GeForce RTX 3080 vs Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB
The GeForce RTX 3080 is a big jump in performance — leading the Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB by roughly 25% in our performance index. It also comes out ahead on value, making it the straightforward pick if the price fits your budget.
Maximum Capacity Reached. Remove a model to add another. (2/2)
GeForce RTX 3080 vs Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB: In-Depth Breakdown
Performance: GeForce RTX 3080 vs Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB
The GeForce RTX 3080 is significantly faster, around 25% ahead of the Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB. Both cards sit in the same broad class, well suited to 1440p.
Price & Value
On price, expect to pay $530 CAD for the Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB versus $569 CAD for the GeForce RTX 3080. Because it's both faster and competitively priced, the GeForce RTX 3080 wins on performance-per-dollar by about 16%. The Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB still sits about $231 CAD above its $299 CAD MSRP. The GeForce RTX 3080 is trading below its $699 CAD MSRP — a genuine deal.
Power & Efficiency
The Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB draws just 160W versus 320W for the GeForce RTX 3080, and it also delivers more performance per watt — so it runs cooler and quieter and needs less PSU headroom. Its more modern RDNA 4 architecture on a TSMC N4 process is part of why it does more with each watt.
VRAM & Future-Proofing
With 10GB against 8GB, the GeForce RTX 3080 has more headroom for 4K textures and memory-hungry creative/AI tasks where the Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB's 8GB can fall short.
Generation & Longevity
The Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB is roughly 5 years newer than the GeForce RTX 3080 (RDNA 4 vs Ampere), so it generally benefits from a more modern architecture and longer driver-support runway.
Features & Ecosystem
Beyond raw numbers, the GeForce RTX 3080 brings NVIDIA DLSS upscaling/frame generation and stronger ray tracing, while the Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB offers AMD FSR upscaling and strong rasterization value. If you lean on upscaling or ray tracing, that ecosystem difference can matter as much as the frame-rate gap.
Which should you buy: GeForce RTX 3080 or Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB?
The GeForce RTX 3080 is the all-round winner here — it's faster and the better value, so buy it if it fits your budget. Only consider the Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB if you find it at a steep discount.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the GeForce RTX 3080 better than the Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB?
Which is better for 4K gaming, the GeForce RTX 3080 or the Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB?
Is the GeForce RTX 3080 worth the extra $39 CAD over the Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB?
Does the GeForce RTX 3080 have enough VRAM advantage to matter?
Which should you buy: GeForce RTX 3080 or Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB?
Technical Specifications Comparison
Architecture & Cores
| Specification | GeForce RTX 3080 | Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB |
|---|---|---|
| Architecture | Ampere | RDNA 4 |
| Process Node | Samsung 8nm | TSMC N4 |
| CUDA Cores (CUDA Cores / Stream Processors) | 8,704✓ | 2,048 |
| Ray Tracing Cores | 68✓ | 32 |
| Tensor / AI Cores | 272✓ | 64 |
Clock Speeds
| Specification | GeForce RTX 3080 | Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB |
|---|---|---|
| Base Clock | 1,440 MHz | 1,700 MHz✓ |
| Boost Clock | 1,710 MHz | 3,130 MHz✓ |
Memory
| Specification | GeForce RTX 3080 | Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB |
|---|---|---|
| VRAM Capacity | 10 GB✓ | 8 GB |
| Memory Type | GDDR6X | GDDR6 |
| Memory Bus | 320-bit✓ | 128-bit |
| Memory Speed | 19 Gbps | 20 Gbps✓ |
| Bandwidth | 760 GB/s✓ | 322.3 GB/s |
Connectivity & Power
| Specification | GeForce RTX 3080 | Radeon RX 9060 XT 8GB |
|---|---|---|
| Interface | PCIe 4.0 x16 | PCIe 5.0 x16 |
| TDP | 320 W | 160 W✓ |
| Power Connectors | 1x 12-pin | 1x 8-pin |
| Released | Sep 2020 | Jun 2025 |