GeForce GTX 1660 vs Radeon RX 580
Performance-wise the GeForce GTX 1660 is out front, dramatically faster, roughly 67% up on the Radeon RX 580. It is also the stronger value pick here, so it's the easy recommendation if your budget allows.
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GeForce GTX 1660 vs Radeon RX 580: In-Depth Breakdown
Performance: GeForce GTX 1660 vs Radeon RX 580
The GeForce GTX 1660 is dramatically faster, around 67% ahead of the Radeon RX 580. Both cards sit in the same broad class, well suited to entry-level 1080p.
Price & Value
Right now the Radeon RX 580 starts at $121 GBP against $158 GBP for the GeForce GTX 1660. Because it's both faster and competitively priced, the GeForce GTX 1660 wins on performance-per-dollar by about 27%. The Radeon RX 580 is trading below its $229 GBP MSRP — a genuine deal. The GeForce GTX 1660 is trading below its $219 GBP MSRP — a genuine deal.
Power & Efficiency
The GeForce GTX 1660 sips power at 120W next to the Radeon RX 580's 185W, and still leads on performance-per-watt — quieter, cooler, and gentler on your PSU. Its more modern Turing architecture on a TSMC 12nm process is part of why it does more with each watt.
VRAM & Future-Proofing
The Radeon RX 580's 8GB (vs 6GB on the GeForce GTX 1660) gives it more room for 4K textures and memory-hungry creative or AI workloads.
Generation & Longevity
The GeForce GTX 1660 is roughly 2 years newer than the Radeon RX 580 (Turing vs GCN 4.0 (Polaris)), so it generally benefits from a more modern architecture and longer driver-support runway.
Features & Ecosystem
Beyond raw numbers, the GeForce GTX 1660 brings NVIDIA DLSS upscaling/frame generation and stronger ray tracing, while the Radeon RX 580 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 GTX 1660 or Radeon RX 580?
The GeForce GTX 1660 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 580 if you find it at a steep discount.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the GeForce GTX 1660 better than the Radeon RX 580?
Which is better for 4K gaming, the GeForce GTX 1660 or the Radeon RX 580?
Is the GeForce GTX 1660 worth the extra $37 GBP over the Radeon RX 580?
Does the Radeon RX 580 have enough VRAM advantage to matter?
Which should you buy: GeForce GTX 1660 or Radeon RX 580?
Technical Specifications Comparison
Architecture & Cores
| Specification | GeForce GTX 1660 | Radeon RX 580 |
|---|---|---|
| Architecture | Turing | GCN 4.0 (Polaris) |
| Process Node | TSMC 12nm | GloFo 14nm |
| CUDA Cores (CUDA Cores / Stream Processors) | 1,408 | 2,304✓ |
Clock Speeds
| Specification | GeForce GTX 1660 | Radeon RX 580 |
|---|---|---|
| Base Clock | 1,530 MHz✓ | 1,257 MHz |
| Boost Clock | 1,785 MHz✓ | 1,340 MHz |
Memory
| Specification | GeForce GTX 1660 | Radeon RX 580 |
|---|---|---|
| VRAM Capacity | 6 GB | 8 GB✓ |
| Memory Type | GDDR5 | GDDR5 |
| Memory Bus | 192-bit | 256-bit✓ |
| Memory Speed | 8 Gbps | 8 Gbps |
| Bandwidth | 192 GB/s | 256 GB/s✓ |
Connectivity & Power
| Specification | GeForce GTX 1660 | Radeon RX 580 |
|---|---|---|
| Interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | PCIe 3.0 x16 |
| TDP | 120 W✓ | 185 W |
| Power Connectors | 1x 8-pin | 1x 8-pin |
| Released | Mar 2019 | Apr 2017 |
