Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB vs GeForce GTX 970

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Aggregate performance score

We've compared GeForce GTX 970 and Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB, covering specs and all relevant benchmarks.

GTX 970
2014, $329
4 GB GDDR5, 148 Watt
23.03
RX 9060 XT 8 GB
2025, $299
8 GB GDDR6, 150 Watt
47.04
+104%

9060 XT 8 GB outperforms GTX 970 by a whopping 104% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Contents

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GTX 970 GTX 970
RX 9060 XT 8 GB RX 9060 XT 8 GB

Primary details

GPU architecture, market segment, value for money and other general parameters compared.

Place in the ranking27780
Place by popularity70not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation12.2395.47
Power efficiency12.1224.42
ArchitectureMaxwell 2.0 (2014−2019)RDNA 4.0 (2025−2026)
GPU code nameGM204Navi 44
Market segmentDesktopDesktop
Release date19 September 2014 (12 years ago)4 June 2025 (1 year ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$329 $299

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

The higher the ratio, the better. We use the manufacturer's recommended prices.

RX 9060 XT 8 GB has 681% better value for money than GTX 970.

Performance to price scatter graph

Currently popular graphics cards are shown for comparison.

Detailed specifications

General parameters such as number of shaders, GPU core base clock and boost clock speeds, manufacturing process, texturing and calculation speed. Real power consumption of some graphics cards can well exceed their nominal TDP, especially if overclocked.

Pipelines / CUDA cores16642048
Core clock speed1050 MHz1700 MHz
Boost clock speed1178 MHz3130 MHz
Number of transistors5,200 million29,700 million
Manufacturing process technology28 nm4 nm
Power consumption (TDP)148 Watt150 Watt
Maximum GPU temperature98 °Cno data
Texture fill rate122.5400.6
Floating-point processing power3.92 TFLOPS25.64 TFLOPS
ROPs5664
TMUs104128
Ray Tracing Coresno data32
L0 Cacheno data512 KB
L1 Cache624 KBno data
L2 Cache2 MB4 MB
L3 Cacheno data32 MB

Form factor & compatibility

Information on compatibility with other computer components. Useful when choosing a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. For desktop graphics cards it's interface and bus (motherboard compatibility), additional power connectors (power supply compatibility).

Bus supportPCI Express 3.0no data
InterfacePCIe 3.0 x16PCIe 5.0 x16
Length267 mm267 mm
Height4.376" (11.1 cm)no data
Width2-slot2-slot
Recommended system power (PSU)500 Wattno data
Supplementary power connectors2x 6-pin1x 8-pin
SLI options+-

VRAM capacity and type

Parameters of VRAM installed: its type, size, bus, clock and resulting bandwidth. Integrated GPUs have no dedicated video RAM and use a shared part of system RAM.

Memory typeGDDR5GDDR6
Maximum RAM amount4 GB8 GB
Memory bus width256 Bit128 Bit
Memory clock speed7.0 GB/s2518 MHz
Memory bandwidth224 GB/s322.3 GB/s
Shared memory--
Resizable BAR-+

Connectivity and outputs

This section shows the types and number of video connectors on each GPU. The data applies specifically to desktop reference models (for example, NVIDIA’s Founders Edition). OEM partners often modify both the number and types of ports. On notebook GPUs, video‐output options are determined by the laptop’s design rather than the graphics chip itself.

Display ConnectorsDual Link DVI-I, HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.21x HDMI 2.1b, 2x DisplayPort 2.1a
Multi monitor support4 displaysno data
HDMI++
HDCP+-
Maximum VGA resolution2048x1536no data
G-SYNC support+-
Audio input for HDMIInternalno data

Supported technologies

Supported technological solutions. This information will prove useful if you need some particular technology for your purposes.

GameStream+-
GeForce ShadowPlay+-
GPU Boost2.0no data
GameWorks+-

API and SDK support

List of supported 3D and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.

DirectX12 (12_1)12 Ultimate (12_2)
Shader Model6.46.8
OpenGL4.44.6
OpenCL1.22.2
Vulkan1.1.1261.3
CUDA+-

Synthetic benchmarks

Non-gaming benchmark results comparison. The combined score is measured on a 0-100 point scale.

Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark score.

GTX 970 23.03
RX 9060 XT 8 GB 47.04
+104%

Passmark

This is the most ubiquitous GPU benchmark. It gives the graphics card a thorough evaluation under various types of load, providing four separate benchmarks for Direct3D versions 9, 10, 11 and 12 (the last being done in 4K resolution if possible), and few more tests engaging DirectCompute capabilities.

GTX 970 9636
Samples: 53378
RX 9060 XT 8 GB 19681
+104%
Samples: 1250

Gaming performance

Let's see how good the compared graphics cards are for gaming. Particular gaming benchmark results are measured in FPS.

Average FPS across all PC games

Here are the average frames per second in a large set of popular games across different resolutions:

Full HD81
−49.4%
160−170
1440p54
−50.9%
110−120
4K3975−80
+92.3%

Cost per frame, $

1080p4.061.87
+54%
1440p6.092.72
+55.4%
4K8.443.99
+52.7%
  • RX 9060 XT 8 GB has 54% lower cost per frame in 1080p
  • RX 9060 XT 8 GB has 55% lower cost per frame in 1440p
  • RX 9060 XT 8 GB has 53% lower cost per frame in 4K

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low

Atomic Heart 65−70 130−140
+100%
Counter-Strike 2 130−140 270−280
+103%
Cyberpunk 2077 50−55 100−105
+96.1%

Full HD
Medium

Atomic Heart 65−70 130−140
+100%
Battlefield 5 90−95 190−200
+102%
Counter-Strike 2 130−140 270−280
+103%
Cyberpunk 2077 50−55 100−105
+96.1%
Far Cry 5 75−80 150−160
+94.8%
Fortnite 110−120 230−240
+96.6%
Forza Horizon 4 90−95 190−200
+102%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS 90−95 180−190
+95.7%
Valorant 160−170 300−310
+84%

Full HD
High

Atomic Heart 65−70 130−140
+100%
Battlefield 5 90−95 190−200
+102%
Counter-Strike 2 130−140 270−280
+103%
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive 250−260 500−550
+96.9%
Cyberpunk 2077 50−55 100−105
+96.1%
Dota 2 120−130 240−250
+98.3%
Far Cry 5 75−80 150−160
+94.8%
Far Cry 6 65−70 130−140
+94%
Fortnite 82 160−170
+95.1%
Forza Horizon 4 90−95 190−200
+102%
Grand Theft Auto V 71 140−150
+97.2%
Metro Exodus 39 75−80
+92.3%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS 90−95 180−190
+95.7%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 81 160−170
+97.5%
Valorant 160−170 300−310
+84%

Full HD
Ultra

Battlefield 5 48 95−100
+97.9%
Cyberpunk 2077 50−55 100−105
+96.1%
Dota 2 120−130 240−250
+98.3%
Far Cry 5 75−80 150−160
+94.8%
Forza Horizon 4 90−95 190−200
+102%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS 52 100−105
+92.3%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 43 85−90
+97.7%
Valorant 160−170 300−310
+84%

Full HD
Epic

Fortnite 60 120−130
+100%

1440p
High

Counter-Strike 2 50−55 100−105
+100%
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive 160−170 300−310
+79.6%
Far Cry 6 35−40 75−80
+92.3%
Grand Theft Auto V 40−45 85−90
+97.7%
Metro Exodus 24 45−50
+87.5%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS 170−180 350−400
+100%
Valorant 190−200 350−400
+84.2%

1440p
Ultra

Battlefield 5 65−70 130−140
+97%
Cyberpunk 2077 21−24 45−50
+95.7%
Far Cry 5 50−55 110−120
+104%
Forza Horizon 4 60−65 120−130
+100%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 35−40 75−80
+103%

1440p
Epic

Fortnite 55−60 110−120
+93%

4K
High

Atomic Heart 18−20 35−40
+84.2%
Counter-Strike 2 21−24 45−50
+95.7%
Far Cry 6 12−14 24−27
+84.6%
Grand Theft Auto V 46 90−95
+95.7%
Metro Exodus 13 24−27
+84.6%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 29 55−60
+89.7%
Valorant 130−140 260−270
+100%

4K
Ultra

Battlefield 5 20 40−45
+100%
Counter-Strike 2 21−24 45−50
+95.7%
Cyberpunk 2077 10−11 18−20
+80%
Dota 2 75−80 150−160
+92.3%
Far Cry 5 27−30 55−60
+104%
Forza Horizon 4 40−45 80−85
+95.1%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS 18 35−40
+94.4%

4K
Epic

Fortnite 22 40−45
+81.8%

This is how GTX 970 and RX 9060 XT 8 GB compete in popular games:

  • RX 9060 XT 8 GB is 98% faster in 1080p
  • RX 9060 XT 8 GB is 104% faster in 1440p
  • RX 9060 XT 8 GB is 92% faster in 4K

Pros & cons summary

Performance score 23.03 47.04
Recency 19 September 2014 4 June 2025
Maximum RAM amount 4 GB 8 GB
Chip lithography 28 nm 4 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 148 Watt 150 Watt

GTX 970 has 1% lower power consumption.

RX 9060 XT 8 GB, on the other hand, has a 104% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 10 years, a 100% higher maximum VRAM amount, and a 86% more advanced lithography process.

The Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB is our recommended choice as it beats the GeForce GTX 970 in performance tests.

Other comparisons

We selected several comparisons of graphics cards with performance close to those reviewed, providing you with more options to consider.

GTX 970 GeForce GTX 970
vs
RX 6500 XT Radeon RX 6500 XT
RX 9060 XT 8 GB Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB
vs
RX 6700 XT Radeon RX 6700 XT
GTX 970 GeForce GTX 970
vs
GTX 1060 3 GB GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB
HD 8330 Radeon HD 8330
vs
HD Graphics 3000 HD Graphics 3000
RTX 5080 Mobile GeForce RTX 5080 Mobile
vs
Titan X Pascal Titan X Pascal
HD 6850 Radeon HD 6850
vs
GTX 980 GeForce GTX 980
P2000 Mobile Quadro P2000 Mobile
vs
GTX 970 GeForce GTX 970
Graphics 4-Core iGPU (Arc) Graphics 4 Core iGPU (Arc)
vs
GTX 970 GeForce GTX 970
Pro 560X Radeon Pro 560X
vs
GTX 1050 Ti GeForce GTX 1050 Ti
Radeon 840M Radeon 840M
vs
GTX 1050 Ti GeForce GTX 1050 Ti
HD Graphics 610 HD Graphics 610
vs
R7 370 Radeon R7 370
RTX 3070 RTX 3070
vs
GTX 660 Ti GTX 660 Ti
Pro 5600M Radeon Pro 5600M
vs
GTX 1050 GeForce GTX 1050

Community ratings

Here you can see the user ratings of the compared graphics cards, as well as rate them yourself.

4.2 5722 votes

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3.1 500 votes

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Comments

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