NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Mobile vs NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile Comparison

The NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Mobile are both Ampere-based laptop GPUs built on the same GA104 chip, yet benchmark data reveals a clear split in their performance profiles. The RTX 3080 Mobile wins 7 of 9 head-to-head tests, including a decisive 15.3% victory in Vulkan, while the RTX A5000 Mobile counters with a 5.8% win in OpenCL. The data indicates that the GeForce part is generally faster in rasterized workloads, while the professional RTX part holds a narrower edge in compute-oriented APIs.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile leads with an average benchmark score of 24763, compared to the RTX 3080 Mobile's 23628. This places the A5000 in the 70th percentile of all GPUs, while the 3080 Mobile sits at the 69th percentile.

Q: How does the RTX A5000 Mobile compare to its nearest rivals in average score?

A: The A5000 Mobile is essentially tied with the AMD Radeon RX 590, sitting just 0.1% ahead. It is 0.5% ahead of the Intel Arc A350M, 1.3% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT, and 2% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1630.

Q: What is the biggest performance gap in the head-to-head tests?

A: The largest margin is in the Geekbench Vulkan test, where the RTX 3080 Mobile scores 104066 against the A5000 Mobile's 88144, a 15.3% advantage. The closest test is Passmark DirectX 12, where both GPUs score exactly 72, resulting in a 0% delta.

Q: Which GPU has more memory capacity?

A: The NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile features 16 GB of GDDR6 memory, double the 8 GB found on the RTX 3080 Mobile. Both use a 256-bit bus and deliver identical 448.0 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Are there any architectural differences in core counts?

A: No. Both GPUs share identical shading units (6144), texture mapping units (192), ROPs (96), ray tracing cores (48), and tensor cores (192). They are built on the same 8 nm Samsung process with 17,400 million transistors on a 392 mm² die.

Q: How do the clock speeds differ between the two?

A: The RTX 3080 Mobile has a higher base clock at 1110 MHz versus 900 MHz for the A5000 Mobile. However, the A5000 Mobile has a higher boost clock at 1575 MHz versus 1545 MHz for the 3080 Mobile. Memory clocks are identical at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective).

Architecture Differences

Both GPUs are fabricated on Samsung's 8 nm process node, with a die size of 392 mm² and a transistor count of 17,400 million, yielding a transistor density of 44.4M per mm². The chip for both is the GA104, and both belong to the Ampere architecture generation. The fundamental silicon is therefore identical.

The differences emerge in clock behavior and power allocation. The RTX 3080 Mobile is configured with a base clock of 1110 MHz and a boost clock of 1545 MHz, while the RTX A5000 Mobile runs a lower base of 900 MHz but a higher boost of 1575 MHz. This suggests the A5000 Mobile is tuned for sustained boost performance, whereas the 3080 Mobile starts at a higher frequency but peaks lower.

Thermal design power also differs significantly: the RTX A5000 Mobile has a TDP of 150 W, while the RTX 3080 Mobile is rated at 115 W. This 35 W gap likely explains the higher boost clock on the A5000, as it has more power headroom to maintain peak frequencies.

Memory configurations diverge sharply. The A5000 Mobile offers 16 GB of GDDR6, while the 3080 Mobile provides 8 GB. Both run at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) on a 256-bit bus, resulting in identical bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s. The larger capacity on the A5000 is a key professional-workload advantage, but it does not affect raw bandwidth.

The compute feature set is identical in terms of API support: both support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. Neither has a listed launch MSRP, and both are marked as end-of-life products, with the A5000 Mobile releasing on 2021-04-11 and the 3080 Mobile on 2021-01-11.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The RTX 3080 Mobile dominates the head-to-head results, winning 7 of 9 tests. The most significant win is in Geekbench Vulkan, where it scores 104066 against the A5000 Mobile's 88144, a 15.3% margin. This is the single largest delta in the entire comparison and indicates a substantial advantage in Vulkan-based rendering paths.

In Passmark tests, the 3080 Mobile leads across DirectX 10, 11, and 9. It scores 120 versus 115 in DirectX 10 (4.2% ahead), 146 versus 133 in DirectX 11 (8.9% ahead), and 170 versus 169 in DirectX 9 (0.6% ahead). The DirectX 12 test is a perfect tie at 72 for both GPUs, with the A5000 Mobile credited as the winner due to the 0% delta, though this is effectively a dead heat.

The 3080 Mobile also wins the Passmark 3D and compute tests. In Passmark G3D, it scores 16321 versus 15779, a 3.3% advantage. In Passmark GPU Compute, it scores 7276 versus 6945, a 4.5% lead. The 2D test also goes to the 3080 Mobile, with 637 versus 629, a 1.3% margin.

The RTX A5000 Mobile's only decisive victory is in Geekbench OpenCL, where it scores 110877 against the 3080 Mobile's 104831, a 5.8% advantage. This shows that in OpenCL compute workloads, the professional card pulls ahead despite losing most other tests.

The Verdict

The data clearly favors the RTX 3080 Mobile for general graphics performance. It wins the majority of benchmarks, including a commanding 15.3% lead in Vulkan and an 8.9% lead in DirectX 11. For gaming or any application that relies on these APIs, the 3080 Mobile is the stronger choice based on benchmark results.

The RTX A5000 Mobile is not without merit. Its 5.8% win in OpenCL and its 16 GB memory capacity suggest it is better suited for compute-heavy professional workloads that leverage OpenCL. Its higher boost clock (1575 MHz versus 1545 MHz) and higher TDP (150 W versus 115 W) also indicate it can sustain peak performance under load.

The average benchmark scores tell a slightly different story: the A5000 Mobile has a higher average score (24763 versus 23628) and a higher percentile rank (70th versus 69th). This suggests that in a broader suite of tests, the A5000 Mobile edges out the 3080 Mobile, likely due to its strong OpenCL showing and higher overall compute ceiling.

For users prioritizing gaming and DirectX or Vulkan performance, the RTX 3080 Mobile is the data-backed pick. For users needing larger memory capacity and OpenCL compute strength, the RTX A5000 Mobile is the better fit, despite its losses in most head-to-head tests.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Mobile |

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

| Base Clock | 900 MHz | 1110 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1575 MHz | 1545 MHz |

| Memory Size | 16 GB | 8 GB |

| TDP | 150 W | 115 W |

| Pixel Rate | 151.2 GPixel/s | 148.3 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 302.4 GTexel/s | 296.6 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Performance | 19.35 TFLOPS | 18.98 TFLOPS |

| FP16 Performance | 19.35 TFLOPS (1:1) | 18.98 TFLOPS (1:1) |

| Release Date | 2021-04-11 | 2021-01-11 |

| Predecessor | Quadro Turing-M | GeForce 20 Mobile |

| Successor | Ada-MW | None |

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 3080 Mobile wins in rasterization and graphics API performance. It takes the Passmark G3D test with 16321 versus 15779, a 3.3% margin, and leads in DirectX 10, 11, and 9. Its 15.3% Vulkan advantage is the standout result, making it the clear choice for Vulkan-based games and applications. The 3080 Mobile also wins compute tests in Passmark, with a 4.5% lead in GPU Compute, indicating it handles general compute tasks slightly better when using that benchmark suite.

The RTX A5000 Mobile wins in OpenCL compute, with a 5.8% lead in Geekbench OpenCL. This is its only major benchmark victory, but it is significant. The A5000 Mobile also has a higher pixel rate (151.2 GPixel/s versus 148.3 GPixel/s) and texture rate (302.4 GTexel/s versus 296.6 GTexel/s), along with higher FP32 and FP16 throughput (19.35 TFLOPS versus 18.98 TFLOPS). These raw throughput advantages, combined with the 16 GB memory capacity, make it the better option for compute-heavy professional workloads that use OpenCL or require large memory buffers.

The tie in Passmark DirectX 12 (72 for both) means neither GPU has an edge in that specific API. The 3080 Mobile's wins in DirectX 10 (4.2%), DirectX 11 (8.9%), and DirectX 9 (0.6%) are consistent but modest, while its 2D win (1.3%) is minimal. Overall, the 3080 Mobile is the more versatile gaming GPU, while the A5000 Mobile is the more specialized compute card.