NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Mobile Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Mobile represent two distinct eras of GPU design, but benchmark results show a clear performance hierarchy. The desktop RTX 2080, built on the Turing architecture, wins 8 of 9 head-to-head tests against the Ada Lovelace-based mobile part. However, the RTX 4060 Mobile’s victory in one key API test and its dramatically more efficient design make this a nuanced comparison rather than a simple generational wipeout.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The RTX 2080’s most dominant victory comes in the Geekbench Vulkan test, where it scores 107,797 against the RTX 4060 Mobile’s 89,569. That is a 20.4% lead, the largest margin between the two cards in any benchmark. This suggests the older card’s full complement of 46 RT cores and 368 tensor cores provides a substantial advantage in compute-heavy Vulkan workloads, despite the newer architecture’s optimizations.

The Passmark G2D test shows a similarly lopsided result, with the RTX 2080 scoring 907 versus 730 for the RTX 4060 Mobile, a 24.2% difference. This 2D performance gap likely stems from the RTX 2080’s dedicated dual-slot desktop design with its 256-bit memory bus, compared to the mobile chip’s integrated (IGP) form factor and 128-bit bus. The desktop card also wins the Passmark DirectX 10 test decisively, posting 136 points against 107, a 27.1% advantage.

Compute workloads favor the RTX 2080 as well. In Passmark GPU Compute, the desktop card scores 7,872 versus 6,816, a 15.5% lead. The RTX 2080’s higher FP32 throughput of 10.07 TFLOPS, combined with its FP16 rate of 20.14 TFLOPS (2:1), gives it a raw mathematical edge over the RTX 4060 Mobile’s 11.61 TFLOPS FP32 and 11.61 TFLOPS FP16 (1:1) figures.

The gap narrows significantly in DirectX 11 and DirectX 9 tests. In Passmark DirectX 11, the RTX 2080 barely edges out the RTX 4060 Mobile, 158 to 157, a mere 0.6% difference. The DirectX 9 result is closer still in percentage terms, with the RTX 2080 winning 223 to 216, a 3.2% margin. These legacy API tests show that the newer mobile chip’s architecture is well-optimized for older workloads, nearly matching the desktop card despite its other disadvantages.

The RTX 2080 also takes the Geekbench OpenCL test, scoring 91,313 against 89,420, a 2.1% win. The Passmark G3D test goes to the RTX 2080 as well, 18,720 to 17,469, a 7.2% lead. This G3D result is the most representative of overall gaming performance, and it confirms that the RTX 2080 holds a real, if not overwhelming, advantage.

The single victory for the RTX 4060 Mobile comes in Passmark DirectX 12, where it scores 73 against the RTX 2080’s 72. That 1.4% margin is slim, but it is a meaningful sign that the newer architecture’s 12 Ultimate feature set and modern scheduling handles DirectX 12 workloads more efficiently. It is the only test where the newer card’s design philosophy pays off in a direct score comparison.

In overall average benchmark score, the RTX 2080 posts 22,895 against the RTX 4060 Mobile’s 22,729, a 0.7% difference. This places the RTX 2080 at the 68th percentile of all GPUs, while the RTX 4060 Mobile sits at the 67th percentile. The nearest rivals for the RTX 2080 include the Intel Arc B580 (23,021, -0.5%) and the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP (23,061, -0.7%), while the RTX 4060 Mobile’s nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT (22,549, 0.8%) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Mobile (22,435, 1.3%).

The Verdict

The data clearly shows that the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 is the faster GPU in nearly every measurable benchmark. With 8 wins out of 9 head-to-head tests and a higher average benchmark score, it is the superior choice for raw performance. Gamers and professionals who prioritize maximum frame rates in Vulkan titles, compute-heavy applications, or legacy DirectX workloads will find the RTX 2080 delivers meaningfully better results, particularly in the 20.4% Vulkan lead and the 15.5% compute advantage.

However, the RTX 4060 Mobile is the more sensible choice for portable systems. Its IGP form factor, 115 W TDP, and lack of power connectors make it suitable for laptops where the RTX 2080’s 215 W TDP and dual-slot cooler would be impractical. The mobile card’s DirectX 12 win, though narrow, points to better forward-looking API support. Its 5 nm process node and 118.9M / mm² transistor density versus the RTX 2080’s 12 nm node and 25.0M / mm² density indicate a far more efficient architecture.

Users with a desktop system and available PCIe 3.0 x16 slot should choose the RTX 2080 for its performance. Users building a thin-and-light gaming laptop should choose the RTX 4060 Mobile, accepting the 7.2% G3D deficit in exchange for portability and efficiency. The RTX 2080 is end-of-life, while the RTX 4060 Mobile is active, which may influence availability but not performance rankings.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins more head-to-head benchmarks?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 wins 8 of 9 head-to-head tests against the RTX 4060 Mobile, with the only exception being Passmark DirectX 12 where the mobile card wins by 1.4%.

Q: How large is the performance gap in the Vulkan API?

A: In Geekbench Vulkan, the RTX 2080 scores 107,797 versus 89,569 for the RTX 4060 Mobile, a 20.4% advantage for the desktop card.

Q: Is there any test where the RTX 4060 Mobile outperforms the RTX 2080?

A: Yes, in Passmark DirectX 12, the RTX 4060 Mobile scores 73 against the RTX 2080’s 72, a 1.4% win for the mobile chip.

Q: What are the average benchmark scores for each GPU?

A: The RTX 2080 has an average benchmark score of 22,895, while the RTX 4060 Mobile averages 22,729, a 0.7% difference in favor of the RTX 2080.

Q: How do the two GPUs rank in overall GPU percentile?

A: The RTX 2080 is in the 68th percentile of all GPUs, while the RTX 4060 Mobile is in the 67th percentile.

Q: What is the closest rival to each GPU based on average score?

A: For the RTX 2080, the closest rival is the Intel Arc B580 with an average score of 23,021 (deltaPct -0.5%). For the RTX 4060 Mobile, the closest rival is the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT with an average score of 22,549 (deltaPct 0.8%).

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ in nearly every core specification. The RTX 2080 has 2,944 shading units, 184 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, while the RTX 4060 Mobile has 3,072 shading units, 96 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. This means the mobile card has more shading units but far fewer texture mapping units and render output units. The RTX 2080 also has more RT cores (46 versus 24) and more tensor cores (368 versus 96).

Clock speeds differ as well. The RTX 2080 has a base clock of 1515 MHz and a boost clock of 1710 MHz, while the RTX 4060 Mobile has a base clock of 1545 MHz and a boost clock of 1890 MHz. The mobile card clocks higher, but its memory runs at 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective) compared to the RTX 2080’s 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective). Memory bandwidth heavily favors the desktop card: 448.0 GB/s versus 256.0 GB/s.

The RTX 2080 uses a 256-bit memory bus with 8 GB of GDDR6, while the RTX 4060 Mobile uses a 128-bit bus with the same 8 GB of GDDR6. Pixel rate for the RTX 2080 is 109.4 GPixel/s versus 90.72 GPixel/s for the mobile chip. Texture rate is 314.6 GTexel/s versus 181.4 GTexel/s. The RTX 2080’s FP32 is 10.07 TFLOPS, while the RTX 4060 Mobile’s is 11.61 TFLOPS.

Power and physical specifications are starkly different. The RTX 2080 has a 215 W TDP, is dual-slot, uses 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin power connectors, and requires a 550 W suggested PSU. The RTX 4060 Mobile has a 115 W TDP, is an IGP, uses no power connectors, and has no suggested PSU. The RTX 2080 uses a PCIe 3.0 x16 interface, while the RTX 4060 Mobile uses PCIe 4.0 x8.

Architecture Differences

The RTX 2080 is built on the Turing architecture using the TU104 chip, while the RTX 4060 Mobile uses the Ada Lovelace architecture with the AD107 chip. The manufacturing process differs significantly: the RTX 2080 uses a 12 nm node from TSMC, while the RTX 4060 Mobile uses a 5 nm node, also from TSMC. This allows the mobile chip to pack 18,900 million transistors into a 159 mm² die, while the desktop chip uses 13,600 million transistors across a 545 mm² die.

Transistor density tells the efficiency story: the RTX 4060 Mobile achieves 118.9M / mm², nearly five times the RTX 2080’s 25.0M / mm². The Ada Lovelace architecture also changes FP16 processing, with the RTX 4060 Mobile running FP16 at 11.61 TFLOPS (1:1 ratio) compared to the RTX 2080’s 20.14 TFLOPS (2:1 ratio). This means the RTX 2080 can double its FP32 throughput when using FP16, while the RTX 4060 Mobile cannot.

Both GPUs support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The RTX 2080 features display outputs of 1x HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, and 1x USB Type-C, while the RTX 4060 Mobile has portable device dependent outputs. The RTX 2080 is end-of-life production status, released on 2018-09-19, with a successor of GeForce 30. The RTX 4060 Mobile is active, released on 2023-01-02, with a predecessor of GeForce 30 Mobile and a successor of GeForce 50 Mobile.