GeForce RTX 5080 vs RTX 3090

Place in the ranking	26	3
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	14.96	42.05
Power efficiency	13.64	18.63
Architecture	Ampere (2020−2024)	Blackwell 2.0 (2025)
GPU code name	GA102	GB203
Market segment	Desktop	Desktop
Release date	1 September 2020 (4 years ago)	30 January 2025 (recently)
Launch price (MSRP)	$1,499	$999

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

The higher the performance-to-price ratio, the better. We use the manufacturer's recommended prices for comparison.

RTX 5080 has 181% better value for money than RTX 3090.

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	10496	10752
Core clock speed	1395 MHz	2295 MHz
Boost clock speed	1695 MHz	2617 MHz
Number of transistors	28,300 million	45,600 million
Manufacturing process technology	8 nm	4 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	350 Watt	360 Watt
Texture fill rate	556.0	879.3
Floating-point processing power	35.58 TFLOPS	56.28 TFLOPS
ROPs	112	128
TMUs	328	336
Tensor Cores	328	336
Ray Tracing Cores	82	84

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).

Interface	PCIe 4.0 x16	PCIe 5.0 x16
Length	336 mm	304 mm
Width	3-slot	2-slot
Supplementary power connectors	1x 12-pin	1x 16-pin

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	GDDR6X	GDDR7
Maximum RAM amount	24 GB	16 GB
Memory bus width	384 Bit	256 Bit
Memory clock speed	1219 MHz	1875 MHz
Memory bandwidth	936.2 GB/s	960.0 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 HDMI, 3x DisplayPort	1x HDMI 2.1b, 3x DisplayPort 2.1b
HDMI	+	+

API and SDK compatibility

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

DirectX	12 Ultimate (12_2)	12 Ultimate (12_2)
Shader Model	6.5	6.8
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
OpenCL	2.0	3.0
Vulkan	1.2	1.4
CUDA	8.5	10.1

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.

RTX 3090 64.79

RTX 5080 91.00
+40.5%

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.

RTX 3090 26701

RTX 5080 37502
+40.5%

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	198 +2.6%	193 −2.6%
1440p	128 −20.3%	154 +20.3%
4K	87 −17.2%	102 +17.2%

Cost per frame, $

1080p	7.57 −46.3%	5.18 +46.3%
1440p	11.71 −80.5%	6.49 +80.5%
4K	17.23 −75.9%	9.79 +75.9%

RTX 5080 has 46% lower cost per frame in 1080p
RTX 5080 has 81% lower cost per frame in 1440p
RTX 5080 has 76% lower cost per frame in 4K

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Counter-Strike 2	220 +4.8%	210−220 −4.8%
Cyberpunk 2077	207 −40.1%	290−300 +40.1%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Battlefield 5	102 −14.7%	110−120 +14.7%
Counter-Strike 2	188 −11.7%	210−220 +11.7%
Cyberpunk 2077	151 −39.1%	210−220 +39.1%
Forza Horizon 4	505 −38.6%	700−750 +38.6%
Forza Horizon 5	184 −56.5%	280−290 +56.5%
Metro Exodus	169 −10.1%	180−190 +10.1%
Red Dead Redemption 2	130 −20%	150−160 +20%
Valorant	393 −83%	700−750 +83%

Full HD
High Preset

Battlefield 5	110−120 +0%	110−120 +0%
Counter-Strike 2	161 −30.4%	210−220 +30.4%
Cyberpunk 2077	135 −33.3%	180−190 +33.3%
Dota 2	186 +6.3%	170−180 −6.3%
Far Cry 5	147 −6.8%	157 +6.8%
Fortnite	270−280 −12.8%	300−350 +12.8%
Forza Horizon 4	402 −36.8%	550−600 +36.8%
Forza Horizon 5	182 −58.2%	280−290 +58.2%
Grand Theft Auto V	171 −40.4%	240−250 +40.4%
Metro Exodus	150 −24%	180−190 +24%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS	210−220 +0%	210−220 +0%
Red Dead Redemption 2	132 −18.2%	150−160 +18.2%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	170−180 +0%	170−180 +0%
Valorant	222 −224%	700−750 +224%
World of Tanks	270−280 +0%	270−280 +0%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Battlefield 5	95 −23.2%	110−120 +23.2%
Counter-Strike 2	146 −52.1%	222 +52.1%
Cyberpunk 2077	121 −32.2%	160−170 +32.2%
Dota 2	213 −36.2%	290−300 +36.2%
Far Cry 5	130−140 −41.2%	180−190 +41.2%
Forza Horizon 4	351 −28.2%	450−500 +28.2%
Forza Horizon 5	159 −81.1%	280−290 +81.1%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS	210−220 +0%	210−220 +0%
Valorant	296 −143%	700−750 +143%

1440p
High Preset

Dota 2	150 −12.7%	160−170 +12.7%
Grand Theft Auto V	150 −40%	210−220 +40%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS	170−180 −37.1%	240−250 +37.1%
Red Dead Redemption 2	92 −1.1%	90−95 +1.1%
World of Tanks	450−500 −5.7%	500−550 +5.7%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Battlefield 5	91 +4.6%	85−90 −4.6%
Cyberpunk 2077	87 −37.9%	120−130 +37.9%
Far Cry 5	160−170 +0%	160−170 +0%
Forza Horizon 4	266 −31.6%	350−400 +31.6%
Forza Horizon 5	134 −66.4%	220−230 +66.4%
Metro Exodus	139 −14.4%	150−160 +14.4%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	152 −38.2%	210−220 +38.2%
Valorant	295 −85.8%	500−550 +85.8%

4K
High Preset

Counter-Strike 2	40−45 −153%	109 +153%
Dota 2	182 −2.7%	180−190 +2.7%
Grand Theft Auto V	182 −37.4%	250−260 +37.4%
Metro Exodus	76 −73.7%	130−140 +73.7%
PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS	200−210 +0%	200−210 +0%
Red Dead Redemption 2	64 +0%	60−65 +0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	182 −37.4%	250−260 +37.4%

4K
Ultra Preset

Battlefield 5	91 +0%	90−95 +0%
Counter-Strike 2	22 −63.6%	36 +63.6%
Cyberpunk 2077	45 −33.3%	60−65 +33.3%
Dota 2	202 −38.6%	280−290 +38.6%
Far Cry 5	100−110 +0%	100−110 +0%
Fortnite	95−100 +0%	95−100 +0%
Forza Horizon 4	159 −38.4%	220−230 +38.4%
Forza Horizon 5	83 −77.1%	140−150 +77.1%
Valorant	188 −73.9%	300−350 +73.9%

This is how RTX 3090 and RTX 5080 compete in popular games:

RTX 3090 is 3% faster in 1080p
RTX 5080 is 20% faster in 1440p
RTX 5080 is 17% faster in 4K

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

in Dota 2, with 1080p resolution and the High Preset, the RTX 3090 is 6% faster.
in Valorant, with 1080p resolution and the High Preset, the RTX 5080 is 224% faster.

All in all, in popular games:

RTX 3090 is ahead in 3 tests (7%)
RTX 5080 is ahead in 30 tests (68%)
there's a draw in 11 tests (25%)

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	64.79	91.00
Recency	1 September 2020	30 January 2025
Maximum RAM amount	24 GB	16 GB
Chip lithography	8 nm	4 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	350 Watt	360 Watt

RTX 3090 has a 50% higher maximum VRAM amount, and 2.9% lower power consumption.

RTX 5080, on the other hand, has a 40.5% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 4 years, and a 100% more advanced lithography process.

The GeForce RTX 5080 is our recommended choice as it beats the GeForce RTX 3090 in performance tests.

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