NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded benchmark data shows a clear split between the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050, with the older card winning 7 of the 10 direct comparisons. The most decisive victory for the RTX 2080 SUPER comes in the Passmark DirectX 10 test, where it scores 140 against 103 for the RTX 5050, a margin of 35.9%. That is the largest percentage gap in either direction across the entire head-to-head set.

The Geekbench Vulkan result is nearly as lopsided. The RTX 2080 SUPER posts 111284, while the RTX 5050 manages 89381, a 24.5% advantage for the Turing card. The Passmark DirectX 9 test also favors the older GPU by 22%, with scores of 227 and 186 respectively. These legacy API results indicate that the RTX 2080 SUPER retains a substantial edge in older workloads, likely due to its wider memory bus and higher raw shading throughput in those specific paths.

The DirectX 11 and DirectX 12 Passmark tests also go to the RTX 2080 SUPER, but by smaller margins. In DirectX 11, the score is 165 against 150, a 10% difference. In DirectX 12, the gap narrows to 13.6%, with 75 versus 66. The Passmark G3D score, which aggregates general 3D performance, shows the RTX 2080 SUPER ahead at 19490 versus 17326, a 12.5% advantage. The Geekbench OpenCL result also favors the RTX 2080 SUPER, with 99226 versus 90334, a 9.8% lead.

The RTX 5050 does have its own wins. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test is the most significant: the RTX 5050 scores 2502 against 1882 for the RTX 2080 SUPER, a 24.8% advantage. This is a modern, demanding DirectX 12 workload, and the newer architecture clearly handles it more efficiently. The Passmark G2D test, which measures 2D graphics performance, goes to the RTX 5050 with 1113 versus 920, a 17.3% margin. Finally, the Passmark GPU Compute test favors the RTX 5050, scoring 9184 against 8290, a 9.7% lead. These results show that the RTX 5050 is not simply a weaker card across the board; it wins in compute-oriented and modern DX12 scenarios.

Looking at overall averages, the RTX 2080 SUPER has an average benchmark score of 24170, while the RTX 5050 sits at 21035. That is a difference of roughly 15% in favor of the older card. The percentile rankings reflect this as well: the RTX 2080 SUPER sits at the 69th percentile among all GPUs in the database, while the RTX 5050 sits at the 66th percentile. In terms of nearest rivals, the RTX 2080 SUPER trades blows with cards like the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT, which scores 24442 and is 1.1% ahead, and the AMD Radeon RX 6800S, which scores 24063 and is 0.4% behind. The RTX 5050, by contrast, sits near the AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT, which scores 20713 and is 1.6% behind, and the NVIDIA RTX A4000 Mobile, which scores 21379 and is 1.6% ahead.

Architecture Differences

The two cards come from very different eras of NVIDIA design. The RTX 2080 SUPER uses the TU104 chip built on the Turing architecture, fabricated on a 12 nm process at TSMC. The RTX 5050 uses the GB207 chip built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture, also fabricated at TSMC but on a 5 nm process. This process shrink is dramatic: the RTX 2080 SUPER has a die size of 545 mm², while the RTX 5050 is just 149 mm². Transistor counts tell a similar story, with the RTX 2080 SUPER at 13,600 million transistors and the RTX 5050 at 16,900 million. The transistor density jumps from 25.0M per mm² on the Turing card to 113.4M per mm² on the Blackwell card.

The compute configurations differ substantially. The RTX 2080 SUPER has 3072 shading units, 192 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs. The RTX 5050 has 2560 shading units, 80 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The RTX 2080 SUPER also carries 48 RT cores and 384 tensor cores, while the RTX 5050 has 20 RT cores and 80 tensor cores. Despite having fewer cores, the RTX 5050 achieves higher FP32 throughput at 13.17 TFLOPS versus 11.15 TFLOPS for the RTX 2080 SUPER. The FP16 numbers are more telling: the RTX 2080 SUPER delivers 22.30 TFLOPS with a 2:1 ratio, while the RTX 5050 delivers 13.17 TFLOPS with a 1:1 ratio, meaning it does not accelerate FP16 at twice the rate of FP32.

Memory architecture is another major division. Both cards have 8 GB of GDDR6, but the RTX 2080 SUPER uses a 256-bit bus with 495.9 GB/s of bandwidth, while the RTX 5050 uses a 128-bit bus with 320.0 GB/s. The clock speeds favor the newer card: the RTX 5050 has a base clock of 2317 MHz and a boost of 2572 MHz, while the RTX 2080 SUPER runs at 1650 MHz base and 1815 MHz boost. Memory clocks also differ, with the RTX 5050 at 2500 MHz (20 Gbps effective) versus 1937 MHz (15.5 Gbps effective) for the RTX 2080 SUPER.

The bus interface differs as well. The RTX 2080 SUPER uses PCIe 3.0 x16, while the RTX 5050 uses PCIe 5.0 x8. Display outputs are not identical: the RTX 2080 SUPER offers 1x HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, and 1x USB Type-C, while the RTX 5050 offers 1x HDMI 2.1b and 3x DisplayPort 2.1b. Power requirements show the efficiency gains of the newer process: the RTX 2080 SUPER has a TDP of 250 W with a suggested PSU of 600 W and requires 1x 6-pin plus 1x 8-pin connectors, while the RTX 5050 has a TDP of 130 W, a suggested PSU of 300 W, and a single 8-pin connector. Both cards support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

FAQ

Q: Which card is faster in the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 benchmark?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 wins this test with a score of 2502, compared to 1882 for the RTX 2080 SUPER, a 24.8% advantage.

Q: Does the RTX 2080 SUPER outperform the RTX 5050 in legacy DirectX workloads?

A: Yes. The RTX 2080 SUPER leads in Passmark DirectX 9 (227 vs 186, 22% ahead), DirectX 10 (140 vs 103, 35.9% ahead), DirectX 11 (165 vs 150, 10% ahead), and DirectX 12 (75 vs 66, 13.6% ahead).

Q: How do the two cards compare in compute performance?

A: The RTX 5050 wins the Passmark GPU Compute test with 9184 versus 8290, a 9.7% margin. However, the RTX 2080 SUPER wins the Geekbench OpenCL test with 99226 versus 90334, a 9.8% margin.

Q: Which card has more memory bandwidth?

A: The RTX 2080 SUPER has significantly more bandwidth at 495.9 GB/s, thanks to its 256-bit bus, while the RTX 5050 offers 320.0 GB/s over a 128-bit bus. Both cards have 8 GB of GDDR6 memory.

Q: What is the transistor density difference between the two architectures?

A: The RTX 5050, built on a 5 nm process, has a transistor density of 113.4M per mm², while the RTX 2080 SUPER, built on 12 nm, has 25.0M per mm². The RTX 5050 packs 16,900 million transistors into a 149 mm² die, while the RTX 2080 SUPER has 13,600 million transistors on a 545 mm² die.

Q: Which card sits higher in the overall GPU percentile rankings?

A: The RTX 2080 SUPER sits at the 69th percentile among all GPUs, while the RTX 5050 sits at the 66th percentile. The average benchmark scores are 24170 for the RTX 2080 SUPER and 21035 for the RTX 5050.

Specification Differences

| Specification | RTX 2080 SUPER | RTX 5050 |

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

| Architecture | Turing | Blackwell 2.0 |

| Chip | TU104 | GB207 |

| Process node | 12 nm | 5 nm |

| Transistors | 13,600 million | 16,900 million |

| Die size | 545 mm² | 149 mm² |

| Transistor density | 25.0M / mm² | 113.4M / mm² |

| Base clock | 1650 MHz | 2317 MHz |

| Boost clock | 1815 MHz | 2572 MHz |

| Memory clock | 1937 MHz, 15.5 Gbps effective | 2500 MHz, 20 Gbps effective |

| Memory bus width | 256 bit | 128 bit |

| Memory bandwidth | 495.9 GB/s | 320.0 GB/s |

| Shading units | 3072 | 2560 |

| TMUs | 192 | 80 |

| ROPs | 64 | 32 |

| RT cores | 48 | 20 |

| Tensor cores | 384 | 80 |

| Pixel rate | 116.2 GPixel/s | 82.30 GPixel/s |

| Texture rate | 348.5 GTexel/s | 205.8 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 11.15 TFLOPS | 13.17 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 22.30 TFLOPS (2:1) | 13.17 TFLOPS (1:1) |

| TDP | 250 W | 130 W |

| Power connectors | 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin | 1x 8-pin |

| Suggested PSU | 600 W | 300 W |

| Bus interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | PCIe 5.0 x8 |

| Display outputs | 1x HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, 1x USB Type-C | 1x HDMI 2.1b, 3x DisplayPort 2.1b |

| Production status | End-of-life | Active |

| Release date | 2019-07-22 | 2025-06-30 |

| Predecessor | GeForce 10 | GeForce 40 |

| Successor | GeForce 30 | GeForce 60 |

| Launch MSRP | 699 USD | 249 USD |

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 2080 SUPER wins in the majority of recorded tests, and its strengths are concentrated in legacy and general-purpose 3D workloads. The Passmark DirectX 10 result, with a 35.9% lead, is the clearest example. It also wins the Geekbench Vulkan test by 24.5%, the DirectX 9 test by 22%, the Passmark G3D test by 12.5%, the DirectX 12 test by 13.6%, the DirectX 11 test by 10%, and the Geekbench OpenCL test by 9.8%. The 256-bit memory bus and higher bandwidth of 495.9 GB/s likely underpin many of these wins, as does the larger pool of shading units (3072 vs 2560), TMUs (192 vs 80), and ROPs (64 vs 32). The RTX 2080 SUPER also has more RT cores (48 vs 20) and tensor cores (384 vs 80), which matters in workloads that use those units heavily.

The RTX 5050 wins in four key areas: modern DX12 throughput, 2D performance, compute, and efficiency. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2502 versus 1882 is the headline result, a 24.8% advantage. The Passmark G2D score of 1113 versus 920 represents a 17.3% win. The Passmark GPU Compute score of 9184 versus 8290 is a 9.7% win. Additionally, the RTX 5050 achieves higher FP32 throughput (13.17 TFLOPS vs 11.15 TFLOPS) despite having fewer cores, and it does so at a much lower TDP of 130 W versus 250 W. The newer 5 nm process, the higher boost clock of 2572 MHz, and the Blackwell 2.0 architecture all contribute to these results.

The Verdict

The data supports a clear but nuanced conclusion. For users who prioritize legacy DirectX performance, general 3D rendering, and Vulkan throughput, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER is the stronger choice. It wins 7 of the 10 head-to-head tests, holds a higher average benchmark score (24170 vs 21035), and ranks higher in the overall percentile standings (69th vs 66th). Its wider 256-bit memory bus and larger core counts give it a durable advantage in many traditional workloads. The launch MSRP for the RTX 2080 SUPER is 699 USD.

For users who prioritize modern DirectX 12 performance, compute workloads, 2D performance, and power efficiency, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 is the better pick. It wins the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test by a wide margin, takes the Passmark GPU Compute and G2D tests, and delivers higher FP32 throughput at less than half the TDP. Its 5 nm process, higher clocks, and Blackwell 2.0 architecture make it the more forward-looking option. The launch MSRP for the RTX 5050 is 249 USD. The production status of the RTX 2080 SUPER is end-of-life, while the RTX 5050 is active, which may also factor into a purchasing decision. Ultimately, the choice depends on whether the workload leans toward older API compatibility, where the RTX 2080 SUPER dominates, or toward modern DX12 and compute efficiency, where the RTX 5050 leads.