AMD Radeon RX 5600M vs AMD Radeon VII Comparison

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous. The AMD Radeon VII wins every single recorded benchmark against the AMD Radeon RX 5600M. If you are selecting purely on measured performance, the Radeon VII is the stronger part in all four tests in the database. Its average benchmark score of 66004 places it at the 90th percentile of all GPUs, while the RX 5600M sits at 46601, the 85th percentile.

However, the choice is not purely about raw scores. The Radeon VII is a desktop card with a 295 W TDP, dual-slot cooler, and 2x 8-pin power connectors. The RX 5600M is a mobile part with a 150 W TDP, no power connectors, and is listed as an IGP (integrated graphics processor for laptops). The Radeon VII is the pick for a desktop workstation where power delivery and physical space are non-issues. The RX 5600M is the pick for a laptop chassis where the 150 W TDP and IGP form factor are mandatory constraints. If you need a GPU that fits in a portable system, the RX 5600M is the only viable option from this pair, despite its lower scores.

Architecture Differences

Both GPUs are built on TSMC's 7 nm process, but they represent two distinct AMD architectures. The Radeon VII uses the Vega 20 chip with GCN 5.1 architecture, part of the Vega II generation. The RX 5600M uses the Navi 10 chip with RDNA 1.0, part of the Navi Mobile generation.

The transistor counts and die sizes reflect different design goals. The Radeon VII packs 13,230 million transistors on a 331 mm² die, giving a density of 40.0M per mm². The RX 5600M has 10,300 million transistors on a 251 mm² die, with a slightly higher density of 41.0M per mm². The Radeon VII is the larger, more complex chip.

Memory architecture is fundamentally different. The Radeon VII uses 16 GB of HBM2 on a 4096-bit bus, delivering 1.02 TB/s of bandwidth. The RX 5600M uses 6 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus, delivering 288.0 GB/s. This is a massive bandwidth gap, and it explains several benchmark results.

Feature support differs in one API version. Both support DirectX 12 (12_1) and OpenGL 4.6. The Radeon VII supports Vulkan 1.3, while the RX 5600M supports Vulkan 1.4. The RX 5600M also uses PCIe 4.0 x16, while the Radeon VII is on PCIe 3.0 x16. Neither has dedicated ray tracing cores or tensor cores. The Radeon VII supports FP16 at 26.88 TFLOPS (2:1), while the RX 5600M reaches 11.66 TFLOPS (2:1).

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The Radeon VII dominates the head-to-head results. In the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, the Radeon VII scores 2304 against 1320, a 74.5% lead. This is the largest margin in the gaming-oriented workload. The RX 5600M trails badly here, and the delta is significant for any frame-rate sensitive application.

The Geekbench Vulkan test shows the biggest gap: the Radeon VII scores 91788 against 48843, an 87.9% advantage. This is nearly double the score. The Radeon VII also wins Geekbench OpenCL with 91947 against 59589, a 54.3% lead. These two compute-heavy tests highlight the bandwidth and shading unit advantage of the Radeon VII, which has 3840 shading units versus 2304.

The closest result is Geekbench Metal. The Radeon VII scores 77975, the RX 5600M scores 76653, and the delta is just 1.7%. This is effectively a tie in a single API test. The RX 5600M's RDNA architecture narrows the gap in this specific workload, but it still loses. Across all four tests, the Radeon VII wins 4, the RX 5600M wins 0.

Specification Differences

• Process node: Both are 7 nm (TSMC).
• Transistors: Radeon VII has 13,230 million; RX 5600M has 10,300 million.
• Die size: Radeon VII is 331 mm²; RX 5600M is 251 mm².
• Transistor density: Radeon VII is 40.0M / mm²; RX 5600M is 41.0M / mm².
• Base clock: Radeon VII is 1400 MHz; RX 5600M is 1035 MHz.
• Boost clock: Radeon VII is 1750 MHz; RX 5600M is 1265 MHz.
• Game clock: Radeon VII has none listed; RX 5600M has 1190 MHz.
• Memory clock: Radeon VII is 1000 MHz (2 Gbps effective); RX 5600M is 1500 MHz (12 Gbps effective).
• Memory size: Radeon VII has 16 GB; RX 5600M has 6 GB.
• Memory type: Radeon VII uses HBM2; RX 5600M uses GDDR6.
• Memory bus: Radeon VII is 4096-bit; RX 5600M is 192-bit.
• Memory bandwidth: Radeon VII is 1.02 TB/s; RX 5600M is 288.0 GB/s.
• Shading units: Radeon VII has 3840; RX 5600M has 2304.
• TMUs: Radeon VII has 240; RX 5600M has 144.
• ROPs: Both have 64.
• Pixel rate: Radeon VII is 112.0 GPixel/s; RX 5600M is 80.96 GPixel/s.
• Texture rate: Radeon VII is 420.0 GTexel/s; RX 5600M is 182.2 GTexel/s.
• FP32: Radeon VII is 13.44 TFLOPS; RX 5600M is 5.829 TFLOPS.
• FP16: Radeon VII is 26.88 TFLOPS (2:1); RX 5600M is 11.66 TFLOPS (2:1).
• TDP: Radeon VII is 295 W; RX 5600M is 150 W.
• Slot width: Radeon VII is dual-slot; RX 5600M is IGP.
• Power connectors: Radeon VII uses 2x 8-pin; RX 5600M uses none.
• Suggested PSU: Radeon VII is 600 W; RX 5600M has none listed.
• Bus interface: Radeon VII is PCIe 3.0 x16; RX 5600M is PCIe 4.0 x16.
• Display outputs: Radeon VII has 1x HDMI 2.0b and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a; RX 5600M is portable device dependent.
• Dimensions: Radeon VII is 280 mm long, 125 mm tall, 40 mm wide; RX 5600M has no listed dimensions.
• Release date: Radeon VII is 2019-02-06; RX 5600M is 2020-07-06.
• Predecessor: Radeon VII is Vega; RX 5600M is Polaris Mobile.
• Successor: Radeon VII is Navi; RX 5600M has none listed.
• Launch MSRP: Radeon VII is 699 USD; RX 5600M has none listed.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has higher raw compute performance?

A: The Radeon VII. It delivers 13.44 TFLOPS FP32 and 26.88 TFLOPS FP16, versus 5.829 TFLOPS FP32 and 11.66 TFLOPS FP16 for the RX 5600M.

Q: How big is the memory bandwidth difference?

A: The Radeon VII offers 1.02 TB/s over a 4096-bit HBM2 bus. The RX 5600M offers 288.0 GB/s over a 192-bit GDDR6 bus. The Radeon VII is roughly 3.5 times faster in memory bandwidth.

Q: Can the RX 5600M be installed in a desktop?

A: The data does not support that. The RX 5600M is listed as an IGP with no dimensions, no power connectors, and portable device dependent display outputs. It is designed for mobile systems. The Radeon VII is a dual-slot desktop card with 2x 8-pin connectors and a 600 W suggested PSU.

Q: Which GPU is more power efficient?

A: The RX 5600M has a 150 W TDP, while the Radeon VII has a 295 W TDP. The RX 5600M draws less power, but it also delivers less performance. The data does not include efficiency ratios, so a direct comparison of performance per watt cannot be made.

Q: In which test is the RX 5600M closest to the Radeon VII?

A: Geekbench Metal. The Radeon VII scores 77975 and the RX 5600M scores 76653, a gap of only 1.7%. This is the only test where the two are competitive.

Q: Does the RX 5600M support newer APIs?

A: Yes. The RX 5600M supports Vulkan 1.4, while the Radeon VII supports Vulkan 1.3. Both support DirectX 12 (12_1) and OpenGL 4.6.

Where Each One Wins

The Radeon VII wins in every recorded benchmark, but the margins vary by workload. The biggest wins are in Vulkan compute (87.9% ahead) and 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 (74.5% ahead). These are the tests where the Radeon VII's 13.44 TFLOPS FP32, 420.0 GTexel/s texture rate, and 1.02 TB/s memory bandwidth dominate. If the workload is compute-heavy, rendering, or high-resolution gaming, the Radeon VII is the clear choice. The data shows a 54.3% lead in OpenCL as well, confirming its strength in general-purpose compute.

The RX 5600M has one narrow bright spot: Geekbench Metal, where it trails by only 1.7%. This suggests that for Metal-specific workloads, the RDNA architecture closes the gap. It also has a lower TDP of 150 W versus 295 W, which is a win for mobile or thermally constrained environments. The RX 5600M supports PCIe 4.0 x16 and Vulkan 1.4, giving it a newer interface and a newer API version. If the system requires a portable form factor, the RX 5600M is the only option that fits, regardless of the performance deficit.

The database also places each GPU in different competitive contexts. The Radeon VII sits 1.4% above the NVIDIA Tesla P40 and 2.8% above the AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100, while trailing the NVIDIA Tesla T4 by 1.1%. The RX 5600M is effectively tied with the Intel Arc A530M (0% delta) and 0.2% behind the AMD Radeon RX 6550M, while leading the NVIDIA RTX A2000 by 1.2%. These comparisons show that the Radeon VII competes at a higher performance tier, while the RX 5600M trades blows with mid-range mobile parts. For a desktop builder prioritizing measured performance, the Radeon VII is the winner on every metric. For a laptop builder prioritizing portability and power limits, the RX 5600M is the only sensible selection.