AMD Radeon RX 9060 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data shows a dominant performance picture for the AMD Radeon RX 9060 across nearly every benchmark category. Out of eight head-to-head tests, the AMD part claims seven wins, with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile taking a single narrow victory. The most lopsided result comes in Passmark GPU Compute, where the RX 9060 scores 9919 against 4419 for the RTX 3050 A Mobile, a delta of 124.5 percent. This indicates a massive advantage in compute-oriented workloads, driven by the architectural and specification differences detailed later.

In 3D gaming related tests, the AMD card is consistently ahead. The Passmark G3D test shows the RX 9060 at 17631 versus 11664 for the RTX 3050 A Mobile, a 51.2 percent lead. The Passmark DirectX 11 result is even more decisive: 182 versus 94, a 93.6 percent advantage. DirectX 9 also favors AMD heavily, with a score of 280 versus 152, a 84.2 percent gap. DirectX 10 shows a similar trend, with AMD leading 104 to 61, a 70.5 percent difference. These results indicate that for legacy and current DirectX API workloads, the RX 9060 delivers dramatically higher frame throughput.

The Geekbench OpenCL test, which measures general purpose compute performance, shows the RX 9060 at 88183 against 52998, a 66.4 percent advantage. This aligns with the Passmark GPU Compute result and confirms that the AMD architecture has a substantial lead in parallel processing tasks. The Passmark G2D test, which focuses on 2D graphics performance, also favors AMD, with a score of 1002 versus 526, a 90.5 percent lead. This suggests faster desktop composition and 2D rendering operations on the RX 9060.

The single test where NVIDIA wins is Passmark DirectX 12, with the RTX 3050 A Mobile scoring 55 against 44 for the RX 9060. The delta is -20 percent from AMD's perspective, meaning NVIDIA outperforms by that margin. This is a notable exception to the overall trend. It suggests that in this specific API path, the NVIDIA architecture has an efficiency edge, although the absolute scores are low for both cards. The RX 9060 still wins the aggregated 3D tests by a wide margin, but this DirectX 12 result prevents a clean sweep.

The average benchmark score from the database places the RX 9060 at 16014, while the RTX 3050 A Mobile sits at 8746. This represents an overall performance gap of roughly 83 percent in favor of AMD. The percentile rankings also reflect this: the RX 9060 sits at the 59th percentile of all GPUs, while the RTX 3050 A Mobile sits at the 44th percentile. The nearest rivals for the RX 9060 include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, with an average score of 16129 and a delta of -0.7 percent, putting the AMD card within one percent of that desktop GPU. The RTX 3050 A Mobile, by contrast, is closely matched with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 v2, which scores 8743 with a 0 percent delta, indicating parity with a much older desktop part.

Where Each One Wins

The RX 9060 wins in nearly every category that matters for a desktop GPU. Its 51.2 percent lead in Passmark G3D confirms superior rasterization performance for gaming. The 84.2 percent advantage in DirectX 9 and 93.6 percent in DirectX 11 indicate strong legacy API support, which is useful for older game titles and compatibility scenarios. The 66.4 percent lead in Geekbench OpenCL and 124.5 percent lead in Passmark GPU Compute mark the RX 9060 as the clear choice for compute-heavy applications such as rendering, scientific simulation, and machine learning inference (within the limits of its feature set). The 90.5 percent lead in G2D also gives it an edge in everyday desktop use and 2D applications.

The RTX 3050 A Mobile wins only the Passmark DirectX 12 test, and even then by a modest absolute margin of 55 versus 44. This suggests that in applications that specifically target DirectX 12 features, the NVIDIA card has a relative strength. However, the low absolute scores mean this is not a practical advantage for demanding modern games; it is more of a niche result. The RTX 3050 A Mobile also has a much lower average score and sits at a lower percentile, so its single win does not translate into overall competitiveness. The data indicates that the NVIDIA part is better suited only to scenarios where DirectX 12 is the sole API and where the workload does not stress the card's limited compute resources.

Another angle is the compute-to-graphics ratio. The RX 9060 leads by 124.5 percent in compute but by 51.2 percent in G3D. This means the AMD card has a relatively stronger compute advantage than its graphics advantage. For users who split time between gaming and productivity tasks, the RX 9060 offers a more balanced high-performance profile, while the RTX 3050 A Mobile is a narrow specialist in the one API test it wins.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different generations and foundries. The AMD Radeon RX 9060 uses the Navi 44 chip built on RDNA 4.0 architecture, fabricated on a 4 nm process at TSMC. It carries 29,700 million transistors on a 199 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 149.2 million per square millimeter. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile uses the GA106 chip based on the older Ampere architecture, built on an 8 nm process at Samsung. It has 12,000 million transistors on a 276 mm² die, with a density of 43.5 million per square millimeter. The manufacturing difference is stark: the AMD card packs more than twice the transistors into a smaller die.

Memory configurations also diverge sharply. The RX 9060 has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128 bit bus, delivering 288.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The RTX 3050 A Mobile has only 4 GB of GDDR6 on the same 128 bit bus, yielding 192.0 GB/s. That is a 50 percent bandwidth advantage for AMD, alongside double the capacity. The clock speeds reflect the architectural and process differences. The RX 9060 has a base clock of 1700 MHz and a boost of 2990 MHz, with a game clock of 2400 MHz. The RTX 3050 A Mobile has a base of 1065 MHz and a boost of 1343 MHz. The AMD part runs at more than double the boost frequency.

Compute resources differ in ways that explain the benchmark gaps. Both have 1792 shading units, but the RX 9060 has 112 texture mapping units and 64 raster operation units, while the RTX 3050 A Mobile has 56 TMUs and 32 ROPs. The AMD card has 28 ray tracing cores, while the NVIDIA card has 14 RT cores and 56 tensor cores. The pixel rate for the RX 9060 is 191.4 GPixel/s versus 42.98 GPixel/s for NVIDIA, and the texture rate is 334.9 GTexel/s versus 75.21 GTexel/s. The FP32 throughput is 21.43 TFLOPS for AMD versus 4.813 TFLOPS for NVIDIA, a 4.45x difference. FP16 is identical to FP32 on both cards at a 1:1 ratio.

Power and interface specifications also contrast. The RX 9060 has a TDP of 132 W, uses a dual-slot cooler, requires a single 8-pin power connector, and suggests a 300 W PSU. It connects via PCIe 5.0 x16. The RTX 3050 A Mobile has a 45 W TDP, is an integrated form factor with no power connectors, and uses PCIe 4.0 x8. The RX 9060 supports 1x HDMI 2.1b and 2x DisplayPort 2.1a outputs, while the mobile card's outputs are portable device dependent. Both support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The RX 9060 was released in August 2025 and is still active in production; the RTX 3050 A Mobile was released in December 2023 and is end-of-life. The RX 9060 belongs to the Navi IV generation and succeeds Navi III, while the RTX 3050 A Mobile is a GeForce 30 Mobile part succeeding the GeForce 20 Mobile line.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous. The AMD Radeon RX 9060 is the far stronger GPU in almost every measured dimension. Its average benchmark score of 16014 places it near the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, a desktop card with an average of 16129, while the RTX 3050 A Mobile at 8746 sits near the GeForce GTX 460 v2, a much older and slower product. The RX 9060 wins 7 of 8 head-to-head tests, including the critical gaming and compute categories. It offers double the memory, more than double the bandwidth, a 4.45x FP32 advantage, and a significantly higher boost clock. The only NVIDIA win is in Passmark DirectX 12, a narrow result that does not offset the overall gap.

For a desktop user building a system with a discrete GPU, the RX 9060 is the clear pick. It delivers superior DX9, DX10, DX11, OpenCL, compute, and 2D performance. Its 8 GB memory capacity and 288.0 GB/s bandwidth make it more suitable for modern game textures and compute datasets. The 132 W TDP requires a dual-slot cooler and an 8-pin connector, but that is a reasonable trade for the performance level. The RTX 3050 A Mobile, with its 45 W TDP and integrated form factor, is designed for laptops and has no desktop installation path. Its 4 GB memory and 192.0 GB/s bandwidth are limiting, and its 44th percentile ranking confirms it is a low-end part.

The single DirectX 12 win for NVIDIA is too narrow to recommend the RTX 3050 A Mobile for any primary role. It might be relevant in a portable device where power draw is critical and DirectX 12 workloads dominate, but the absolute scores are low. The RX 9060, with its active production status and newer architecture, is the better choice for anyone who wants a current generation desktop GPU. The RTX 3050 A Mobile is end-of-life and outperformed by a wide margin. The database measurements leave no room for ambiguity: the RX 9060 is the superior product in this comparison.

FAQ

Q: How much faster is the AMD Radeon RX 9060 than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile in overall average score?

A: The RX 9060 has an average benchmark score of 16014, while the RTX 3050 A Mobile scores 8746, giving AMD an approximately 83 percent higher average.

Q: Which GPU wins in DirectX 12 performance?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile wins the Passmark DirectX 12 test with a score of 55 versus 44 for the AMD Radeon RX 9060, a 20 percent margin in NVIDIA's favor.

Q: What is the memory capacity and bandwidth difference?

A: The RX 9060 has 8 GB of GDDR6 memory with 288.0 GB/s bandwidth, while the RTX 3050 A Mobile has 4 GB of GDDR6 with 192.0 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: How do the process nodes compare?

A: The RX 9060 is built on a 4 nm process at TSMC with 29,700 million transistors, while the RTX 3050 A Mobile uses an 8 nm process at Samsung with 12,000 million transistors.

Q: What is the FP32 compute performance for each card?

A: The RX 9060 delivers 21.43 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, compared to 4.813 TFLOPS for the RTX 3050 A Mobile.

Q: What is the TDP of each GPU?

A: The RX 9060 has a 132 W TDP, while the RTX 3050 A Mobile has a 45 W TDP.