AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile and AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 represent two very different eras of GPU design. The data shows a single direct benchmark comparison, with the RTX 5080 Mobile delivering a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 4952 against the RX Vega 56’s 1501, a decisive 229.9% advantage. While the RX Vega 56 holds its own in aggregate scoring, the modern architecture of the RTX 5080 Mobile proves overwhelmingly dominant in this specific DirectX 12 workload.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only shared benchmark between the two GPUs is the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, and the result is a complete rout. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile scores 4952, while the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 manages just 1501. This translates to a delta of 229.9% in favor of the RTX 5080 Mobile, meaning it delivers over three times the performance in this particular test. The margin is so large that it suggests a generational leap rather than a simple performance tier difference.

Beyond this direct comparison, the aggregate benchmark data paints a broader picture. The RTX 5080 Mobile has an average benchmark score of 38349 across ten different tests, including 3DMark, Geekbench OpenCL and Vulkan, and multiple Passmark iterations. In contrast, the RX Vega 56’s average score of 37507 is based on only two benchmarks: the same 3DMark Steel Nomad test and a Geekbench Metal result of 73512. The average scores are remarkably close—a difference of just 842 points, or roughly 2.2%—which is surprising given the extreme disparity in the Steel Nomad test.

This apparent contradiction is explained by the benchmark mix. The RTX 5080 Mobile’s average is pulled down by its Passmark DirectX 10, 11, and 12 scores of 171, 253, and 116 respectively, which are low in absolute terms. The RX Vega 56’s Geekbench Metal score of 73512 is a strong contributor to its average, but the data does not provide a direct comparison for that test on the RTX 5080 Mobile. The Steel Nomad result remains the only apples-to-apples comparison, and there the RTX 5080 Mobile wins with a 229.9% delta.

Where Each One Wins

Based on the head-to-head data, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile wins the only shared benchmark, the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test. This workload is indicative of modern DirectX 12 gaming and compute tasks, where the RTX 5080 Mobile’s architecture excels. The 229.9% margin suggests that for any current-generation DirectX 12 application, the RTX 5080 Mobile is the clear choice.

The AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 does not win any shared benchmark against the RTX 5080 Mobile, as the wins tally shows 1 for NVIDIA and 0 for AMD. However, the RX Vega 56’s Geekbench Metal score of 73512 is notable, though without a corresponding Metal score for the RTX 5080 Mobile, no direct comparison can be made. The RX Vega 56 also has a higher aggregate percentile ranking relative to its rivals, sitting at 81st percentile versus the RTX 5080 Mobile’s 81st percentile as well, indicating both are in the same overall performance bracket when considering the full GPU landscape.

For users prioritizing the only directly comparable metric, the RTX 5080 Mobile wins outright. The RX Vega 56 may still serve legacy applications or Metal-based workloads, but the data does not support any scenario where it outperforms the RTX 5080 Mobile in a shared test.

FAQ

Q: How much faster is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile than the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12?

A: The RTX 5080 Mobile scores 4952 versus the RX Vega 56’s 1501, a delta of 229.9% in favor of the NVIDIA GPU.

Q: What is the average benchmark score for each GPU?

A: The RTX 5080 Mobile has an average benchmark score of 38349 across ten tests, while the RX Vega 56 has an average of 37507 across two tests. The difference is 842 points, or about 2.2%.

Q: Which GPU has a higher percentile ranking among all GPUs?

A: Both GPUs are at the 81st percentile versus all GPUs, indicating they occupy a similar overall performance tier despite their architectural differences.

Q: Does the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 have any benchmark where it beats the RTX 5080 Mobile?

A: No. The only shared benchmark is 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, where the RTX 5080 Mobile wins with a 229.9% delta. The wins tally is 1 for NVIDIA and 0 for AMD.

Q: What is the memory configuration difference between the two?

A: The RTX 5080 Mobile has 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus with 896.0 GB/s bandwidth, while the RX Vega 56 has 8 GB of HBM2 memory on a 2048-bit bus with 409.6 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: How do the transistor counts compare?

A: The RTX 5080 Mobile has 45,600 million transistors on a 378 mm² die, while the RX Vega 56 has 12,500 million transistors on a larger 495 mm² die. The resulting transistor density is 120.6M / mm² for the NVIDIA chip versus 25.3M / mm² for the AMD chip.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ across nearly every core specification. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile features 7680 shading units, 240 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 96 render output units (ROPs). The AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 has 3584 shading units, 224 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. The RTX 5080 Mobile also includes 60 RT cores and 240 tensor cores, while the RX Vega 56 has none of either.

Clock speeds differ significantly in base values, with the RTX 5080 Mobile running at 975 MHz base and 1500 MHz boost, compared to the RX Vega 56’s 1156 MHz base and 1471 MHz boost. Memory clocks are also distinct: the RTX 5080 Mobile uses 1750 MHz (28 Gbps effective) GDDR7, while the RX Vega 56 uses 800 MHz (1600 Mbps effective) HBM2.

The power envelope is a major separator. The RTX 5080 Mobile has a TDP of 80 W, while the RX Vega 56 draws 210 W. The RX Vega 56 requires a dual-slot cooler and 2x 8-pin power connectors, with a suggested PSU of 550 W, whereas the RTX 5080 Mobile is an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with no power connectors and no suggested PSU listed. The RX Vega 56 is a 280 mm long, 111 mm tall, 40 mm wide card, while the RTX 5080 Mobile’s dimensions are not specified.

The bus interface also differs: the RTX 5080 Mobile uses PCIe 5.0 x16, while the RX Vega 56 uses PCIe 3.0 x16. Display outputs on the RX Vega 56 are 1x HDMI 2.0b and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, while the RTX 5080 Mobile’s outputs are listed as portable device dependent.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two GPUs is generational. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture using the GB203 chip, fabricated on a 5 nm process at TSMC. The AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 uses the GCN 5.0 architecture with the Vega 10 chip, built on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. This process difference alone explains the transistor density disparity: 120.6M transistors per mm² for the RTX 5080 Mobile versus 25.3M per mm² for the RX Vega 56.

The RTX 5080 Mobile supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), Vulkan 1.4, and OpenGL 4.6. The RX Vega 56 supports DirectX 12 (12_1), Vulkan 1.3, and OpenGL 4.6. The RTX 5080 Mobile’s FP32 throughput is 23.04 TFLOPS, with FP16 at the same rate (1:1), while the RX Vega 56 offers 10.54 TFLOPS FP32 and 21.09 TFLOPS FP16 (2:1). The RTX 5080 Mobile’s pixel rate is 144.0 GPixel/s and texture rate is 360.0 GTexel/s, versus 94.14 GPixel/s and 329.5 GTexel/s for the RX Vega 56.

The RTX 5080 Mobile is part of the GeForce 50-series, released in 2025, and is the successor to the GeForce 40 Mobile. The RX Vega 56 is from the Vega generation, released in 2017, with a predecessor of Polaris and a successor of Navi. The RTX 5080 Mobile is marked as Active in production, while the RX Vega 56 is End-of-life.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous in direct comparison. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile outperforms the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 by 229.9% in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, the only shared benchmark. This is a massive margin that reflects the architectural and process node advantages of the newer NVIDIA GPU. The RTX 5080 Mobile’s 80 W TDP versus the RX Vega 56’s 210 W TDP further underscores its efficiency, delivering far more performance at less than half the power draw.

For users seeking maximum DirectX 12 performance in a mobile form factor, the RTX 5080 Mobile is the clear choice. Its 16 GB of GDDR7 memory, 60 RT cores, and 240 tensor cores provide a feature set that the RX Vega 56 cannot match, as the latter lacks ray tracing and tensor core hardware entirely. The RTX 5080 Mobile’s 5 nm process and 45,600 million transistors in a smaller die also indicate a more advanced design.

The RX Vega 56, despite its 81st percentile ranking and comparable average benchmark score, is an older card from 2017 with a 14 nm process and 12,500 million transistors. Its 8 GB HBM2 memory and 2048-bit bus are unique, but the bandwidth of 409.6 GB/s is less than half of the RTX 5080 Mobile’s 896.0 GB/s. The RX Vega 56 may still serve users running Metal-based applications, as suggested by its Geekbench Metal score, but the data provides no evidence of it winning any direct comparison.

In summary, the RTX 5080 Mobile is the superior GPU in every measurable shared metric. The RX Vega 56 remains a viable legacy option, but for anyone choosing between these two based on the available benchmark data, the NVIDIA card is the only rational pick. The 229.9% lead in Steel Nomad is the single most important number in this comparison, and it decisively favors the newer architecture.