AMD Radeon RX 7700S vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Comparison

Where Each One Wins

The benchmark data splits cleanly along workload lines, with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 dominating every recorded test. Across the three head-to-head benchmarks, the RTX 4070 takes all three wins: 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, Geekbench OpenCL, and Geekbench Vulkan. The AMD Radeon RX 7700S records zero wins in this comparison.

For the RTX 4070, the strongest relative advantage appears in Vulkan compute. Its Geekbench Vulkan score of 174,152 is 378.7% higher than the RX 7700S's 36,380. That is a massive gap, suggesting the NVIDIA architecture has a particular strength in Vulkan API workloads, likely reflecting driver maturity and compute scheduling efficiency. The OpenCL result also favors NVIDIA decisively: 154,858 versus 62,983, a 145.9% advantage. For compute-heavy tasks such as rendering, physics simulation, or machine learning inference via OpenCL, the RTX 4070 is the clear choice.

In the DX12 gaming-oriented test, 3DMark Steel Nomad, the RTX 4070 scores 3,854 against the RX 7700S's 2,185, a 76.4% lead. While that is the smallest margin among the three benchmarks, it still represents a substantial performance gap in a modern DirectX 12 workload. The RX 7700S does hold a higher pixel rate in theory, 160.0 GPixel/s versus 158.4 GPixel/s, but that does not translate into a win in any recorded benchmark.

The average benchmark scores reinforce the same conclusion. The RTX 4070 averages 37,648 across its full benchmark suite, while the RX 7700S averages 33,849. The percentile rankings are close, 81st percentile versus 78th percentile among all GPUs, but the raw scoring gap is clear. The data indicates that for users prioritizing raw performance across OpenCL, Vulkan, and DX12, the RTX 4070 is the superior part. The RX 7700S, being a mobile-focused chip with a 100 W TDP, is positioned for efficiency rather than outright performance, and the benchmark results reflect that trade-off.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from fundamentally different design philosophies. The RTX 4070 uses NVIDIA's Ada Lovelace architecture on the AD104 chip, manufactured on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It packs 35,800 million transistors into a 294 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 121.8M per mm². The RX 7700S uses AMD's RDNA 3.0 architecture on the Navi 33 chip (codename "Hotpink Bonefish"), built on a 6 nm process, also at TSMC. Its transistor count is 13,300 million on a 204 mm² die, with a density of 65.2M per mm². The RTX 4070 has nearly 2.7 times the transistor count and a die that is 44% larger.

The core configurations diverge sharply. The RTX 4070 has 5,888 shading units, 184 TMUs, 64 ROPs, 46 RT cores, and 184 tensor cores. The RX 7700S has 2,048 shading units, 128 TMUs, 64 ROPs, and 32 RT cores, with no tensor cores listed. The RTX 4070's tensor core count of 184 is significant for AI and DLSS workloads, a capability the RX 7700S lacks entirely. The shading unit advantage is nearly 3:1 in NVIDIA's favor, which explains much of the compute benchmark disparity.

Clock behavior differs by design intent. The RTX 4070 has a base clock of 1920 MHz and a boost of 2475 MHz. The RX 7700S has a lower base of 1500 MHz but a higher boost of 2500 MHz, plus a game clock of 2200 MHz. Despite the higher boost on the RX 7700S, its lower shader count and narrower memory subsystem limit its throughput.

The memory subsystems are also quite different. The RTX 4070 uses 12 GB of GDDR6X on a 192-bit bus, delivering 504.2 GB/s of bandwidth. The RX 7700S has 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, with 288.0 GB/s. That is a 75% bandwidth advantage for NVIDIA. The RTX 4070's memory clock is listed at 1313 MHz with 21 Gbps effective, while the RX 7700S runs at 2250 MHz with 18 Gbps effective. The wider bus is the decisive factor.

Process node and transistor density also tell a story. The 5 nm node on the RTX 4070 allows for higher density and efficiency compared to the 6 nm node on the RX 7700S. The RTX 4070's density of 121.8M per mm² is nearly double the RX 7700S's 65.2M per mm². This is a generational advantage in manufacturing technology.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test shows a 76.4% lead for the RTX 4070. Scores of 3,854 versus 2,185 place the NVIDIA card firmly ahead in a modern DirectX 12 workload that stresses ray tracing and mesh shading. The RX 7700S's RT core count of 32 is lower than the RTX 4070's 46, and the bandwidth deficit compounds the issue.

Geekbench OpenCL results are even more lopsided. The RTX 4070 scores 154,858, which is 145.9% higher than the RX 7700S's 62,983. OpenCL workloads often scale with shading unit count and memory bandwidth, both areas where the RTX 4070 has a commanding lead. The 5,888 shading units versus 2,048 is nearly a 3x difference, and the 504.2 GB/s versus 288.0 GB/s bandwidth gap amplifies compute throughput.

The Geekbench Vulkan result is the largest margin of all. The RTX 4070's 174,152 score dwarfs the RX 7700S's 36,380, a 378.7% difference. Vulkan compute on NVIDIA hardware tends to benefit from driver optimizations and the tensor core hardware, even when tensor cores are not directly used. The RX 7700S's lack of tensor cores and lower shader count put it at a severe disadvantage in this API.

The recorded data shows no benchmark where the RX 7700S wins. The closest margin is the DX12 test at 76.4%, which is still a decisive victory for NVIDIA. The OpenCL and Vulkan gaps are so large that they suggest architectural superiority rather than mere clock or core count differences.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 | AMD Radeon RX 7700S |

|---|---|---|

| Process node | 5 nm | 6 nm |

| Transistors | 35,800 million | 13,300 million |

| Die size | 294 mm² | 204 mm² |

| Transistor density | 121.8M / mm² | 65.2M / mm² |

| Base clock | 1920 MHz | 1500 MHz |

| Boost clock | 2475 MHz | 2500 MHz |

| Game clock | None | 2200 MHz |

| Memory size | 12 GB | 8 GB |

| Memory type | GDDR6X | GDDR6 |

| Memory bus | 192 bit | 128 bit |

| Memory bandwidth | 504.2 GB/s | 288.0 GB/s |

| Shading units | 5888 | 2048 |

| TMUs | 184 | 128 |

| RT cores | 46 | 32 |

| Tensor cores | 184 | None |

| FP32 performance | 29.15 TFLOPS | 20.48 TFLOPS |

| FP16 performance | 29.15 TFLOPS (1:1) | 40.96 TFLOPS (2:1) |

| TDP | 200 W | 100 W |

| Slot width | Dual-slot | IGP |

| Power connectors | 1x 16-pin | None |

| Suggested PSU | 550 W | None |

| Display outputs | 1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a | Portable Device Dependent |

| Release date | 2023-04-11 | 2023-01-03 |

| Production status | End-of-life | Active |

The FP16 comparison is notable: the RX 7700S delivers 40.96 TFLOPS at a 2:1 ratio, which is higher than the RTX 4070's 29.15 TFLOPS at 1:1. This reflects AMD's packed math capability on RDNA 3.0, but it does not appear in any recorded benchmark advantage. The RTX 4070's FP32 figure of 29.15 TFLOPS is 42% higher than the RX 7700S's 20.48 TFLOPS, which aligns with the compute benchmark results.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 averages 37,648 across its benchmark suite, while the AMD Radeon RX 7700S averages 33,849. The RTX 4070 also sits at the 81st percentile among all GPUs, versus the 78th percentile for the RX 7700S.

Q: How large is the performance gap in the DirectX 12 Steel Nomad test?

A: The RTX 4070 scores 3,854 compared to the RX 7700S's 2,185, a 76.4% advantage for NVIDIA in this modern DX12 workload.

Q: Does the RX 7700S have any advantage in compute performance?

A: The RX 7700S has a higher FP16 peak of 40.96 TFLOPS (2:1 ratio) versus the RTX 4070's 29.15 TFLOPS (1:1). However, in recorded OpenCL and Vulkan benchmarks, the RTX 4070 wins by 145.9% and 378.7% respectively.

Q: What is the memory bandwidth difference?

A: The RTX 4070 delivers 504.2 GB/s over a 192-bit GDDR6X bus, while the RX 7700S provides 288.0 GB/s over a 128-bit GDDR6 bus. That is a 75% bandwidth advantage for NVIDIA.

Q: How do the transistor counts compare?

A: The RTX 4070 has 35,800 million transistors on a 294 mm² die, while the RX 7700S has 13,300 million on a 204 mm² die. The RTX 4070's density is 121.8M per mm² versus 65.2M per mm² for the RX 7700S.

Q: Which card is positioned for mobile use?

A: The RX 7700S has a 100 W TDP, uses IGP slot width, and has no power connectors, with display outputs listed as "Portable Device Dependent." The RTX 4070 has a 200 W TDP, is dual-slot, and requires a 1x 16-pin connector with a 550 W suggested PSU. The RX 7700S is clearly a laptop-oriented chip, while the RTX 4070 is a desktop add-in card.