GeForce RTX 3060 Ti vs Radeon R9 390X

NVIDIA

GeForce RTX 3060 Ti

2020Core: 1410 MHzBoost: 1665 MHz

Popular choices:

VS
AMD

Radeon R9 390X

2015Boost: 1050 MHz

Popular choices:

RTX 3060 Ti

Performance Spectrum - GPU

About G3D Mark

G3D Mark is a standard benchmark that measures graphics performance in real-world gaming scenarios. It simplifies comparing cards from different brands, where higher scores directly correlate with better fps and smoother gaming experiences.

Head-to-Head Verdict, Benchmarks, Value & Long-Term Outlook

This comparison brings together gaming FPS, raw graphics performance, VRAM, feature set, power efficiency, pricing context, and long-term value so you can see which GPU actually makes more sense.

GeForce RTX 3060 Ti

2020

Why buy it

  • +118.9% higher PassMark G3D performance.
  • Costs $30 less on MSRP ($399 MSRP vs $429 MSRP).
  • Delivers 135.4% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 50.9 vs 21.6 G3D/$ ($399 MSRP vs $429 MSRP).
  • Access to DLSS 2 Super Resolution (2020).
  • More future proof: Ampere (2020−2025) on 8nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

  • Fewer clear downsides in this head-to-head, aside from the usual pricing and availability swings.

Radeon R9 390X

2015

Why buy it

  • Competitive enough if your priority is price, power, or specific feature preference.

Trade-offs

  • Lower PassMark G3D performance (9,278 vs 20,312).
  • No DLSS support; it relies on FSR Upscaling / FSR 4 (2025) instead.
  • Poor future-proofing: 2015-era hardware with 8 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
  • 7.5% HIGHER MSRP
    $429 MSRPvs$399 MSRP
  • Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 21.6 vs 50.9 G3D/$ ($429 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).

Quick Answers

So, is GeForce RTX 3060 Ti better than Radeon R9 390X?
Yes. GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is clearly the better overall GPU here. You are also looking at 20,312 vs 9,278 in G3D Mark. On top of that, GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is a 2020 card with DLSS Super Resolution, while Radeon R9 390X is a 2015 model from an older generation with FSR upscaling. So this is not really a tight same-tier comparison. It is more a modern card against an older, weaker alternative.
Which one is more future-proof for 2026 and beyond?
GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer 2020 generation instead of 2015, 118.9% more raw performance headroom, the stronger feature stack with DLSS Super Resolution instead of FSR upscaling, and a 8nm process instead of 28nm. That broader feature stack should age better as more games lean on modern upscaling and frame-generation support.
Which one is the smarter buy today, not just the cheaper card?
GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is the smarter buy today, but it is not as lopsided as a simple winner label makes it sound. GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is about $30 cheaper on MSRP at $399 MSRP versus $429 MSRP, and you are getting 118.9% higher G3D Mark. It also leads G3D-per-dollar by 135.4%. That is why the better overall card still comes out as the smarter buy today, not just the faster one.
Is Radeon R9 390X still worth buying for gaming in 2026?
Yes. Radeon R9 390X is still a strong modern gaming GPU: it is still comfortable for 1080p and decent for 1440p, though 4K is more situational. It remains a good buy when you can get it meaningfully cheaper than the alternative around $429 MSRP, even if GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is still the cleaner recommendation on overall value today.

Games Benchmarks

Real-world benchmarks and performance projections based on comprehensive hardware analysis and comparative metrics. Values represent expected performance on High/Ultra settings at 1080p, 1440p, and 4K. Modeled using a Ryzen 7 9800X3D reference profile to minimize specific CPU bottlenecks.

Note: Performance behavior can vary per game. Specific architectures may perform better or worse depending on game engine optimizations and API implementation.

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

PresetGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon R9 390X
1080p
low152 FPS135 FPS
medium137 FPS115 FPS
high118 FPS94 FPS
ultra100 FPS57 FPS
1440p
low131 FPS113 FPS
medium107 FPS96 FPS
high91 FPS70 FPS
ultra82 FPS42 FPS
4K
low77 FPS39 FPS
medium65 FPS36 FPS
high50 FPS22 FPS
ultra43 FPS19 FPS
Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

PresetGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon R9 390X
1080p
low425 FPS187 FPS
medium366 FPS165 FPS
high296 FPS137 FPS
ultra248 FPS107 FPS
1440p
low272 FPS131 FPS
medium229 FPS106 FPS
high190 FPS85 FPS
ultra156 FPS65 FPS
4K
low133 FPS60 FPS
medium114 FPS50 FPS
high96 FPS45 FPS
ultra73 FPS37 FPS
League of Legends

League of Legends

PresetGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon R9 390X
1080p
low859 FPS418 FPS
medium693 FPS334 FPS
high602 FPS278 FPS
ultra457 FPS209 FPS
1440p
low658 FPS313 FPS
medium529 FPS251 FPS
high452 FPS209 FPS
ultra343 FPS157 FPS
4K
low434 FPS209 FPS
medium346 FPS167 FPS
high275 FPS139 FPS
ultra221 FPS104 FPS
Valorant

Valorant

PresetGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon R9 390X
1080p
low580 FPS283 FPS
medium514 FPS247 FPS
high424 FPS206 FPS
ultra373 FPS163 FPS
1440p
low478 FPS204 FPS
medium427 FPS180 FPS
high335 FPS144 FPS
ultra290 FPS110 FPS
4K
low285 FPS115 FPS
medium266 FPS94 FPS
high234 FPS77 FPS
ultra195 FPS57 FPS

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of GeForce RTX 3060 Ti and Radeon R9 390X

NVIDIA

GeForce RTX 3060 Ti

The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in December 1 2020. It features the Ampere architecture. The core clock ranges from 1410 MHz to 1665 MHz. It has 4864 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 200W. Manufactured using 8 nm process technology. It features 38 dedicated ray tracing cores for enhanced lighting effects. G3D Mark benchmark score: 20,312 points. Launch price was $399.

AMD

Radeon R9 390X

The Radeon R9 390X is manufactured by AMD. It was released in June 18 2015. It features the GCN 2.0 architecture. The boost clock speed is 1050 MHz. It has 2816 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 275W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 9,278 points. Launch price was $429.

Graphics Performance

In G3D Mark, the GeForce RTX 3060 Ti scores 20,312 versus the Radeon R9 390X's 9,278 — the GeForce RTX 3060 Ti leads by 118.9%. The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is built on Ampere while the Radeon R9 390X uses GCN 2.0, both on 8 nm vs 28 nm. Shader units: 4,864 (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs 2,816 (Radeon R9 390X). Raw compute: 16.2 TFLOPS (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs 5.914 TFLOPS (Radeon R9 390X). Boost clocks: 1665 MHz vs 1050 MHz.

FeatureGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon R9 390X
G3D Mark Score
20,312+119%
9,278
Architecture
Ampere
GCN 2.0
Process Node
8 nm
28 nm
Shading Units
4864+73%
2816
Compute (TFLOPS)
16.2 TFLOPS+174%
5.914 TFLOPS
Boost Clock
1665 MHz+59%
1050 MHz
ROPs
80+25%
64
TMUs
152
176+16%
L1 Cache
4.8 MB+596%
0.69 MB
L2 Cache
4 MB+300%
1 MB

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti gives access to NVIDIA DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling), widely regarding as the superior upscaling method for image quality. The Radeon R9 390X relies on FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution), which is capable but generally slightly noisier than DLSS in motion.

FeatureGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon R9 390X
Upscaling Tech
DLSS 2 Super Resolution
FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
Frame Generation
Not Supported
Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction
No
No
Low Latency
NVIDIA Reflex
AMD Anti-Lag
💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards feature 8 GB of video memory. Memory bandwidth: 448 GB/s (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs 384 GB/s (Radeon R9 390X) — a 16.7% advantage for the GeForce RTX 3060 Ti. Bus width: 256-bit vs 512-bit. L2 Cache: 4 MB (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs 1 MB (Radeon R9 390X) — the GeForce RTX 3060 Ti has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

FeatureGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon R9 390X
VRAM Capacity
8 GB
8 GB
Memory Type
GDDR6
GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth
448 GB/s+17%
384 GB/s
Bus Width
256-bit
512-bit+100%
L2 Cache
4 MB+300%
1 MB
🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 Ultimate (12_2) (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs 12 (12_0) (Radeon R9 390X). Vulkan: 1.3 vs 1.2. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 4.

FeatureGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon R9 390X
DirectX
12 Ultimate (12_2)
12 (12_0)
Vulkan
1.3+8%
1.2
OpenGL
4.6
4.6
Max Displays
4
4
🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC (Ampere) (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs VCE 2.0 (Radeon R9 390X). Decoder: NVDEC (Ampere) vs UVD 4.2. Supported codecs: H.264,H.265,VP9,AV1 (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1 (Radeon R9 390X).

FeatureGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon R9 390X
Encoder
NVENC (Ampere)
VCE 2.0
Decoder
NVDEC (Ampere)
UVD 4.2
Codecs
H.264,H.265,VP9,AV1
H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti draws 200W versus the Radeon R9 390X's 275W — a 31.6% difference. The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 600W (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs 750W (Radeon R9 390X). Power connectors: 8-pin vs 6-pin + 8-pin. Card length: 242mm vs 277mm, occupying 2 vs 2 slots. Typical load temperature: 75 vs 80.

FeatureGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon R9 390X
TDP
200W-27%
275W
Recommended PSU
600W-20%
750W
Power Connector
8-pin
6-pin + 8-pin
Length
242mm
277mm
Height
112mm
129mm
Slots
2
2
Temp (Load)
75-6%
80
Perf/Watt
101.6+201%
33.7
💰

Value Analysis

The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti launched at $399 MSRP, while the Radeon R9 390X launched at $429. The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti costs 7% less ($30 savings) on MSRP. Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 50.9 (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs 21.6 (Radeon R9 390X) — the GeForce RTX 3060 Ti offers 135.6% better value. The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is the newer GPU (2020 vs 2015).

FeatureGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon R9 390X
MSRP
$399-7%
$429
Performance per Dollar
50.9+136%
21.6
Codename
GA104
Grenada
Release
December 1 2020
June 18 2015
Ranking
#73
#287