AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Comparison

The Verdict

The benchmark data delivers a decisive outcome: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 outperforms the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP across every recorded test. In the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, the RTX 5060 scores 3628 against 849 for the RX 580 2048SP, a 327.3% advantage. The Geekbench OpenCL result shows 112787 versus 29668, a 280.2% lead, and the Vulkan test records 113321 against 38666, a 193.1% margin. There are no benchmark categories where the RX 580 2048SP wins.

The RTX 5060 also holds a higher overall standing in the database. Its average benchmark score is 26331, placing it in the 72nd percentile of all GPUs. The RX 580 2048SP averages 23061, sitting in the 68th percentile. The RX 580 2048SP's nearest rivals include the Intel Arc B580 at 23021, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 at 23172, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 at 22895, which brackets its performance level. The RTX 5060, by contrast, sits near the AMD Radeon 860M at 26401 and the AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT at 26011.

Who should pick which? The RTX 5060 is the clear choice for anyone prioritizing modern DirectX 12 workloads, given its 327.3% lead in the Steel Nomad DX12 test. It also dominates compute and cross-platform graphics workloads, as shown by the Geekbench results. The RX 580 2048SP is an end-of-life product with no recorded wins, a lower percentile ranking, and performance that aligns with much older high-end cards from previous generations. It only makes sense for scenarios where its specific feature set, such as the 256-bit memory bus or legacy display outputs, is a requirement.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 has an average benchmark score of 26331, while the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP averages 23061. The RTX 5060 also ranks in the 72nd percentile of all GPUs, compared to the 68th percentile for the RX 580 2048SP.

Q: How large is the performance gap in DirectX 12 workloads?

A: In the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, the RTX 5060 scores 3628 versus 849 for the RX 580 2048SP. That is a 327.3% difference, the largest margin recorded in the head-to-head data.

Q: Does the RX 580 2048SP win in any benchmark category?

A: No. The head-to-head results show 3 wins for the RTX 5060 and 0 wins for the RX 580 2048SP across the three recorded tests: 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, Geekbench OpenCL, and Geekbench Vulkan.

Q: Which GPU has better Vulkan performance?

A: The RTX 5060 scores 113321 in Geekbench Vulkan, compared to 38666 for the RX 580 2048SP, a 193.1% advantage. This is the smallest of the three recorded margins, but still a substantial lead.

Q: Are these GPUs from the same generation?

A: No. The RTX 5060 is part of the GeForce 50-series generation, released in 2025. The RX 580 2048SP belongs to the Polaris (RX 500) generation, released in 2018. The RTX 5060 uses the Blackwell 2.0 architecture, while the RX 580 2048SP uses GCN 4.0.

Q: How do the memory configurations compare?

A: The RTX 5060 has 8 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 128-bit bus with 448.0 GB/s bandwidth. The RX 580 2048SP has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus with 224.0 GB/s bandwidth. Despite the narrower bus, the RTX 5060 delivers double the bandwidth.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from entirely different architectural eras. The RTX 5060 is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture using the GB206 chip, fabricated on a 5 nm process at TSMC. The RX 580 2048SP uses the GCN 4.0 architecture with the Polaris 20 chip, manufactured on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. The process node difference is stark: 5 nm versus 14 nm, which helps explain the massive transistor density gap. The RTX 5060 packs 21,900 million transistors into a 181 mm² die, yielding a density of 121.0 million transistors per square millimeter. The RX 580 2048SP has 5,700 million transistors on a 232 mm² die, for a density of 24.6 million per square millimeter. That is roughly a 5x density advantage for the newer part.

The RTX 5060 includes dedicated ray tracing cores, with 30 RT cores, and 120 tensor cores. The RX 580 2048SP has neither, as those fields are null in the database. This is a fundamental architectural difference: GCN 4.0 predates dedicated ray tracing and tensor hardware, while Blackwell 2.0 is designed around them.

DirectX support also differs. The RTX 5060 supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the RX 580 2048SP is limited to DirectX 12 (12_0). Both support OpenGL 4.6, but the RTX 5060 supports Vulkan 1.4 versus Vulkan 1.3 for the RX 580 2048SP.

The bus interface reflects their respective eras as well. The RTX 5060 uses PCIe 5.0 x8, while the RX 580 2048SP uses PCIe 3.0 x16. Display outputs differ too: the RTX 5060 offers 1x HDMI 2.1b and 3x DisplayPort 2.1b, while the RX 580 2048SP offers 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a.

Specification Differences

The RTX 5060 has 3840 shading units, 120 texture mapping units, and 48 raster operation pipelines. The RX 580 2048SP has 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. While the RX 580 2048SP has more TMUs, the RTX 5060 compensates with significantly higher clock speeds. The RTX 5060 has a base clock of 2280 MHz and a boost clock of 2497 MHz, while the RX 580 2048SP runs at 1168 MHz base and 1284 MHz boost.

Memory is another major divider. The RTX 5060 pairs 8 GB of GDDR7 with a 128-bit bus for 448.0 GB/s bandwidth. The RX 580 2048SP has 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, delivering 224.0 GB/s. The RTX 5060 has double the memory capacity and double the bandwidth, despite using half the bus width. Memory clock rates are listed as 1750 MHz for both, but the effective data rate differs: 28 Gbps for the RTX 5060 versus 7 Gbps for the RX 580 2048SP.

Compute throughput shows a massive gap. The RTX 5060 delivers 19.18 TFLOPS FP32 and 19.18 TFLOPS FP16 (1:1), while the RX 580 2048SP delivers 5.259 TFLOPS in both FP32 and FP16. That is roughly 3.6x the raw compute. Pixel and texture rates follow: 119.9 GPixel/s and 299.6 GTexel/s for the RTX 5060, versus 41.09 GPixel/s and 164.4 GTexel/s for the RX 580 2048SP.

Power specifications are close in TDP, with the RTX 5060 rated at 145 W and the RX 580 2048SP at 150 W. However, the suggested PSU differs notably: 300 W for the RTX 5060 versus 450 W for the RX 580 2048SP. Both use a single 8-pin power connector and are dual-slot cards. The RTX 5060 has a launch MSRP of 299 USD. The RX 580 2048SP has no recorded launch MSRP.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test is the most lopsided result. The RTX 5060 scores 3628, and the RX 580 2048SP scores 849. That is a 327.3% lead for the RTX 5060, the largest delta in the recorded data. This test targets modern DirectX 12 rendering, and the RX 580 2048SP's older GCN architecture and DirectX 12 (12_0) feature level appear to be a serious disadvantage.

Geekbench OpenCL shows a similar pattern. The RTX 5060 records 112787 points, while the RX 580 2048SP records 29668. The 280.2% gap reflects the raw compute throughput difference: 19.18 TFLOPS versus 5.259 TFLOPS, along with the RTX 5060's much higher memory bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s versus 224.0 GB/s.

Geekbench Vulkan narrows the margin somewhat, but the result is still one-sided. The RTX 5060 scores 113321, and the RX 580 2048SP scores 38666, a 193.1% difference. The RX 580 2048SP's Vulkan 1.3 support is newer than its DirectX 12 feature level, which may explain why its relative performance improves compared to the Steel Nomad result. Even so, the RTX 5060 is nearly three times faster in this workload.

The average benchmark scores reinforce the head-to-head results. The RTX 5060 averages 26331, placing it 14.2% above the RX 580 2048SP's 23061 average. The RTX 5060's nearest rivals are all within 1.2% of its score, including the AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT at 26011 and the AMD Radeon 860M at 26401. The RX 580 2048SP's nearest rivals include the Intel Arc B580 at 23021 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 at 23172, placing its performance in a much older performance tier.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 5060 wins in every measured category. In DirectX 12 workloads, its 327.3% lead in Steel Nomad shows that it is in a different performance class entirely. The RX 580 2048SP was released in 2018 and is now end-of-life, while the RTX 5060 was released in 2025 and remains in active production.

For compute-heavy tasks, the RTX 5060's 280.2% OpenCL advantage makes it the clear choice. Its 19.18 TFLOPS FP32 throughput, 120 tensor cores, and 30 RT cores provide capabilities the RX 580 2048SP simply does not have. The RX 580 2048SP has no tensor or ray tracing hardware at all.

For Vulkan-based applications, the RTX 5060 still wins by 193.1%, though this is its smallest margin. The RX 580 2048SP's Vulkan 1.3 support allows it to perform relatively better here than in DirectX 12, but the absolute scores remain far apart.

The RX 580 2048SP does have some structural advantages worth noting. Its 256-bit memory bus is twice as wide as the RTX 5060's 128-bit bus, though the RTX 5060's GDDR7 memory still delivers double the bandwidth. The RX 580 2048SP also offers a DVI output, which the RTX 5060 lacks. Its 150 W TDP is only 5 W higher than the RTX 5060's 145 W, but it requires a 450 W suggested PSU versus 300 W for the RTX 5060.

In practical terms, the RX 580 2048SP's wins are limited to legacy compatibility scenarios. Its GCN 4.0 architecture, 4 GB of GDDR5 memory, and DVI output may appeal to users maintaining older systems or specific display setups. For any performance-oriented workload, the database shows no scenario where the RX 580 2048SP comes out ahead. The RTX 5060 is the superior card across every recorded benchmark, with a higher average score, a higher percentile ranking, and a 3 to 0 win record in direct comparisons.