AMD Radeon RX 6600S vs AMD Radeon Vega 8 Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data includes a single directly comparable benchmark between these two mobile graphics solutions, and the result is decisively lopsided. In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the AMD Radeon RX 6600S scores 66,435 points, while the AMD Radeon Vega 8 manages 8,822 points. That represents a delta of 653.1% in favor of the RX 6600S, a margin so wide that it frames the entire comparison. The RX 6600S does not merely outperform the Vega 8; it outperforms it by a factor of roughly 7.5 in raw compute throughput as measured by this workload.

Context from the database's average benchmark scores reinforces the gap. The RX 6600S carries an average benchmark score of 10,629 across its tested suite, while the Vega 8 sits at 9,221. On the surface, that difference looks modest, only about 15% between the two. But the Geekbench OpenCL result tells a different story, one where the RX 6600S's dedicated memory subsystem and higher shader count produce an outsized advantage in compute-oriented tasks. The average score for the RX 6600S is pulled down by its PassMark entries, which include DirectX 9, 10, 11, and 12 tests that each score in the double or low triple digits, ranging from 56 in DirectX 12 to 176 in DirectX 9. The Vega 8's average, by contrast, is built entirely from Geekbench Metal, Vulkan, and OpenCL results, which cluster between 8,134 and 10,706.

The head-to-head data records one win for the RX 6600S and zero for the Vega 8. When examining the nearest rivals for each card, the RX 6600S sits in a competitive neighborhood populated by older discrete GPUs. Its average score of 10,629 places it 0.4% ahead of the AMD Radeon R9 M275X, 1.4% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 550X, and 0.6% behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 Ti and 1.2% behind the NVIDIA Quadro K2200. The Vega 8's average of 9,221 puts it 0.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon 890M, 0.6% behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960, 0.8% behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465, and 0.9% behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M. This tells an important story: the RX 6600S, despite its massive compute lead over the Vega 8, only lands in the 49th percentile of all GPUs, while the Vega 8 lands in the 45th. Both are mid-pack performers in the broader GPU landscape, but within this pairing, the RX 6600S is clearly the stronger part.

Where Each One Wins

The RX 6600S wins the only directly recorded head-to-head benchmark, the Geekbench OpenCL test, by 653.1%. That single result points to a clear strength in compute-heavy applications that leverage OpenCL, such as rendering tasks, physics simulations, and certain content creation workflows. The architecture behind it, RDNA 2.0 on a 7 nm TSMC process, pairs 1,792 shading units with 4 GB of dedicated GDDR6 memory on a 128 bit bus, delivering 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth. That dedicated memory arrangement is likely why the OpenCL score is so much higher than the Vega 8's, since the Vega 8 relies on system shared memory with bandwidth described as system dependent.

The Vega 8's wins are less obvious from the head-to-head data, since it has none. However, the database does show it has strengths in other API environments. Its Geekbench Metal score of 10,706 and Vulkan score of 8,134 both exceed its OpenCL score of 8,822, indicating that its GCN 5.0 architecture handles these interfaces reasonably well. For users whose workloads favor Metal or Vulkan, the Vega 8 may be less disadvantaged than the OpenCL result suggests. Still, no direct comparison exists in the database between the two cards for Metal or Vulkan, so any inference about relative performance there must remain cautious.

The RX 6600S also demonstrates a substantial lead in theoretical throughput figures recorded in the database. Its FP32 compute is listed at 7.168 TFLOPS, while the Vega 8 is listed at 1,126.4 GFLOPS, a difference of roughly 6.4 times. Its pixel rate is 128.0 GPixel/s versus 8.800 GPixel/s, and its texture rate is 224.0 GTexel/s versus 35.20 GTexel/s. These figures suggest the RX 6600S should dominate in fill-rate-bound scenarios such as high-resolution rendering, though the database does not provide direct frame-rate comparisons to confirm this in gaming workloads.

The Verdict

The data points to a straightforward conclusion: the AMD Radeon RX 6600S is the significantly faster part in this pairing. Its 653.1% lead in Geekbench OpenCL, combined with its higher average benchmark score of 10,629 versus 9,221, makes it the logical choice for anyone prioritizing raw compute performance. It also carries newer technology, including DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) support, Vulkan 1.4, and 28 ray tracing cores, none of which the Vega 8 offers. The Vega 8 supports DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.3, but lacks ray tracing hardware entirely.

That said, the two parts serve different purposes in the mobile landscape. The RX 6600S is a discrete-class GPU with an 80 W TDP, while the Vega 8 is an integrated processor with a 25 W TDP. The RX 6600S was released in 2022 as part of the Navi Mobile generation, while the Vega 8 dates to 2018 in the Raven Ridge generation. The performance gap reflects roughly four years of architectural evolution, from GCN 5.0 on a 14 nm GlobalFoundries process to RDNA 2.0 on a 7 nm TSMC process. For users who need maximum compute capability from a mobile GPU, the RX 6600S is the clear pick. For users constrained by power budgets, the Vega 8's 25 W TDP makes it a lighter load, though the database shows it delivers far less performance per unit of compute work.

The percentile rankings temper expectations for both. The RX 6600S sits at the 49th percentile of all GPUs, meaning roughly half of the recorded GPUs in the database outperform it. The Vega 8 sits at the 45th percentile. Neither is a top-tier part by modern standards, but within this head-to-head, the RX 6600S is unambiguously the stronger performer.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher Geekbench OpenCL score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6600S scores 66,435, while the AMD Radeon Vega 8 scores 8,822, giving the RX 6600S a 653.1% lead.

Q: How do the average benchmark scores compare?

A: The RX 6600S has an average benchmark score of 10,629, compared to 9,221 for the Vega 8. The RX 6600S sits at the 49th percentile of all GPUs, and the Vega 8 at the 45th.

Q: What are the nearest rivals for each GPU?

A: The RX 6600S's nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon R9 M275X at 0.4% ahead, the AMD Radeon RX 550X at 1.4% ahead, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 Ti at 0.6% behind, and the NVIDIA Quadro K2200 at 1.2% behind. The Vega 8's nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon 890M at 0.1% ahead, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 at 0.6% behind, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465 at 0.8% behind, and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M at 0.9% behind.

Q: Does the Vega 8 have any ray tracing support?

A: No, the Vega 8 has no ray tracing cores listed in the database. The RX 6600S includes 28 ray tracing cores.

Q: What API levels does each GPU support?

A: The RX 6600S supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The Vega 8 supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3.

Q: How do the memory configurations differ?

A: The RX 6600S has 4 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128 bit bus with 224.0 GB/s bandwidth. The Vega 8 uses system shared memory with system dependent bandwidth.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different architectural generations and manufacturing processes. The RX 6600S uses the Navi 23 chip built on RDNA 2.0 architecture, fabricated by TSMC on a 7 nm process. It contains 11,060 million transistors on a 237 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 46.7 million per square millimeter. The Vega 8 uses the Raven chip built on GCN 5.0 architecture, fabricated by GlobalFoundries on a 14 nm process. It contains 4,940 million transistors on a 210 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 23.5 million per square millimeter. The density difference reflects the newer manufacturing node, and it shows in the compute resources: the RX 6600S has 1,792 shading units, 112 texture mapping units, 64 render output units, and 28 ray tracing cores, while the Vega 8 has 512 shading units, 32 texture mapping units, and 8 render output units with no ray tracing hardware.

The RX 6600S belongs to the Navi Mobile generation within the RX 6000M series, while the Vega 8 belongs to the Vega IGP generation within Raven Ridge. Their release dates are more than three years apart: the Vega 8 launched in early 2018, and the RX 6600S launched in early 2022. The RX 6600S lists Polaris Mobile as its predecessor, while the Vega 8 lists GCN 3.0 IGP as its predecessor and Vega II IGP as its successor. The RX 6600S has no listed successor, and both parts are marked end-of-life in the database.

Clock behavior also differs substantially. The RX 6600S has a base clock of 1700 MHz, a boost clock of 2000 MHz, and a game clock of 1881 MHz. The Vega 8 has a base clock of 300 MHz and a boost clock of 1100 MHz, with no game clock listed. The RX 6600S memory runs at 1750 MHz with 14 Gbps effective speed, while the Vega 8 memory is simply listed as system shared. The RX 6600S uses a PCIe 4.0 x8 bus interface, while the Vega 8 uses an IGP bus interface. Display outputs differ as well: the RX 6600S is portable device dependent, and the Vega 8 is motherboard dependent.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ across nearly every recorded specification field. The RX 6600S is built on a 7 nm process at TSMC, while the Vega 8 uses a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. Transistor counts are 11,060 million versus 4,940 million, and die sizes are 237 mm² versus 210 mm². Transistor density is 46.7 million per square millimeter for the RX 6600S versus 23.5 million for the Vega 8.

The RX 6600S has 1,792 shading units, 112 TMUs, 64 ROPs, and 28 ray tracing cores. The Vega 8 has 512 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 8 ROPs, with no ray tracing cores. The RX 6600S is rated at 80 W TDP, while the Vega 8 is rated at 25 W. The RX 6600S has 4 GB of GDDR6 memory with a 128 bit bus and 224.0 GB/s bandwidth, while the Vega 8 uses system shared memory with system dependent bandwidth. The RX 6600S supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, while the Vega 8 supports DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.3. Both support OpenGL 4.6.

Pixel rate is 128.0 GPixel/s for the RX 6600S versus 8.800 GPixel/s for the Vega 8. Texture rate is 224.0 GTexel/s versus 35.20 GTexel/s. FP32 compute is 7.168 TFLOPS versus 1,126.4 GFLOPS. FP16 compute is 14.34 TFLOPS (2:1) versus 2.253 TFLOPS (2:1). The RX 6600S uses a PCIe 4.0 x8 interface, while the Vega 8 uses an IGP interface. The RX 6600S has no launch MSRP listed, and the Vega 8 also has no launch MSRP listed. Neither part has length, height, or width dimensions recorded, and neither requires a power connector or a suggested PSU. The RX 6600S is classified as a discrete mobile GPU from the Radeon RX 6000 series, while the Vega 8 is an integrated GPU with no series designation.