. The texture rate of 648.0 GTexel/s for the RX 6800 XT versus 199.7 GTexel/s for the RX 5600 OEM is over 3x higher, and the pixel rate of 288.0 GPixel/s versus 99.84 GPixel/s shows a similar 2.88x advantage. The data clearly indicates that in raw compute and graphics throughput, the RX 6800 XT is in a different performance class entirely.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every measurable specification. The most obvious gap is in memory: the RX 5600 OEM offers 6 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus with 288.0 GB/s bandwidth, while the RX 6800 XT provides 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus with 512.0 GB/s bandwidth. The RX 6800 XT has 2.67x more memory capacity and 1.78x more bandwidth.

Compute resources also diverge sharply. The RX 5600 OEM has 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. The RX 6800 XT has 4608 shading units, 288 TMUs, and 128 ROPs. The RX 6800 XT has 2.25x the shading units, 2.25x the TMUs, and 2x the ROPs. The RX 6800 XT also adds 72 RT cores, which the RX 5600 OEM does not have at all.

Clock speeds favor the RX 6800 XT across the board. Base clock is 1825 MHz versus 1130 MHz (a 61.5% increase), game clock is 2015 MHz versus 1375 MHz (a 46.5% increase), and boost clock is 2250 MHz versus 1560 MHz (a 44.2% increase). The memory clock is 2000 MHz versus 1500 MHz. The RX 6800 XT's FP32 performance of 20.74 TFLOPS is 3.25x the RX 5600 OEM's 6.390 TFLOPS, and FP16 performance of 41.47 TFLOPS is likewise 3.25x the 12.78 TFLOPS of the RX 5600 OEM.

Power and physical specifications also differ. The RX 5600 OEM is rated at 125 W TDP with a single 8-pin power connector and a 300 W suggested PSU. The RX 6800 XT is rated at 300 W TDP with two 8-pin connectors and a 700 W suggested PSU. The RX 6800 XT has listed dimensions of 267 mm length, 120 mm height, and 50 mm width, while the RX 5600 OEM has no dimensions listed. Both are dual-slot cards. Display outputs differ: the RX 5600 OEM has 1x HDMI 2.0b and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, while the RX 6800 XT has 1x HDMI 2.1, 2x DisplayPort 1.4a, and 1x USB Type-C.

The Verdict

The benchmark data is unambiguous: the AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT is the far more powerful GPU. In both available head-to-head comparisons, it wins by margins exceeding 60%. Its 20.74 TFLOPS FP32 compute is more than three times the RX 5600 OEM's 6.390 TFLOPS, and its 16 GB memory capacity and 512.0 GB/s bandwidth are substantially superior. The RX 6800 XT also brings ray tracing support and DirectX 12 Ultimate compliance, features that the RX 5600 OEM cannot offer.

However, the average benchmark score data tells a different story. The RX 5600 OEM holds an average benchmark score of 58085, which is higher than the RX 6800 XT's 48477. The RX 5600 OEM also ranks at the 87th percentile among all GPUs, versus the 85th percentile for the RX 6800 XT. This discrepancy between the head-to-head results and the average scores suggests that the two cards are being measured in different benchmark pools. The RX 5600 OEM's nearest rivals include the Intel Arc A570M (58239 average score, -0.3% delta), the AMD Radeon RX 6950 XT (58392 average, -0.5% delta), and the Intel Arc A580 (57756 average, 0.6% delta). The RX 6800 XT's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA RTX A1000 Mobile (47743 average, 1.5% delta), the Intel Arc A550M (49737 average, -2.5% delta), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti (49957 average, -3% delta). The RX 6800 XT's rivals are generally newer or more specialized cards, while the RX 5600 OEM sits among a cluster of mid-range GPUs.

For users prioritizing raw compute performance, the RX 6800 XT is the clear choice based on the head-to-head data. For users looking at the aggregate benchmark picture, the RX 5600 OEM appears to hold its own surprisingly well. The RX 6800 XT's launch MSRP of 649 USD also places it in a premium tier, while the RX 5600 OEM has no listed launch price.

Where Each One Wins

The RX 6800 XT wins decisively in the direct benchmark comparisons. In Geekbench OpenCL, it scores 171304 versus 62427, a 63.6% advantage. In Geekbench Vulkan, it scores 136875 versus 53743, a 60.7% advantage. This makes the RX 6800 XT the pick for any workload that heavily leverages OpenCL or Vulkan compute, such as GPU-accelerated rendering, scientific computation, or modern game engines using Vulkan. Its 16 GB memory capacity and 512.0 GB/s bandwidth also make it more suitable for large datasets or high-resolution textures.

The RX 6800 XT also wins on architectural features. Its 72 ray tracing cores enable hardware-accelerated ray tracing, which the RX 5600 OEM cannot do. Its DirectX 12 Ultimate support opens the door to the latest graphics features, while the RX 5600 OEM is limited to DirectX 12 (12_1). The RX 6800 XT's higher pixel rate (288.0 GPixel/s versus 99.84 GPixel/s) and texture rate (648.0 GTexel/s versus 199.7 GTexel/s) also indicate better fill-rate performance for traditional rasterization.

The RX 5600 OEM, despite losing both head-to-head tests, has a higher average benchmark score of 58085 and a slightly higher percentile ranking at 87 versus 85. This suggests that in the broader benchmark ecosystem, it performs competitively against a different set of peers. Its lower TDP of 125 W and single 8-pin power connector make it a more manageable card for systems with modest power delivery. Its smaller transistor count (10,300 million versus 26,800 million) and smaller die size (251 mm² versus 520 mm²) also imply a less complex implementation.

In practical terms, the RX 6800 XT wins for anyone needing maximum compute throughput, ray tracing capability, or large memory buffers. The RX 5600 OEM wins where the aggregate benchmark profile matters more than the specific head-to-head tests, or where the lower power requirements and simpler power connector layout are advantages. The data does not show any test where the RX 5600 OEM outperforms the RX 6800 XT directly, so its strengths are contextual rather than absolute.