NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 AD106 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data shows a decisive performance gap between these two NVIDIA parts, though it is worth stating clearly that the database contains no direct head-to-head benchmark entries for the RTX 4060 AD106. The RTX 4060 AD106 has no recorded average benchmark score and no listed nearest rivals, placing it at the 50th percentile among all GPUs. The RTX 5090, by contrast, holds a comprehensive set of measurements across ten distinct tests, with an average benchmark score of 79,842 and a 92nd percentile ranking.

Looking at the RTX 5090's raw scores, the largest single win appears in Geekbench Vulkan, where it records 376,728 points, followed by Geekbench OpenCL at 334,370 points. The PassMark G3D score of 39,650 and PassMark GPU Compute score of 26,756 further demonstrate its compute-heavy strengths. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test yields 18,355 points, which represents a modern DirectX 12 workload. Smaller PassMark legacy tests show scores of 395 in DirectX 9, 341 in DirectX 11, 226 in DirectX 10, and 185 in DirectX 12, with a PassMark G2D score of 1,413.

Because the RTX 4060 AD106 lacks any benchmark entries, no direct percentage deltas can be calculated between the two cards. However, the RTX 5090's nearest rivals provide context for its standing. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64X sits 1.4% ahead with an average score of 80,959, while the NVIDIA Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB trails by 0.3% at 79,605. The Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB scores 79,396, a 0.6% deficit, and the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT is 1.1% behind at 78,940. These margins are remarkably tight, indicating that the RTX 5090's average score places it within a narrow competitive cluster rather than at the absolute top of the database hierarchy.

Architecture Differences

The architectural split between these two cards is substantial. The RTX 4060 AD106 uses the Ada Lovelace architecture on the AD106 chip, built on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It packs 22,900 million transistors across a 188 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 121.8 million per square millimeter. The RTX 5090 moves to the Blackwell 2.0 architecture with the GB202 chip, also on a 5 nm TSMC process, but with 92,200 million transistors spread over a much larger 750 mm² die. Its transistor density reaches 122.9 million per square millimeter, a marginal 1.1M/mm² increase over the smaller chip.

Core counts diverge sharply. The RTX 4060 AD106 contains 3,072 shading units, 96 texture mapping units, 48 render output units, 24 ray tracing cores, and 96 tensor cores. The RTX 5090 scales these numbers dramatically: 21,760 shading units, 680 TMUs, 176 ROPs, 170 RT cores, and 680 tensor cores. The RTX 5090's shading unit count is roughly 7 times higher, while its RT core count is about 7.1 times higher. Texture units scale at nearly the same ratio, with the RTX 5090 offering 680 versus 96.

Memory architecture differences are equally pronounced. The RTX 4060 AD106 uses 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, achieving 272.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The RTX 5090 employs 32 GB of GDDR7 across a 512-bit bus, delivering 1.79 TB/s. That bandwidth figure represents a 6.6-fold increase. The memory clock rates also differ: the AD106 runs at 2125 MHz with 17 Gbps effective speed, while the GB202 runs at 1750 MHz with 28 Gbps effective speed. The newer GDDR7 standard allows higher effective data rates despite a lower base clock.

Compute throughput measures follow the core count scaling. The RTX 4060 AD106 delivers 15.11 TFLOPS for both FP32 and FP16 with a 1:1 ratio. The RTX 5090 reaches 104.8 TFLOPS for both precision types, again at 1:1. This is a 6.9-fold increase in raw floating-point capability. Pixel and texture rates amplify the difference: the AD106 outputs 118.1 GPixel/s and 236.2 GTexel/s, while the GB202 produces 423.6 GPixel/s and 1,636.8 GTexel/s. Texture fill rate scales by 6.9 times, while pixel rate scales by 3.6 times, indicating that ROP scaling is less aggressive than TMU scaling.

The process node is identical at 5 nm for both chips, but the transistor density increase is minimal. This suggests that the RTX 5090's advantages come from die size and architectural efficiency rather than process improvements. The Blackwell 2.0 architecture introduces feature changes beyond raw counts, including support for newer display outputs and a different power delivery approach.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 5090 wins across every measurable benchmark category in the database, with its strongest showing in compute-oriented workloads. The Geekbench Vulkan and OpenCL scores of 376,728 and 334,370 indicate substantial advantages in GPU compute tasks such as rendering, physics simulation, and machine learning inference. The PassMark GPU Compute score of 26,756 reinforces this pattern, suggesting that the RTX 5090 is particularly well suited for non-graphics parallel workloads.

For gaming and DirectX performance, the RTX 5090's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 18,355 and PassMark G3D score of 39,650 demonstrate strong rasterization capability. The PassMark DirectX 9 score of 395 is the highest among its legacy DX tests, indicating that older titles run well. The DirectX 11 score of 341 and DirectX 10 score of 226 are lower, while the DirectX 12 score of 185 is the weakest of the four, which may reflect the specific workload characteristics of that test rather than a general DX12 deficiency.

The RTX 4060 AD106, with no benchmark data recorded, cannot claim wins in any measured category. Its 50th percentile ranking among all GPUs, however, indicates that it performs at the median level for the entire database population. This is a meaningful point: the card is not a low-end part, but rather sits in the middle of the distribution. Its 8 GB memory capacity and 128-bit bus suggest it targets 1080p and perhaps 1440p gaming, though the data does not explicitly confirm this. The absence of benchmark scores means the database cannot quantify its real-world performance, only its architectural specifications.

The RTX 5090's nearest rival comparisons show that its average score is competitive with professional and workstation-class cards. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64X leads it by 1.4%, while the Tesla P100 variants trail by 0.3% and 0.6%. This places the RTX 5090 in a tight pack of high-performance compute GPUs, with margins under 2% across all four rivals. For users prioritizing raw throughput in compute-heavy applications, the RTX 5090's position is strong, though not dominant within its immediate competitive set.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every specification field. Starting with the chip and architecture: AD106 with Ada Lovelace versus GB202 with Blackwell 2.0. Transistor count jumps from 22,900 million to 92,200 million, a 4-fold increase. Die size expands from 188 mm² to 750 mm², a 4-fold increase. Transistor density changes minimally from 121.8M/mm² to 122.9M/mm².

Clock speeds show a nuanced picture. The RTX 4060 AD106 has a base clock of 1830 MHz and a boost of 2460 MHz. The RTX 5090 has a higher base clock of 2017 MHz but a slightly lower boost clock of 2407 MHz. This means the smaller card actually boosts 53 MHz higher, though its base clock is 187 MHz lower. Memory clocks differ in both base and effective rates: 2125 MHz base with 17 Gbps effective for the AD106 versus 1750 MHz base with 28 Gbps effective for the GB202.

Memory configuration changes completely. The RTX 4060 AD106 uses 8 GB GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus with 272.0 GB/s bandwidth. The RTX 5090 uses 32 GB GDDR7 on a 512-bit bus with 1.79 TB/s bandwidth. These are 4 times the capacity, 4 times the bus width, and 6.6 times the bandwidth.

Core counts scale by roughly 7 times across all functional units. Shading units go from 3,072 to 21,760. TMUs go from 96 to 680. ROPs go from 48 to 176. RT cores go from 24 to 170. Tensor cores go from 96 to 680. The FP32 and FP16 throughput both scale from 15.11 TFLOPS to 104.8 TFLOPS, maintaining a 1:1 ratio throughout.

Pixel and texture rates reflect the core scaling. Pixel rate rises from 118.1 GPixel/s to 423.6 GPixel/s, while texture rate rises from 236.2 GTexel/s to 1,636.8 GTexel/s. Power consumption increases from 115 W TDP to 575 W TDP, a 5-fold jump. The suggested PSU rating rises from 300 W to 950 W. Power connectors change from 1x 12-pin to 1x 16-pin.

The bus interface upgrades from PCIe 4.0 x8 to PCIe 5.0 x16, doubling the lane count and moving to a newer standard. Display outputs change from 1x HDMI 2.1 with 3x DisplayPort 1.4a to 1x HDMI 2.1b with 3x DisplayPort 2.1b. Physical dimensions only exist for the RTX 5090: 304 mm length, 137 mm height, and 40 mm width. Both cards are dual-slot.

Production status differs: the RTX 4060 AD106 is end-of-life, while the RTX 5090 is active. Release dates are separated by roughly 10 months: March 2024 for the AD106 and January 2025 for the 5090. The RTX 5090 has a launch MSRP of 1,999 USD. The RTX 4060 AD106 has no recorded launch MSRP. API support is identical: DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4 for both.

FAQ

Q: Which card has more memory bandwidth?

A: The RTX 5090 delivers 1.79 TB/s bandwidth from 32 GB of GDDR7 on a 512-bit bus. The RTX 4060 AD106 provides 272.0 GB/s from 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus.

Q: How do the transistor counts compare?

A: The RTX 4060 AD106 contains 22,900 million transistors on a 188 mm² die. The RTX 5090 contains 92,200 million transistors on a 750 mm² die.

Q: What is the FP32 compute throughput difference?

A: The RTX 4060 AD106 reaches 15.11 TFLOPS, while the RTX 5090 reaches 104.8 TFLOPS, a 6.9-fold increase. Both cards maintain a 1:1 FP16 to FP32 ratio.

Q: Are the process nodes different?

A: Both cards use a 5 nm process at TSMC. Transistor density is nearly identical at 121.8M/mm² for the AD106 and 122.9M/mm² for the GB202.

Q: What is the bus interface difference?

A: The RTX 4060 AD106 uses PCIe 4.0 x8, while the RTX 5090 uses PCIe 5.0 x16. The newer card doubles the lane count and moves to a newer PCIe generation.

Q: How does the RTX 5090 compare to its nearest rivals in the database?

A: The RTX 5090's average benchmark score of 79,842 places it 0.3% ahead of the Tesla P100 PCIe 16 GB, 0.6% ahead of the Tesla P100 PCIe 12 GB, 1.1% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 6850M XT, and 1.4% behind the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64X.