AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT vs AMD Radeon Vega 11 Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark data shows a decisive victory for the AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT across every recorded comparison. In the two head-to-head tests available, the RX 6500 XT wins both, with the Vega 11 trailing by a substantial margin in each instance. The most striking result comes from the Geekbench Vulkan test, where the RX 6500 XT scores 54,724 against the Vega 11's 12,273, a delta of -77.6% from the perspective of the Vega 11. That means the RX 6500 XT delivers roughly four and a half times the Vulkan performance of the older integrated graphics solution.

The Geekbench OpenCL test tells a similar story, though with a slightly smaller gap. The RX 6500 XT posts 48,289 points, while the Vega 11 manages 13,392, resulting in a delta of -72.3%. This still represents a massive performance advantage, with the discrete card achieving over three and a half times the OpenCL score of the integrated Vega 11. Both results indicate that the RX 6500 XT is in a completely different performance tier, which is consistent with the hardware specifications, but the raw numbers here quantify just how wide that gap truly is.

When placed in the broader database context, the Vega 11's average benchmark score of 14,352 sits at the 56th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN at 14,373 (a delta of -0.1%), the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 at 14,385 (-0.2%), and the Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics at 14,315 (+0.3%). These numbers show the Vega 11 is essentially locked in a tight cluster with those competitors, with all four scores within a fraction of a percent of each other. The GTX 965M at 14,404 is also nearby at -0.4%. The Vega 11's performance is therefore very predictable for its class, but that class is clearly not the same as the RX 6500 XT's.

The RX 6500 XT, with an average benchmark score of 11,842, sits at the 51st percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 at 11,960 (-1%), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960A at 11,998 (-1.3%), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 at 11,680 (+1.4%), and the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT at 11,627 (+1.9%). The RX 6500 XT is therefore competitive with much higher-tier cards from previous generations, matching the GTX 1080 within a single percentage point. This is a stark contrast to the Vega 11, which trades blows with decade-old mobile GPUs.

The head-to-head wins are unambiguous. The RX 6500 XT wins both recorded tests, and the deltas are so large that no amount of driver optimization or system configuration could realistically close the gap. The Vega 11's best recorded score, 17,392 in Geekbench Metal, does not appear in the head-to-head tests but still falls far short of the RX 6500 XT's OpenCL and Vulkan figures. The data supports a clear performance hierarchy, with the RX 6500 XT occupying a higher tier entirely.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins the direct head-to-head benchmark comparisons?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT wins both recorded head-to-head tests. In Geekbench Vulkan, it scores 54,724 versus the Vega 11's 12,273, and in Geekbench OpenCL, it scores 48,289 versus 13,392.

Q: How much faster is the RX 6500 XT in Vulkan performance?

A: The RX 6500 XT's Vulkan score of 54,724 is 77.6% higher than the Vega 11's 12,273, which equates to roughly four and a half times the performance in that specific workload.

Q: What is the average benchmark score difference between the two GPUs?

A: The Vega 11 has an average benchmark score of 14,352, while the RX 6500 XT has an average benchmark score of 11,842. The RX 6500 XT's average is lower, but the head-to-head tests show it wins decisively in the tests both cards actually ran.

Q: How does the Vega 11 compare to its nearest rivals in the database?

A: The Vega 11's average score of 14,352 places it within 0.4% of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN (14,373), the AMD Radeon RX Vega 11 (14,385), the Intel Iris Xe MAX Graphics (14,315), and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M (14,404). All five are effectively tied.

Q: How does the RX 6500 XT compare to its nearest rivals in the database?

A: The RX 6500 XT's average score of 11,842 is within 1.9% of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 (11,960), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960A (11,998), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 (11,680), and the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT (11,627). It is essentially on par with the GTX 1080.

Q: What is the percentile ranking for each GPU?

A: The Vega 11 sits at the 56th percentile of all GPUs, while the RX 6500 XT sits at the 51st percentile. Despite the lower percentile, the RX 6500 XT wins the head-to-head tests by a wide margin.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from entirely different architectural lineages, which explains the performance gap. The AMD Radeon Vega 11 is built on the GCN 5.0 architecture and uses the Picasso chip, manufactured on a 12 nm process at GlobalFoundries. It packs 4,940 million transistors into a 210 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 23.5 million per square millimeter. In contrast, the AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT uses the RDNA 2.0 architecture with the Navi 24 chip, built on a 6 nm process at TSMC. It contains 5,400 million transistors on a much smaller 107 mm² die, achieving a transistor density of 50.5 million per square millimeter, more than double the Vega 11's density.

The compute resources differ substantially. The Vega 11 has 704 shading units, 44 texture mapping units, and only 8 render output units. The RX 6500 XT more than doubles those counts with 1,024 shading units, 64 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. Additionally, the RX 6500 XT includes 16 ray tracing cores, a feature completely absent from the Vega 11. This architectural advantage is reflected in the pixel and texture rates: the RX 6500 XT achieves 90.08 GPixel/s and 180.2 GTexel/s, while the Vega 11 manages only 11.20 GPixel/s and 61.60 GTexel/s.

Clock speeds also favor the RX 6500 XT heavily. The Vega 11 runs at a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 1400 MHz. The RX 6500 XT starts at 2310 MHz base, boosts to 2815 MHz, and has a game clock of 2610 MHz. The floating-point throughput reflects these differences: the RX 6500 XT delivers 5.765 TFLOPS in FP32 and 11.53 TFLOPS in FP16, while the Vega 11 produces 1.971 TFLOPS FP32 and 3.942 TFLOPS FP16.

Memory architecture is another major divergence. The Vega 11 uses system shared memory, with its bandwidth listed as system dependent, meaning performance scales with the host system's RAM. The RX 6500 XT has 4 GB of dedicated GDDR6 memory on a 64-bit bus, providing a fixed bandwidth of 143.9 GB/s. This dedicated memory removes the dependency on system RAM and ensures consistent performance. The Vega 11's memory clock is listed as system shared, while the RX 6500 XT's memory runs at 2248 MHz with 18 Gbps effective speed.

The process node difference is also notable. The 12 nm GlobalFoundries process used for the Vega 11 is older and less efficient than the 6 nm TSMC process used for the RX 6500 XT. This explains the power draw gap: the Vega 11 has a TDP of 15 W, while the RX 6500 XT consumes 107 W. The Vega 11 is an integrated graphics processor (IGP) with no power connectors, while the RX 6500 XT is a dual-slot card requiring a single 6-pin power connector and a suggested 300 W power supply.

API support differs as well. The Vega 11 supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The RX 6500 XT supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The DirectX 12 Ultimate certification on the RX 6500 XT indicates support for newer features like ray tracing, which is consistent with its 16 dedicated RT cores.

The Verdict

The data clearly indicates that the AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT is the stronger performer in every recorded head-to-head benchmark. The RX 6500 XT wins both Geekbench tests by margins of over 70%, making it the unequivocal choice for anyone prioritizing raw compute performance. The Vega 11, despite its higher average benchmark score of 14,352 versus the RX 6500 XT's 11,842, loses decisively in the tests where both cards were measured. The average score disparity is explained by the different benchmark suites each card was subjected to, but the head-to-head results are the definitive comparison.

For users seeking a discrete graphics card with dedicated memory and modern architecture, the RX 6500 XT is the only logical choice from this data. Its 4 GB of GDDR6 memory, 16 ray tracing cores, and significantly higher clock speeds provide a level of performance that the Vega 11 cannot approach. The Vega 11, as an integrated solution with system shared memory, is suited only for basic tasks where a discrete card is impractical. Its 15 W TDP and lack of power connectors make it a low-power option, but that comes at the cost of performance.

The RX 6500 XT also holds up well against its nearest rivals. Matching the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 within 1% in average score, the RX 6500 XT demonstrates that modern architecture and high clocks can compensate for a narrower memory bus. The Vega 11, conversely, is locked in a tight cluster with older and lower-tier cards, showing that its performance ceiling is firmly in the entry-level integrated graphics segment.

Specification Differences

The following specifications differ between the two GPUs:

• Chip: Picasso (Vega 11) versus Navi 24 (RX 6500 XT)
• Architecture: GCN 5.0 versus RDNA 2.0
• Generation: Vega IGP (Picasso) versus Navi II (RX 6000)
• Process Node: 12 nm versus 6 nm
• Foundry: GlobalFoundries versus TSMC
• Transistors: 4,940 million versus 5,400 million
• Die Size: 210 mm² versus 107 mm²
• Transistor Density: 23.5M / mm² versus 50.5M / mm²
• Base Clock: 300 MHz versus 2310 MHz
• Boost Clock: 1400 MHz versus 2815 MHz
• Game Clock: None versus 2610 MHz
• Memory Size: System Shared versus 4 GB
• Memory Type: System Shared versus GDDR6
• Memory Bus Width: System Shared versus 64 bit
• Memory Bandwidth: System Dependent versus 143.9 GB/s
• Memory Clock: System Shared versus 2248 MHz (18 Gbps effective)
• Shading Units: 704 versus 1,024
• TMUs: 44 versus 64
• ROPs: 8 versus 32
• Ray Tracing Cores: None versus 16
• Pixel Rate: 11.20 GPixel/s versus 90.08 GPixel/s
• Texture Rate: 61.60 GTexel/s versus 180.2 GTexel/s
• FP32: 1.971 TFLOPS versus 5.765 TFLOPS
• FP16: 3.942 TFLOPS versus 11.53 TFLOPS
• TDP: 15 W versus 107 W
• Slot Width: IGP versus Dual-slot
• Power Connectors: None versus 1x 6-pin
• Suggested PSU: None versus 300 W
• Bus Interface: IGP versus PCIe 4.0 x4
• Display Outputs: Motherboard Dependent versus 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x DisplayPort 1.4a
• DirectX Support: 12 (12_1) versus 12 Ultimate (12_2)
• Vulkan Support: 1.3 versus 1.4
• Release Date: 2019-09-29 versus 2022-01-18
• Predecessor: GCN 3.0 IGP versus Navi
• Successor: Vega II IGP versus Navi III
• Launch MSRP: None versus 199 USD (stated once as launch MSRP)

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT wins in every measurable performance category. It dominates the head-to-head OpenCL and Vulkan benchmarks, with scores that are 72.3% and 77.6% higher than the Vega 11 respectively. The RX 6500 XT also wins on hardware specifications: more shading units, more TMUs, more ROPs, dedicated ray tracing cores, and significantly higher clock speeds. Its dedicated 4 GB GDDR6 memory with 143.9 GB/s bandwidth provides consistent performance that does not depend on the host system's RAM, unlike the Vega 11's system shared memory.

The RX 6500 XT is the clear winner for gaming and compute workloads that benefit from modern APIs like DirectX 12 Ultimate and Vulkan 1.4. Its 16 ray tracing cores open the door to hardware-accelerated ray tracing, a feature the Vega 11 cannot offer. The higher pixel rate of 90.08 GPixel/s, over eight times the Vega 11's 11.20 GPixel/s, makes it suitable for high-resolution rendering. The texture rate of 180.2 GTexel/s versus 61.60 GTexel/s further cements its advantage in texture-heavy workloads.

The AMD Radeon Vega 11 wins only in power efficiency and form factor. Its 15 W TDP is a fraction of the RX 6500 XT's 107 W, allowing it to operate without any power connectors and fit as an integrated processor. This makes it suitable for compact, low-power systems where a discrete GPU is not feasible. The Vega 11's performance is adequate for basic tasks, and its placement at the 56th percentile of all GPUs shows it is not entirely without merit, but it is fundamentally outclassed in every head-to-head comparison.

For a user building a system with a dedicated graphics card, the RX 6500 XT is the only choice based on the recorded data. For a user constrained to integrated graphics with minimal power draw, the Vega 11 remains a functional option, but the benchmark results leave no doubt about which GPU delivers superior performance.