GeForce GTX 1060 Max-Q 6 GB vs GT 1030

Place in the ranking	578	348
Place by popularity	33	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	2.31	no data
Power efficiency	14.64	13.18
Architecture	Pascal (2016−2021)	Pascal (2016−2021)
GPU code name	GP108	GP106
Market segment	Desktop	Laptop
Release date	17 May 2017 (7 years ago)	27 June 2017 (7 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$79	no data

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

no data

Detailed specifications

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

Pipelines / CUDA cores	384	1280
Core clock speed	1228 MHz	1063 MHz
Boost clock speed	1468 MHz	1480 MHz
Number of transistors	1,800 million	4,400 million
Manufacturing process technology	14 nm	16 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	30 Watt	80 Watt
Texture fill rate	35.23	118.4
Floating-point processing power	1.127 TFLOPS	3.789 TFLOPS
ROPs	16	48
TMUs	24	80

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).

Laptop size	no data	large
Interface	PCIe 3.0 x4	PCIe 3.0 x16
Length	145 mm	no data
Width	1-slot	no data
Supplementary power connectors	None	None

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 type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount	4 GB	6 GB
Memory bus width	64 Bit	192 Bit
Memory clock speed	1502 MHz	2002 MHz
Memory bandwidth	48.06 GB/s	192.2 GB/s
Shared memory	-	-

Connectivity and outputs

Types and number of video connectors present on the reviewed GPUs. As a rule, data in this section is precise only for desktop reference ones (so-called Founders Edition for NVIDIA chips). OEM manufacturers may change the number and type of output ports, while for notebook cards availability of certain video outputs ports depends on the laptop model rather than on the card itself.

Display Connectors	1x DVI, 1x HDMI	No outputs
HDMI	+	-
G-SYNC support	+	+

Supported technologies

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

VR Ready

API compatibility

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

DirectX	12 (12_1)	12 (12_1)
Shader Model	6.4	6.4
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
OpenCL	1.2	1.2
Vulkan	1.2.131	1.2.131
CUDA	6.1	6.1

Synthetic benchmark performance

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. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

GT 1030 6.38

GTX 1060 Max-Q 6 GB 15.32
+140%

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.

GT 1030 2454

GTX 1060 Max-Q 6 GB 5891
+140%

3DMark 11 Performance GPU

3DMark 11 is an obsolete DirectX 11 benchmark by Futuremark. It used four tests based on two scenes, one being few submarines exploring the submerged wreck of a sunken ship, the other is an abandoned temple deep in the jungle. All the tests are heavy with volumetric lighting and tessellation, and despite being done in 1280x720 resolution, are relatively taxing. Discontinued in January 2020, 3DMark 11 is now superseded by Time Spy.

GT 1030 4728

GTX 1060 Max-Q 6 GB 13334
+182%

3DMark Fire Strike Graphics

Fire Strike is a DirectX 11 benchmark for gaming PCs. It features two separate tests displaying a fight between a humanoid and a fiery creature made of lava. Using 1920x1080 resolution, Fire Strike shows off some realistic graphics and is quite taxing on hardware.

GT 1030 3625

GTX 1060 Max-Q 6 GB 10430
+188%

3DMark Cloud Gate GPU

Cloud Gate is an outdated DirectX 11 feature level 10 benchmark that was used for home PCs and basic notebooks. It displays a few scenes of some weird space teleportation device launching spaceships into unknown, using fixed resolution of 1280x720. Just like Ice Storm benchmark, it has been discontinued in January 2020 and replaced by 3DMark Night Raid.

GT 1030 22069

GTX 1060 Max-Q 6 GB 74101
+236%

3DMark Ice Storm GPU

Ice Storm Graphics is an obsolete benchmark, part of 3DMark suite. Ice Storm was used to measure entry level laptops and Windows-based tablets performance. It utilizes DirectX 11 feature level 9 to display a battle between two space fleets near a frozen planet in 1280x720 resolution. Discontinued in January 2020, it is now superseded by 3DMark Night Raid.

GT 1030 219163

GTX 1060 Max-Q 6 GB 367999
+67.9%

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 HD	24 −233%	80 +233%
1440p	26 +73.3%	15 −73.3%
4K	9 −233%	30 +233%

Cost per frame, $

1080p	3.29	no data
1440p	3.04	no data
4K	8.78	no data

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Counter-Strike 2	14−16 −92.9%	27−30 +92.9%
Cyberpunk 2077	15 −100%	30−33 +100%
Elden Ring	16 −194%	45−50 +194%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Battlefield 5	21 −138%	50−55 +138%
Counter-Strike 2	14−16 −92.9%	27−30 +92.9%
Cyberpunk 2077	10 −200%	30−33 +200%
Forza Horizon 4	28 −121%	60−65 +121%
Metro Exodus	23 −82.6%	40−45 +82.6%
Red Dead Redemption 2	31 −19.4%	35−40 +19.4%
Valorant	18 −239%	60−65 +239%

Full HD
High Preset

Battlefield 5	20−22 −150%	50−55 +150%
Counter-Strike 2	14−16 −92.9%	27−30 +92.9%
Cyberpunk 2077	7 −329%	30−33 +329%
Dota 2	19 −195%	56 +195%
Elden Ring	13 −262%	45−50 +262%
Far Cry 5	27−30 −93.1%	55−60 +93.1%
Fortnite	35−40 −142%	92 +142%
Forza Horizon 4	19 −226%	60−65 +226%
Grand Theft Auto V	29 −190%	84 +190%
Metro Exodus	14 −200%	40−45 +200%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS	63 −178%	175 +178%
Red Dead Redemption 2	18−20 −94.7%	35−40 +94.7%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	20−22 −135%	45−50 +135%
Valorant	15 −307%	60−65 +307%
World of Tanks	100−105 −97%	190−200 +97%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Battlefield 5	20−22 −150%	50−55 +150%
Counter-Strike 2	14−16 −92.9%	27−30 +92.9%
Cyberpunk 2077	12−14 −131%	30−33 +131%
Dota 2	21−24 −150%	55−60 +150%
Far Cry 5	27−30 −93.1%	55−60 +93.1%
Forza Horizon 4	16 −288%	60−65 +288%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS	19 −153%	48 +153%
Valorant	14 −336%	60−65 +336%

1440p
High Preset

Dota 2	6−7 −267%	21−24 +267%
Elden Ring	8−9 −200%	24−27 +200%
Grand Theft Auto V	7−8 −229%	21−24 +229%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS	35−40 −276%	130−140 +276%
Red Dead Redemption 2	5−6 −160%	12−14 +160%
World of Tanks	45−50 −133%	100−110 +133%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Battlefield 5	10−12 −182%	30−35 +182%
Counter-Strike 2	9−10 −44.4%	12−14 +44.4%
Cyberpunk 2077	5−6 −120%	10−12 +120%
Far Cry 5	12−14 −185%	35−40 +185%
Forza Horizon 4	11 −236%	35−40 +236%
Metro Exodus	8−9 −325%	30−35 +325%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	8−9 −150%	20−22 +150%
Valorant	16−18 −124%	35−40 +124%

4K
High Preset

Dota 2	12 −350%	54 +350%
Elden Ring	3−4 −233%	10−11 +233%
Grand Theft Auto V	12 −350%	54 +350%
Metro Exodus	2−3 −400%	10−11 +400%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS	18−20 −217%	57 +217%
Red Dead Redemption 2	4−5 −150%	10−11 +150%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	12 −350%	54 +350%

4K
Ultra Preset

Battlefield 5	5−6 −180%	14−16 +180%
Cyberpunk 2077	2−3 −100%	4−5 +100%
Dota 2	16−18 −58.8%	27−30 +58.8%
Far Cry 5	7−8 −171%	18−20 +171%
Fortnite	4 −500%	24 +500%
Forza Horizon 4	6 −267%	21−24 +267%
Valorant	6−7 −183%	16−18 +183%

4K
High Preset

Counter-Strike 2

10−12

+0%

10−12

+0%

4K
Ultra Preset

Counter-Strike 2

10−12

+0%

10−12

+0%

This is how GT 1030 and GTX 1060 Max-Q 6 GB compete in popular games:

GTX 1060 Max-Q 6 GB is 233% faster in 1080p
GT 1030 is 73% faster in 1440p
GTX 1060 Max-Q 6 GB is 233% faster in 4K

Here's the range of performance differences observed across popular games:

in Fortnite, with 4K resolution and the Ultra Preset, the GTX 1060 Max-Q 6 GB is 500% faster.

All in all, in popular games:

GTX 1060 Max-Q 6 GB is ahead in 61 test (97%)
there's a draw in 2 tests (3%)

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	6.38	15.32
Recency	17 May 2017	27 June 2017
Maximum RAM amount	4 GB	6 GB
Chip lithography	14 nm	16 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	30 Watt	80 Watt

GT 1030 has a 14.3% more advanced lithography process, and 166.7% lower power consumption.

GTX 1060 Max-Q 6 GB, on the other hand, has a 140.1% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 1 month, and a 50% higher maximum VRAM amount.

The GeForce GTX 1060 Max-Q 6 GB is our recommended choice as it beats the GeForce GT 1030 in performance tests.

Be aware that GeForce GT 1030 is a desktop card while GeForce GTX 1060 Max-Q 6 GB is a notebook one.

Should you still have questions concerning choice between the reviewed GPUs, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.