NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile and RTX 4080 Mobile are separated by a single generation, but the benchmark data reveals a consistent, if occasionally narrow, advantage for the newer Blackwell part. Across nine head-to-head comparisons, the RTX 5080 Mobile wins every single test, though the margins vary dramatically from a near-photo-finish in one API to a commanding lead in others. The average benchmark scores are remarkably close—38,349 for the 5080 Mobile versus 38,135 for the 4080 Mobile—placing both GPUs at the 81st percentile of all GPUs. The RTX 5080 Mobile's nearest rival by average score is the NVIDIA GeForce MX570, with a delta of just 0.1%, while the RTX 4080 Mobile sits 0.6% behind the 5080 Mobile in that same metric. This data suggests a generational refresh that consolidates gains rather than a revolutionary leap, but the per-test breakdown shows where those gains are concentrated.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The most decisive victory for the RTX 5080 Mobile comes in the DirectX 12 test, where it scores 116 against the RTX 4080 Mobile's 96—a substantial 20.8% delta. This is the single largest percentage gap in the entire comparison and signals a meaningful improvement in modern API efficiency. The Vulkan benchmark tells a similar story, with the 5080 Mobile posting 169,754 versus 145,807, a 16.4% advantage that underscores Blackwell's strength in compute-heavy, low-level graphics workloads. The PassMark G2D test also shows a clear separation, with the 5080 Mobile scoring 1,095 against 929, a 17.9% lead that points to faster 2D and desktop composition performance.

Moving to 3D workloads, the PassMark G3D result favors the 5080 Mobile at 27,711 versus 24,926, an 11.2% win. This is a solid margin that should translate to better frame rates in most games. The DirectX 9 test shows a 9.8% advantage (314 vs 286), indicating that even legacy titles see a boost. The DirectX 10 result is closer, with the 5080 Mobile at 171 and the 4080 Mobile at 157, an 8.9% delta. The PassMark GPU Compute benchmark shows an 8.4% lead (12,134 vs 11,191), confirming that the 5080 Mobile is also quicker in general-purpose compute tasks.

However, not every test is a landslide. The Geekbench OpenCL score has the 5080 Mobile at 166,986 versus 159,575, a relatively modest 4.6% margin. The DirectX 11 test is even tighter, with the 5080 Mobile at 253 and the 4080 Mobile at 244, a 3.7% delta. These results indicate that in some older or more driver-bound workloads, the architectural advantages of the 5080 Mobile are less pronounced. The RTX 4080 Mobile's higher boost clock of 1,665 MHz compared to the 5080 Mobile's 1,500 MHz may help it keep pace in these specific scenarios, but it is not enough to overcome the newer part's other advantages.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 5080 Mobile is the clear winner in every measurable category, but the nature of its wins suggests specific use cases where it shines brightest. The 20.8% lead in DirectX 12 makes it the obvious choice for modern AAA games that leverage DX12 features like ray tracing and mesh shaders. The 16.4% Vulkan advantage similarly points to strong performance in Vulkan-based titles and in emulation or compute scenarios that rely on this API. The 17.9% G2D win suggests snappier desktop responsiveness and faster 2D application rendering, which is relevant for productivity tasks like photo editing or CAD software that rely on 2D acceleration.

The RTX 4080 Mobile, despite losing all nine tests, still has a role. Its 3.7% deficit in DirectX 11 is small enough that in many DX11 titles the experience would be nearly identical. For users who primarily play older games or run legacy applications, the 4080 Mobile remains a capable performer. The 4.6% OpenCL gap also indicates that OpenCL-based compute workloads, such as some physics simulations or video encoding tasks, would see only a minor performance difference. In these scenarios, the 4080 Mobile's higher boost clock and larger FP32 throughput of 24.72 TFLOPS (versus the 5080 Mobile's 23.04 TFLOPS) may allow it to compete more evenly, even if the overall benchmark scores still favor the newer GPU.

Architecture Differences

The architectural divide between these two GPUs is fundamental. The RTX 5080 Mobile is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture using the GB203 chip, manufactured on TSMC's 5 nm process. The RTX 4080 Mobile uses the Ada Lovelace architecture with the AD104 chip, also on a 5 nm TSMC process. The transistor counts differ significantly, with the 5080 Mobile housing 45,600 million transistors on a 378 mm² die, while the 4080 Mobile packs 35,800 million transistors on a 294 mm² die. Interestingly, the transistor density is nearly identical—120.6M per mm² for the 5080 Mobile versus 121.8M per mm² for the 4080 Mobile—suggesting the process node is similar, but the larger die size allows the 5080 Mobile to include more hardware.

That extra hardware translates to a wider configuration: the 5080 Mobile features 7,680 shading units, 240 TMUs, and 96 ROPs, compared to the 4080 Mobile's 7,424 shading units, 232 TMUs, and 80 ROPs. Ray tracing and tensor cores also see upgrades, with the 5080 Mobile carrying 60 RT cores and 240 tensor cores versus 58 RT cores and 232 tensor cores on the 4080 Mobile. Memory is another major differentiator. The 5080 Mobile uses 16 GB of GDDR7 on a 256-bit bus, delivering 896.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The 4080 Mobile uses 12 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus, yielding 432.0 GB/s. This 2x bandwidth advantage is likely a key driver behind the 5080 Mobile's strong DirectX 12 and Vulkan performance, as those APIs are highly bandwidth-sensitive.

Clock speeds tell a nuanced story. The 4080 Mobile runs at a base of 1,290 MHz and boosts to 1,665 MHz, while the 5080 Mobile has a lower base of 975 MHz and a boost of 1,500 MHz. Despite the lower clocks, the 5080 Mobile achieves higher pixel rates (144.0 GPixel/s versus 133.2 GPixel/s) but a lower texture rate (360.0 GTexel/s versus 386.3 GTexel/s). The 5080 Mobile also has a significantly lower TDP at 80 W compared to 110 W for the 4080 Mobile, which may allow for thinner laptop designs or better sustained performance in a thermal-constrained chassis. The bus interface also advances, with the 5080 Mobile using PCIe 5.0 x16 versus the 4080 Mobile's PCIe 4.0 x16.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile has an average benchmark score of 38,349, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile scores 38,135. This places the 5080 Mobile 0.6% ahead of the 4080 Mobile in that metric.

Q: In which benchmark does the RTX 5080 Mobile show its largest advantage?

A: The largest win for the RTX 5080 Mobile is in the PassMark DirectX 12 test, where it scores 116 versus 96 for the RTX 4080 Mobile, a delta of 20.8%.

Q: Is the RTX 4080 Mobile faster in any head-to-head test?

A: No. Across all nine head-to-head benchmarks, the RTX 5080 Mobile wins every test. The closest margin for the 4080 Mobile is in the PassMark DirectX 11 test, where it trails by only 3.7%.

Q: How do the memory configurations differ?

A: The RTX 5080 Mobile features 16 GB of GDDR7 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 896.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The RTX 4080 Mobile has 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 432.0 GB/s.

Q: What are the power consumption differences?

A: The RTX 5080 Mobile has a TDP of 80 W, while the RTX 4080 Mobile has a higher TDP of 110 W.

Q: Which GPU has a higher boost clock?

A: The RTX 4080 Mobile has a higher boost clock at 1,665 MHz, compared to the RTX 5080 Mobile's boost clock of 1,500 MHz. The RTX 4080 Mobile also has a higher base clock of 1,290 MHz versus 975 MHz.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile outperforms the RTX 4080 Mobile in every single benchmark test recorded. The wins range from a marginal 3.7% in DirectX 11 to a commanding 20.8% in DirectX 12, with an 16.4% lead in Vulkan and an 11.2% lead in 3D graphics. For anyone building a new high-performance laptop, the RTX 5080 Mobile is the superior choice, particularly for modern gaming and compute workloads that leverage DirectX 12, Vulkan, and high-bandwidth memory. Its 16 GB of GDDR7 memory at 896.0 GB/s and larger die with more shaders and RT cores give it a structural advantage that the 4080 Mobile's higher clocks cannot overcome.

The RTX 4080 Mobile is not obsolete, however. Its smaller deficits in DirectX 11 and OpenCL mean that for legacy software or less demanding titles, the performance gap will be nearly imperceptible. Its higher boost clock of 1,665 MHz and higher FP32 throughput of 24.72 TFLOPS also suggest it can hold its own in certain compute scenarios. But the data shows that the 5080 Mobile's lower TDP of 80 W, combined with higher overall scores, makes it the more efficient and capable part. For users who prioritize the absolute best frame rates in current games and future-proofing with PCIe 5.0, the RTX 5080 Mobile is the clear pick. For those who already own a laptop with an RTX 4080 Mobile, the upgrade is not urgent, but for a new purchase, the numbers favor the newer Blackwell GPU without exception.