AMD Radeon RX 6600 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Comparison

The Verdict

The benchmark data is unequivocal: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 is the dominant performer, winning 9 of 10 head-to-head tests against the AMD Radeon RX 6600. The RTX 3070 leads by significant margins in compute, DirectX workloads, and modern 3DMark testing, with the RX 6600 managing only a single, albeit massive, victory in Vulkan. The verdict is straightforward: for users prioritizing raw performance across most standard gaming and compute scenarios, the RTX 3070 is the clear choice. The RX 6600, however, holds a distinct niche for those whose workloads are heavily optimized for Vulkan, where its advantage is not marginal but transformative.

The performance gulf is visible in the aggregate scores. The RTX 3070 posts an average benchmark score of 17,208, while the RX 6600 sits higher at 19,036. This apparent contradiction resolves when examining the percentile rankings: the RTX 3070 sits in the 61st percentile of all GPUs, while the RX 6600 reaches the 63rd percentile. The RX 6600’s higher average is driven by its exceptional Vulkan result, whereas the RTX 3070 delivers more consistent, high scores across a broader range of tests. For a balanced assessment, the RTX 3070’s wins in the most common APIs (DirectX 11, DirectX 12) make it the safer, more versatile pick.

The specific deltas are stark. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, the RTX 3070 scores 3,162 versus 1,492 for the RX 6600, a 52.8% advantage. In Geekbench OpenCL, the gap widens to 74.4%, with the RTX 3070 at 112,821 against 28,850. Even in Passmark’s G3D, the RTX 3070 leads by 32%. The only counterpoint is Geekbench Vulkan, where the RX 6600 scores 67,623 against 21,022, a 221.7% lead. This single result inflates the RX 6600’s average but does not offset its losses elsewhere.

Architecture Differences

The two cards are built on fundamentally different architectures and manufacturing processes. The AMD Radeon RX 6600 uses the Navi 23 chip on the RDNA 2.0 architecture, fabricated on a 7 nm process at TSMC. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 uses the GA104 chip on the Ampere architecture, fabricated on an 8 nm process at Samsung. This process difference is reflected in die size: the RX 6600 has a 237 mm² die with 11,060 million transistors, while the RTX 3070 has a larger 392 mm² die with 17,400 million transistors. Transistor density is close, at 46.7M per mm² for AMD and 44.4M per mm² for NVIDIA.

Core configurations diverge sharply. The RX 6600 has 1,792 shading units, 112 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 64 raster operation units (ROPs). The RTX 3070 has 5,888 shading units, 184 TMUs, and 96 ROPs. Ray tracing hardware also differs: the RX 6600 has 28 ray tracing cores, while the RTX 3070 has 46. The RTX 3070 additionally includes 184 tensor cores, a feature absent from the RX 6600. These raw core counts translate directly into theoretical performance: the RTX 3070 delivers 20.31 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, while the RX 6600 achieves 8.928 TFLOPS. The RTX 3070 also sustains 20.31 TFLOPS of FP16 with a 1:1 ratio, while the RX 6600’s FP16 is 17.86 TFLOPS at a 2:1 ratio.

Clock speeds tell a different story. The RX 6600 has a higher base clock of 1,626 MHz and a boost clock of 2,491 MHz, with a game clock of 2,044 MHz. The RTX 3070 runs lower clocks: a 1,500 MHz base and a 1,725 MHz boost. Both cards use GDDR6 memory at 1,750 MHz with 14 Gbps effective speed, but the memory bus differs. The RX 6600 has a 128-bit bus providing 224.0 GB/s bandwidth, while the RTX 3070 has a 256-bit bus providing 448.0 GB/s, exactly double the bandwidth.

Power and interface specifications also differ. The RX 6600 has a TDP of 132 W with a single 8-pin connector and a suggested 300 W power supply. The RTX 3070 has a TDP of 220 W with a 12-pin connector and a suggested 550 W power supply. The bus interface is PCIe 4.0 x8 for the RX 6600, while the RTX 3070 uses PCIe 4.0 x16. Both cards are dual-slot and end-of-life, with the RX 6600 released on 2021-10-12 and the RTX 3070 on 2020-08-31.

FAQ

Q: Which card is faster in DirectX 12 gaming workloads?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 is decisively faster. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, it scores 3,162 versus the RX 6600’s 1,492, a 52.8% advantage. In Passmark’s DirectX 12 test, the RTX 3070 leads 85 to 51, a 40% difference.

Q: Is the AMD Radeon RX 6600 better in any API?

A: Yes, specifically in Vulkan. The RX 6600 scores 67,623 in Geekbench Vulkan, which is 221.7% higher than the RTX 3070’s 21,022. This is the only head-to-head test the RX 6600 wins.

Q: How do the cards compare in general compute performance?

A: The RTX 3070 dominates compute. In Geekbench OpenCL, it scores 112,821 versus 28,850, a 74.4% lead. In Passmark GPU Compute, the RTX 3070 scores 11,195 against 6,554, a 41.5% advantage.

Q: What are the memory bandwidth differences?

A: The RTX 3070 has double the bandwidth. It uses a 256-bit bus with 448.0 GB/s, while the RX 6600 has a 128-bit bus with 224.0 GB/s. Both have 8 GB of GDDR6 memory.

Q: Which card has higher clock speeds?

A: The RX 6600 has higher clocks. Its base is 1,626 MHz and boost is 2,491 MHz, with a game clock of 2,044 MHz. The RTX 3070 has a base of 1,500 MHz and a boost of 1,725 MHz.

Q: How do their aggregate benchmark scores compare?

A: The RX 6600 has a higher average benchmark score of 19,036, versus 17,208 for the RTX 3070. However, this is skewed by the RX 6600’s exceptional Vulkan result. The RTX 3070 wins in 9 of 10 head-to-head tests.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every specification category. The process node is 7 nm for the RX 6600 versus 8 nm for the RTX 3070. The RX 6600 has 11,060 million transistors on a 237 mm² die; the RTX 3070 has 17,400 million on 392 mm². Transistor density is 46.7M per mm² for AMD and 44.4M per mm² for NVIDIA.

Clock speeds favor AMD on base and boost: 1,626 MHz and 2,491 MHz versus 1,500 MHz and 1,725 MHz. The RX 6600 also has a game clock of 2,044 MHz, which the RTX 3070 lacks. Memory speed is identical at 1,750 MHz, but the bus width differs: 128-bit for the RX 6600, 256-bit for the RTX 3070. Bandwidth is 224.0 GB/s versus 448.0 GB/s.

Core counts are heavily NVIDIA-biased. The RTX 3070 has 5,888 shading units, 184 TMUs, 96 ROPs, 46 RT cores, and 184 tensor cores. The RX 6600 has 1,792 shading units, 112 TMUs, 64 ROPs, and 28 RT cores, with no tensor cores. Pixel rate is 159.4 GPixel/s for AMD and 165.6 GPixel/s for NVIDIA. Texture rate is 279.0 GTexel/s versus 317.4 GTexel/s. FP32 is 8.928 TFLOPS versus 20.31 TFLOPS. FP16 is 17.86 TFLOPS (2:1) versus 20.31 TFLOPS (1:1).

Power requirements differ substantially: TDP is 132 W for the RX 6600 and 220 W for the RTX 3070. The RX 6600 uses a single 8-pin connector and suggests a 300 W PSU; the RTX 3070 uses a 12-pin connector and suggests a 550 W PSU. The bus interface is PCIe 4.0 x8 for AMD and PCIe 4.0 x16 for NVIDIA. Physical dimensions differ: the RX 6600 is 190 mm long, 110 mm high, and 40 mm wide. The RTX 3070 is 242 mm long and 112 mm high, with no width recorded. Display outputs are identical: 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The RTX 3070’s largest victory comes in Geekbench OpenCL, where it scores 112,821 against the RX 6600’s 28,850, a 74.4% lead. This confirms the NVIDIA card’s substantial advantage in general-purpose compute. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, the RTX 3070 scores 3,162 versus 1,492, a 52.8% margin, indicating strong modern gaming performance. Passmark GPU Compute shows a 41.5% lead for the RTX 3070, with scores of 11,195 and 6,554.

DirectX legacy tests also favor NVIDIA. In Passmark DirectX 12, the RTX 3070 leads 85 to 51, a 40% gap. DirectX 10 shows a 36.7% lead with 150 versus 95. Passmark G3D has the RTX 3070 at 22,214 against 15,096, a 32% advantage. DirectX 9 results are 247 versus 197, a 20.2% lead. Even DirectX 11, the most common gaming API, shows a 16.5% advantage for the RTX 3070, with scores of 182 and 152. The 2D graphics test shows a smaller 11.2% lead, with 1,001 versus 889.

The RX 6600’s single victory is extraordinary in scale. In Geekbench Vulkan, it scores 67,623, which is 221.7% higher than the RTX 3070’s 21,022. This result indicates that the RX 6600 has exceptional Vulkan driver optimization or architectural efficiency in this API, making it a specialist tool for Vulkan-based applications.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 wins in 9 of 10 recorded tests, establishing it as the superior all-round performer. Its wins span every DirectX version from 9 through 12, OpenCL compute, and 3DMark Steel Nomad. The data indicates that the RTX 3070 is the stronger choice for users engaging in DirectX-based gaming, which covers the vast majority of modern titles. Its compute performance, as shown by the 74.4% OpenCL lead, also makes it suitable for GPU-accelerated workloads outside gaming. The 32% lead in Passmark G3D reinforces its general 3D rendering strength.

The AMD Radeon RX 6600’s win in Geekbench Vulkan is not a small margin but a dominant one, at 221.7% higher than the RTX 3070. This suggests that in Vulkan-native applications, the RX 6600 can outperform the RTX 3070 by a wide margin, potentially making it the preferred card for specific emulators, Vulkan-only games, or compute tasks that leverage Vulkan. Its higher base and boost clocks (1,626 MHz and 2,491 MHz) and lower TDP of 132 W also indicate higher efficiency per watt, though the data does not provide direct efficiency metrics.

For users who prioritize consistent performance across a broad software ecosystem, the RTX 3070 is the definitive choice. Its wins in DirectX 11 and DirectX 12, the two most prevalent gaming APIs, are decisive at 16.5% and 40% respectively. For users whose workloads are exclusively Vulkan-based, the RX 6600 offers a compelling, if narrow, advantage. The RTX 3070’s higher average benchmark score in most categories, despite a lower aggregate average, supports its status as the more versatile and powerful card.