GeForce RTX 4090 vs Radeon RX 6850M XT

Place in the ranking	77	1
Place by popularity	not in top-100	6
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	no data	18.83
Power efficiency	18.93	15.26
Architecture	RDNA 2.0 (2020−2024)	Ada Lovelace (2022−2024)
GPU code name	Navi 22	AD102
Market segment	Laptop	Desktop
Release date	4 January 2022 (2 years ago)	20 September 2022 (2 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	no data	$1,599

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	2560	16384
Core clock speed	2321 MHz	2235 MHz
Boost clock speed	2581 MHz	2520 MHz
Number of transistors	17,200 million	76,300 million
Manufacturing process technology	7 nm	5 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	165 Watt	450 Watt
Texture fill rate	413.0	1,290
Floating-point processing power	13.21 TFLOPS	82.58 TFLOPS
ROPs	64	176
TMUs	160	512
Tensor Cores	no data	512
Ray Tracing Cores	40	128

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).

Laptop size	large	no data
Interface	PCIe 4.0 x16	PCIe 4.0 x16
Length	no data	304 mm
Width	no data	3-slot
Supplementary power connectors	None	1x 16-pin

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	GDDR6	GDDR6X
Maximum RAM amount	12 GB	24 GB
Memory bus width	192 Bit	384 Bit
Memory clock speed	2000 MHz	1313 MHz
Memory bandwidth	384.0 GB/s	1.01 TB/s
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	No outputs	1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a
HDMI	-	+

API compatibility

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

DirectX	12 Ultimate (12_2)	12 Ultimate (12_2)
Shader Model	6.5	6.8
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
OpenCL	2.1	3.0
Vulkan	1.3	1.3
CUDA	-	8.9

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.

RX 6850M XT 45.46

RTX 4090 100.00
+120%

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.

RX 6850M XT 17511

RTX 4090 38517
+120%

3DMark 11 Performance GPU

3DMark 11 is an obsolete DirectX 11 benchmark by Futuremark. It used four tests based on two scenes, one being few submarines exploring the submerged wreck of a sunken ship, the other is an abandoned temple deep in the jungle. All the tests are heavy with volumetric lighting and tessellation, and despite being done in 1280x720 resolution, are relatively taxing. Discontinued in January 2020, 3DMark 11 is now superseded by Time Spy.

RX 6850M XT 42016

RTX 4090 104598
+149%

3DMark Fire Strike Graphics

Fire Strike is a DirectX 11 benchmark for gaming PCs. It features two separate tests displaying a fight between a humanoid and a fiery creature made of lava. Using 1920x1080 resolution, Fire Strike shows off some realistic graphics and is quite taxing on hardware.

RX 6850M XT 33901

RTX 4090 73447
+117%

3DMark Cloud Gate GPU

Cloud Gate is an outdated DirectX 11 feature level 10 benchmark that was used for home PCs and basic notebooks. It displays a few scenes of some weird space teleportation device launching spaceships into unknown, using fixed resolution of 1280x720. Just like Ice Storm benchmark, it has been discontinued in January 2020 and replaced by 3DMark Night Raid.

RX 6850M XT 172972

RTX 4090 260357
+50.5%

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:

Full HD	145 −78.6%	259 +78.6%
1440p	87 −130%	200 +130%
4K	67 −113%	143 +113%

Cost per frame, $

1080p	no data	6.17
1440p	no data	8.00
4K	no data	11.18

FPS performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077

160

−40.6%

225
+40.6%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	90−95 −150%	235 +150%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	159 −80.5%	287 +80.5%
Battlefield 5	140−150 −71.8%	240−250 +71.8%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	85−90 −34.8%	120−130 +34.8%
Cyberpunk 2077	136 −63.2%	222 +63.2%
Far Cry 5	90−95 −26.9%	110−120 +26.9%
Far Cry New Dawn	100−110 −84.4%	200−210 +84.4%
Forza Horizon 4	200−210 −43.3%	290−300 +43.3%
Hitman 3	95−100 −35.8%	120−130 +35.8%
Horizon Zero Dawn	180−190 −95.6%	350−400 +95.6%
Metro Exodus	130−140 −13.1%	150−160 +13.1%
Red Dead Redemption 2	100−105 −24%	120−130 +24%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	160−170 −175%	450−500 +175%
Watch Dogs: Legion	130−140 −14.1%	150−160 +14.1%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	90−95 −116%	200−210 +116%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	130 −90.8%	248 +90.8%
Battlefield 5	140−150 −71.8%	240−250 +71.8%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	85−90 −34.8%	120−130 +34.8%
Cyberpunk 2077	106 −102%	214 +102%
Far Cry 5	90−95 −26.9%	110−120 +26.9%
Far Cry New Dawn	100−110 −84.4%	200−210 +84.4%
Forza Horizon 4	200−210 −43.3%	290−300 +43.3%
Hitman 3	95−100 −35.8%	120−130 +35.8%
Horizon Zero Dawn	180−190 −95.6%	350−400 +95.6%
Metro Exodus	130−140 −13.1%	150−160 +13.1%
Red Dead Redemption 2	100−105 −24%	120−130 +24%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	259 −112%	548 +112%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	90−95 −162%	240−250 +162%
Watch Dogs: Legion	130−140 −14.1%	150−160 +14.1%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	90−95 −90.4%	179 +90.4%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	112 −96.4%	220 +96.4%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	85−90 −34.8%	120−130 +34.8%
Cyberpunk 2077	87 −141%	210 +141%
Far Cry 5	90−95 −26.9%	110−120 +26.9%
Forza Horizon 4	200−210 −43.3%	290−300 +43.3%
Hitman 3	95−100 −35.8%	120−130 +35.8%
Horizon Zero Dawn	180−190 −119%	394 +119%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	227 −138%	541 +138%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	122 −150%	305 +150%
Watch Dogs: Legion	83 −84.3%	153 +84.3%

Full HD
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

100−105

−24%

120−130
+24%

1440p
High Preset

Battlefield 5	85−90 −88.6%	160−170 +88.6%
Far Cry New Dawn	65−70 −64.7%	110−120 +64.7%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	45−50 −216%	155 +216%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	85 −115%	183 +115%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	50−55 −54.7%	80−85 +54.7%
Cyberpunk 2077	55 −180%	154 +180%
Far Cry 5	50−55 −61.5%	80−85 +61.5%
Forza Horizon 4	240−250 −12%	270−280 +12%
Hitman 3	55−60 −134%	130−140 +134%
Horizon Zero Dawn	95−100 −292%	388 +292%
Metro Exodus	80−85 −85.4%	152 +85.4%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	166 −204%	504 +204%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	65−70 −294%	268 +294%
Watch Dogs: Legion	200−210 −16.5%	240−250 +16.5%

1440p
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

75−80

−67.5%

120−130
+67.5%

4K
High Preset

Battlefield 5	45−50 −91.3%	85−90 +91.3%
Far Cry New Dawn	35−40 −76.9%	65−70 +76.9%
Hitman 3	35−40 −124%	80−85 +124%
Horizon Zero Dawn	190−200 +86.7%	105 −86.7%
Metro Exodus	55−60 −141%	140−150 +141%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt	72 −290%	281 +290%

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey	30−35 −287%	120 +287%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla	47 −155%	120 +155%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare	27−30 −79.3%	50−55 +79.3%
Cyberpunk 2077	26 −208%	80 +208%
Far Cry 5	27−30 −85.2%	50−55 +85.2%
Forza Horizon 4	60−65 −306%	250−260 +306%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	92 −207%	282 +207%
Watch Dogs: Legion	24−27 −388%	117 +388%

4K
Epic Preset

Red Dead Redemption 2

40−45

−171%

110−120
+171%

This is how RX 6850M XT and RTX 4090 compete in popular games:

RTX 4090 is 79% faster in 1080p
RTX 4090 is 130% faster in 1440p
RTX 4090 is 113% faster in 4K

Here's the range of performance differences observed across popular games:

in Horizon Zero Dawn, with 4K resolution and the High Preset, the RX 6850M XT is 87% faster.
in Watch Dogs: Legion, with 4K resolution and the Ultra Preset, the RTX 4090 is 388% faster.

All in all, in popular games:

RX 6850M XT is ahead in 1 test (1%)
RTX 4090 is ahead in 71 test (99%)

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	45.46	100.00
Recency	4 January 2022	20 September 2022
Maximum RAM amount	12 GB	24 GB
Chip lithography	7 nm	5 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	165 Watt	450 Watt

RX 6850M XT has 172.7% lower power consumption.

RTX 4090, on the other hand, has a 120% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 8 months, a 100% higher maximum VRAM amount, and a 40% more advanced lithography process.

The GeForce RTX 4090 is our recommended choice as it beats the Radeon RX 6850M XT in performance tests.

Be aware that Radeon RX 6850M XT is a notebook card while GeForce RTX 4090 is a desktop one.

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