NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile vs NVIDIA Quadro RTX 4000 Comparison

Where Each One Wins

The recorded data splits this comparison into two very different profiles. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile wins eight of the ten head-to-head benchmarks, establishing itself as the stronger compute and modern-API performer. Its victories span DX12, Vulkan, OpenCL, and general 3D rendering workloads. The Quadro RTX 4000, by contrast, carves out a narrow but consistent niche in legacy DirectX 9 rendering and 2D rasterization, where it leads by substantial margins.

The RTX 3070 Mobile demonstrates its advantage most clearly in synthetic 3D workloads. In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, it scores 2380 against 1873 for the Quadro, a 27.1% gap. That is the largest single-test delta in the comparison. Geekbench OpenCL tells a similar story: 92939 versus 74540, a 24.7% lead. These are not marginal differences; they represent a generational jump in raw throughput for modern graphics APIs and general-purpose compute.

The Quadro RTX 4000 wins only in Passmark DirectX 9 (205 vs 160, a 22% advantage) and Passmark G2D (846 vs 641, a 24.2% advantage). These wins matter for specific legacy applications or 2D-heavy workflows, but they cover a much smaller performance envelope. The G2D result is particularly notable, as it indicates the Quadro's desktop-oriented display pipeline handles 2D operations more efficiently than the mobile part.

For users prioritizing current-generation gaming, DX12 titles, Vulkan applications, or compute acceleration, the RTX 3070 Mobile is the clear choice. For those maintaining older software stacks or requiring superior 2D interface responsiveness, the Quadro retains an edge. The overall average benchmark scores reflect this: the RTX 3070 Mobile averages 20534, while the Quadro averages 17789, a difference of roughly 15% in favor of the mobile part.

Architecture Differences

These two GPUs come from different architectural generations and process nodes. The RTX 3070 Mobile uses the GA104 chip built on Ampere architecture, fabricated by Samsung on an 8 nm process. It packs 17,400 million transistors into a 392 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 44.4 million per square millimeter. The Quadro RTX 4000 uses the TU104 chip on Turing architecture, built by TSMC on a 12 nm process. It contains 13,600 million transistors across a much larger 545 mm² die, with a lower density of 25.0 million per square millimeter.

The compute configuration differs dramatically. The RTX 3070 Mobile has 5120 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 80 raster output units. It also carries 40 RT cores and 160 tensor cores. The Quadro RTX 4000 has 2304 shading units, 144 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, with 36 RT cores and 288 tensor cores. The Ampere part has more than twice the shading units and more RT cores, while the Turing part has nearly twice the tensor core count. This explains why the RTX 3070 Mobile excels in FP32 compute: it delivers 15.97 TFLOPS versus 7.119 TFLOPS for the Quadro.

The FP16 story is more nuanced. The RTX 3070 Mobile achieves 15.97 TFLOPS with a 1:1 ratio, meaning it does not double FP16 throughput. The Quadro RTX 4000 reaches 14.24 TFLOPS with a 2:1 ratio, effectively halving its FP32 rate to boost FP16. For mixed-precision workloads that leverage FP16, the Quadro is closer in capability than the raw FP32 numbers suggest.

Memory subsystems are similar in capacity but differ in speed. Both use 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus. The RTX 3070 Mobile runs memory at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective), producing 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The Quadro runs at 1625 MHz (13 Gbps effective), yielding 416.0 GB/s. The mobile part holds a 7.7% bandwidth advantage, which contributes to its better compute results.

Power and physical characteristics diverge sharply. The RTX 3070 Mobile has a TDP of 115 W and uses no external power connectors, consistent with its portable device design. The Quadro RTX 4000 draws 160 W, requires a single 8-pin connector, and is a single-slot card measuring 241 mm in length and 111 mm in height. The bus interface also differs: PCIe 4.0 x16 for the mobile part versus PCIe 3.0 x16 for the Quadro.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The largest win for the RTX 3070 Mobile comes in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, where it scores 2380 against 1873. That 27.1% margin indicates a substantial advantage in modern DirectX 12 rendering paths. The gap is nearly as large in Geekbench OpenCL: 92939 versus 74540, a 24.7% lead that reflects strong general-purpose compute performance. These two results alone establish the mobile part as the superior compute engine.

Passmark DirectX 12 shows a 23.1% win for the RTX 3070 Mobile (64 vs 52), reinforcing the modern-API trend. Geekbench Vulkan adds a 10.1% advantage (86768 vs 78844), showing that the Ampere architecture also handles Vulkan efficiently. The compute-focused Passmark GPU Compute test gives the RTX 3070 Mobile a 10.5% lead (6827 vs 6176), consistent with its higher FP32 throughput.

The 3D rendering results are closer. Passmark G3D scores 15309 for the RTX 3070 Mobile versus 15117 for the Quadro, a slim 1.3% margin. This suggests that for overall 3D rasterization, the two cards are nearly equivalent despite the large architectural differences. Passmark DirectX 11 shows a 7.8% edge for the mobile part (138 vs 128), while DirectX 10 is a modest 4.6% win (113 vs 108).

The Quadro RTX 4000 takes its two wins in areas that reflect its desktop heritage. Passmark DirectX 9 shows a 22% advantage (205 vs 160), a significant lead for legacy titles or older CAD applications that still use DX9 paths. Passmark G2D gives the Quadro a 24.2% win (846 vs 641), indicating superior 2D rasterization throughput. These results are meaningful but cover a narrow performance domain.

The aggregate picture is clear: the RTX 3070 Mobile dominates in every modern benchmark category, while the Quadro holds specific legacy and 2D strengths. The average benchmark score difference of 2745 points (20534 vs 17789) quantifies the overall performance gap.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Mobile averages 20534 across all recorded benchmarks, while the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 4000 averages 17789. This gives the mobile part roughly a 15% overall advantage.

Q: How large is the performance gap in modern DirectX 12 workloads?

A: In 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, the RTX 3070 Mobile scores 2380 versus 1873 for the Quadro, a 27.1% lead. Passmark DirectX 12 shows a similar 23.1% gap, with scores of 64 and 52 respectively.

Q: Does the Quadro RTX 4000 win in any benchmark category?

A: Yes, it wins two tests. It leads Passmark DirectX 9 with 205 against 160 (a 22% advantage) and Passmark G2D with 846 against 641 (a 24.2% advantage).

Q: How do the shading unit counts compare?

A: The RTX 3070 Mobile has 5120 shading units, more than double the 2304 found in the Quadro RTX 4000. This contributes to its 15.97 TFLOPS FP32 rate compared to 7.119 TFLOPS.

Q: What are the memory bandwidth figures for each card?

A: The RTX 3070 Mobile achieves 448.0 GB/s with 14 Gbps effective memory speed. The Quadro RTX 4000 reaches 416.0 GB/s with 13 Gbps effective speed. Both use 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus.

Q: Which GPU has more tensor cores?

A: The Quadro RTX 4000 has 288 tensor cores, while the RTX 3070 Mobile has 160. The Turing card also supports 2:1 FP16 throughput, reaching 14.24 TFLOPS, whereas the Ampere card maintains a 1:1 ratio at 15.97 TFLOPS.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ in nearly every fundamental specification. The RTX 3070 Mobile uses the GA104 chip on Ampere architecture with an 8 nm Samsung process, while the Quadro RTX 4000 uses the TU104 chip on Turing architecture with a 12 nm TSMC process. Transistor counts are 17,400 million versus 13,600 million, with die sizes of 392 mm² and 545 mm² respectively. Transistor density favors the mobile part at 44.4M per mm² versus 25.0M per mm².

Clock speeds are close but not identical. The RTX 3070 Mobile has a base clock of 1110 MHz and boost of 1560 MHz. The Quadro runs at 1005 MHz base and 1545 MHz boost. Memory clocks differ slightly: 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) for the mobile part versus 1625 MHz (13 Gbps effective) for the Quadro.

Compute resources show the largest divergence. The RTX 3070 Mobile has 5120 shading units, 160 TMUs, 80 ROPs, 40 RT cores, and 160 tensor cores. The Quadro has 2304 shading units, 144 TMUs, 64 ROPs, 36 RT cores, and 288 tensor cores. Pixel rates are 124.8 GPixel/s for the mobile part versus 98.88 GPixel/s for the Quadro. Texture rates are 249.6 GTexel/s versus 222.5 GTexel/s.

Power and physical specifications are starkly different. The RTX 3070 Mobile has a 115 W TDP with no power connectors, reflecting its portable design. The Quadro RTX 4000 has a 160 W TDP, requires a single 8-pin connector, and is a single-slot card measuring 241 mm by 111 mm. The bus interface is PCIe 4.0 x16 for the mobile part and PCIe 3.0 x16 for the Quadro. Display outputs are portable-device dependent for the mobile part, while the Quadro offers 3x DisplayPort 1.4a and 1x USB Type-C.

Release timing also differs: the RTX 3070 Mobile launched in January 2021, while the Quadro RTX 4000 launched in November 2018. The Quadro carries a launch MSRP of 899 USD. Both are end-of-life products. The RTX 3070 Mobile sits in the 65th percentile of all GPUs, while the Quadro sits in the 61st percentile.