AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 SUPER Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 benchmark provides the single comparable performance data point. In this test, the AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB scores 4093, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 SUPER scores 3075. The AMD card wins this match-up by a decisive 33.1%, a substantial margin that places it firmly ahead in this specific workload.

This result runs counter to what the raw specifications might suggest. The NVIDIA card carries a much larger die, more shading units, and significantly higher memory bandwidth. Yet the database shows the AMD part delivering a 1018-point advantage in absolute score terms. The delta of 33.1% is not a small edge; it is a dominant one. For context, the AMD card sits at the 24th percentile among all GPUs in the database, while the NVIDIA card sits at the 19th percentile. Both are mid-pack performers overall, but the AMD card is clearly the stronger of the two in this test.

Looking at the nearest rivals for each card reinforces this picture. The AMD RX 9060 XT edges out the Intel HD Graphics 630 by just 0.4%, with a 4093 score versus 4075. It also leads the NVIDIA GeForce GT 755M by 1.5%. On the other side, it trails the AMD Radeon R5 M330 by 1.8% and the NVIDIA Quadro K2100M by 1.4%. These are tight margins, showing that the AMD card is competitive with a cluster of older or lower-tier parts, but it is not head-and-shoulders above them. Its win over the RTX 5080 SUPER, however, is a clear outlier in the opposite direction.

The NVIDIA RTX 5080 SUPER, by contrast, sits among a different set of rivals. It trails the NVIDIA Quadro P1000 by 2.8% and the Intel Arc Pro B60 by 3.4%. It leads the NVIDIA GeForce 820A by 3.1% and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 860M by 3.6%. Its 3075 score places it in a lower performance band than the AMD card, and its nearest rival comparisons show it trading blows with entry-level and mobile-class GPUs. The head-to-head delta of 33.1% is therefore not a fluke; it reflects a genuine gap in measured performance between these two cards in the Steel Nomad workload.

The benchmark result indicates that architectural efficiency matters more than raw resource counts in this test. The AMD card uses a smaller die and fewer transistors yet still produces a higher score. The NVIDIA card has more of nearly everything: more shading units, more texture units, more ROPs, more RT cores, and more tensor cores. None of that translated into a win here. The data shows one clear winner in this head-to-head, and it is the AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB.

The Verdict

The data indicates that the AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB should be the pick for anyone prioritizing the specific 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 benchmark. It wins the only recorded head-to-head test, with a score of 4093 against 3075 for the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 SUPER, a 33.1% advantage. The AMD card also holds a higher percentile rank, 24 versus 19, meaning it outperforms a larger share of the GPU population in the database.

The NVIDIA card is not without its strengths on paper, but the benchmark data does not support it in this comparison. Its 3075 score places it below the AMD card in absolute terms, and its nearest rival deltas are smaller in magnitude. The NVIDIA part does not win any recorded test in this head-to-head pair. Its higher specifications, including a larger memory pool and faster memory type, do not produce a better result in the Steel Nomad test.

For a builder focused purely on measured performance in this workload, the choice is straightforward. The AMD card delivers the higher score and the higher percentile. The NVIDIA card, despite its larger physical footprint and higher launch MSRP of 999 USD, does not deliver a competitive result here. The AMD card, with a launch MSRP of 299 USD, wins the only performance comparison the database records. The verdict from the data is clear: the AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB is the better performer in this head-to-head.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB wins the sole recorded benchmark, the 3dmark_3dmark_steel_nomad_dx12 test. This is a DX12 workload, and the AMD card scores 4093 against the NVIDIA card's 3075. The 33.1% delta is the only win margin in the entire comparison. For any use case that relies on this specific DirectX 12 benchmark, the AMD card is the clear choice. Its higher percentile rank, 24 versus 19, also suggests it performs better across the broader GPU landscape in the database.

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 SUPER wins no recorded benchmarks in this comparison. Its wins, if any, would have to come from characteristics not captured by the Steel Nomad test. It has 24 GB of memory versus 8 GB, which may matter for workloads with large memory footprints, but the database does not record a benchmark showing that advantage. It also has a wider memory bus and higher bandwidth, 1.02 TB/s versus 322.3 GB/s, but again, no test confirms an advantage from these features.

In terms of use-case splits, the data only supports one conclusion: the AMD card wins the measured test, and the NVIDIA card has no measured wins. If a workload is similar to Steel Nomad, the AMD card should be favored. If a workload is not represented by this benchmark, the database provides no evidence either way. The NVIDIA card's larger memory capacity could be relevant for future tests, but that remains speculative. The recorded data shows a single win for AMD and none for NVIDIA.

FAQ

Q: Which card scores higher in the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 benchmark?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB scores 4093, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 SUPER scores 3075. The AMD card wins by 33.1%.

Q: What is the percentile ranking of each card in the database?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB sits at the 24th percentile among all GPUs. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 SUPER sits at the 19th percentile.

Q: How does the AMD card compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The AMD card is 0.4% ahead of the Intel HD Graphics 630, 1.5% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 755M, 1.4% behind the NVIDIA Quadro K2100M, and 1.8% behind the AMD Radeon R5 M330.

Q: How does the NVIDIA card compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The NVIDIA card is 2.8% behind the NVIDIA Quadro P1000, 3.4% behind the Intel Arc Pro B60, 3.1% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce 820A, and 3.6% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 860M.

Q: Which card has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB has an average benchmark score of 4093. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 3075.

Q: How many benchmark wins does each card have in the head-to-head?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB has 1 win. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 SUPER has 0 wins.

Architecture Differences

The two cards use completely different architectures. The AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB is built on RDNA 4.0, with the Navi 44 chip and the codename Strix Point. It belongs to the Navi IV generation within the RX 9000 series. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 SUPER uses Blackwell 2.0, with the GB203 chip and no codename listed. It belongs to the GeForce 50 generation.

The manufacturing process differs as well, though both use TSMC. The AMD card is on a 4 nm node, while the NVIDIA card uses a 5 nm node. The AMD chip has 29,700 million transistors on a 199 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 149.2 million per mm². The NVIDIA chip has 45,600 million transistors on a 378 mm² die, giving a density of 120.6 million per mm². The AMD die is smaller and denser, while the NVIDIA die is larger overall.

Compute resources differ substantially. The AMD card has 2048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs. It also has 32 RT cores and no tensor cores. The NVIDIA card has 10,752 shading units, 336 texture mapping units, and 112 ROPs. It has 84 RT cores and 336 tensor cores. The NVIDIA card has over five times the shading units and more than double the RT cores. The AMD card does not list tensor cores at all, meaning it lacks the dedicated tensor hardware that the NVIDIA card includes.

The memory architectures also differ. The AMD card uses 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus. The NVIDIA card uses 24 GB of GDDR7 on a 256-bit bus. The memory clocks differ: the AMD card runs at 2518 MHz with 20.1 Gbps effective, while the NVIDIA card runs at 2000 MHz with 32 Gbps effective. The resulting bandwidths are 322.3 GB/s for AMD and 1.02 TB/s for NVIDIA.

The display outputs are nearly identical, with both cards offering 1x HDMI 2.1b. The AMD card provides 2x DisplayPort 2.1a, while the NVIDIA card provides 3x DisplayPort 2.1b. Both support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The API support is identical across both cards.

Specification Differences

The most significant difference between the two cards is memory capacity. The AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB has 8 GB of GDDR6, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 SUPER has 24 GB of GDDR7. The NVIDIA card also has a wider memory bus, 256-bit versus 128-bit, and more than three times the bandwidth, 1.02 TB/s versus 322.3 GB/s. The memory clock differs as well: 2000 MHz with 32 Gbps effective for NVIDIA, against 2518 MHz with 20.1 Gbps effective for AMD.

The GPU clock speeds are different. The AMD card has a base clock of 1700 MHz, a boost clock of 3130 MHz, and a game clock of 2530 MHz. The NVIDIA card has a base clock of 2295 MHz and a boost clock of 2617 MHz, with no game clock listed. The AMD card boosts higher, while the NVIDIA card has a higher base clock.

Compute rates differ across the board. The AMD card delivers 25.64 TFLOPS for both FP32 and FP16, with a 1:1 ratio. The NVIDIA card delivers 56.28 TFLOPS for both, also at 1:1. The NVIDIA card has more than double the FP32 throughput. Pixel rates are 200.3 GPixel/s for AMD and 293.1 GPixel/s for NVIDIA. Texture rates are 400.6 GTexel/s for AMD and 879.3 GTexel/s for NVIDIA.

Power requirements differ significantly. The AMD card has a TDP of 150 W and uses a single 8-pin power connector, with a suggested PSU of 450 W. The NVIDIA card has a TDP of 415 W and uses a single 16-pin power connector, with no suggested PSU listed. The NVIDIA card consumes substantially more power, nearly three times the AMD card's TDP.

Physical dimensions are only listed for the NVIDIA card: 304 mm in length, 137 mm in height, and 40 mm in width. The AMD card has no listed dimensions. Both cards are dual-slot and use PCIe 5.0 x16. The AMD card launched on 2025-06-03, while the NVIDIA card launched on 2025-12-31. Both are listed as Active in production status.