NVIDIA A100 SXM4 40 GB vs NVIDIA RTX A4500 Mobile Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark data is unambiguous: the NVIDIA A100 SXM4 40 GB dominates the NVIDIA RTX A4500 Mobile in every recorded test. Across the two Geekbench workloads, the A100 secures 2 wins, while the RTX A4500 Mobile has 0 wins.

In Geekbench OpenCL, the A100 SXM4 40 GB scores 201,096 points, while the RTX A4500 Mobile scores 105,307 points. This represents a 91% advantage for the A100. That is nearly double the performance in raw compute throughput. For context, the A100's OpenCL score places it 1.3% ahead of the NVIDIA RTX 5000 Ada Generation (184,664), 1.9% ahead of the NVIDIA A100 SXM4 80 GB (183,725), and 2.8% ahead of the NVIDIA RTX PRO 5000 Blackwell (182,109). The RTX A4500 Mobile, by contrast, sits in a different performance tier entirely.

The gap widens in Geekbench Vulkan. The A100 SXM4 40 GB records 173,198 points, while the RTX A4500 Mobile manages 76,960 points. The delta here is 125% in favor of the A100. The Vulkan workload appears to be particularly punishing for the mobile part. The RTX A4500 Mobile's average benchmark score of 91,134 is just 0.6% below its desktop counterpart, the NVIDIA RTX A4500 (91,671), and 1.4% below the AMD Radeon Instinct MI60 (92,466). But against the A100, the mobile GPU is simply outclassed, with the A100's average score of 187,147 being roughly double the mobile part's average.

The percentile data reinforces this hierarchy. The A100 SXM4 40 GB sits in the 98th percentile of all GPUs in the database. The RTX A4500 Mobile sits in the 93rd percentile. While both are high performers, the 5-percentile gap reflects the substantial absolute difference in compute power. The A100's nearest rivals are all high-end workstation or datacenter parts, while the RTX A4500 Mobile's nearest rivals include the desktop RTX A4500 and the Quadro GP100, indicating its performance class is closer to mid-range professional cards.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs share the Ampere architecture but are built on fundamentally different silicon. The A100 SXM4 40 GB uses the GA100 chip, fabricated on a 7 nm process at TSMC. The RTX A4500 Mobile uses the GA104 chip, fabricated on an 8 nm process at Samsung. This process difference matters: the GA100 die measures 826 mm² and contains 54,200 million transistors, yielding a transistor density of 65.6 million per mm². The GA104 die is far smaller at 392 mm², with 17,400 million transistors and a density of 44.4 million per mm². The A100 packs over three times the transistor count onto a die that is more than twice the physical size.

The A100 is a server-grade compute accelerator. It uses HBM2e memory with a 5120-bit bus, delivering 1.56 TB/s of bandwidth. The RTX A4500 Mobile uses GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, delivering 512.0 GB/s. That is a threefold difference in memory bandwidth, which directly impacts data-heavy workloads. The A100 also features 40 GB of memory versus 16 GB on the mobile part. The A100 has no display outputs, reflecting its role as a compute-only SXM module. The RTX A4500 Mobile's display outputs are described as "Portable Device Dependent," meaning they vary by laptop implementation.

The core configurations differ sharply. The A100 has 6,912 shading units, 432 TMUs, 160 ROPs, and 432 tensor cores. The RTX A4500 Mobile has 5,888 shading units, 184 TMUs, 96 ROPs, and 184 tensor cores. Notably, the A100 has no dedicated ray tracing cores listed, while the RTX A4500 Mobile has 46. This is a key architectural distinction: the A100 is optimized for compute and tensor operations, not graphics rendering. The mobile part includes ray tracing hardware, making it suitable for professional graphics workloads alongside compute.

Clock speeds tell a nuanced story. The A100 has a base clock of 1095 MHz and a boost clock of 1410 MHz. The RTX A4500 Mobile has a lower base clock of 930 MHz but a higher boost clock of 1500 MHz. The mobile part boosts higher, but the A100's massive core count and memory subsystem more than compensate. The A100's memory clock is listed as 1215 MHz with 2.4 Gbps effective, while the RTX A4500 Mobile runs its GDDR6 at 2000 MHz with 16 Gbps effective. The effective memory speed is much higher on the mobile part, but the bus width difference (5120-bit vs 256-bit) makes the A100's bandwidth overwhelming.

Power envelopes are drastically different. The A100 has a TDP of 400 W, while the RTX A4500 Mobile has a TDP of 140 W. The A100 is a SXM module with no power connectors listed and a suggested PSU of 800 W. The RTX A4500 Mobile has no power connectors listed either, as mobile GPUs draw power through the laptop's internal supply. The A100's production status is end-of-life, as is the RTX A4500 Mobile's.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has higher raw compute throughput in FP32?

A: The NVIDIA A100 SXM4 40 GB achieves 19.49 TFLOPS FP32, while the NVIDIA RTX A4500 Mobile achieves 17.66 TFLOPS FP32. The A100 leads by roughly 10% in this metric.

Q: How do the memory subsystems compare?

A: The A100 uses 40 GB of HBM2e on a 5120-bit bus, delivering 1.56 TB/s bandwidth. The RTX A4500 Mobile uses 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, delivering 512.0 GB/s. The A100 has three times the bandwidth and 2.5 times the memory capacity.

Q: Does the RTX A4500 Mobile support ray tracing?

A: Yes. The RTX A4500 Mobile has 46 dedicated ray tracing cores. The A100 SXM4 40 GB lists no ray tracing cores, as it is designed for compute rather than graphics rendering.

Q: What is the transistor count difference?

A: The A100's GA100 chip contains 54,200 million transistors on an 826 mm² die. The RTX A4500 Mobile's GA104 chip contains 17,400 million transistors on a 392 mm² die. The A100 has over three times the transistor count.

Q: Which GPU has higher tensor core count?

A: The A100 has 432 tensor cores, while the RTX A4500 Mobile has 184 tensor cores. The A100's tensor core count is more than double that of the mobile part.

Q: How do the benchmark scores compare for Vulkan?

A: The A100 scores 173,198 in Geekbench Vulkan, which is 125% higher than the RTX A4500 Mobile's score of 76,960. The A100 leads by a wider margin in Vulkan than in OpenCL.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA A100 SXM4 40 GB | NVIDIA RTX A4500 Mobile |

|---|---|---|

| Chip | GA100 | GA104 |

| Process Node | 7 nm | 8 nm |

| Foundry | TSMC | Samsung |

| Transistors | 54,200 million | 17,400 million |

| Die Size | 826 mm² | 392 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 65.6M / mm² | 44.4M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1095 MHz | 930 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1410 MHz | 1500 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1215 MHz, 2.4 Gbps effective | 2000 MHz, 16 Gbps effective |

| Memory Size | 40 GB | 16 GB |

| Memory Type | HBM2e | GDDR6 |

| Memory Bus Width | 5120 bit | 256 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 1.56 TB/s | 512.0 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 6912 | 5888 |

| TMUs | 432 | 184 |

| ROPs | 160 | 96 |

| RT Cores | None listed | 46 |

| Tensor Cores | 432 | 184 |

| Pixel Rate | 225.6 GPixel/s | 144.0 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 609.1 GTexel/s | 276.0 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Performance | 19.49 TFLOPS | 17.66 TFLOPS |

| FP16 Performance | 77.97 TFLOPS (4:1) | 17.66 TFLOPS (1:1) |

| TDP | 400 W | 140 W |

| Slot Width | SXM Module | Not specified |

| Suggested PSU | 800 W | Not specified |

| Display Outputs | No outputs | Portable Device Dependent |

| API Support | Not specified | DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, Vulkan 1.4 |

| Release Date | 2020-05-13 | 2022-03-21 |

| Generation | Server Ampere (Axx) | Ampere-MW (Ax000) |

| Predecessor | Tesla Turing | Quadro Turing-M |

| Successor | Server Ada | Ada-MW |

The Verdict

The data indicates two GPUs with completely different design goals. The NVIDIA A100 SXM4 40 GB is a datacenter compute accelerator built for maximum throughput. Its 98th percentile ranking, 187,147 average benchmark score, and 400 W TDP make it a serious piece of server hardware. Its performance is 91% ahead in OpenCL and 125% ahead in Vulkan compared to the RTX A4500 Mobile. The A100's 19.49 TFLOPS FP32 and 77.97 TFLOPS FP16 (4:1) put it in a class above the mobile part. Its 1.56 TB/s memory bandwidth and 40 GB HBM2e capacity are designed for large-scale AI training, scientific simulation, and data processing tasks where memory bandwidth is the bottleneck.

The NVIDIA RTX A4500 Mobile, with a 93rd percentile ranking and 91,134 average score, is a more modest professional mobile GPU. It offers 17.66 TFLOPS FP32 and 17.66 TFLOPS FP16 (1:1), with 46 ray tracing cores and API support for DirectX 12 Ultimate, OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. Its 140 W TDP makes it suitable for laptop integration. Its 512.0 GB/s bandwidth and 16 GB GDDR6 memory are adequate for professional graphics workloads, CAD, and moderate compute tasks, but they do not approach the A100's capacity. The presence of ray tracing cores and display outputs confirms its role in workstations, not server racks.

Who should choose which? From the recorded data, the A100 SXM4 40 GB is the clear choice for anyone needing maximum compute density, massive memory bandwidth, and high FP16 throughput. It is a server module with no display outputs, so it is not for workstation graphics. The RTX A4500 Mobile is for mobile professionals who need Ampere graphics with ray tracing, API compatibility, and reasonable compute performance in a power-constrained laptop form factor. The A100 is the performance leader in every metric, but the RTX A4500 Mobile serves a fundamentally different use case. The A100 wins all benchmark comparisons, but the mobile part is the only one of the two that can render graphics on a portable device. The 400 W TDP of the A100 versus 140 W TDP for the mobile part underscores the trade-off: the A100 delivers server-class performance at server-class power, while the RTX A4500 Mobile delivers professional performance within a laptop's thermal budget.