AMD Radeon RX 6800M vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Mobile Comparison

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in the database's recorded 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6800M wins decisively with a score of 2238, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Mobile scores 421. The recorded delta shows the RX 6800M leading by 81.2% in this test.

Q: How do the two compare in compute workloads like Geekbench OpenCL?

A: The RX 6800M posts 87621 in Geekbench OpenCL versus 50038 for the RTX 3050 Mobile. That is a 42.9% advantage for the AMD part according to the head-to-head data.

Q: Is the RTX 3050 Mobile competitive in Vulkan performance?

A: The RTX 3050 Mobile scores 49051 in Geekbench Vulkan, but the RX 6800M reaches 94766. The database shows the AMD card ahead by 48.2% in this workload.

Q: What is the overall benchmark percentile ranking for each GPU?

A: The RTX 3050 Mobile sits at the 78th percentile among all GPUs, while the RX 6800M is at the 74th percentile. Despite the lower percentile, the RX 6800M has a higher average benchmark score of 28874 versus 33170 for the NVIDIA part.

Q: Which GPU has more memory and memory bandwidth?

A: The RX 6800M has 12 GB of GDDR6 memory with a 192-bit bus and 384.0 GB/s bandwidth. The RTX 3050 Mobile has 4 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus with 192.0 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: What process nodes are used by each chip?

A: The RTX 3050 Mobile uses an 8 nm process from Samsung, while the RX 6800M uses a 7 nm process from TSMC. The AMD chip packs 17,200 million transistors on a 335 mm² die, versus 8,700 million on 200 mm² for the NVIDIA chip.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from fundamentally different architectural generations. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Mobile is built on the Ampere architecture using the GA107 chip, manufactured on Samsung's 8 nm process. The AMD Radeon RX 6800M uses the RDNA 2.0 architecture with the Navi 22 chip, built on TSMC's 7 nm node. This node difference is significant: the AMD chip integrates 17,200 million transistors across a 335 mm² die, while the NVIDIA chip contains 8,700 million transistors on a 200 mm² die. Transistor density also favors AMD at 51.3M per mm² versus 43.5M per mm² for NVIDIA.

The compute resources differ substantially. The RX 6800M has 2560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs. The RTX 3050 Mobile has 2048 shading units, 64 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. Ray tracing hardware also differs: the AMD card has 40 ray accelerators (listed as RT cores in the database), while the NVIDIA card has 16 dedicated RT cores. The RX 6800M features no tensor cores, whereas the RTX 3050 Mobile includes 64 tensor cores for AI-accelerated workloads.

Clock speeds are dramatically different. The RTX 3050 Mobile runs at a base clock of 1065 MHz and boosts to 1343 MHz. The RX 6800M starts at 2116 MHz base, has a game clock of 2300 MHz, and boosts to 2390 MHz. Memory clocks also diverge: the NVIDIA card uses 1500 MHz memory with 12 Gbps effective speed, while the AMD card runs memory at 2000 MHz with 16 Gbps effective transfer. This contributes to the bandwidth gap, with the RX 6800M delivering 384.0 GB/s versus 192.0 GB/s for the RTX 3050 Mobile.

The PCIe interface differs as well. The RTX 3050 Mobile connects via PCIe 4.0 x8, while the RX 6800M uses the full PCIe 4.0 x16 interface. Both cards support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. Power consumption is not equal: the RTX 3050 Mobile has a 45 W TDP, while the RX 6800M draws 145 W. Both are listed as integrated mobile parts with portable-device-dependent display outputs and no power connectors.

The FP32 compute throughput tells the performance story. The RX 6800M achieves 12.24 TFLOPS FP32, more than double the 5.501 TFLOPS of the RTX 3050 Mobile. In FP16, the AMD card reaches 24.47 TFLOPS with a 2:1 ratio, while the NVIDIA card manages only 5.501 TFLOPS with a 1:1 ratio. Pixel and texture rates follow the same pattern: 153.0 GPixel/s and 382.4 GTexel/s for AMD versus 42.98 GPixel/s and 85.95 GTexel/s for NVIDIA.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear performance hierarchy. The AMD Radeon RX 6800M wins all three recorded head-to-head benchmark comparisons against the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Mobile. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, the RX 6800M leads by 81.2%. In Geekbench OpenCL, the lead is 42.9%, and in Geekbench Vulkan, it is 48.2%. The wins column shows 3 for AMD and 0 for NVIDIA.

However, the percentile rankings tell a more nuanced story. The RTX 3050 Mobile sits at the 78th percentile among all GPUs, which is higher than the RX 6800M's 74th percentile. This is explained by the average benchmark scores: the RTX 3050 Mobile averages 33170, while the RX 6800M averages 28874. The RTX 3050 Mobile's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA T550 Mobile at 33161, the AMD Radeon Pro 570 at 33207, the NVIDIA P104-100 at 32982, and the NVIDIA T600 Mobile at 32849. The RX 6800M's nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon RX 570 at 28766, the AMD Radeon RX 470 at 28996, the AMD Radeon R9 M295X at 28580, and the Intel Arc A370M at 29175.

For users who prioritize raw gaming performance in modern DX12 titles, the RX 6800M is the stronger choice based on its 81.2% lead in 3DMark Steel Nomad. For users who need balanced compute performance across a wider range of older benchmarks, the RTX 3050 Mobile's higher average score and percentile suggest it holds up well in diverse workloads. The RTX 3050 Mobile also offers tensor cores, which may matter for AI-accelerated tasks, though the database does not include specific AI benchmark data for either card.

The power envelope is a key differentiator. The RTX 3050 Mobile's 45 W TDP makes it suitable for thinner, lighter laptops with less demanding cooling. The RX 6800M's 145 W TDP indicates a larger, heavier chassis with robust thermal solutions. Users should consider the platform implications of this power difference, not just the GPU performance.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Mobile | AMD Radeon RX 6800M |

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

| Chip | GA107 | Navi 22 |

| Architecture | Ampere | RDNA 2.0 |

| Process Node | 8 nm | 7 nm |

| Foundry | Samsung | TSMC |

| Transistors | 8,700 million | 17,200 million |

| Die Size | 200 mm² | 335 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 43.5M / mm² | 51.3M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1065 MHz | 2116 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1343 MHz | 2390 MHz |

| Game Clock | Not available | 2300 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1500 MHz, 12 Gbps effective | 2000 MHz, 16 Gbps effective |

| Memory Size | 4 GB GDDR6 | 12 GB GDDR6 |

| Memory Bus Width | 128 bit | 192 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 192.0 GB/s | 384.0 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 2048 | 2560 |

| TMUs | 64 | 160 |

| ROPs | 32 | 64 |

| RT Cores | 16 | 40 |

| Tensor Cores | 64 | Not available |

| Pixel Rate | 42.98 GPixel/s | 153.0 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 85.95 GTexel/s | 382.4 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Performance | 5.501 TFLOPS | 12.24 TFLOPS |

| FP16 Performance | 5.501 TFLOPS (1:1) | 24.47 TFLOPS (2:1) |

| TDP | 45 W | 145 W |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 4.0 x8 | PCIe 4.0 x16 |

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded head-to-head data is unambiguous. The AMD Radeon RX 6800M wins every comparison in the database. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test shows the largest gap: the RX 6800M scores 2238 versus 421 for the RTX 3050 Mobile, a delta of 81.2% in favor of AMD. This is a massive performance difference in a modern DirectX 12 workload that stresses ray tracing and compute.

In Geekbench Vulkan, the RX 6800M scores 94766, while the RTX 3050 Mobile manages 49051. The 48.2% lead for AMD reflects the RX 6800M's higher shading unit count, faster clocks, and greater memory bandwidth. The Vulkan API benefits from the AMD card's 2560 shading units and 160 TMUs, which are significantly higher than the NVIDIA card's 2048 shading units and 64 TMUs.

Geekbench OpenCL shows the closest relative gap, but AMD still wins by 42.9%. The RX 6800M posts 87621, and the RTX 3050 Mobile records 50038. OpenCL workloads often scale with raw FP32 throughput, and the RX 6800M's 12.24 TFLOPS versus 5.501 TFLOPS explains this result. The RTX 3050 Mobile's tensor cores could theoretically help in some AI-accelerated OpenCL paths, but the recorded data does not show that benefit.

The average benchmark scores in the database add context. The RTX 3050 Mobile has a higher average score of 33170, which pulls from a broader set of benchmarks beyond the head-to-head tests. The RX 6800M averages 28874, dragged down by some low scores in the Passmark suite, including 65 in Passmark DirectX 12 and 101 in Passmark DirectX 10. These older, less optimized tests do not favor the AMD architecture.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon RX 6800M wins in modern gaming and compute-heavy scenarios. The 81.2% lead in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 indicates strong performance in contemporary DirectX 12 titles with ray tracing and advanced shading. The 48.2% Vulkan advantage makes it the better choice for Vulkan-based games and applications. The 42.9% OpenCL lead positions it well for compute workloads like rendering, simulation, and GPGPU tasks. The RX 6800M also offers 12 GB of memory, which is triple the RTX 3050 Mobile's 4 GB, and double the memory bandwidth at 384.0 GB/s. This makes it the pick for high-resolution textures and large datasets.

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Mobile wins in efficiency and balanced workload performance. Its 45 W TDP is less than one-third of the RX 6800M's 145 W, making it suitable for slimmer laptops with modest cooling. The higher average benchmark score of 33170 and 78th percentile ranking suggest it performs consistently across a wider range of tests, including older APIs where its drivers and architecture are well optimized. The tensor cores provide dedicated hardware for AI workloads, which the RX 6800M lacks entirely.

For users who play modern AAA games at high settings, the RX 6800M is the clear choice based on the 3DMark Steel Nomad result. For users who need a mobile GPU that balances gaming, productivity, and efficiency in a thinner chassis, the RTX 3050 Mobile is the more practical option. The RX 6800M's 145 W TDP demands a larger laptop with a robust cooling solution, while the RTX 3050 Mobile can fit into more portable designs. The database's head-to-head data shows no benchmark where the RTX 3050 Mobile wins, so any decision favoring NVIDIA must rest on efficiency, portability, and the tensor core advantage rather than raw performance.