NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile vs NVIDIA Tesla K20m Comparison

The NVIDIA Tesla K20m and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile represent two vastly different eras of GPU design, one a professional compute card from the Kepler generation and the other a modern Ampere laptop part. The benchmark data shows a decisive victory for the newer mobile chip, but the specifics of that victory reveal distinct strengths and weaknesses. The Tesla K20m, despite its age and end-of-life status, is not without merit, though its scoreboard is entirely blank in this head-to-head.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The data available for direct comparison is limited to two OpenCL and Vulkan compute tests, and the results are lopsided. In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the RTX 3060 Mobile scores 79,483, while the Tesla K20m manages only 16,241. This represents a delta of -79.6% for the K20m, meaning the RTX 3060 Mobile is roughly 4.9 times faster in this workload. This is not a marginal difference; it is a generational gap that dwarfs the architectural improvements seen in other product transitions.

The Vulkan results tell a similar story. The RTX 3060 Mobile posts a score of 80,344, compared to the Tesla K20m’s 21,936. The delta here is -72.7%, putting the RTX 3060 Mobile at about 3.7 times the performance of the older card. While the K20m’s Vulkan score is relatively better than its OpenCL result, it still loses by a massive margin. The RTX 3060 Mobile wins both available head-to-head benchmarks, securing a 2-0 victory in this comparison.

When looking at aggregate performance, the RTX 3060 Mobile has an average benchmark score of 18,159, placing it in the 62nd percentile of all GPUs. The Tesla K20m, with an average score of 19,089, sits slightly higher in the 64th percentile. This is an interesting inversion: the older card has a higher average score across its full benchmark suite, but the RTX 3060 Mobile’s superiority is clear in the specific tests where they overlap. The K20m’s nearest rivals include the GeForce RTX 4050 Mobile (0.2% ahead) and the Quadro K6000 (0.3% ahead), while the RTX 3060 Mobile sits near the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 (0.2% behind) and the RTX 2060 SUPER (0.4% ahead).

The most striking takeaway is the sheer scale of the RTX 3060 Mobile’s win in raw compute throughput. Its FP32 performance of 10.94 TFLOPS dwarfs the Tesla K20m’s 3.524 TFLOPS, a difference that directly explains the benchmark deltas. Similarly, the RTX 3060 Mobile’s texture rate of 171.0 GTexel/s and pixel rate of 68.40 GPixel/s outpace the K20m’s 146.8 GTexel/s and 36.71 GPixel/s, respectively. These are not close calls.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 3060 Mobile wins in every category where data exists. Its 10.94 TFLOPS of FP32 compute makes it a far more capable general-purpose compute device, and its FP16 performance of 10.94 TFLOPS (1:1) offers a feature the Tesla K20m lacks entirely. The newer card also has dedicated RT cores (30) and Tensor cores (120), which are absent from the K20m, making it the only choice for ray-traced workloads or AI-accelerated tasks. Its memory subsystem is also superior: 6 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus delivers 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth, compared to the K20m’s 5 GB of GDDR5 on a 320-bit bus at 208.0 GB/s.

The Tesla K20m’s wins are less about performance and more about specific attributes. It has a higher transistor count (7,080 million vs. 12,000 million is actually lower), but its die size is significantly larger at 561 mm², which reflects an older, less dense process. The K20m does have a higher ROP count (40 vs. 48? No, the RTX has more), and it supports the same OpenGL version (4.6) as the RTX 3060 Mobile. Its only true advantage is its higher average benchmark score (19,089 vs. 18,159) and its percentile ranking (64th vs. 62nd), which suggests that in some legacy tests, it holds its own.

For a builder, the RTX 3060 Mobile is the obvious choice for any modern workload involving DX12 Ultimate, ray tracing, or high-throughput compute. The Tesla K20m, however, might still be relevant for specific legacy compute tasks that rely on its Kepler architecture, but it is a dead end for future software. The data shows that the RTX 3060 Mobile is not just faster; it is categorically more capable.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has a higher raw compute throughput (FP32)?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile has a FP32 performance of 10.94 TFLOPS, which is more than three times the Tesla K20m’s 3.524 TFLOPS. This directly correlates with its dominant OpenCL and Vulkan benchmark scores.

Q: Is the Tesla K20m faster in any benchmark?

A: No. In the two available head-to-head benchmarks (Geekbench OpenCL and Geekbench Vulkan), the RTX 3060 Mobile wins both. The K20m’s best result is a 21,936 Vulkan score, which is still 72.7% lower than the RTX 3060 Mobile’s 80,344.

Q: What is the difference in memory bandwidth?

A: The RTX 3060 Mobile provides 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth from its 6 GB GDDR6 memory, while the Tesla K20m offers 208.0 GB/s from its 5 GB GDDR5 memory. The newer card has a 61.5% bandwidth advantage.

Q: Does the Tesla K20m support ray tracing?

A: No. The Tesla K20m has no RT cores, while the RTX 3060 Mobile has 30 dedicated RT cores. This makes the RTX 3060 Mobile the only one capable of hardware-accelerated ray tracing.

Q: How do their average benchmark scores compare to rival GPUs?

A: The Tesla K20m’s average score of 19,089 places it 0.2% ahead of the GeForce RTX 4050 Mobile and 0.3% ahead of the Quadro K6000. The RTX 3060 Mobile’s average of 18,159 places it 0.4% ahead of the RTX 2060 SUPER and 0.2% behind the Radeon Pro 5700.

Q: Which GPU has a higher transistor density?

A: The RTX 3060 Mobile has a transistor density of 43.5M / mm², manufactured on Samsung’s 8 nm process. The Tesla K20m has a density of 12.6M / mm² on TSMC’s 28 nm process, showing the massive efficiency gain of the newer node.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ in nearly every measurable specification. The Tesla K20m uses a 28 nm process with 7,080 million transistors on a 561 mm² die, while the RTX 3060 Mobile uses an 8 nm process with 12,000 million transistors on a smaller 276 mm² die. This results in a transistor density of 12.6M / mm² for the K20m versus 43.5M / mm² for the RTX 3060 Mobile.

Memory configurations are also distinct: the K20m has 5 GB of GDDR5 on a 320-bit bus, while the RTX 3060 Mobile has 6 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus. Bandwidth favors the newer card at 336.0 GB/s versus 208.0 GB/s. The K20m has a base clock and boost clock that are not specified in the data, while the RTX 3060 Mobile has a base clock of 900 MHz and a boost clock of 1425 MHz. Memory clocks are 1300 MHz (5.2 Gbps effective) for the K20m and 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) for the RTX 3060 Mobile.

The shading units, TMUs, and ROPs all differ: the K20m has 2496 shading units, 208 TMUs, and 40 ROPs, while the RTX 3060 Mobile has 3840 shading units, 120 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. The K20m is a dual-slot card requiring a 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin power connector and a 550 W suggested PSU, whereas the RTX 3060 Mobile has no power connectors and no suggested PSU. The K20m has no display outputs and uses PCIe 2.0 x16, while the RTX 3060 Mobile has portable-device-dependent outputs and uses PCIe 4.0 x16.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap is fundamental. The Tesla K20m is built on NVIDIA’s Kepler architecture (chip GK110) from the Tesla Kepler generation, targeting professional compute with no display outputs. The RTX 3060 Mobile is based on the Ampere architecture (chip GA106) from the GeForce 30 Mobile series, designed for consumer laptops. Kepler lacks any RT cores or Tensor cores, which are present in the RTX 3060 Mobile (30 RT cores, 120 Tensor cores). This makes the RTX 3060 Mobile capable of hardware ray tracing and AI acceleration, features entirely absent from the K20m.

The process technology is a major differentiator: the K20m uses TSMC’s 28 nm node, while the RTX 3060 Mobile uses Samsung’s 8 nm node. This explains the density difference and the power efficiency gap. The K20m has a TDP of 225 W, while the RTX 3060 Mobile has a TDP of just 80 W. The K20m’s API support includes DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175, while the RTX 3060 Mobile supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The RTX 3060 Mobile also supports FP16 at a 1:1 ratio with a rate of 10.94 TFLOPS, which the K20m does not.

The release dates are eight years apart: the K20m launched on 2013-01-04, and the RTX 3060 Mobile on 2021-01-11. The K20m has a successor (Tesla Maxwell), while the RTX 3060 Mobile has none listed. The K20m’s launch MSRP was 3,199 USD; the RTX 3060 Mobile’s launch MSRP is not specified.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the GeForce RTX 3060 Mobile is the superior GPU for virtually any modern workload. It wins both head-to-head benchmarks by margins of 79.6% and 72.7%, offers over three times the FP32 compute, has more memory bandwidth, and adds RT and Tensor cores. Its lower TDP of 80 W versus 225 W makes it vastly more efficient, and its smaller die size on a more advanced node shows a clear engineering advantage.

The Tesla K20m’s only statistical wins are its higher average benchmark score (19,089 vs. 18,159) and higher percentile rank (64th vs. 62nd). These numbers, however, come from a broader set of legacy tests that do not reflect modern API demands. For a builder choosing between these two, the RTX 3060 Mobile is the only rational pick for gaming, ray tracing, or general compute. The K20m is a relic for niche, old-school compute tasks where its Kepler architecture and specific driver support might still function, but it is a dead end.

If you need modern features, high throughput, and efficiency, the RTX 3060 Mobile is the clear winner. If you have a legacy application that specifically requires a Kepler-generation professional card and you cannot migrate, the K20m remains a functional, if obsolete, option. For everyone else, the verdict is straightforward: the RTX 3060 Mobile is the better GPU by every measurable metric in this comparison.