NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 vs NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark comparison between the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 and the NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile is lopsided in most measured categories. The RTX 3090 takes 8 of 9 head-to-head tests, with the A5000 Mobile claiming a single, notable victory in Vulkan compute. The recorded data shows a clear performance hierarchy, though the one reversal highlights a meaningful difference in workload behavior.

The largest margin belongs to Passmark GPU Compute, where the RTX 3090 scores 15,356 against the A5000 Mobile's 6,945. That is a 121.1% lead, more than doubling the mobile workstation GPU in raw compute throughput. This result aligns with the substantial gap in shading units and FP32 output between the two cards. The RTX 3090 delivers 35.58 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, while the A5000 Mobile produces 19.35 TFLOPS, a ratio that closely mirrors the compute benchmark delta.

In DirectX 11, another decisive win appears. The RTX 3090 posts 220 points versus 133 for the A5000 Mobile, a 65.4% advantage. DirectX 10 follows a similar pattern at 58.3% (182 vs 115), and DirectX 9 shows 58.6% (268 vs 169). These legacy API results indicate that the desktop card maintains its dominance across older rendering paths, not just modern ones.

The DirectX 12 test is closer in percentage terms but still favors the RTX 3090 decisively: 110 vs 72, a 52.8% gap. The same story holds for Passmark G3D, where the RTX 3090 reaches 26,645 and the A5000 Mobile stops at 15,779, a 68.9% difference. Passmark G2D shows the RTX 3090 ahead by 69% (1,063 vs 629), which is notable for a 2D test and suggests the desktop card's higher memory bandwidth and pixel rate contribute even in less demanding scenarios.

The Geekbench OpenCL result reinforces the compute advantage: 172,758 for the RTX 3090 versus 110,877 for the A5000 Mobile, a 55.8% margin. This test stresses general-purpose GPU work and reflects the RTX 3090's larger transistor budget and wider memory subsystem.

The single A5000 Mobile win arrives in Geekbench Vulkan. There, the mobile GPU scores 88,144 against the RTX 3090's 53,927. That is a 38.8% advantage for the A5000 Mobile, and it is the only head-to-head test where the desktop card loses. The delta is substantial, not marginal, suggesting the A5000 Mobile's architecture handles Vulkan's driver-level and command-buffer patterns more efficiently despite far lower raw compute. This is a meaningful outlier in an otherwise one-sided comparison.

Looking at the broader database context, the RTX 3090's average benchmark score is 27,565, placing it in the 73rd percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Mobile and AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT, sit within 0.5% of that average, indicating the RTX 3090 remains competitive with newer mid-range mobile and desktop parts. The A5000 Mobile, by contrast, averages 24,763, which lands in the 70th percentile. Its nearest rivals, the AMD Radeon RX 590 and Intel Arc A350M, are within 0.5% and 0.5% respectively, while the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT trails by 1.3%. This means the A5000 Mobile's average score is closer to older mainstream cards than to the RTX 3090's tier.

The aggregate picture is straightforward: the RTX 3090 outperforms the A5000 Mobile by roughly 11% in average benchmark score (27,565 vs 24,763), but the gap in individual tests ranges from a modest 52.8% to a dominant 121.1%. The Vulkan reversal complicates a clean verdict, but it does not change the overall ranking.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins the majority of head-to-head benchmarks?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 wins 8 of 9 head-to-head tests. The only loss is in Geekbench Vulkan, where the NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile leads by 38.8% (88,144 vs 53,927).

Q: What is the largest performance gap between the two cards?

A: The largest gap is in Passmark GPU Compute, where the RTX 3090 scores 15,356 versus 6,945 for the A5000 Mobile, a 121.1% advantage. This reflects the RTX 3090's far higher FP32 throughput of 35.58 TFLOPS compared to 19.35 TFLOPS.

Q: Does the A5000 Mobile win any test by a significant margin?

A: Yes, in Geekbench Vulkan, the A5000 Mobile outperforms the RTX 3090 by 38.8% (88,144 vs 53,927). This is the only test where the mobile GPU leads, and the margin is substantial.

Q: How do the two cards compare in average benchmark score?

A: The RTX 3090 has an average benchmark score of 27,565, while the A5000 Mobile averages 24,763. The RTX 3090 sits in the 73rd percentile of all GPUs; the A5000 Mobile sits in the 70th percentile.

Q: What are the nearest rivals for each card based on average score?

A: For the RTX 3090, the nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Mobile (27,435, 0.5% lower) and AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT (27,425, 0.5% lower). For the A5000 Mobile, the nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon RX 590 (24,744, 0.1% higher) and Intel Arc A350M (24,647, 0.5% higher).

Q: Which card has higher memory bandwidth?

A: The RTX 3090 has 936.2 GB/s of bandwidth from 24 GB of GDDR6X on a 384-bit bus. The A5000 Mobile has 448.0 GB/s from 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus. The RTX 3090's bandwidth is roughly double.

Architecture Differences

Both GPUs share the Ampere architecture and are fabricated on Samsung's 8 nm process, but they are fundamentally different chips. The RTX 3090 uses the GA102 die, which contains 28,300 million transistors across a 628 mm² area. The A5000 Mobile uses the GA104 die, with 17,400 million transistors on a 392 mm² footprint. The transistor density is nearly identical (45.1M per mm² for the RTX 3090, 44.4M per mm² for the A5000 Mobile), confirming the same manufacturing process, but the RTX 3090's much larger die accommodates far more compute resources.

The shading unit count tells the core story. The RTX 3090 has 10,496 shading units, 328 texture mapping units, and 112 ROPs. The A5000 Mobile has 6,144 shading units, 192 TMUs, and 96 ROPs. This translates into a raw throughput gap: the RTX 3090 achieves 35.58 TFLOPS FP32 and FP16 (1:1 ratio), while the A5000 Mobile delivers 19.35 TFLOPS for both. Pixel rate also favors the desktop card at 189.8 GPixel/s versus 151.2 GPixel/s, and texture rate shows a similar split at 556.0 GTexel/s versus 302.4 GTexel/s.

Ray tracing and tensor hardware follow the same pattern. The RTX 3090 integrates 82 RT cores and 328 tensor cores, while the A5000 Mobile has 48 RT cores and 192 tensor cores. These are proportional to the shading unit counts, meaning the RTX 3090 offers roughly 70% more of each accelerator type. For any workload that leverages ray tracing or AI-accelerated features, the desktop card starts with a structural advantage.

Memory architecture differs significantly. The RTX 3090 uses 24 GB of GDDR6X on a 384-bit interface, producing 936.2 GB/s of bandwidth. The A5000 Mobile uses 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit interface, yielding 448.0 GB/s. The memory clock rates reflect this: the RTX 3090 runs at 1219 MHz (19.5 Gbps effective), while the A5000 Mobile runs at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective). The higher effective data rate of GDDR6X, combined with the wider bus, gives the RTX 3090 more than double the bandwidth.

The clock speeds themselves are counterintuitive. The RTX 3090 has a base clock of 1395 MHz and a boost of 1695 MHz. The A5000 Mobile has a base of 900 MHz and a boost of 1575 MHz. Despite the A5000 Mobile's lower absolute clocks, its Vulkan benchmark win suggests that clock speed alone does not determine API-level performance. The 8 nm process node and Samsung foundry are identical for both, so the clock differences likely stem from power and thermal constraints rather than architectural changes.

Both cards support the same API set: DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. They also share the PCIe 4.0 x16 bus interface. The production status for both is end-of-life, but their release dates differ: the RTX 3090 launched on 2020-08-31, while the A5000 Mobile arrived on 2021-04-11. The RTX 3090's predecessor is the GeForce 20 series, and its successor is the GeForce 40 series. The A5000 Mobile's predecessor is the Quadro Turing-M, and its successor is Ada-MW.

Specification Differences

The most direct specification comparison shows a consistent advantage for the RTX 3090. The die size difference is the largest physical gap: 628 mm² versus 392 mm², a 60% larger chip. Transistor count follows at 28,300 million versus 17,400 million, a 62.6% difference. Both use 8 nm Samsung process nodes, so the density difference is minimal at 45.1M versus 44.4M transistors per mm².

Clock speeds differ in both directions. The RTX 3090 has a higher base clock (1395 MHz vs 900 MHz) and boost clock (1695 MHz vs 1575 MHz). Memory clock rates are not directly comparable in MHz terms, but the effective data rates are: 19.5 Gbps for the RTX 3090 versus 14 Gbps for the A5000 Mobile.

Memory capacity and type diverge: 24 GB of GDDR6X versus 16 GB of GDDR6. Bus width is 384-bit versus 256-bit, and bandwidth is 936.2 GB/s versus 448.0 GB/s. The compute units show a consistent ratio: shading units 10,496 vs 6,144 (70.8% more), TMUs 328 vs 192 (70.8% more), ROPs 112 vs 96 (16.7% more), RT cores 82 vs 48 (70.8% more), and tensor cores 328 vs 192 (70.8% more).

Throughput metrics follow: FP32 is 35.58 TFLOPS versus 19.35 TFLOPS (83.8% higher for the RTX 3090). Pixel rate is 189.8 GPixel/s versus 151.2 GPixel/s (25.5% higher), and texture rate is 556.0 GTexel/s versus 302.4 GTexel/s (83.9% higher).

Power consumption and physical design mark the biggest practical differences. The RTX 3090 has a TDP of 350 W, requires a triple-slot cooler, uses a 1x 12-pin power connector, and needs a suggested 750 W PSU. The A5000 Mobile has a TDP of 150 W, uses no external power connectors, and has no slot width or PSU requirements listed. The RTX 3090 measures 336 mm in length, 140 mm in height, and 61 mm in width. The A5000 Mobile has no listed dimensions, as it is a mobile component. Display outputs also differ: the RTX 3090 offers 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, while the A5000 Mobile's outputs are listed as "Portable Device Dependent."

The launch MSRP for the RTX 3090 is 1,499 USD. The A5000 Mobile has no launch MSRP listed.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear choice for most workloads: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 is the stronger GPU. It wins 8 of 9 head-to-head tests, holds a 11% higher average benchmark score (27,565 vs 24,763), and dominates in compute-heavy benchmarks like Passmark GPU Compute (121.1% lead) and DirectX 11 (65.4% lead). Its architectural resources are uniformly larger: more shading units, more RT cores, more tensor cores, wider memory bus, and higher bandwidth. For anyone prioritizing raw performance across DirectX APIs, OpenCL compute, or general 3D rendering, the RTX 3090 is the correct selection.

The NVIDIA RTX A5000 Mobile's single win in Geekbench Vulkan (38.8% ahead) is not enough to offset its losses elsewhere. That said, the Vulkan result is not a fluke. It suggests that the A5000 Mobile's driver stack and memory timing handle Vulkan workloads more efficiently, which could matter for specific applications that rely heavily on Vulkan's explicit control. Users running Vulkan-based renderers or compute frameworks might see better performance from the A5000 Mobile despite its lower raw specs.

The power envelope is a decisive factor for mobile deployments. The A5000 Mobile draws 150 W with no external power connectors, while the RTX 3090 demands 350 W, a triple-slot cooler, and a 750 W PSU. In a laptop or compact workstation, the A5000 Mobile is the only viable option between the two. The RTX 3090 is a desktop-only part with a 336 mm length and 61 mm width, making it unsuitable for portable builds.

The memory difference also matters for large datasets. The RTX 3090's 24 GB capacity and 936.2 GB/s bandwidth support larger working sets and faster transfers. The A5000 Mobile's 16 GB and 448.0 GB/s cap throughput and capacity, which could bottleneck memory-bound workloads like machine learning training or high-resolution texture streaming.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 3090 wins in every DirectX API test recorded: DirectX 9 (58.6% lead), DirectX 10 (58.3% lead), DirectX 11 (65.4% lead), and DirectX 12 (52.8% lead). It also wins in OpenCL (55.8% lead), Passmark G2D (69% lead), Passmark G3D (68.9% lead), and Passmark GPU Compute (121.1% lead). Any workload that uses these APIs, from legacy games to modern DXR titles, will favor the RTX 3090. The compute win is especially pronounced, making the RTX 3090 the better choice for GPU compute tasks like scientific simulation, rendering farms, or data processing.

The A5000 Mobile wins only in Geekbench Vulkan, with a 38.8% margin. This makes it the preferred option for Vulkan-specific workloads, such as certain game engines, Vulkan-based compute frameworks, or applications that leverage explicit multi-threaded command submission. The fact that it wins despite having fewer shading units and lower clock speeds suggests the A5000 Mobile's memory subsystem or driver implementation is better tuned for Vulkan's execution model.

The use-case split is straightforward. For desktop workstations with adequate power and cooling, the RTX 3090 is superior in nearly every benchmark. For mobile workstations where a 350 W TDP is impossible, the A5000 Mobile is the only choice, and its Vulkan strength provides a niche benefit. Users who prioritize portability, low power consumption, or Vulkan performance should select the A5000 Mobile. Users who prioritize raw throughput, DirectX performance, or memory bandwidth should select the RTX 3090. The data does not support any other conclusion.