GeForce RTX 4090 vs Radeon RX 6800 XT

Place in performance ranking	24	1
Place by popularity	not in top-100	4
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	28.04	15.20
Architecture	Navi / RDNA2 (2020−2022)	Ada Lovelace
GPU code name	Navi 21	AD102-300-A1
Market segment	Desktop	Desktop
Release date	18 November 2020 (3 years ago)	20 September 2022 (1 year ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$649	$1,599
Current price	$696 (1.1x MSRP)	$1756 (1.1x MSRP)

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

RX 6800 XT has 84% better value for money than RTX 4090.

Detailed specifications

General performance parameters such as number of shaders, GPU core base clock and boost clock speeds, manufacturing process, texturing and calculation speed. These parameters indirectly speak of performance, but for precise assessment you have to consider their benchmark and gaming test results. Note that power consumption of some graphics cards can well exceed their nominal TDP, especially when overclocked.

Pipelines / CUDA cores	4608	16384
Core clock speed	1825 MHz	2235 MHz
Boost clock speed	2250 MHz	2520 MHz
Number of transistors	26,800 million	76,300 million
Manufacturing process technology	7 nm	5 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	300 Watt	450 Watt
Texture fill rate	648.0	1,290

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 4.0 x16
Length	267 mm	304 mm
Width	2-slot	3-slot
Supplementary power connectors	2x 8-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	GDDR6	GDDR6X
Maximum RAM amount	16 GB	24 GB
Memory bus width	256 Bit	384 Bit
Memory clock speed	16000 MHz	21000 MHz
Memory bandwidth	512.0 GB/s	1,008 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, 2x DisplayPort, 1x USB Type-C	1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a
HDMI	+	+

API compatibility

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

DirectX	12 Ultimate (12_2)	12 Ultimate (12_2)
Shader Model	6.5	6.6
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
OpenCL	2.0	3.0
Vulkan	1.2	1.3
CUDA	no data	8.9

Synthetic benchmark performance

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

Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark performance 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.

RX 6800 XT 64.75

RTX 4090 100.00
+54.4%

GeForce RTX 4090 outperforms Radeon RX 6800 XT by 54% based on our aggregated benchmark results.

Passmark

This is the most ubiquitous GPU benchmark, part of Passmark PerformanceTest suite. 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.

Benchmark coverage: 25%

RX 6800 XT 25034

RTX 4090 38662
+54.4%

GeForce RTX 4090 outperforms Radeon RX 6800 XT by 54% in Passmark.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 17%

RX 6800 XT 52046

RTX 4090 104937
+102%

GeForce RTX 4090 outperforms Radeon RX 6800 XT by 102% in 3DMark 11 Performance GPU.

3DMark Vantage Performance

3DMark Vantage is an outdated DirectX 10 benchmark using 1280x1024 screen resolution. It taxes the graphics card with two scenes, one depicting a girl escaping some militarized base located within a sea cave, the other displaying a space fleet attack on a defenseless planet. It was discontinued in April 2017, and Time Spy benchmark is now recommended to be used instead.

Benchmark coverage: 17%

RX 6800 XT 96516

RTX 4090 137170
+42.1%

GeForce RTX 4090 outperforms Radeon RX 6800 XT by 42% in 3DMark Vantage Performance.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 14%

RX 6800 XT 49735

RTX 4090 73174
+47.1%

GeForce RTX 4090 outperforms Radeon RX 6800 XT by 47% in 3DMark Fire Strike Graphics.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 14%

RX 6800 XT 193053

RTX 4090 250667
+29.8%

GeForce RTX 4090 outperforms Radeon RX 6800 XT by 30% in 3DMark Cloud Gate GPU.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 8%

RX 6800 XT 504438

RTX 4090 771257
+52.9%

GeForce RTX 4090 outperforms Radeon RX 6800 XT by 53% in 3DMark Ice Storm GPU.

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	199 −34.7%	268 +34.7%
1440p	142 −46.5%	208 +46.5%
4K	92 −65.2%	152 +65.2%

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077

120−130

−80%

225
+80%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	100−105 −135%	235 +135%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	158 −81.6%	287 +81.6%
Battlefield 5	200−210 −18.4%	240−250 +18.4%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	130−140 −22.8%	160−170 +22.8%
Cyberpunk 2077	120−130 −77.6%	222 +77.6%
Far Cry 5	100−110 −32.4%	130−140 +32.4%
Far Cry New Dawn	130−140 −19.1%	160−170 +19.1%
Forza Horizon 4	190−200 −70%	300−350 +70%
Hitman 3	140−150 −3.4%	150−160 +3.4%
Horizon Zero Dawn	432 −0.5%	434 +0.5%
Metro Exodus	144 −4.9%	150−160 +4.9%
Red Dead Redemption 2	122 −1.6%	120−130 +1.6%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	404 −34.4%	543 +34.4%
Watch Dogs: Legion	169 −11.2%	188 +11.2%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	100−105 −121%	221 +121%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	135 −83.7%	248 +83.7%
Battlefield 5	200−210 −18.4%	240−250 +18.4%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	130−140 −22.8%	160−170 +22.8%
Cyberpunk 2077	120−130 −71.2%	214 +71.2%
Far Cry 5	58 −155%	148 +155%
Far Cry New Dawn	62 −37.1%	85 +37.1%
Forza Horizon 4	190−200 −70%	300−350 +70%
Hitman 3	68 −121%	150−160 +121%
Horizon Zero Dawn	387 −12.9%	437 +12.9%
Metro Exodus	124 −37.9%	171 +37.9%
Red Dead Redemption 2	121 −2.5%	120−130 +2.5%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	275 −52%	418 +52%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	294 −94.9%	573 +94.9%
Watch Dogs: Legion	150 −15.3%	173 +15.3%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	100−105 −79%	179 +79%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	118 −86.4%	220 +86.4%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	130−140 −22.8%	160−170 +22.8%
Cyberpunk 2077	120−130 −68%	210 +68%
Far Cry 5	100−110 −32.4%	130−140 +32.4%
Forza Horizon 4	190−200 −70%	300−350 +70%
Horizon Zero Dawn	279 −41.2%	394 +41.2%
Metro Exodus	113 −36.3%	154 +36.3%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	160 −90.6%	305 +90.6%
Watch Dogs: Legion	112 −36.6%	153 +36.6%

Full HD
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

120

−3.3%

120−130
+3.3%

1440p
High Preset

Battlefield 5	140−150 −11.4%	160−170 +11.4%
Far Cry New Dawn	143 −0.7%	140−150 +0.7%
Hitman 3	75−80 −53.2%	120−130 +53.2%
Red Dead Redemption 2	83 −12%	90−95 +12%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	70−75 −118%	155 +118%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	98 −86.7%	183 +86.7%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	100−110 −10.9%	110−120 +10.9%
Cyberpunk 2077	65−70 −133%	154 +133%
Far Cry 5	131 −42%	186 +42%
Forza Horizon 4	150−160 −89.5%	280−290 +89.5%
Horizon Zero Dawn	215 −80.5%	388 +80.5%
Metro Exodus	112 −35.7%	152 +35.7%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	222 −127%	504 +127%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	110−120 −135%	268 +135%
Watch Dogs: Legion	85 −78.8%	152 +78.8%

4K
High Preset

Far Cry 5	40 −215%	126 +215%
Far Cry New Dawn	126 −12.7%	140−150 +12.7%
Hitman 3	55−60 −48.2%	80−85 +48.2%
Horizon Zero Dawn	95−100 −116%	210 +116%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	80 −133%	186 +133%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	110 −155%	280 +155%

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	50−55 −140%	120 +140%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	65 −84.6%	120 +84.6%
Battlefield 5	103 −32%	130−140 +32%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	70−75 −28.2%	90−95 +28.2%
Cyberpunk 2077	30−35 −158%	80 +158%
Forza Horizon 4	100−110 −139%	250−260 +139%
Horizon Zero Dawn	128 −123%	285 +123%
Metro Exodus	94 −54.3%	145 +54.3%
Watch Dogs: Legion	49 −139%	117 +139%

4K
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

−46.1%

110−120
+46.1%

This is how RX 6800 XT and RTX 4090 compete in popular games:

RTX 4090 is 35% faster in 1080p
RTX 4090 is 46% faster in 1440p
RTX 4090 is 65% faster in 4K

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

in Far Cry 5, with 4K resolution and the High Preset, the RTX 4090 is 215% faster than the RX 6800 XT.

All in all, in popular games:

Without exception, RTX 4090 surpassed RX 6800 XT in all 72 of our tests.

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	64.75	100.00
Recency	18 November 2020	20 September 2022
Cost	$649	$1599
Maximum RAM amount	16 GB	24 GB
Chip lithography	7 nm	5 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	300 Watt	450 Watt