AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark results show a clear overall leader, but the single most striking data point goes the other way. In Geekbench OpenCL, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile scores 52,998 against 18,290 for the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT. That is a 65.5% advantage for the mobile part in that specific compute workload. It is the only test in the head-to-head set where the NVIDIA part wins.

Every other recorded benchmark favors the AMD desktop card. The largest margin is in Passmark GPU Compute, where the RX 7800 XT scores 13,473 versus 4,419, a 204.9% lead. That is more than triple the score. In Passmark G3D, the AMD card posts 24,176 against 11,664, a 107.3% difference, meaning it delivers roughly double the raw graphics performance in that test. DirectX 11 shows a 164.9% delta (249 vs 94), DirectX 9 shows exactly a 100% delta (304 vs 152), and DirectX 10 shows a 98.4% delta (121 vs 61). The DirectX 12 result is closer in percentage terms but still decisive: 93 vs 55, a 69.1% lead. Passmark G2D also favors AMD at 1,177 vs 526, a 123.8% margin.

The overall win count stands at 7 for the RX 7800 XT and 1 for the RTX 3050 A Mobile. The average benchmark score in the database confirms the same ordering: the AMD card averages 11,627, while the NVIDIA part averages 8,746. The AMD card sits at the 51st percentile of all GPUs, the NVIDIA mobile part at the 44th. The nearest rival to the AMD card is the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660, which averages 11,680, a 0.5% gap in the GTX 1660's favor. The RX 7800 XT also edges out the AMD Radeon Pro 5500M by 0.9% (11,528) and the AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT by 1.8% (11,842). The RTX 3050 A Mobile's closest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 v2 at 8,743, a 0% delta, with the NVIDIA Quadro P2200 at 8,686 (0.7% behind) and the AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100 at 8,863 (1.3% ahead).

These numbers indicate that while the RTX 3050 A Mobile has a specific compute strength in OpenCL, the RX 7800 XT dominates across the broader set of DirectX and general graphics workloads. The magnitude of the compute lead for the NVIDIA part is notable, but it does not translate into a wider pattern of wins.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different process nodes and foundries. The AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT uses TSMC's 5 nm process, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile uses Samsung's 8 nm node. The AMD chip, Navi 32, packs 28,100 million transistors on a 346 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 81.2 million per mm². The NVIDIA chip, GA106, contains 12,000 million transistors on a 276 mm² die, a density of 43.5 million per mm². The AMD part is built on the RDNA 3.0 architecture with the codename Wheat Nas, part of the Navi III (RX 7000) generation. The NVIDIA part uses the Ampere architecture and belongs to the GeForce 30 Mobile generation.

Memory configurations differ substantially. The RX 7800 XT carries 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, with memory clocked at 2438 MHz (19.5 Gbps effective) and bandwidth of 624.1 GB/s. The RTX 3050 A Mobile has 4 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, memory at 1500 MHz (12 Gbps effective), and bandwidth of 192.0 GB/s. The AMD card's memory bandwidth is more than triple that of the mobile part.

Compute resources also diverge. The RX 7800 XT has 3,840 shading units, 240 texture mapping units, 96 raster output units, and 60 ray tracing cores. The RTX 3050 A Mobile has 1,792 shading units, 56 TMUs, 32 ROPs, 14 ray tracing cores, and 56 tensor cores. The AMD card has no tensor cores listed, while the NVIDIA part includes them as part of the Ampere feature set. The AMD card's pixel rate is 233.3 GPixel/s and its texture rate is 583.2 GTexel/s. The NVIDIA part's pixel rate is 42.98 GPixel/s and its texture rate is 75.21 GTexel/s. FP32 throughput is 37.32 TFLOPS for the AMD card and 4.813 TFLOPS for the NVIDIA part, with both listed as 1:1 for FP16.

Clock behavior follows the power class. The RX 7800 XT has a base clock of 1295 MHz, a boost clock of 2430 MHz, and a game clock of 2124 MHz. The RTX 3050 A Mobile has a base clock of 1065 MHz and a boost clock of 1343 MHz, with no game clock listed. Power draw differs by a wide margin: the AMD card has a TDP of 263 W, while the NVIDIA mobile part is rated at 45 W. The RX 7800 XT requires dual-slot cooling, two 8-pin power connectors, and a 600 W suggested power supply. The RTX 3050 A Mobile is an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with no power connectors and no suggested PSU listed.

The PCIe interface also differs. The RX 7800 XT uses PCIe 4.0 x16; the RTX 3050 A Mobile uses PCIe 4.0 x8. Display outputs are likewise different: the AMD card offers 1x HDMI 2.1a and 3x DisplayPort 2.1, while the NVIDIA part lists display outputs as portable device dependent. Both support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

Where Each One Wins

The RX 7800 XT wins in traditional graphics workloads. Its Passmark G3D score of 24,176 versus 11,664 is the clearest indicator of overall rasterization capability. It also wins every DirectX generation test in the head-to-head set, with the largest relative lead in DirectX 11 (164.9%) and the smallest in DirectX 12 (69.1%). The AMD card's 16 GB memory and 624.1 GB/s bandwidth give it a substantial buffer for high-resolution textures and large datasets, though the benchmark scores themselves are the direct evidence.

The RTX 3050 A Mobile wins in one specific compute scenario: Geekbench OpenCL. Its score of 52,998 against 18,290 is a 65.5% margin. This result is notable because the NVIDIA part has far lower raw specifications: 4.813 TFLOPS FP32, 4 GB memory, and 192.0 GB/s bandwidth. The OpenCL result suggests workload-specific optimization rather than general superiority. The mobile part also has 56 tensor cores, a feature the AMD card lacks, though no benchmark in the head-to-head set directly measures tensor performance.

For compute-heavy tasks that resemble the OpenCL workload, the RTX 3050 A Mobile is the better performer in this comparison. For DirectX-based gaming or any general graphics workload, the RX 7800 XT has the decisive advantage. The Passmark GPU Compute result reinforces this split differently: in that test, the AMD card leads by 204.9%, showing that the NVIDIA part's OpenCL strength is not universal across compute benchmarks.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT averages 11,627, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile averages 8,746.

Q: How many benchmarks does each GPU win in the head-to-head set?

A: The RX 7800 XT wins 7 of the 8 head-to-head benchmarks. The RTX 3050 A Mobile wins 1, the Geekbench OpenCL test.

Q: What is the biggest single benchmark margin in either direction?

A: The largest margin is the RX 7800 XT's 204.9% lead in Passmark GPU Compute (13,473 vs 4,419). The NVIDIA part's biggest win is its 65.5% lead in Geekbench OpenCL (52,998 vs 18,290).

Q: What memory configuration does each GPU use?

A: The RX 7800 XT has 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus with 624.1 GB/s bandwidth. The RTX 3050 A Mobile has 4 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus with 192.0 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Are the two GPUs on the same manufacturing process?

A: No. The RX 7800 XT uses TSMC's 5 nm node with 28,100 million transistors on a 346 mm² die. The RTX 3050 A Mobile uses Samsung's 8 nm node with 12,000 million transistors on a 276 mm² die.

Q: What are the power requirements for each?

A: The RX 7800 XT has a 263 W TDP, requires dual-slot cooling, two 8-pin power connectors, and a 600 W suggested power supply. The RTX 3050 A Mobile has a 45 W TDP, is an IGP, and has no power connectors or suggested PSU listed.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ in nearly every major specification category. Process node: 5 nm (TSMC) for the AMD card, 8 nm (Samsung) for the NVIDIA part. Transistors: 28,100 million vs 12,000 million. Die size: 346 mm² vs 276 mm². Transistor density: 81.2M per mm² vs 43.5M per mm². Base clock: 1295 MHz vs 1065 MHz. Boost clock: 2430 MHz vs 1343 MHz. The AMD card has a game clock of 2124 MHz; the NVIDIA part has none listed. Memory clock: 2438 MHz (19.5 Gbps effective) vs 1500 MHz (12 Gbps effective). Memory size: 16 GB vs 4 GB. Memory bus: 256 bit vs 128 bit. Memory bandwidth: 624.1 GB/s vs 192.0 GB/s. Shading units: 3,840 vs 1,792. TMUs: 240 vs 56. ROPs: 96 vs 32. Ray tracing cores: 60 vs 14. Tensor cores: none vs 56. Pixel rate: 233.3 GPixel/s vs 42.98 GPixel/s. Texture rate: 583.2 GTexel/s vs 75.21 GTexel/s. FP32: 37.32 TFLOPS vs 4.813 TFLOPS. FP16: 37.32 TFLOPS vs 4.813 TFLOPS. TDP: 263 W vs 45 W. Slot width: dual-slot vs IGP. Power connectors: 2x 8-pin vs none. Suggested PSU: 600 W vs none. Bus interface: PCIe 4.0 x16 vs PCIe 4.0 x8. Display outputs: 1x HDMI 2.1a and 3x DisplayPort 2.1 vs portable device dependent. Dimensions: the AMD card is 267 mm long, 111 mm tall, and 50 mm wide; the NVIDIA part has no dimensions listed. Production status: active vs end-of-life. The AMD card has a launch MSRP of 499 USD; the NVIDIA part has no launch MSRP listed.

The Verdict

The data supports a straightforward split. The AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT is the stronger GPU for graphics-heavy workloads. It wins 7 of 8 head-to-head benchmarks, leads by over 100% in Passmark G3D and DirectX 11, and delivers more than double the FP32 throughput (37.32 TFLOPS vs 4.813 TFLOPS). Its 16 GB memory and 624.1 GB/s bandwidth align with its higher benchmark results. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile is the stronger choice only for the specific OpenCL compute workload where it scores 52,998, and it does so while drawing 45 W versus 263 W. The mobile part also offers tensor cores, which the AMD card does not list.

The RX 7800 XT belongs in a desktop context with a 600 W suggested PSU and dual-slot cooling. The RTX 3050 A Mobile is an IGP with no external power connectors, suited to portable devices. The average benchmark scores (11,627 vs 8,746) and percentile rankings (51st vs 44th) place the AMD card ahead overall. The NVIDIA part's single benchmark win is real but isolated. The verdict from the recorded data: the RX 7800 XT is the higher-performance GPU across the majority of tested workloads, while the RTX 3050 A Mobile offers a narrow compute advantage in OpenCL and a far lower power envelope.