AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti and AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT are both end-of-life graphics cards from the previous generation, targeting high-refresh 1440p gaming. The data shows a decisive performance gap, with the RTX 3070 Ti winning all ten head-to-head benchmark comparisons, though the RX 6700 XT counters with a larger memory pool and lower power requirements. This analysis breaks down exactly where each card stands based on the benchmark results and architectural specifications.

FAQ

Q: Which card has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti has an average benchmark score of 29945, placing it in the 75th percentile of all GPUs. The AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT scores 27425 on average, which puts it in the 72nd percentile.

Q: How large is the performance gap in the most demanding DirectX 12 test?

A: In the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, the RTX 3070 Ti scores 3478 while the RX 6700 XT scores 2435. That represents a 42.8% advantage for the NVIDIA card, which is its largest win in any gaming-oriented benchmark.

Q: Does the AMD card win any benchmark at all?

A: No. Across all ten head-to-head tests, the RTX 3070 Ti wins every single one. The closest margin is in the Passmark DirectX 9 test, where NVIDIA leads by 7.9% (261 vs 242).

Q: Which card has more VRAM?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT has 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, while the RTX 3070 Ti has 8 GB of GDDR6X on a 256-bit bus. The NVIDIA card compensates with higher bandwidth: 608.3 GB/s versus 384.0 GB/s.

Q: How do the nearest rivals compare for each card?

A: The RTX 3070 Ti sits within 1.6% of the AMD Radeon RX 6700, and is 0.5% behind the AMD Radeon RX 6800. The RX 6700 XT is essentially tied with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Mobile (0% delta) and sits 0.5% behind the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090.

Q: What are the power supply requirements?

A: The RTX 3070 Ti has a TDP of 290 W and recommends a 600 W PSU, while the RX 6700 XT has a TDP of 230 W and recommends a 550 W PSU. The AMD card uses a 6-pin plus 8-pin connector setup, whereas NVIDIA uses a single 12-pin connector.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 3070 Ti wins in every measurable category according to the benchmark data. Its most dominant victories come in compute-oriented workloads: the Geekbench OpenCL score of 119718 crushes the RX 6700 XT's 44152, a massive 171.1% lead. This suggests the NVIDIA card is substantially better for GPGPU tasks, rendering, and any workload that leverages raw compute throughput.

For gaming, the RTX 3070 Ti leads by 42.8% in the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, which is a modern, demanding benchmark. The Passmark G3D score shows an 18% advantage (23356 vs 19786), confirming the NVIDIA card's superiority in general 3D graphics performance. Even in the legacy DirectX 9 test, the RTX 3070 Ti holds a 7.9% edge, meaning there is no scenario where the AMD card pulls ahead.

The RX 6700 XT's only meaningful advantages are not found in benchmark scores but in specifications. Its 12 GB VRAM capacity is 50% larger than the RTX 3070 Ti's 8 GB, which could matter for texture-heavy mods or specific workstation tasks. Additionally, its 230 W TDP makes it more power-efficient, and the 7 nm process node from TSMC suggests a more modern manufacturing approach.

Architecture Differences

The RTX 3070 Ti is built on NVIDIA's Ampere architecture, using the GA104 chip manufactured on Samsung's 8 nm process. It packs 17,400 million transistors into a 392 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 44.4M per mm². The architecture includes 6144 shading units, 192 TMUs, 96 ROPs, 48 RT cores, and 192 tensor cores. This is a full-featured design with dedicated hardware for ray tracing and AI acceleration.

The RX 6700 XT uses AMD's RDNA 2.0 architecture with the Navi 22 chip, fabricated on TSMC's 7 nm process. It contains 17,200 million transistors on a smaller 335 mm² die, achieving a higher transistor density of 51.3M per mm². The AMD card has 2560 shading units, 160 TMUs, 64 ROPs, and 40 RT cores, but notably lacks tensor cores entirely. Its FP16 performance is 26.43 TFLOPS at a 2:1 ratio, while the NVIDIA card delivers 21.75 TFLOPS at a 1:1 ratio.

Both cards support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. They also share identical display outputs: 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a. The key architectural difference is NVIDIA's tensor cores, which enable features like DLSS, and the significantly higher shading unit count on the Ampere card.

Specification Differences

The RTX 3070 Ti runs at a base clock of 1575 MHz and boost clock of 1770 MHz, while the RX 6700 XT operates at a much higher 2321 MHz base and 2581 MHz boost, with a game clock of 2424 MHz. Despite the lower clocks, the NVIDIA card delivers substantially more FP32 performance: 21.75 TFLOPS versus 13.21 TFLOPS.

Memory configurations differ significantly. The RTX 3070 Ti uses 8 GB of GDDR6X at 19 Gbps effective on a 256-bit bus, achieving 608.3 GB/s bandwidth. The RX 6700 XT has 12 GB of GDDR6 at 16 Gbps effective on a 192-bit bus, providing 384.0 GB/s. The NVIDIA card has a 58% bandwidth advantage, while AMD offers 50% more capacity.

Power and physical specifications also differ. The RTX 3070 Ti draws 290 W with a 600 W suggested PSU, while the RX 6700 XT draws 230 W with a 550 W suggested PSU. Both are dual-slot cards, but the RX 6700 XT is slightly shorter at 110 mm height versus 112 mm, and has a specified width of 40 mm. The RTX 3070 Ti lists a 267 mm length, identical to the AMD card's length.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test reveals the biggest gaming gap: the RTX 3070 Ti scores 3478 versus 2435 for the RX 6700 XT, a 42.8% margin. This is a modern DirectX 12 workload that stresses current-generation rendering techniques, making it a strong indicator of real-world gaming performance in recent titles.

The Geekbench OpenCL result is the most lopsided of all tests. With a score of 119718 versus 44152, the RTX 3070 Ti leads by 171.1%. This massive delta suggests the NVIDIA card is in a different class for compute-heavy applications, likely due to its tensor cores and higher shading unit count. The Vulkan test shows a similar story: 139541 versus 93500, a 49.2% advantage.

In Passmark tests, the RTX 3070 Ti leads by 25% in DirectX 10 (155 vs 124), 11% in DirectX 11 (192 vs 173), 18.2% in DirectX 12 (91 vs 77), and 7.9% in DirectX 9 (261 vs 242). The G3D score shows an 18% lead (23356 vs 19786), while the G2D score favors NVIDIA by 10.9% (1055 vs 951). The GPU compute test shows a 24.3% advantage for the RTX 3070 Ti (11601 vs 9336).

The RX 6700 XT does have a single benchmark result not in the head-to-head list: a Geekbench Metal score of 130896. This is notably higher than its OpenCL score, suggesting the AMD card performs better under Apple's Metal API, though no direct comparison exists for that test.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti is the faster card in every single benchmark comparison. With a 42.8% lead in modern DX12 gaming, a 49.2% lead in Vulkan, and a staggering 171.1% lead in OpenCL compute, the RTX 3070 Ti is simply in a higher performance tier. Its average benchmark score of 29945 places it in the 75th percentile, versus the RX 6700 XT's 27425 in the 72nd percentile.

The RTX 3070 Ti also sits closer to more powerful rivals in its nearestRivals list, being just 0.5% behind the AMD Radeon RX 6800 and 0.1% ahead of the RTX 5070 Mobile. The RX 6700 XT is essentially tied with the RTX 4070 Mobile and sits 0.5% behind the RTX 3090, showing it competes with a lower tier of hardware.

Buyers should choose the RTX 3070 Ti if they prioritize raw performance, especially for compute workloads or modern DX12 games where its lead exceeds 40%. The 8 GB VRAM may be a concern for future titles, but the massive bandwidth advantage (608.3 GB/s vs 384.0 GB/s) helps mitigate this.

The RX 6700 XT makes sense only for users who specifically need the 12 GB VRAM capacity or want lower power consumption. Its 230 W TDP is 60 W less than the NVIDIA card, and the 7 nm process from TSMC indicates a more efficient manufacturing node. However, in pure performance terms, the data shows no scenario where the AMD card wins, making the RTX 3070 Ti the clear choice for buyers who prioritize benchmark results.