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 2060

2019

Why buy it

✅+65.2% higher PassMark G3D performance.
✅Access to DLSS 2 Super Resolution (2020).
✅More future proof: Turing (2018−2022) on 12nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.
✅Measures 229mm instead of 240mm, a 11mm shorter card that is more SFF-friendly.

Trade-offs

❌Less VRAM, with 6 GB vs 8 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.

Radeon RX 480

2016

Why buy it

✅Costs $120 less on MSRP ($229 MSRP vs $349 MSRP).
✅33.3% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (8 GB vs 6 GB).

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark G3D performance (8,546 vs 14,114).
❌No DLSS support; it relies on FSR Upscaling / FSR 4 (2025) instead.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2016-era hardware with 8 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.

GeForce RTX 2060

2019

Radeon RX 480

2016

Why buy it

✅+65.2% higher PassMark G3D performance.
✅Access to DLSS 2 Super Resolution (2020).
✅More future proof: Turing (2018−2022) on 12nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.
✅Measures 229mm instead of 240mm, a 11mm shorter card that is more SFF-friendly.

Why buy it

✅Costs $120 less on MSRP ($229 MSRP vs $349 MSRP).
✅33.3% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (8 GB vs 6 GB).

Trade-offs

❌Less VRAM, with 6 GB vs 8 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark G3D performance (8,546 vs 14,114).
❌No DLSS support; it relies on FSR Upscaling / FSR 4 (2025) instead.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2016-era hardware with 8 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.

Quick Answers

So, is GeForce RTX 2060 better than Radeon RX 480?

Yes. GeForce RTX 2060 is clearly the better overall GPU here. You are also looking at 14,114 vs 8,546 in G3D Mark. On top of that, GeForce RTX 2060 is a 2019 card with DLSS Super Resolution, while Radeon RX 480 is a 2016 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 2060 is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer 2019 generation instead of 2016, 65.2% more raw performance headroom, the stronger feature stack with DLSS Super Resolution instead of FSR upscaling, and a 12nm process instead of 14nm. 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 2060 is the smarter buy by a wide margin. GeForce RTX 2060 is about 52.4% more expensive on MSRP at $349 MSRP versus $229 MSRP, and you are getting 65.2% higher G3D Mark. Radeon RX 480 really only makes sense now as a very cheap stopgap or a used-market placeholder.

Is Radeon RX 480 still worth buying for gaming in 2026?

No, not for a fresh gaming build. Radeon RX 480 is 2016 hardware with 8 GB of VRAM, 8,546 in G3D Mark, and FSR upscaling. That is simply too far behind to be an easy modern recommendation.

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.

GeForce RTX 2060 Benchmark Check

Radeon RX 480 Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	GeForce RTX 2060	Radeon RX 480
1080p
low	108 FPS	134 FPS
medium	98 FPS	113 FPS
high	82 FPS	97 FPS
ultra	69 FPS	58 FPS
1440p
low	95 FPS	114 FPS
medium	83 FPS	96 FPS
high	69 FPS	72 FPS
ultra	60 FPS	42 FPS
4K
low	47 FPS	39 FPS
medium	43 FPS	36 FPS
high	31 FPS	23 FPS
ultra	27 FPS	19 FPS

Open GeForce RTX 2060 Open Radeon RX 480

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	GeForce RTX 2060	Radeon RX 480
1080p
low	290 FPS	156 FPS
medium	247 FPS	135 FPS
high	197 FPS	115 FPS
ultra	155 FPS	89 FPS
1440p
low	192 FPS	91 FPS
medium	164 FPS	71 FPS
high	131 FPS	56 FPS
ultra	104 FPS	44 FPS
4K
low	108 FPS	37 FPS
medium	91 FPS	29 FPS
high	75 FPS	23 FPS
ultra	57 FPS	18 FPS

Open GeForce RTX 2060 Open Radeon RX 480

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	GeForce RTX 2060	Radeon RX 480
1080p
low	635 FPS	385 FPS
medium	508 FPS	308 FPS
high	423 FPS	256 FPS
ultra	318 FPS	192 FPS
1440p
low	476 FPS	288 FPS
medium	381 FPS	231 FPS
high	318 FPS	192 FPS
ultra	238 FPS	144 FPS
4K
low	318 FPS	192 FPS
medium	254 FPS	154 FPS
high	212 FPS	128 FPS
ultra	159 FPS	96 FPS

Open GeForce RTX 2060 Open Radeon RX 480

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	GeForce RTX 2060	Radeon RX 480
1080p
low	428 FPS	290 FPS
medium	354 FPS	252 FPS
high	286 FPS	210 FPS
ultra	244 FPS	166 FPS
1440p
low	357 FPS	213 FPS
medium	302 FPS	190 FPS
high	235 FPS	153 FPS
ultra	193 FPS	118 FPS
4K
low	204 FPS	120 FPS
medium	166 FPS	98 FPS
high	154 FPS	80 FPS
ultra	119 FPS	62 FPS

Open GeForce RTX 2060 Open Radeon RX 480

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of GeForce RTX 2060 and Radeon RX 480

GeForce RTX 2060

The GeForce RTX 2060 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in January 7 2019. It features the Turing architecture. The core clock ranges from 1365 MHz to 1680 MHz. It has 1920 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 160W. Manufactured using 12 nm process technology. It features 30 dedicated ray tracing cores for enhanced lighting effects. G3D Mark benchmark score: 14,114 points. Launch price was $349.

Radeon RX 480

The Radeon RX 480 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in June 29 2016. It features the GCN 4.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 1120 MHz to 1266 MHz. It has 2304 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 150W. Manufactured using 14 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 8,546 points. Launch price was $229.

⚡

Graphics Performance

In G3D Mark, the GeForce RTX 2060 scores 14,114 versus the Radeon RX 480's 8,546 — the GeForce RTX 2060 leads by 65.2%. The GeForce RTX 2060 is built on Turing while the Radeon RX 480 uses GCN 4.0, both on 12 nm vs 14 nm. Shader units: 1,920 (GeForce RTX 2060) vs 2,304 (Radeon RX 480). Raw compute: 6.451 TFLOPS (GeForce RTX 2060) vs 5.834 TFLOPS (Radeon RX 480). Boost clocks: 1680 MHz vs 1266 MHz.

Feature	GeForce RTX 2060	Radeon RX 480
G3D Mark Score	14,114+65%	8,546
Architecture	Turing	GCN 4.0
Process Node	12 nm	14 nm
Shading Units	1920	2304+20%
Compute (TFLOPS)	6.451 TFLOPS+11%	5.834 TFLOPS
Boost Clock	1680 MHz+33%	1266 MHz
ROPs	48+50%	32
TMUs	120	144+20%
L1 Cache	1.9 MB+239%	0.56 MB
L2 Cache	3 MB+50%	2 MB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce RTX 2060 gives access to NVIDIA DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling), widely regarding as the superior upscaling method for image quality. The Radeon RX 480 relies on FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution), which is capable but generally slightly noisier than DLSS in motion.

Feature	GeForce RTX 2060	Radeon RX 480
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)

The GeForce RTX 2060 comes with 6 GB of VRAM, while the Radeon RX 480 has 8 GB. The Radeon RX 480 offers 33.3% more capacity, crucial for higher resolutions and texture-heavy games. Memory bandwidth: 336 GB/s (GeForce RTX 2060) vs 256 GB/s (Radeon RX 480) — a 31.3% advantage for the GeForce RTX 2060. Bus width: 192-bit vs 256-bit. L2 Cache: 3 MB (GeForce RTX 2060) vs 2 MB (Radeon RX 480) — the GeForce RTX 2060 has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce RTX 2060	Radeon RX 480
VRAM Capacity	6 GB	8 GB+33%
Memory Type	GDDR6	GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth	336 GB/s+31%	256 GB/s
Bus Width	192-bit	256-bit+33%
L2 Cache	3 MB+50%	2 MB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 Ultimate (12_2) (GeForce RTX 2060) vs 12.0 (Radeon RX 480). Vulkan: 1.3 vs 1.3. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 4.

Feature	GeForce RTX 2060	Radeon RX 480
DirectX	12 Ultimate (12_2)	12.0
Vulkan	1.3	1.3
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
Max Displays	4	4

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC (Turing) (GeForce RTX 2060) vs VCE 3.4 (Radeon RX 480). Decoder: NVDEC (Turing) vs UVD 6.3. Supported codecs: H.264,H.265,VP9,VP8,MPEG-2,VC-1 (GeForce RTX 2060) vs MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC (Radeon RX 480).

Feature	GeForce RTX 2060	Radeon RX 480
Encoder	NVENC (Turing)	VCE 3.4
Decoder	NVDEC (Turing)	UVD 6.3
Codecs	H.264,H.265,VP9,VP8,MPEG-2,VC-1	MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce RTX 2060 draws 160W versus the Radeon RX 480's 150W — a 6.5% difference. The Radeon RX 480 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 500W (GeForce RTX 2060) vs 500W (Radeon RX 480). Power connectors: 8-pin vs 8-pin. Card length: 229mm vs 240mm, occupying 2 vs 2 slots. Typical load temperature: 72 vs 85°C.

Feature	GeForce RTX 2060	Radeon RX 480
TDP	160W	150W-6%
Recommended PSU	500W	500W
Power Connector	8-pin	8-pin
Length	229mm	240mm
Height	113mm	95mm
Slots	2	2
Temp (Load)	72-15%	85°C
Perf/Watt	88.2+55%	57.0

💰

Value Analysis

The GeForce RTX 2060 launched at $349 MSRP, while the Radeon RX 480 launched at $229. The Radeon RX 480 costs 34.4% less ($120 savings) on MSRP. Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 40.4 (GeForce RTX 2060) vs 37.3 (Radeon RX 480) — the GeForce RTX 2060 offers 8.3% better value. The GeForce RTX 2060 is the newer GPU (2019 vs 2016).