NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 are separated by three generations of architecture, yet their average benchmark scores place them nearly identical in overall performance. The GTX 1060 3 GB posts an average benchmark score of 19334, while the GTX 780 achieves 19164, a difference of less than one percent. Both cards sit at the 64th percentile of all GPUs, indicating they occupy the same performance tier despite their architectural differences. However, the head-to-head benchmark results reveal that the two cards do not trade blows evenly across all workloads; instead, each has a clear domain of superiority.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The most decisive victory belongs to the GTX 1060 3 GB in the Geekbench Metal test. Here, the Pascal-based card scores 13527 against the GTX 780’s 10114, a delta of 33.7%. This is a substantial margin, indicating that the newer architecture’s compute capabilities are far better suited to Metal’s API requirements. The GTX 1060 3 GB also wins the Geekbench OpenCL test, scoring 27001 versus 22863, a delta of 18.1%. While not as lopsided as the Metal result, it still demonstrates a clear and consistent advantage for the GTX 1060 3 GB in general-purpose compute workloads that leverage OpenCL.

The GTX 780, however, strikes back decisively in the Geekbench Vulkan test. It scores 24514 compared to the GTX 1060 3 GB’s 17475, yielding a delta of -28.7% from the perspective of the GTX 1060 3 GB. This means the GTX 780 outperforms its younger rival by nearly 29% in this specific workload. The magnitude of this win is comparable to the GTX 1060 3 GB’s Metal advantage, suggesting that the Kepler architecture retains a significant edge in Vulkan-based rendering or compute tasks. The result is surprising given the GTX 780’s older design, but the data is unambiguous: in Vulkan, the GTX 780 is the faster card by a wide margin.

Overall, the GTX 1060 3 GB wins two of the three head-to-head tests, while the GTX 780 wins one. The average scores of the two cards are separated by only 0.9%, with the GTX 1060 3 GB holding a slight edge. This near-parity in average score, combined with the large swings in individual tests, indicates that the choice between these cards depends heavily on the specific API and workload in question. The GTX 1060 3 GB’s wins in Metal and OpenCL are consistent and significant, while the GTX 780’s Vulkan win is equally substantial, creating a balanced but polarized performance profile.

Where Each One Wins

The GTX 1060 3 GB is the clear winner in Metal and OpenCL workloads. For users who rely on applications that utilize Apple’s Metal API, such as certain creative software or games on macOS, the data shows a 33.7% advantage over the GTX 780. Similarly, in OpenCL compute tasks—which are common in video encoding, physics simulation, and some scientific applications—the GTX 1060 3 GB leads by 18.1%. This makes the GTX 1060 3 GB the stronger choice for general-purpose GPU compute, especially where OpenCL is the primary interface.

The GTX 780, on the other hand, dominates in Vulkan. The 28.7% lead in the Geekbench Vulkan test suggests that the Kepler architecture’s driver implementation or hardware design is better optimized for Vulkan’s low-level access model. This could translate to superior performance in Vulkan-based games, particularly those that are heavily optimized for the API, or in applications that use Vulkan for compute tasks. For users whose primary workload is Vulkan-centric, the GTX 780 is the faster option despite its older process node and lower clock speeds.

It is also worth remembering the GTX 780’s win in Vulkan does not lift its average score above the GTX 1060 3 GB’s. The GTX 1060 3 GB’s average benchmark score of 19334 is 0.9% higher than the GTX 780’s 19164, meaning the GTX 1060 3 GB’s two wins outweigh the GTX 780’s single, albeit large, victory. The benchmarks show a split: the GTX 1060 3 GB is the more balanced performer, while the GTX 780 is a specialist that excels in one specific API category.

The Verdict

Based strictly on the data, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB is the better overall card. It wins two of the three head-to-head benchmarks, and its average benchmark score is higher by 0.9%. The 33.7% lead in Metal and the 18.1% lead in OpenCL are substantial, and they suggest that the GTX 1060 3 GB is more capable for a wider range of modern compute workloads. The GTX 780’s 28.7% win in Vulkan is impressive but isolated, and it does not compensate for the losses in the other two tests.

For users who prioritize Metal or OpenCL performance, the GTX 1060 3 GB is the clear choice. Its wins in those tests are not marginal; they represent a significant performance advantage that would be noticeable in real-world applications. For users who are exclusively focused on Vulkan performance, the GTX 780 is the better pick, as its lead in that specific test is nearly as large as the GTX 1060 3 GB’s Metal advantage. However, for a general-purpose GPU, the GTX 1060 3 GB is the safer bet, as it delivers more consistent performance across the benchmark suite.

The GTX 780’s average score of 19164 places it in the same percentile as the GTX 1060 3 GB, and its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA TITAN Xp with a delta of -0.1% and the NVIDIA Tesla K20m with a delta of 0.4%. The GTX 1060 3 GB’s nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX with a delta of -0.4% and the NVIDIA TITAN Xp with a delta of 0.8%. These figures show that both cards are tightly clustered with other GPUs of their generation, but the GTX 1060 3 GB’s higher average score gives it a slight edge in the overall hierarchy.

FAQ

Q: Which card has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB has an average benchmark score of 19334, which is 0.9% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780’s score of 19164.

Q: How large is the GTX 1060 3 GB’s win in the Geekbench Metal test?

A: The GTX 1060 3 GB scores 13527 in the Geekbench Metal test, which is 33.7% higher than the GTX 780’s score of 10114.

Q: In which benchmark does the GTX 780 outperform the GTX 1060 3 GB?

A: The GTX 780 wins the Geekbench Vulkan test with a score of 24514, while the GTX 1060 3 GB scores 17475, resulting in a 28.7% lead for the GTX 780.

Q: What is the difference in their OpenCL scores?

A: The GTX 1060 3 GB scores 27001 in Geekbench OpenCL, which is 18.1% higher than the GTX 780’s score of 22863.

Q: How many head-to-head benchmarks does each card win?

A: The GTX 1060 3 GB wins two benchmarks (Metal and OpenCL), while the GTX 780 wins one benchmark (Vulkan).

Q: What are the percentile rankings of the two cards?

A: Both the GTX 1060 3 GB and the GTX 780 are at the 64th percentile of all GPUs, indicating they are in the same performance tier.

Architecture Differences

The two cards are built on fundamentally different architectures. The GTX 1060 3 GB uses the GP106 chip based on the Pascal architecture, manufactured on a 16 nm process at TSMC. It contains 4,400 million transistors on a die size of 200 mm², resulting in a transistor density of 22.0M / mm². The GTX 780 uses the GK110 chip based on the older Kepler architecture, manufactured on a 28 nm process at TSMC. It contains 7,080 million transistors on a much larger die size of 561 mm², with a transistor density of 12.6M / mm². The Pascal chip is smaller and denser, while the Kepler chip is larger but less dense.

The GTX 1060 3 GB has 1152 shading units, 72 texture mapping units, and 48 ROPs. The GTX 780 has 2304 shading units, 192 texture mapping units, and 48 ROPs. The GTX 780 has twice the shading units and TMUs, but the same number of ROPs. This difference in shader count is partially offset by clock speeds: the GTX 1060 3 GB has a base clock of 1506 MHz and a boost clock of 1708 MHz, while the GTX 780 has a base clock of 863 MHz and a boost clock of 902 MHz. The GTX 1060 3 GB’s higher clocks help it achieve a pixel rate of 81.98 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 123.0 GTexel/s, while the GTX 780 achieves a pixel rate of 43.30 GPixel/s but a higher texture rate of 173.2 GTexel/s.

In terms of floating-point performance, the GTX 1060 3 GB delivers 3.935 TFLOPS of FP32 compute, while the GTX 780 delivers 4.156 TFLOPS. The GTX 1060 3 GB also supports FP16 at 61.49 GFLOPS with a 1:64 ratio, while the GTX 780 has no FP16 capability listed. The GTX 1060 3 GB supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The GTX 780 supports DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175. The newer Vulkan version on the GTX 1060 3 GB is notable, even though the GTX 780 wins the Vulkan benchmark.

Specification Differences

The most obvious difference is the process node: the GTX 1060 3 GB uses a 16 nm process, while the GTX 780 uses a 28 nm process. This leads to a significant difference in power consumption. The GTX 1060 3 GB has a TDP of 120 W and requires a single 6-pin power connector, with a suggested PSU of 300 W. The GTX 780 has a TDP of 250 W and requires a 6-pin and an 8-pin power connector, with a suggested PSU of 600 W. The GTX 780 also has a longer physical length of 267 mm (10.5 inches) compared to the GTX 1060 3 GB’s 250 mm (9.8 inches). The GTX 780 includes height and width dimensions of 111 mm and 38 mm, respectively, while the GTX 1060 3 GB does not list those dimensions.

Memory configurations are similar in size but differ in bus width and bandwidth. Both cards have 3 GB of GDDR5 memory, but the GTX 1060 3 GB uses a 192-bit bus with 192.2 GB/s of bandwidth, while the GTX 780 uses a 384-bit bus with 288.4 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTX 780’s memory clock is 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective), while the GTX 1060 3 GB’s memory clock is 2002 MHz (8 Gbps effective). Despite the higher memory clock on the GTX 1060 3 GB, the GTX 780’s wider bus gives it significantly more memory bandwidth.

Display outputs also differ. The GTX 1060 3 GB offers 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0, and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a. The GTX 780 offers 2x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, and 1x DisplayPort 1.2. The newer display standards on the GTX 1060 3 GB support higher resolutions and refresh rates. The GTX 1060 3 GB was released on 2016-08-17, while the GTX 780 was released on 2013-05-22. The GTX 1060 3 GB has a launch MSRP of 199 USD, while the GTX 780 has a launch MSRP of 649 USD. Both cards are end-of-life, with the GTX 1060 3 GB’s predecessor being the GeForce 900 series and its successor the GeForce 20 series, while the GTX 780’s predecessor is the GeForce 600 series and its successor the GeForce 900 series.