AMD Radeon RX 6700 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER Comparison
AMD Radeon RX 6700
GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER
PERFORMANCE BENCHMARKS
Analysis: AMD Radeon RX 6700 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER
The data presents a stark generational and performance-class divide. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER is a high-end Ada Lovelace part, while the AMD Radeon RX 6700 is a mid-range RDNA 2 offering. The benchmark results show a decisive victory for the NVIDIA card in nearly every test, though the AMD card claims one significant win in a specific API. This analysis will break down the numbers to help you decide which card fits your needs based strictly on the provided evidence.
The Verdict
From the data, the choice is clear for anyone prioritizing raw performance: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER is the overwhelmingly faster GPU. It wins 9 out of 10 head-to-head benchmarks, with victory margins ranging from a modest 30.9% in the Passmark G2D test to a massive 176.5% in the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test. Its average benchmark score of 31087 is slightly higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6700's 30433, and it sits in the 76th percentile of all GPUs compared to the AMD card's 75th.
However, the story is not entirely one-sided. The AMD Radeon RX 6700 wins decisively in the Geekbench Vulkan test, scoring 83974 against the NVIDIA card's 53683, a 36.1% advantage. This suggests that in specific Vulkan-based workloads, the AMD architecture has a significant edge. If your primary applications are heavily optimized for Vulkan, the RX 6700 is the better choice from this data. For everything else—DirectX 11, DirectX 12, OpenCL compute, and general 3D rendering—the RTX 4070 Ti SUPER is the superior pick, often by a wide margin. The data suggests the NVIDIA card is for users who demand maximum performance across a broad range of modern workloads and are willing to accept its larger size and power requirements. The AMD card is a more focused option that wins in a specific API niche.
FAQ
Q: Which card is faster in DirectX 12 gaming?
A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER is significantly faster. In the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, it scored 5569 versus the AMD Radeon RX 6700's 2014, a 176.5% advantage. It also leads by 67.6% in the Passmark DirectX 12 test (119 vs 71).
Q: Is there any benchmark where the AMD Radeon RX 6700 wins?
A: Yes, the AMD card wins the Geekbench Vulkan test. It scored 83974, which is 36.1% higher than the NVIDIA card's 53683. This is the only head-to-head test the AMD card wins.
Q: How do the cards compare in compute performance?
A: The NVIDIA card dominates. In the Passmark GPU Compute test, it scores 18372, a 123% advantage over the AMD's 8240. In Geekbench OpenCL, the NVIDIA card also wins with a 103.7% lead (199267 vs 97841).
Q: What are the key differences in memory configuration?
A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER has 16 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 672.3 GB/s of bandwidth. The AMD Radeon RX 6700 has 10 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 160-bit bus, providing 320.0 GB/s of bandwidth.
Q: Which card has a higher transistor count?
A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER has significantly more, with 45,900 million transistors on its AD103 chip. The AMD Radeon RX 6700 has 17,200 million transistors on its Navi 22 chip.
Q: What are the physical size differences?
A: The NVIDIA card is a triple-slot card measuring 310 mm in length, 140 mm in height, and 61 mm in width. The AMD card is a dual-slot design measuring 267 mm in length, 110 mm in height, and 40 mm in width, making it considerably smaller.
Architecture Differences
The two GPUs are built on fundamentally different architectures and manufacturing processes. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER uses the Ada Lovelace architecture on a 5 nm process at TSMC. Its chip, the AD103, packs 45,900 million transistors into a 379 mm² die, achieving a density of 121.1 million transistors per mm². In contrast, the AMD Radeon RX 6700 is based on the older RDNA 2.0 architecture, fabricated on TSMC's 7 nm node. Its Navi 22 chip has 17,200 million transistors on a 335 mm² die, with a much lower density of 51.3 million transistors per mm².
This architectural difference leads to major disparities in core configuration. The NVIDIA card features 8448 shading units, 264 TMUs, 96 ROPs, 66 RT cores, and 264 tensor cores. The AMD card has 2304 shading units, 144 TMUs, 64 ROPs, and 36 RT cores, with no tensor cores listed. The presence of tensor cores on the NVIDIA card is a key differentiator, as they are designed to accelerate AI-driven workloads, a feature the AMD card lacks. Furthermore, the NVIDIA card supports FP32 and FP16 at a 1:1 ratio (44.10 TFLOPS for both), while the AMD card's FP16 performance is double its FP32 rate (22.58 TFLOPS vs 11.29 TFLOPS), indicating a different compute strategy.
Specification Differences
The specification sheets for these two cards highlight their different tiers. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER has base and boost clocks of 2340 MHz and 2610 MHz, respectively. The AMD card has a base clock of 1941 MHz, a boost clock of 2450 MHz, and a specific game clock of 2174 MHz. The NVIDIA card's memory runs at 1313 MHz (21 Gbps effective), while the AMD's runs at 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective).
Memory is a major point of difference. The NVIDIA card offers 16 GB of GDDR6X on a 256-bit bus for 672.3 GB/s of bandwidth, whereas the AMD card offers 10 GB of GDDR6 on a 160-bit bus for 320.0 GB/s. This gives the NVIDIA card more capacity and over twice the bandwidth. Power and physical requirements also differ: the NVIDIA card has a TDP of 285 W and requires a 600 W PSU and a triple-slot cooler with a single 16-pin connector. The AMD card has a 175 W TDP, needs only a 450 W PSU, and fits a dual-slot design with a single 8-pin connector. The NVIDIA card is also physically larger, at 310 mm long versus the AMD's 267 mm.
Head-to-Head Benchmarks
The benchmark data shows a dominant performance from the NVIDIA card across most tests. The most extreme example is in the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, where the NVIDIA card scores 5569, a 176.5% lead over the AMD's 2014. This suggests a massive advantage in modern, DirectX 12-based rendering workloads.
The NVIDIA card also shows enormous strength in compute tests. In Passmark GPU Compute, it scores 18372, which is 123% higher than the AMD's 8240. Similarly, in Geekbench OpenCL, the NVIDIA card scores 199267, a 103.7% improvement over the AMD's 97841. These results indicate a significant edge in general-purpose GPU computing.
In legacy and current DirectX APIs, the NVIDIA card maintains a clear lead. In the Passmark tests, it wins by 44% in DirectX 9 (360 vs 250), 57.4% in DirectX 10 (181 vs 115), 67.5% in DirectX 11 (278 vs 166), and 67.6% in DirectX 12 (119 vs 71). The overall 3D performance is also heavily in NVIDIA's favor, as shown by the 68% lead in the Passmark G3D test (31811 vs 18931). Even in the 2D test, the NVIDIA card wins by 30.9% (1225 vs 936).
The single exception is the Geekbench Vulkan test. Here, the AMD Radeon RX 6700 scores 83974, which is 36.1% higher than the NVIDIA card's 53683. This is a notable victory and a clear counterpoint to the NVIDIA card's dominance in other areas.
Where Each One Wins
Based on the benchmark results, the use cases for each card are distinct.
The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER wins in:
- Demanding DX12 Gaming: With a 176.5% lead in 3DMark Steel Nomad, it is the clear choice for the most graphically intensive modern games.
- Compute and Content Creation: Its massive 123% lead in Passmark GPU Compute and 103.7% lead in Geekbench OpenCL make it far superior for rendering, video encoding, and other compute-heavy tasks.
- Broad DirectX Compatibility: It wins across all DirectX versions tested (9, 10, 11, 12), offering consistent high performance in both older and newer titles.
- High-Resolution Textures and Data: The 16 GB VRAM and 672.3 GB/s bandwidth provide a significant capacity and bandwidth advantage over the AMD card.
The AMD Radeon RX 6700 wins in:
- Vulkan-API Workloads: The 36.1% lead in Geekbench Vulkan is its only benchmark win, but it is significant. For applications, games, or emulators that are heavily optimized for Vulkan, the RX 6700 demonstrates a clear performance advantage.
- Compact and Power-Efficient Builds: The data shows it has a 175 W TDP, requires a 450 W PSU, and is a dual-slot card. This makes it a much more manageable option for small form factor systems or builds with a less powerful power supply, despite its lower performance.