HD Graphics 520 vs GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB

Place in the ranking	217	864
Place by popularity	19	42
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	22.57	no data
Power efficiency	14.21	9.87
Architecture	Pascal (2016−2021)	Generation 9.0 (2015−2016)
GPU code name	GP106	Skylake GT2
Market segment	Desktop	Laptop
Release date	18 August 2016 (8 years ago)	1 September 2015 (9 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$199	no data

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

no data

Detailed specifications

General parameters such as number of shaders, GPU core base clock and boost clock speeds, manufacturing process, texturing and calculation speed. Note that power consumption of some graphics cards can well exceed their nominal TDP, especially when overclocked.

Pipelines / CUDA cores	1152	192
Core clock speed	1506 MHz	300 MHz
Boost clock speed	1708 MHz	900 MHz
Number of transistors	4,400 million	189 million
Manufacturing process technology	16 nm	14 nm+
Power consumption (TDP)	120 Watt	15 Watt
Texture fill rate	123.0	21.60
Floating-point processing power	3.935 TFLOPS	0.3456 TFLOPS
ROPs	48	3
TMUs	72	24

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 3.0 x16	Ring Bus
Length	250 mm	no data
Width	2-slot	no data
Supplementary power connectors	1x 6-pin	no data

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	GDDR5	DDR3L/LPDDR3/DDR4
Maximum RAM amount	3 GB	32 GB
Memory bus width	192 Bit	System Shared
Memory clock speed	2002 MHz	System Shared
Memory bandwidth	192.2 GB/s	no data
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 DVI, 1x HDMI, 3x DisplayPort	Portable Device Dependent
HDMI	+	-

Supported technologies

Supported technological solutions. This information will prove useful if you need some particular technology for your purposes.

Quick Sync

no data

API compatibility

List of supported 3D and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.

DirectX	12 (12_1)	12 (12_1)
Shader Model	6.4	6.4
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
OpenCL	1.2	3.0
Vulkan	+	+
CUDA	6.1	-

Synthetic benchmark performance

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

Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark 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.

GTX 1060 3 GB 24.88
+1052%

HD Graphics 520 2.16

Passmark

This is the most ubiquitous GPU benchmark. 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.

GTX 1060 3 GB 9588
+1054%

HD Graphics 520 831

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:

900p	230−240 +1050%	20 −1050%
Full HD	110−120 +1000%	10 −1000%

Cost per frame, $

1080p

1.81

no data

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077

5−6

+0%

5−6

+0%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	7−8 +0%	7−8 +0%
Battlefield 5	2−3 +0%	2−3 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	6−7 +0%	6−7 +0%
Cyberpunk 2077	5−6 +0%	5−6 +0%
Far Cry 5	5 +0%	5 +0%
Far Cry New Dawn	6−7 +0%	6−7 +0%
Forza Horizon 4	9−10 +0%	9−10 +0%
Hitman 3	7−8 +0%	7−8 +0%
Horizon Zero Dawn	18−20 +0%	18−20 +0%
Metro Exodus	0−1	0−1
Red Dead Redemption 2	5−6 +0%	5−6 +0%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	10−11 +0%	10−11 +0%
Watch Dogs: Legion	35−40 +0%	35−40 +0%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	7−8 +0%	7−8 +0%
Battlefield 5	2−3 +0%	2−3 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	6−7 +0%	6−7 +0%
Cyberpunk 2077	5−6 +0%	5−6 +0%
Far Cry 5	4−5 +0%	4−5 +0%
Far Cry New Dawn	6−7 +0%	6−7 +0%
Forza Horizon 4	9−10 +0%	9−10 +0%
Hitman 3	7−8 +0%	7−8 +0%
Horizon Zero Dawn	18−20 +0%	18−20 +0%
Metro Exodus	0−1	0−1
Red Dead Redemption 2	5−6 +0%	5−6 +0%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	10−11 +0%	10−11 +0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	13 +0%	13 +0%
Watch Dogs: Legion	35−40 +0%	35−40 +0%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	7−8 +0%	7−8 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	6−7 +0%	6−7 +0%
Cyberpunk 2077	5−6 +0%	5−6 +0%
Far Cry 5	4−5 +0%	4−5 +0%
Forza Horizon 4	9−10 +0%	9−10 +0%
Hitman 3	7−8 +0%	7−8 +0%
Horizon Zero Dawn	18−20 +0%	18−20 +0%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	10−11 +0%	10−11 +0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	12−14 +0%	12−14 +0%
Watch Dogs: Legion	35−40 +0%	35−40 +0%

Full HD
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

5−6

+0%

5−6

+0%

1440p
High Preset

Battlefield 5	3−4 +0%	3−4 +0%
Far Cry New Dawn	3−4 +0%	3−4 +0%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	2−3 +0%	2−3 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	1−2 +0%	1−2 +0%
Cyberpunk 2077	1−2 +0%	1−2 +0%
Far Cry 5	2−3 +0%	2−3 +0%
Hitman 3	7−8 +0%	7−8 +0%
Horizon Zero Dawn	6−7 +0%	6−7 +0%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	1−2 +0%	1−2 +0%
Watch Dogs: Legion	12−14 +0%	12−14 +0%

1440p
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

5−6

+0%

5−6

+0%

4K
High Preset

Battlefield 5	0−1	0−1
Far Cry New Dawn	1−2 +0%	1−2 +0%

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	2−3 +0%	2−3 +0%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	1−2 +0%	1−2 +0%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	1−2 +0%	1−2 +0%
Far Cry 5	1−2 +0%	1−2 +0%
Watch Dogs: Legion	0−1	0−1

4K
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

3−4

+0%

3−4

+0%

This is how GTX 1060 3 GB and HD Graphics 520 compete in popular games:

GTX 1060 3 GB is 1050% faster in 900p
GTX 1060 3 GB is 1000% faster in 1080p

All in all, in popular games:

there's a draw in 54 tests (100%)

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	24.88	2.16
Recency	18 August 2016	1 September 2015
Maximum RAM amount	3 GB	32 GB
Chip lithography	16 nm	14 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	120 Watt	15 Watt

GTX 1060 3 GB has a 1051.9% higher aggregate performance score, and an age advantage of 11 months.

HD Graphics 520, on the other hand, has a 966.7% higher maximum VRAM amount, a 14.3% more advanced lithography process, and 700% lower power consumption.

The GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB is our recommended choice as it beats the HD Graphics 520 in performance tests.

Be aware that GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB is a desktop card while HD Graphics 520 is a notebook one.

Should you still have questions concerning choice between the reviewed GPUs, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.