AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile Comparison

The benchmark data presents a stark generational and performance-class divide. The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT is the decisive winner in 9 of 10 head-to-head tests, often by triple-digit percentage margins, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile claims a single, surprising victory in one compute workload. The RX 9070 XT is a desktop-class powerhouse, whereas the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile is an end-of-life laptop chip, and their benchmark scores reflect this fundamental difference in purpose and capability.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The most dramatic disparity appears in the 3dmark_3dmark_steel_nomad_dx12 test, a modern DirectX 12 workload. The RX 9070 XT scores 7260, while the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile manages only 469. This is a delta of 1448%, meaning the AMD card delivers over 15 times the performance in this specific test. This single result encapsulates the entire performance gulf between a current-generation desktop GPU and a previous-generation mobile part.

In traditional rasterization tests, the RX 9070 XT’s dominance is consistent and overwhelming. In passmark_directx_11, the AMD card scores 292 against the NVIDIA’s 76, a 284.2% advantage. The pattern repeats in passmark_directx_9 (353 vs 120, a 194.2% lead) and passmark_directx_10 (154 vs 60, a 156.7% lead). Even in the more modern passmark_directx_12 test, where the gap narrows, the RX 9070 XT still wins with a 59.2% margin (78 vs 49). These results indicate that the architectural efficiency of RDNA 4.0 provides a massive advantage across all DirectX feature levels, not just the newest ones.

The passmark_g3d test, a comprehensive 3D graphics benchmark, shows the RX 9070 XT scoring 26795 versus 10093 for the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile, a 165.5% victory. This is a more holistic measure of graphics throughput, and it confirms that the AMD card is in a completely different performance tier. Similarly, the passmark_g2d test for 2D graphics shows a 166.7% lead for the AMD card (1328 vs 498), indicating faster rendering even in less demanding scenarios.

Compute performance tells a more nuanced story. In passmark_gpu_compute, the RX 9070 XT wins by 268.5% (15864 vs 4305), leveraging its 4096 shading units and 48.66 TFLOPS of FP32 compute. However, the sole NVIDIA victory comes in geekbench_opencl, where the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile scores 57915 against the RX 9070 XT’s 17428, a -69.9% delta for AMD. This is a significant outlier, suggesting that the OpenCL workload in this specific test is optimized for NVIDIA’s architecture or that the mobile chip’s drivers handle this particular benchmark exceptionally well. It is a notable data point, but it does not offset the AMD card’s overwhelming wins elsewhere.

The geekbench_vulkan test favors the RX 9070 XT, which scores 65879 versus 55812, an 18% lead. While this is a more modest margin than the DirectX tests, it still demonstrates clear superiority in the Vulkan API. The overall picture is one of total dominance for the RX 9070 XT, with the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile’s single OpenCL win appearing as an anomaly rather than a sign of competitive capability.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT is the vastly superior product. It wins 9 out of 10 benchmarks, often by margins exceeding 150%, and its average benchmark score of 13543 is above the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile’s 12940. This is not a close contest; it is a complete mismatch in performance class.

The RX 9070 XT is for users who demand maximum frame rates and high-fidelity graphics in demanding modern games. Its 16 GB of GDDR6 memory and 644.6 GB/s of bandwidth provide the resources needed for high-resolution textures and complex scenes. The RTX 3050 Ti Mobile, with its 4 GB of memory and 192.0 GB/s bandwidth, is a legacy part from 2021 that cannot compete in the same league. Its 53rd percentile ranking versus the RX 9070 XT’s 55th percentile is misleading; the raw score difference is far more telling.

The RTX 3050 Ti Mobile’s only viable use case, based on this data, is in the specific geekbench_opencl workload where it excels. For any other task, from DirectX gaming to general compute, the RX 9070 XT is the clear choice. The NVIDIA part is end-of-life, while the AMD card is active and current. For any new system build, the RX 9070 XT is the only rational option.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs are built on fundamentally different architectures and process nodes. The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT uses the RDNA 4.0 architecture, manufactured on a 4 nm process at TSMC. It is built on the Navi 48 chip with a die size of 357 mm² and a massive 53,900 million transistors. In contrast, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile uses the older Ampere architecture, manufactured on an 8 nm process at Samsung. Its GA106 chip measures 276 mm² but contains only 12,000 million transistors.

This process and architecture difference results in a significant transistor density gap. The RX 9070 XT packs 151.0 million transistors per mm², while the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile manages only 43.5 million per mm². This density advantage allows AMD to include far more compute resources. The RX 9070 XT has 4096 shading units, 256 TMUs, and 128 ROPs, compared to the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile’s 2560 shading units, 80 TMUs, and 32 ROPs.

Ray tracing and tensor cores also differ. The RX 9070 XT features 64 dedicated ray tracing cores, while the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile has 20. The NVIDIA part includes 80 tensor cores, a feature absent from the AMD specification. This means the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile has dedicated hardware for AI workloads and DLSS, which the RX 9070 XT lacks, relying instead on its raw compute power.

The clock speeds highlight the different design philosophies. The RX 9070 XT has a base clock of 1660 MHz and a boost clock of 2970 MHz, with a game clock rated at 2400 MHz. The RTX 3050 Ti Mobile runs at a much lower 735 MHz base and 1035 MHz boost, reflecting its mobile, power-constrained nature. The memory systems are also starkly different: the RX 9070 XT uses a 256-bit bus with GDDR6 running at 20.1 Gbps effective, while the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile uses a 128-bit bus at 12 Gbps effective.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has more memory and bandwidth?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT has 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 644.6 GB/s of bandwidth. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile has 4 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, with only 192.0 GB/s of bandwidth.

Q: What is the performance difference in the 3DMark Steel Nomad test?

A: The RX 9070 XT scores 7260, while the RTX 3050 Ti Mobile scores 469. This results in a massive 1448% delta in favor of the AMD card.

Q: Does the NVIDIA GPU win any benchmarks?

A: Yes. The RTX 3050 Ti Mobile wins the geekbench_opencl test, scoring 57915 compared to the RX 9070 XT’s 17428, a -69.9% delta for AMD.

Q: What are the process nodes for each GPU?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT is built on a 4 nm process at TSMC. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile uses an 8 nm process at Samsung.

Q: Which GPU has more ray tracing cores?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT has 64 ray tracing cores, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile has 20.

Q: What is the power consumption difference?

A: The RX 9070 XT has a TDP of 304 W and requires a 700 W power supply with two 8-pin connectors. The RTX 3050 Ti Mobile has a TDP of 75 W and uses no external power connectors.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT wins in virtually every scenario that involves traditional graphics rendering. In DirectX 9, 10, 11, and 12 tests, it leads by margins ranging from 59.2% to 284.2%. Its victory in the 3DMark Steel Nomad test (1448% delta) shows it is exceptionally well-suited for modern, demanding DirectX 12 workloads. The passmark_g3d score of 26795 confirms its dominance in general 3D rendering. For anyone building a high-performance desktop for gaming or content creation, the RX 9070 XT is the clear winner based on the data.

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Mobile has its single moment of triumph in the geekbench_opencl test. Its score of 57915 is 69.9% higher than the AMD card’s 17428. This suggests that for specific OpenCL compute tasks, the NVIDIA architecture or its drivers have a distinct advantage. This could be relevant for users running legacy or specialized software that relies heavily on OpenCL performance. However, this is a narrow specialization. In every other measured metric, the AMD card is superior. The RTX 3050 Ti Mobile is also the only one of the two with tensor cores, which could be advantageous for AI inference tasks, though no benchmark data is provided to quantify this.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ across nearly every specification. The process node is 4 nm for AMD and 8 nm for NVIDIA. The transistor count is 53,900 million for AMD versus 12,000 million for NVIDIA. The die size is 357 mm² for AMD and 276 mm² for NVIDIA. The base clock is 1660 MHz for AMD and 735 MHz for NVIDIA, while the boost clock is 2970 MHz for AMD and 1035 MHz for NVIDIA.

The memory systems are fundamentally different: AMD has 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus with 644.6 GB/s bandwidth; NVIDIA has 4 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus with 192.0 GB/s bandwidth. The shading units number 4096 for AMD and 2560 for NVIDIA. The TMUs are 256 for AMD and 80 for NVIDIA, and the ROPs are 128 for AMD and 32 for NVIDIA. The ray tracing cores are 64 for AMD and 20 for NVIDIA. The tensor cores are present only on NVIDIA (80), with none listed for AMD.

The FP32 performance is 48.66 TFLOPS for AMD and 5.299 TFLOPS for NVIDIA. The pixel rate is 380.2 GPixel/s for AMD and 33.12 GPixel/s for NVIDIA. The texture rate is 760.3 GTexel/s for AMD and 82.80 GTexel/s for NVIDIA. The TDP is 304 W for AMD and 75 W for NVIDIA. The slot width is dual-slot for AMD and IGP for NVIDIA. The power connectors are 2x 8-pin for AMD and none for NVIDIA. The bus interface is PCIe 5.0 x16 for AMD and PCIe 4.0 x16 for NVIDIA. The display outputs are 1x HDMI 2.1b and 3x DisplayPort 2.1a for AMD, versus “Portable Device Dependent” for NVIDIA. The production status is “Active” for AMD and “End-of-life” for NVIDIA.