AMD Radeon RX 560X vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti Comparison

The Verdict

The benchmark data positions these two GPUs in completely different performance strata. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti dominates the AMD Radeon RX 560X in every recorded head-to-head test, with the database showing a 0-2 win record in favor of the 3060 Ti. If the goal is maximum compute throughput and modern feature support, the RTX 3060 Ti is the clear choice from the data.

The RX 560X, however, serves a different purpose entirely. Its 75 W TDP, lack of external power connectors, and 170 mm length make it a drop-in candidate for legacy systems or compact builds where power delivery and space are constrained. The database shows its average benchmark score of 18626 lands at the 62nd percentile among all GPUs, placing it within 0.3% of the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT and 0.5% above the AMD FirePro D500. That is respectable for a card from the Polaris generation, but it cannot compete with the 3060 Ti's raw numbers.

The RTX 3060 Ti, with a launch MSRP of 399 USD, posts an average benchmark score of 16129, which is lower than the RX 560X's average. This counterintuitive result stems from the 3060 Ti's inclusion of additional tests like PassMark DirectX 9, 10, 11, and 12 scores, which drag down its average. In the two directly comparable OpenCL and Vulkan tests, the 3060 Ti wins decisively. Its percentile ranking of 59th versus the RX 560X's 62nd is a statistical quirk of the benchmark suite, not a reflection of real-world capability.

For users who need modern hardware acceleration, specifically ray tracing and tensor cores, the RTX 3060 Ti is the only option here. The RX 560X has no RT or tensor cores at all. For users who simply need a functional display output with basic compute and a minimal power footprint, the RX 560X remains viable, but the data suggests it is best suited for non-gaming or legacy workloads.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different foundries, nodes, and architectural generations. The AMD Radeon RX 560X uses the Polaris 21 chip built on GCN 4.0 architecture, fabricated on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. It packs 3,000 million transistors into a 123 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 24.4 million per square millimeter. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti uses the GA104 chip based on Ampere architecture, built on an 8 nm process at Samsung. It carries 17,400 million transistors on a 392 mm² die, with a density of 44.4 million per square millimeter. The density advantage is more than 80% higher on the NVIDIA chip.

The compute resources differ by an order of magnitude. The RX 560X has 1,024 shading units, 64 texture mapping units, and 16 raster operation units. The RTX 3060 Ti has 4,864 shading units, 152 TMUs, and 80 ROPs. It also adds 38 RT cores and 152 tensor cores, features entirely absent from the AMD part. The FP32 throughput tells the story: 2.611 TFLOPS for the RX 560X versus 16.20 TFLOPS for the RTX 3060 Ti, a 6.2x gap.

Memory architecture is equally divergent. The RX 560X uses 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 112.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The RTX 3060 Ti uses 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, delivering 448.0 GB/s, exactly four times the bandwidth. Clock speeds also favor NVIDIA: the base clock is 1175 MHz versus 1410 MHz, and boost is 1275 MHz versus 1665 MHz. The RX 560X's memory runs at 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective), while the RTX 3060 Ti runs at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective), showing that the effective data rate doubles due to the newer memory type.

The bus interface differs as well. The RX 560X uses PCIe 3.0 x8, while the RTX 3060 Ti uses PCIe 4.0 x16, doubling both the generation and lane count. API support is also split: the RX 560X supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The RTX 3060 Ti supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, indicating newer feature levels.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has higher raw compute performance?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti. Its FP32 throughput is 16.20 TFLOPS versus the AMD Radeon RX 560X's 2.611 TFLOPS, a 6.2x difference. The pixel rate is 133.2 GPixel/s versus 20.40 GPixel/s, and the texture rate is 253.1 GTexel/s versus 81.60 GTexel/s.

Q: How do they compare in memory bandwidth?

A: The RTX 3060 Ti has 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth from 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus. The RX 560X has 112.0 GB/s from 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus. The NVIDIA card offers exactly four times the bandwidth.

Q: Which GPU is more power-efficient?

A: The RX 560X has a 75 W TDP and requires no external power connectors, with a suggested PSU of 250 W. The RTX 3060 Ti has a 200 W TDP, requires a 1x 12-pin power connector, and suggests a 550 W PSU. The AMD card draws far less power.

Q: Does the RX 560X support ray tracing?

A: No. The RX 560X has no RT cores or tensor cores. The RTX 3060 Ti includes 38 RT cores and 152 tensor cores, enabling hardware-accelerated ray tracing and DLSS-style features.

Q: Which GPU is newer?

A: The RTX 3060 Ti was released on 2020-11-30, while the RX 560X was released on 2018-04-10. The NVIDIA card is roughly 2.5 years newer and belongs to the GeForce 30 series, succeeding the GeForce 20 series.

Q: How do their average benchmark scores compare?

A: The RX 560X has an average benchmark score of 18626, which is higher than the RTX 3060 Ti's 16129. However, this is due to the RTX 3060 Ti being tested across a wider range of PassMark tests, including DirectX 9 (234), DirectX 10 (132), DirectX 11 (163), and DirectX 12 (78), which lower its average. In the two shared tests, the RTX 3060 Ti wins both.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon RX 560X | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti |

|---|---|---|

| Chip | Polaris 21 | GA104 |

| Architecture | GCN 4.0 | Ampere |

| Process Node | 14 nm | 8 nm |

| Foundry | GlobalFoundries | Samsung |

| Transistors | 3,000 million | 17,400 million |

| Die Size | 123 mm² | 392 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 24.4M / mm² | 44.4M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1175 MHz | 1410 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1275 MHz | 1665 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective) | 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) |

| Memory Size | 4 GB | 8 GB |

| Memory Type | GDDR5 | GDDR6 |

| Memory Bus | 128 bit | 256 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 112.0 GB/s | 448.0 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 1024 | 4864 |

| TMUs | 64 | 152 |

| ROPs | 16 | 80 |

| RT Cores | None | 38 |

| Tensor Cores | None | 152 |

| Pixel Rate | 20.40 GPixel/s | 133.2 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 81.60 GTexel/s | 253.1 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 2.611 TFLOPS | 16.20 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 2.611 TFLOPS (1:1) | 16.20 TFLOPS (1:1) |

| TDP | 75 W | 200 W |

| Power Connectors | None | 1x 12-pin |

| Suggested PSU | 250 W | 550 W |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 3.0 x8 | PCIe 4.0 x16 |

| Display Outputs | 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, 1x DisplayPort 1.4a | 1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a |

| DirectX | 12 (12_0) | 12 Ultimate (12_2) |

| Vulkan | 1.3 | 1.4 |

| Length | 170 mm (6.7 inches) | 242 mm (9.5 inches) |

| Height | Not specified | 112 mm (4.4 inches) |

| Release Date | 2018-04-10 | 2020-11-30 |

| Predecessor | Polaris | GeForce 20 |

| Successor | Vega | GeForce 40 |

| Launch MSRP | None | 399 USD |

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database records two shared benchmark tests between these GPUs, and the RTX 3060 Ti wins both by substantial margins.

In Geekbench OpenCL, the RX 560X scores 17020, while the RTX 3060 Ti scores 78927. That is a delta of -78.4% for the AMD card, meaning the NVIDIA GPU delivers roughly 4.6 times the OpenCL throughput. This test exercises general-purpose compute, and the RTX 3060 Ti's 4,864 shading units and 16.20 TFLOPS FP32 throughput make the result unsurprising. The RX 560X's 1,024 shading units and 2.611 TFLOPS are simply outclassed.

In Geekbench Vulkan, the RX 560X scores 20231, while the RTX 3060 Ti scores 47784. The delta is -57.7%, indicating the NVIDIA card is about 2.4 times faster in Vulkan workloads. Vulkan is a low-level API that benefits from raw hardware throughput, and the RTX 3060 Ti's superior memory bandwidth (448.0 GB/s versus 112.0 GB/s) and higher clock speeds contribute to the gap.

The nearest rival data for each card provides context. The RX 560X's average score of 18626 puts it within 0.3% of the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT (18685) and 0.5% above the AMD FirePro D500 (18533). It trails the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 (18789) by 0.9% and the NVIDIA Tesla K80 (18866) by 1.3%. These are all older or workstation-class GPUs, and the RX 560X holds its own in that company.

The RTX 3060 Ti's average score of 16129 puts it 0.7% above the AMD Radeon RX 9060 (16014) and 1.7% above the AMD Radeon R9 370X (15862). It trails the AMD Radeon Pro 5600M (16351) by 1.4% and the AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT (16361) by 1.4%. The 3060 Ti's lower average score, despite its dominant head-to-head wins, reflects the inclusion of PassMark DirectX 9 through 12 tests in its benchmark set. The PassMark DirectX 9 score of 234 and DirectX 10 score of 132 are particularly low, dragging down the overall average.

The verdict from the data is unambiguous: in any workload where both GPUs can operate, the RTX 3060 Ti is the superior part. The RX 560X's only advantages are its low power draw and compact size, which are meaningful only in constrained system environments.