GeForce GTX 1060 vs Quadro P520

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 GTX 1060

2016

Why buy it

✅+394.8% higher PassMark G3D performance.
✅Delivers 198.1% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 40.4 vs 13.6 G3D/$ ($249 MSRP vs $150 MSRP).
✅50% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (6 GB vs 4 GB).

Trade-offs

❌Poor future-proofing: 2016-era hardware with 6 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌900% higher power demand at 180W vs 18W.

Quadro P520

2019

Why buy it

✅Costs $99 less on MSRP ($150 MSRP vs $249 MSRP).
✅Less risky long-term buy than GeForce GTX 1060: it remains the more sensible modern option while GeForce GTX 1060 is already legacy-tier future-proofing.
✅Draws 18W instead of 180W, a 162W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark G3D performance (2,034 vs 10,064).
❌Less VRAM, with 4 GB vs 6 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2019-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 13.6 vs 40.4 G3D/$ ($150 MSRP vs $249 MSRP).

GeForce GTX 1060

2016

Quadro P520

2019

Why buy it

✅+394.8% higher PassMark G3D performance.
✅Delivers 198.1% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 40.4 vs 13.6 G3D/$ ($249 MSRP vs $150 MSRP).
✅50% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (6 GB vs 4 GB).

Why buy it

✅Costs $99 less on MSRP ($150 MSRP vs $249 MSRP).
✅Less risky long-term buy than GeForce GTX 1060: it remains the more sensible modern option while GeForce GTX 1060 is already legacy-tier future-proofing.
✅Draws 18W instead of 180W, a 162W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Poor future-proofing: 2016-era hardware with 6 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌900% higher power demand at 180W vs 18W.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark G3D performance (2,034 vs 10,064).
❌Less VRAM, with 4 GB vs 6 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2019-era hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 13.6 vs 40.4 G3D/$ ($150 MSRP vs $249 MSRP).

Quick Answers

So, is GeForce GTX 1060 better than Quadro P520?

Yes. GeForce GTX 1060 is clearly the better overall GPU here. You are also looking at 10,064 vs 2,034 in G3D Mark. On top of that, GeForce GTX 1060 is a 2016 card with no meaningful modern upscaling stack, while Quadro P520 is a 2019 model from an older generation with no meaningful modern upscaling stack. 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?

Quadro P520 is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer 2019 generation instead of 2016 and a 14nm process instead of 16nm. That makes it the safer long-run choice for modern games.

Which one is the smarter buy today, not just the cheaper card?

GeForce GTX 1060 is the smarter buy by a wide margin. GeForce GTX 1060 is about 66.0% more expensive on MSRP at $249 MSRP versus $150 MSRP, and you are getting 394.8% higher G3D Mark. Quadro P520 really only makes sense now as a very cheap stopgap or a used-market placeholder.

When does Quadro P520 make more sense than GeForce GTX 1060?

Yes. Quadro P520 is still an excellent gaming GPU in 2026: it is still comfortable for 1080p and decent for 1440p, though 4K is more situational. It makes more sense if your priority is newer architecture, lower power draw (18W vs 180W), future-proofing, and staying closer to $150 MSRP more than squeezing out the extra headroom of GeForce GTX 1060. The trade-off is that GeForce GTX 1060 currently gives you 394.8% higher G3D Mark. It also leads G3D-per-dollar by 198.1%.

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 GTX 1060 Benchmark Check

Quadro P520 Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	GeForce GTX 1060	Quadro P520
1080p
low	117 FPS	22 FPS
medium	105 FPS	15 FPS
high	91 FPS	9 FPS
ultra	77 FPS	6 FPS
1440p
low	103 FPS	11 FPS
medium	87 FPS	6 FPS
high	76 FPS	3 FPS
ultra	67 FPS	2 FPS
4K
low	55 FPS	6 FPS
medium	49 FPS	3 FPS
high	41 FPS	2 FPS
ultra	37 FPS	1 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 1060 Open Quadro P520

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	GeForce GTX 1060	Quadro P520
1080p
low	216 FPS	78 FPS
medium	181 FPS	48 FPS
high	148 FPS	36 FPS
ultra	113 FPS	22 FPS
1440p
low	134 FPS	23 FPS
medium	107 FPS	17 FPS
high	87 FPS	12 FPS
ultra	68 FPS	8 FPS
4K
low	62 FPS	7 FPS
medium	51 FPS	5 FPS
high	49 FPS	4 FPS
ultra	41 FPS	3 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 1060 Open Quadro P520

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	GeForce GTX 1060	Quadro P520
1080p
low	453 FPS	92 FPS
medium	362 FPS	73 FPS
high	302 FPS	61 FPS
ultra	226 FPS	46 FPS
1440p
low	340 FPS	69 FPS
medium	272 FPS	55 FPS
high	226 FPS	46 FPS
ultra	170 FPS	34 FPS
4K
low	226 FPS	46 FPS
medium	181 FPS	37 FPS
high	151 FPS	31 FPS
ultra	113 FPS	23 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 1060 Open Quadro P520

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	GeForce GTX 1060	Quadro P520
1080p
low	358 FPS	92 FPS
medium	302 FPS	73 FPS
high	260 FPS	61 FPS
ultra	226 FPS	46 FPS
1440p
low	299 FPS	69 FPS
medium	254 FPS	55 FPS
high	208 FPS	46 FPS
ultra	170 FPS	34 FPS
4K
low	170 FPS	46 FPS
medium	133 FPS	37 FPS
high	123 FPS	31 FPS
ultra	102 FPS	23 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 1060 Open Quadro P520

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of GeForce GTX 1060 and Quadro P520

GeForce GTX 1060

The GeForce GTX 1060 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in May 27 2016. It features the Pascal architecture. The core clock ranges from 1607 MHz to 1733 MHz. It has 2560 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 180W. Manufactured using 16 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 10,064 points. Launch price was $599.

Quadro P520

The Quadro P520 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in May 23 2019. It features the Pascal architecture. The core clock ranges from 1303 MHz to 1493 MHz. It has 384 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 18W. Manufactured using 14 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 2,034 points.

⚡

Graphics Performance

In G3D Mark, the GeForce GTX 1060 scores 10,064 versus the Quadro P520's 2,034 — the GeForce GTX 1060 leads by 394.8%. The GeForce GTX 1060 is built on Pascal while the Quadro P520 uses Pascal, both on 16 nm vs 14 nm. Shader units: 2,560 (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 384 (Quadro P520). Raw compute: 8.873 TFLOPS (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 1.147 TFLOPS (Quadro P520). Boost clocks: 1733 MHz vs 1493 MHz.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Quadro P520
G3D Mark Score	10,064+395%	2,034
Architecture	Pascal	Pascal
Process Node	16 nm	14 nm
Shading Units	2560+567%	384
Compute (TFLOPS)	8.873 TFLOPS+674%	1.147 TFLOPS
Boost Clock	1733 MHz+16%	1493 MHz
ROPs	64+300%	16
TMUs	160+567%	24
L1 Cache	960 KB+567%	144 KB
L2 Cache	2 MB+300%	0.5 MB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GTX 1060 gives access to NVIDIA DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling), widely regarding as the superior upscaling method for image quality. The Quadro P520 relies on FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution), which is capable but generally slightly noisier than DLSS in motion.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Quadro P520
Upscaling Tech	Upscaling support	Upscaling support
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	NVIDIA Reflex	Standard

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Video Memory (VRAM)

The GeForce GTX 1060 comes with 6 GB of VRAM, while the Quadro P520 has 4 GB. The GeForce GTX 1060 offers 50% more capacity, crucial for higher resolutions and texture-heavy games. Bus width: 192-bit vs 64-bit. L2 Cache: 2 MB (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 0.5 MB (Quadro P520) — the GeForce GTX 1060 has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Quadro P520
VRAM Capacity	6 GB+50%	4 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Bus Width	192-bit+200%	64-bit
L2 Cache	2 MB+300%	0.5 MB

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 1060 draws 180W versus the Quadro P520's 18W — a 163.6% difference. The Quadro P520 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 400W (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 350W (Quadro P520). Power connectors: 6-pin vs PCIe-powered.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Quadro P520
TDP	180W	18W-90%
Recommended PSU	400W	350W-13%
Power Connector	6-pin	PCIe-powered
Length	173mm	—
Height	111mm	—
Slots	2	—
Perf/Watt	55.9	113.0+102%

💰

Value Analysis

The GeForce GTX 1060 launched at $249 MSRP, while the Quadro P520 launched at $150. The Quadro P520 costs 39.8% less ($99 savings) on MSRP. Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 40.4 (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 13.6 (Quadro P520) — the GeForce GTX 1060 offers 197.1% better value. The Quadro P520 is the newer GPU (2019 vs 2016).