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

✅+125.1% higher PassMark G3D performance.
✅Costs $21 less on MSRP ($249 MSRP vs $270 MSRP).
✅Delivers 144.1% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 40.4 vs 16.6 G3D/$ ($249 MSRP vs $270 MSRP).
✅200% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (6 GB vs 2 GB).
✅Less risky long-term buy than Radeon HD 7870 XT: it remains the more sensible modern option while Radeon HD 7870 XT is already obsolete for modern gaming.

Trade-offs

❌Poor future-proofing: 2016-era hardware with 6 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.

Radeon HD 7870 XT

2012

Why buy it

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

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark G3D performance (4,470 vs 10,064).
❌Less VRAM, with 2 GB vs 6 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Very weak future-proofing: 2012-era hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already obsolete for modern gaming and is hard to recommend today.
❌
8.4% HIGHER MSRP
$270 MSRPvs$249 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 16.6 vs 40.4 G3D/$ ($270 MSRP vs $249 MSRP).

GeForce GTX 1060

2016

Radeon HD 7870 XT

2012

Why buy it

✅+125.1% higher PassMark G3D performance.
✅Costs $21 less on MSRP ($249 MSRP vs $270 MSRP).
✅Delivers 144.1% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 40.4 vs 16.6 G3D/$ ($249 MSRP vs $270 MSRP).
✅200% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (6 GB vs 2 GB).
✅Less risky long-term buy than Radeon HD 7870 XT: it remains the more sensible modern option while Radeon HD 7870 XT is already obsolete for modern gaming.

Why buy it

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

Trade-offs

❌Poor future-proofing: 2016-era hardware with 6 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark G3D performance (4,470 vs 10,064).
❌Less VRAM, with 2 GB vs 6 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌Very weak future-proofing: 2012-era hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already obsolete for modern gaming and is hard to recommend today.
❌
8.4% HIGHER MSRP
$270 MSRPvs$249 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 16.6 vs 40.4 G3D/$ ($270 MSRP vs $249 MSRP).

Quick Answers

So, is GeForce GTX 1060 better than Radeon HD 7870 XT?

Yes. GeForce GTX 1060 is clearly the better overall GPU here. You are also looking at 10,064 vs 4,470 in G3D Mark. On top of that, GeForce GTX 1060 is a 2016 card with no meaningful modern upscaling stack, while Radeon HD 7870 XT is a 2012 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 GTX 1060 is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer 2016 generation instead of 2012, 125.1% more raw performance headroom, more VRAM at 6 GB instead of 2 GB, and the stronger feature stack with no meaningful modern upscaling stack instead of FSR upscaling. That leaves it with more room for heavier textures, tougher ray tracing loads, and higher-end 1440p or 4K gaming over the next few years.

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

GeForce GTX 1060 is the smarter buy today, but it is not as lopsided as a simple winner label makes it sound. GeForce GTX 1060 is about $21 cheaper on MSRP at $249 MSRP versus $270 MSRP, and you are getting 125.1% higher G3D Mark. It also leads G3D-per-dollar by 144.1%. That is why the better overall card still comes out as the smarter buy today, not just the faster one.

Is Radeon HD 7870 XT still worth buying for gaming in 2026?

Yes. Radeon HD 7870 XT 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 $270 MSRP, even if GeForce GTX 1060 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.

GeForce GTX 1060 Benchmark Check

Radeon HD 7870 XT Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon HD 7870 XT
1080p
low	117 FPS	77 FPS
medium	105 FPS	63 FPS
high	91 FPS	50 FPS
ultra	77 FPS	33 FPS
1440p
low	103 FPS	65 FPS
medium	87 FPS	54 FPS
high	76 FPS	38 FPS
ultra	67 FPS	24 FPS
4K
low	55 FPS	24 FPS
medium	49 FPS	23 FPS
high	41 FPS	14 FPS
ultra	37 FPS	12 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 1060 Open Radeon HD 7870 XT

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon HD 7870 XT
1080p
low	216 FPS	126 FPS
medium	181 FPS	93 FPS
high	148 FPS	72 FPS
ultra	113 FPS	48 FPS
1440p
low	134 FPS	70 FPS
medium	107 FPS	48 FPS
high	87 FPS	35 FPS
ultra	68 FPS	24 FPS
4K
low	62 FPS	25 FPS
medium	51 FPS	17 FPS
high	49 FPS	13 FPS
ultra	41 FPS	10 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 1060 Open Radeon HD 7870 XT

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon HD 7870 XT
1080p
low	453 FPS	201 FPS
medium	362 FPS	161 FPS
high	302 FPS	134 FPS
ultra	226 FPS	101 FPS
1440p
low	340 FPS	151 FPS
medium	272 FPS	121 FPS
high	226 FPS	101 FPS
ultra	170 FPS	75 FPS
4K
low	226 FPS	101 FPS
medium	181 FPS	80 FPS
high	151 FPS	67 FPS
ultra	113 FPS	50 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 1060 Open Radeon HD 7870 XT

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon HD 7870 XT
1080p
low	358 FPS	168 FPS
medium	302 FPS	138 FPS
high	260 FPS	124 FPS
ultra	226 FPS	97 FPS
1440p
low	299 FPS	120 FPS
medium	254 FPS	101 FPS
high	208 FPS	91 FPS
ultra	170 FPS	66 FPS
4K
low	170 FPS	71 FPS
medium	133 FPS	55 FPS
high	123 FPS	45 FPS
ultra	102 FPS	30 FPS

Open GeForce GTX 1060 Open Radeon HD 7870 XT

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of GeForce GTX 1060 and Radeon HD 7870 XT

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.

Radeon HD 7870 XT

The Radeon HD 7870 XT is manufactured by AMD. It was released in November 19 2012. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 925 MHz to 975 MHz. It has 1536 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 185W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 4,470 points. Launch price was $270.

⚡

Graphics Performance

In G3D Mark, the GeForce GTX 1060 scores 10,064 versus the Radeon HD 7870 XT's 4,470 — the GeForce GTX 1060 leads by 125.1%. The GeForce GTX 1060 is built on Pascal while the Radeon HD 7870 XT uses GCN 1.0, both on 16 nm vs 28 nm. Shader units: 2,560 (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 1,536 (Radeon HD 7870 XT). Raw compute: 8.873 TFLOPS (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 2.995 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 7870 XT). Boost clocks: 1733 MHz vs 975 MHz.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon HD 7870 XT
G3D Mark Score	10,064+125%	4,470
Architecture	Pascal	GCN 1.0
Process Node	16 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	2560+67%	1536
Compute (TFLOPS)	8.873 TFLOPS+196%	2.995 TFLOPS
Boost Clock	1733 MHz+78%	975 MHz
ROPs	64+100%	32
TMUs	160+67%	96
L1 Cache	960 KB+150%	384 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 Radeon HD 7870 XT relies on FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution), which is capable but generally slightly noisier than DLSS in motion.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon HD 7870 XT
Upscaling Tech	Upscaling support	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 GTX 1060 comes with 6 GB of VRAM, while the Radeon HD 7870 XT has 2 GB. The GeForce GTX 1060 offers 200% more capacity, crucial for higher resolutions and texture-heavy games. Bus width: 192-bit vs 256-bit. L2 Cache: 2 MB (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 0.5 MB (Radeon HD 7870 XT) — the GeForce GTX 1060 has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon HD 7870 XT
VRAM Capacity	6 GB+200%	2 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth	192 GB/s	192 GB/s
Bus Width	192-bit	256-bit+33%
L2 Cache	2 MB+300%	0.5 MB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 12 (11_1) (Radeon HD 7870 XT). Vulkan: 1.3 vs 1.2. OpenGL: 4.5 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 4.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon HD 7870 XT
DirectX	12	12 (11_1)
Vulkan	1.3+8%	1.2
OpenGL	4.5	4.6+2%
Max Displays	4	4

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC (Pascal) (GeForce GTX 1060) vs VCE 1.0 (Radeon HD 7870 XT). Decoder: NVDEC (Pascal) vs UVD 3.2. Supported codecs: H.264,H.265/HEVC (GeForce GTX 1060) vs H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1 (Radeon HD 7870 XT).

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon HD 7870 XT
Encoder	NVENC (Pascal)	VCE 1.0
Decoder	NVDEC (Pascal)	UVD 3.2
Codecs	H.264,H.265/HEVC	H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 1060 draws 180W versus the Radeon HD 7870 XT's 185W — a 2.7% difference. The GeForce GTX 1060 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 400W (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 500W (Radeon HD 7870 XT). Power connectors: 6-pin vs 2x 6-pin. Card length: 173mm vs 267mm, occupying 2 vs 2 slots.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon HD 7870 XT
TDP	180W-3%	185W
Recommended PSU	400W-20%	500W
Power Connector	6-pin	2x 6-pin
Length	173mm	267mm
Height	111mm	111mm
Slots	2	2
Temp (Load)	—	80
Perf/Watt	55.9+131%	24.2

💰

Value Analysis

The GeForce GTX 1060 launched at $249 MSRP, while the Radeon HD 7870 XT launched at $270. The GeForce GTX 1060 costs 7.8% less ($21 savings) on MSRP. Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 40.4 (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 16.6 (Radeon HD 7870 XT) — the GeForce GTX 1060 offers 143.4% better value. The GeForce GTX 1060 is the newer GPU (2016 vs 2012).