AMD Radeon RX 560X vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded head-to-head data contains only two shared benchmark tests, and in both, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 delivers a decisive victory over the AMD Radeon RX 560X. In Geekbench OpenCL, the RTX 5050 scores 90,334 against 17,020 for the RX 560X, a delta of 430.8% in favor of the NVIDIA part. That is not a marginal gap; it is a generational chasm that reflects the fundamental differences in architecture, process node, and feature support between the two products.

In Geekbench Vulkan, the RTX 5050 again dominates, posting 89,381 versus 20,231 for the RX 560X, a 341.8% advantage. Vulkan is a low-level API that tends to expose raw hardware throughput, and the data indicates the RTX 5050's compute and geometry capabilities are in a completely different tier. The RX 560X, built on AMD's GCN 4.0 architecture from the Polaris generation, simply cannot keep pace in these modern workloads.

Across the two recorded head-to-head tests, the RTX 5050 wins both. The RX 560X has no counterargument in this dataset. When looking at the broader average benchmark scores, the RTX 5050 sits at 21,035, while the RX 560X averages 18,626. That places the RTX 5050 roughly 12.9% ahead in aggregate performance, though the individual head-to-head deltas are far larger because those tests are compute-heavy and stress the features where the newer architecture excels.

The RTX 5050's percentile ranking among all GPUs is 66, meaning it outperforms roughly two-thirds of the database's tracked graphics cards. The RX 560X sits at the 62nd percentile, a closer overall standing than the head-to-head results suggest, but that percentile includes a wider range of workloads and older titles where the RX 560X's simpler feature set is less penalized. The nearest rivals for the RTX 5050 include the AMD Radeon RX Vega M GL (average score 21,153, delta -0.6%), the AMD Radeon HD 8970M (21,237, delta -1%), and the NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile (21,379, delta -1.6%), all of which are within a couple of percent of the RTX 5050's average. For the RX 560X, its nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT (18,685, delta -0.3%), the AMD FirePro D500 (18,533, delta +0.5%), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 (18,789, delta -0.9%). These rival clusters show that the RTX 5050 competes in a higher performance band, while the RX 560X is bracketed by older professional and consumer parts.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two GPUs is stark and explains the benchmark results. The RTX 5050 is built on NVIDIA's Blackwell 2.0 architecture, manufactured on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It uses the GB207 chip with 16,900 million transistors packed into a 149 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 113.4 million per square millimeter. The RX 560X, by contrast, uses AMD's GCN 4.0 architecture on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries, with the Polaris 21 chip containing just 3,000 million transistors on a 123 mm² die, for a density of 24.4 million per square millimeter. The RTX 5050 packs more than five times the transistor count into a modestly larger die, and the density difference is nearly 4.6x in NVIDIA's favor.

The RTX 5050 features 2,560 shading units, 80 texture mapping units, and 32 raster output pipelines. It also includes 20 ray tracing cores and 80 tensor cores, giving it dedicated hardware for ray-traced lighting and AI-accelerated workloads. The RX 560X has 1,024 shading units, 64 TMUs, and 16 ROPs, with no ray tracing cores and no tensor cores. That means the RX 560X cannot accelerate ray tracing or tensor-based operations in hardware, a limitation that becomes increasingly relevant in modern games and compute applications.

Clock speeds reinforce the performance disparity. The RTX 5050 runs at a base clock of 2317 MHz and a boost clock of 2572 MHz, while the RX 560X operates at 1175 MHz base and 1275 MHz boost. The RTX 5050's boost clock is more than double the RX 560X's base clock. Pixel fill rate tells a similar story: 82.30 GPixel/s for the RTX 5050 versus 20.40 GPixel/s for the RX 560X. Texture fill rate is 205.8 GTexel/s versus 81.60 GTexel/s. FP32 compute throughput is 13.17 TFLOPS for the RTX 5050 against 2.611 TFLOPS for the RX 560X, a 5x difference that directly maps to the OpenCL and Vulkan deltas observed in the head-to-head tests.

Memory subsystems also diverge significantly. The RTX 5050 comes with 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, delivering 320.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The RX 560X has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory, also on a 128-bit bus, but bandwidth drops to 112.0 GB/s. The RTX 5050's memory clock is 2500 MHz (20 Gbps effective), while the RX 560X runs at 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective). The 8 GB capacity difference is notable for modern game textures and compute buffers, and the bandwidth advantage of nearly 3x gives the RTX 5050 a substantial edge in memory-bound scenarios.

The RTX 5050 supports PCIe 5.0 x8, whereas the RX 560X uses PCIe 3.0 x8. Both are dual-slot cards, but power requirements differ: the RTX 5050 has a 130 W TDP with a single 8-pin power connector and a suggested 300 W PSU, while the RX 560X draws only 75 W with no power connector and a suggested 250 W PSU. Display outputs also differ: the RTX 5050 offers 1x HDMI 2.1b and 3x DisplayPort 2.1b, while the RX 560X provides 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, and 1x DisplayPort 1.4a. API support favors NVIDIA as well, with DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4 on the RTX 5050, versus DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3 on the RX 560X.

The Verdict

The data supports a clear conclusion: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 is the superior GPU by every measurable metric in the database. It wins both head-to-head benchmarks by margins of 430.8% and 341.8%, has a higher average benchmark score, a higher percentile ranking, and a more modern architecture with dedicated ray tracing and tensor cores. Anyone selecting between these two for a new build should choose the RTX 5050 without hesitation, provided the 130 W TDP and 8-pin connector are compatible with their power supply.

The AMD Radeon RX 560X is an end-of-life product, having been released in April 2018, while the RTX 5050 launched in June 2025. The RX 560X's 4 GB of GDDR5 memory and lack of hardware ray tracing make it unsuitable for modern titles at higher settings, and its 2.611 TFLOPS FP32 throughput places it firmly in entry-level territory. Its only advantages are lower power draw (75 W versus 130 W) and no external power connector requirement, which could matter in pre-built systems with weak power supplies. The RX 560X also has a shorter physical length at 170 mm (6.7 inches), which may fit in smaller chassis, though the RTX 5050's dimensions are not recorded in the database.

For users with a constrained power budget or a legacy system without an 8-pin connector, the RX 560X remains a functional option for light workloads and older games. But for any scenario involving modern APIs, compute workloads, or ray-traced content, the RTX 5050 is the only rational choice. The benchmark data leaves no ambiguity.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ in nearly every specification category. The RTX 5050 uses the GB207 chip on Blackwell 2.0 architecture with a 5 nm TSMC process, while the RX 560X uses Polaris 21 on GCN 4.0 with a 14 nm GlobalFoundries process. Transistor counts are 16,900 million versus 3,000 million, and die sizes are 149 mm² versus 123 mm². Transistor density is 113.4M per mm² versus 24.4M per mm².

Clock speeds: the RTX 5050 has a 2317 MHz base and 2572 MHz boost; the RX 560X has 1175 MHz base and 1275 MHz boost. Memory: 8 GB GDDR6 at 2500 MHz (20 Gbps effective) with 320.0 GB/s bandwidth versus 4 GB GDDR5 at 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective) with 112.0 GB/s bandwidth. Both use a 128-bit bus.

Compute resources: 2,560 shading units, 80 TMUs, 32 ROPs, 20 RT cores, and 80 tensor cores for the RTX 5050; 1,024 shading units, 64 TMUs, and 16 ROPs for the RX 560X, with no RT or tensor cores. Pixel rate is 82.30 GPixel/s versus 20.40 GPixel/s, texture rate is 205.8 GTexel/s versus 81.60 GTexel/s, and FP32 is 13.17 TFLOPS versus 2.611 TFLOPS.

Power and connectivity: the RTX 5050 has a 130 W TDP, 1x 8-pin connector, and 300 W suggested PSU; the RX 560X has 75 W TDP, no power connector, and 250 W suggested PSU. Bus interfaces are PCIe 5.0 x8 versus PCIe 3.0 x8. Display outputs are 1x HDMI 2.1b and 3x DisplayPort 2.1b versus 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, and 1x DisplayPort 1.4a. API support: DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) versus DirectX 12 (12_0), Vulkan 1.4 versus 1.3, with both supporting OpenGL 4.6. The RTX 5050's launch MSRP was 249 USD.

FAQ

Q: How much faster is the RTX 5050 in the head-to-head tests?

A: In Geekbench OpenCL, the RTX 5050 scores 90,334 versus 17,020 for the RX 560X, a 430.8% advantage. In Geekbench Vulkan, it scores 89,381 versus 20,231, a 341.8% advantage.

Q: Does the RX 560X have any advantage over the RTX 5050?

A: The RX 560X draws only 75 W compared to 130 W for the RTX 5050, requires no external power connector, and has a shorter length of 170 mm (6.7 inches). It also has a lower suggested PSU of 250 W versus 300 W.

Q: Which GPU has more memory and bandwidth?

A: The RTX 5050 has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory with 320.0 GB/s bandwidth. The RX 560X has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory with 112.0 GB/s bandwidth. Both use a 128-bit bus.

Q: Can the RX 560X handle ray tracing?

A: No. The RX 560X has no ray tracing cores and no tensor cores. The RTX 5050 includes 20 RT cores and 80 tensor cores for hardware-accelerated ray tracing and AI workloads.

Q: What are the manufacturing differences between the two chips?

A: The RTX 5050 uses a 5 nm TSMC process with 16,900 million transistors on a 149 mm² die. The RX 560X uses a 14 nm GlobalFoundries process with 3,000 million transistors on a 123 mm² die.

Q: What is the average benchmark score for each GPU?

A: The RTX 5050 has an average benchmark score of 21,035, while the RX 560X averages 18,626. The RTX 5050 also holds a 66th percentile ranking versus the RX 560X's 62nd percentile.