AMD Radeon RX 7800M vs AMD Radeon RX 9070 Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data shows a decisive overall win for the AMD Radeon RX 9070, which takes 8 of the 10 head-to-head benchmark comparisons. The AMD Radeon RX 7800M secures only 2 wins, but one of them is by a very large margin, making the comparison more nuanced than the raw win count suggests.

The single largest gap in either direction appears in the Geekbench Vulkan test. Here, the RX 7800M scores 126,668 against the RX 9070's 58,705, a delta of 115.8% in favor of the mobile part. This is an enormous lead, more than doubling the RX 9070's result. The RX 7800M also wins in Passmark DirectX 12, scoring 89 versus 74, a 20.3% advantage. This suggests that in certain specific API workloads, the older RDNA 3.0 architecture retains a clear edge.

Every other comparison goes to the RX 9070. The most significant win is in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, where the RX 9070 scores 6,290 against the RX 7800M's 2,994, a delta of -52.4% from the perspective of the RX 7800M. This is a modern, demanding DirectX 12 workload, and the RX 9070's result is more than double. In Passmark DirectX 9, the RX 9070 scores 343 versus 174, a 49.3% lead. Passmark DirectX 11 shows a 37.4% gap (281 vs 176). Passmark G3D, a general gaming metric, favors the RX 9070 at 25,381 versus 17,613, a 30.6% difference.

Compute-oriented tests also favor the RX 9070. Passmark GPU Compute shows 14,737 versus 9,342, a 36.6% lead. Geekbench OpenCL shows a closer contest: 131,539 versus 120,778, an 8.2% advantage. The RX 9070 also wins in the legacy Passmark DirectX 10 test (141 vs 99, a 29.8% gap) and in 2D performance, Passmark G2D, with 1,280 versus 892, a 30.3% lead.

The average benchmark score tells a different story. The RX 7800M has an average score of 27,883, which places it at the 73rd percentile of all GPUs. The RX 9070 has a lower average score of 23,877, placing it at the 69th percentile. This is a notable inversion: the RX 9070 wins most individual tests, but its average across the full database is dragged down, likely by its very poor Vulkan result. The RX 7800M's nearest rivals in the database are the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 20 (delta 0.2%), AMD Radeon Pro W5500X (delta -0.3%), NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti (delta -0.5%), and AMD FirePro S7150 (delta -0.8%). The RX 9070's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Z (delta 0.6%), AMD Radeon RX 6800S (delta -0.8%), NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Mobile (delta 1.1%), and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER (delta -1.2%).

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 is the clear winner for modern gaming and general compute. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 result is 52.4% higher, which indicates substantially stronger performance in DirectX 12 titles. Its Passmark G3D score of 25,381 is 30.6% higher, confirming a broad advantage across typical gaming workloads. For users running DirectX 9 or DirectX 11 legacy titles, the RX 9070 leads by 49.3% and 37.4% respectively, making it the better choice for older game libraries as well. The RX 9070 also leads in Passmark GPU Compute by 36.6%, so it is more capable for OpenCL-based compute tasks, rendering, and other non-gaming workloads. Its 2D performance is also stronger, with a 30.3% lead in Passmark G2D.

The AMD Radeon RX 7800M has a very specific but important niche. Its Vulkan performance is exceptional, scoring 115.8% higher than the RX 9070. Any application or game that relies heavily on the Vulkan API will perform dramatically better on the RX 7800M. This includes many modern cross-platform titles and emulators. The RX 7800M also edges out the RX 9070 in Passmark DirectX 12 by 20.3%, which is curious given its loss in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12. This suggests the RX 7800M handles certain DirectX 12 paths better, even if it loses in the specific Steel Nomad workload. For users prioritizing Vulkan or specific DX12 titles, the RX 7800M is the stronger pick.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different generations and are built on different process nodes. The RX 7800M uses the Navi 32 chip with RDNA 3.0 architecture, fabricated on a 5 nm process at TSMC. The RX 9070 uses the Navi 48 chip with RDNA 4.0 architecture, fabricated on a 4 nm process, also at TSMC. The RX 9070 has a higher transistor count: 53,900 million versus 28,100 million for the RX 7800M. Despite this, the die sizes are similar, with the RX 9070 at 357 mm² and the RX 7800M at 346 mm². The transistor density is therefore much higher on the RX 9070: 151.0M per mm² versus 81.2M per mm².

Memory configurations differ significantly. The RX 9070 has 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 644.6 GB/s of bandwidth. The RX 7800M has 12 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus, delivering 432.0 GB/s. The RX 9070 also runs its memory faster at 2518 MHz (20.1 Gbps effective) versus 2250 MHz (18 Gbps effective) for the RX 7800M.

The shading engine configurations are interesting. The RX 7800M has more shading units (3,840 versus 3,584) and more texture mapping units (240 versus 224), but fewer render output units (96 versus 128). It also has more ray tracing cores (60 versus 56). Despite the RX 7800M having more compute units, the RX 9070 achieves a slightly higher FP32 throughput: 36.13 TFLOPS versus 35.87 TFLOPS. The texture rate is nearly identical (564.5 GTexel/s versus 560.4 GTexel/s), but the pixel rate is much higher on the RX 9070: 322.6 GPixel/s versus 224.2 GPixel/s, a direct result of its larger ROP count.

Clock speeds are higher on the RX 9070. Its boost clock is 2520 MHz versus 2335 MHz, and its base clock is 1330 MHz versus 1295 MHz. The game clock is slightly lower on the RX 9070 at 2070 MHz versus 2145 MHz, but the boost clock advantage remains.

Power and form factor differ substantially. The RX 7800M is an integrated graphics processor (IGP) with no power connectors and a 180 W TDP. The RX 9070 is a dual-slot discrete card requiring 2x 8-pin power connectors, with a 220 W TDP and a suggested PSU of 550 W. The RX 9070 also uses PCIe 5.0 x16, while the RX 7800M uses PCIe 4.0 x16. Display outputs on the RX 9070 are specified as 1x HDMI 2.1b and 3x DisplayPort 2.1a, while the RX 7800M's outputs are portable device dependent.

Both support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. Release dates are about six months apart: the RX 7800M launched on September 10, 2024, and the RX 9070 on March 5, 2025.

The Verdict

From the benchmark data alone, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 is the stronger overall GPU for most users. It wins 8 of 10 head-to-head tests, including the most demanding modern workload (3DMark Steel Nomad DX12) by 52.4%, and it holds leads in DirectX 9, DirectX 10, DirectX 11, G3D, G2D, GPU Compute, and OpenCL. Its 16 GB memory and 644.6 GB/s bandwidth also provide a capacity and speed advantage over the RX 7800M's 12 GB and 432.0 GB/s. The RX 9070's higher pixel rate (322.6 GPixel/s) and boost clock (2520 MHz) support its rasterization dominance. Its launch MSRP is 549 USD.

The AMD Radeon RX 7800M is the better choice only for specific scenarios. If Vulkan performance is the primary requirement, the RX 7800M's 115.8% lead in Geekbench Vulkan is overwhelming. It also wins in Passmark DirectX 12 by 20.3%, so a user with a workload heavily weighted toward that specific API might prefer it. Its lower TDP (180 W versus 220 W) and IGP form factor make it suitable for portable devices where space and power are constrained, though no power connector or slot width information is available for direct comparison beyond the IGP designation.

The average benchmark scores complicate the verdict. The RX 7800M's average of 27,883 is higher than the RX 9070's 23,877, and it sits at a higher percentile (73rd versus 69th). This is largely due to the RX 9070's poor Vulkan score, which pulls its average down. However, for gaming and compute, the RX 9070's individual wins are more relevant. The data suggests that the RX 9070 is the better all-rounder, while the RX 7800M is a specialist with exceptional Vulkan and select DX12 performance.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins more head-to-head benchmarks?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 9070 wins 8 of the 10 head-to-head benchmarks. The AMD Radeon RX 7800M wins 2.

Q: What is the largest single benchmark margin between the two?

A: The largest margin is in Geekbench Vulkan, where the RX 7800M scores 126,668 versus the RX 9070's 58,705, a delta of 115.8% in favor of the RX 7800M.

Q: How do the memory configurations compare?

A: The RX 9070 has 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus with 644.6 GB/s bandwidth. The RX 7800M has 12 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus with 432.0 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The RX 7800M has a higher average benchmark score of 27,883, placing it at the 73rd percentile. The RX 9070 has an average score of 23,877, placing it at the 69th percentile.

Q: What are the process nodes for each GPU?

A: The RX 7800M is built on a 5 nm process at TSMC. The RX 9070 is built on a 4 nm process, also at TSMC.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units?

A: The RX 7800M has 3,840 shading units. The RX 9070 has 3,584 shading units.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon RX 7800M | AMD Radeon RX 9070 |

| :--- | :--- | :--- |

| Architecture | RDNA 3.0 | RDNA 4.0 |

| Chip | Navi 32 | Navi 48 |

| Process Node | 5 nm | 4 nm |

| Transistors | 28,100 million | 53,900 million |

| Die Size | 346 mm² | 357 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 81.2M / mm² | 151.0M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1295 MHz | 1330 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 2335 MHz | 2520 MHz |

| Game Clock | 2145 MHz | 2070 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 2250 MHz (18 Gbps effective) | 2518 MHz (20.1 Gbps effective) |

| Memory Size | 12 GB | 16 GB |

| Memory Bus Width | 192 bit | 256 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 432.0 GB/s | 644.6 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 3840 | 3584 |

| TMUs | 240 | 224 |

| ROPs | 96 | 128 |

| RT Cores | 60 | 56 |

| Pixel Rate | 224.2 GPixel/s | 322.6 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 560.4 GTexel/s | 564.5 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 35.87 TFLOPS | 36.13 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 35.87 TFLOPS (1:1) | 36.13 TFLOPS (1:1) |

| TDP | 180 W | 220 W |

| Slot Width | IGP | Dual-slot |

| Power Connectors | None | 2x 8-pin |

| Suggested PSU | None | 550 W |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 4.0 x16 | PCIe 5.0 x16 |

| Display Outputs | Portable Device Dependent | 1x HDMI 2.1b, 3x DisplayPort 2.1a |

| Release Date | 2024-09-10 | 2025-03-05 |