GeForce GTX 1060 vs Radeon VII

CPU

GPU

GeForce GTX 1060

2016Core: 1607 MHzBoost: 1733 MHz

GTX family

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Radeon VII

2019Core: 1400 MHzBoost: 1750 MHz

Similar parts

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GeForce GTX 1060 vs Radeon VII Performance Spectrum

GeForce GTX 1060

6 GB 180

10,064

0.0%

GeForce GTX 680

GeForce GTX 970XM FORCE

GeForce RTX 2050 Mobile

GeForce GTX TITAN Z

GeForce GTX 980 Ti

GeForce RTX 5060 Mobile

GeForce RTX 2080 Ti

GeForce RTX 4080 Mobile

Radeon VII

16 GB 295

16,308

+62.0%

About G3D Mark

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.

GeForce GTX 1060 vs Radeon VII FPS Benchmarks

Predicted gaming performance across popular games. Tested paired with Ryzen 7 9800X3D to isolate GPU performance.

Search any supported game below to compare 1080p FPS for both components.

GeForce GTX 1060 vs Radeon VII: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

See where each GPU makes more sense in practice: raw FPS, VRAM, features, power draw, pricing, and long-term headroom.

GeForce GTX 1060

2016

Why buy it

✅Costs $450 less on MSRP ($249 MSRP vs $699 MSRP).
✅Delivers 73.2% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 40.4 vs 23.3 G3D/$ ($249 MSRP vs $699 MSRP).
✅Draws 180W instead of 295W, a 115W reduction.
✅Measures 173mm instead of 280mm, a 107mm shorter card that is more SFF-friendly.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Radeon VII across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌Less VRAM, with 6 GB vs 16 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌2016 hardware with 6 GB of VRAM already sits in legacy territory for modern games.

Radeon VII

2019

Why buy it

✅40.7% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅166.7% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (16 GB vs 6 GB).
✅Better long-term bet: GCN 5.1 (2018−2022) on 7nm gives it a newer hardware base for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

❌
180.7% HIGHER MSRP
$699 MSRPvs$249 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 23.3 vs 40.4 G3D/$ ($699 MSRP vs $249 MSRP).
❌63.9% higher power demand at 295W vs 180W.
❌61.8% longer card at 280mm vs 173mm.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

Radeon VII is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 40.7% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and by 62% in PassMark G3D (16,308 vs 10,064), so the answer here is pretty clean.

Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?

Radeon VII is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: 16 GB vs 6 GB of VRAM, the newer upscaling stack, FSR Upscaling / FSR 4 (2025) instead of no meaningful modern upscaling stack, a 7nm process instead of 16nm, and a newer 2019 generation instead of 2016. That gives it more room for heavier textures and higher settings over time.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

GeForce GTX 1060 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $450 cheaper on MSRP at $249 vs $699, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 73.2% (40.4 vs 23.3), which is enough to swing the recommendation its way. If you are mainly targeting 1080p and some 1440p, GeForce GTX 1060 is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and lighter 1440p headroom, Radeon VII has the stronger long-term case.

GeForce GTX 1060 vs Radeon VII Technical Specifications

Side-by-side specs, architecture details, clocks, memory, power, and platform differences.

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 VII

The Radeon VII is manufactured by AMD. It was released in February 7 2019. It features the GCN 5.1 architecture. The core clock ranges from 1400 MHz to 1750 MHz. It has 3840 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 295W. Manufactured using 7 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 16,308 points. Launch price was $699.

⚡

Graphics Performance

In G3D Mark, the GeForce GTX 1060 scores 10,064 versus the Radeon VII's 16,308 — the Radeon VII leads by 62%. The GeForce GTX 1060 is built on Pascal while the Radeon VII uses GCN 5.1, both on 16 nm vs 7 nm. Shader units: 2,560 (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 3,840 (Radeon VII). Raw compute: 8.873 TFLOPS (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 13.44 TFLOPS (Radeon VII). Boost clocks: 1733 MHz vs 1750 MHz.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon VII
G3D Mark Score	10,064	16,308+62%
Architecture	Pascal	GCN 5.1
Process Node	16 nm	7 nm
Shading Units	2560	3840+50%
Compute (TFLOPS)	8.873 TFLOPS	13.44 TFLOPS+51%
Boost Clock	1733 MHz	1750 MHz
ROPs	64	64
TMUs	160	240+50%
L1 Cache	960 KB	960 KB
L2 Cache	2 MB	4 MB+100%

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce GTX 1060 gets NVIDIA DLSS, which still tends to look cleaner in motion. The Radeon VII leans on FSR, which is flexible and widely supported, but usually a bit rougher at the same settings.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon VII
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 has 6 GB of VRAM, while the Radeon VII carries 16 GB. Radeon VII gives you 166.7% more memory capacity, which matters more once you move into heavier textures, mods, or higher resolutions. Memory bandwidth: 192 GB/s (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 1024 GB/s (Radeon VII) — a 433.3% advantage for the Radeon VII. Memory bus width is 192-bit on the GeForce GTX 1060 and 4096-bit on the Radeon VII. L2 Cache: 2 MB (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 4 MB (Radeon VII) — the Radeon VII has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon VII
VRAM Capacity	6 GB	16 GB+167%
Memory Type	GDDR5	HBM2
Memory Bandwidth	192 GB/s	1024 GB/s+433%
Bus Width	192-bit	4096-bit+2033%
L2 Cache	2 MB	4 MB+100%

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 12.1 (Radeon VII). Vulkan: 1.3 vs 1.3. OpenGL: 4.5 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 4.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon VII
DirectX	12	12.1
Vulkan	1.3	1.3
OpenGL	4.5	4.6+2%
Max Displays	4	4

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC (Pascal) (GeForce GTX 1060) vs VCE 4.1 (Radeon VII). Decoder: NVDEC (Pascal) vs UVD 7.2. Supported codecs: H.264,H.265/HEVC (GeForce GTX 1060) vs MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC,VP9 (Radeon VII).

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon VII
Encoder	NVENC (Pascal)	VCE 4.1
Decoder	NVDEC (Pascal)	UVD 7.2
Codecs	H.264,H.265/HEVC	MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC,VP9

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 1060 draws 180W versus the Radeon VII's 295W — a 48.4% difference. The GeForce GTX 1060 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 400W (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 750W (Radeon VII). Power connectors: 6-pin vs 2x 8-pin. Card length: 173mm vs 280mm, occupying 2 vs 2 slots.

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon VII
TDP	180W-39%	295W
Recommended PSU	400W-47%	750W
Power Connector	6-pin	2x 8-pin
Length	173mm	280mm
Height	111mm	125mm
Slots	2	2
Temp (Load)	—	89°C
Perf/Watt	55.9+1%	55.3

💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the GeForce GTX 1060 came in at $249, while the Radeon VII launched at $699. On MSRP, GeForce GTX 1060 was 64.4% cheaper ($450 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 40.4 (GeForce GTX 1060) vs 23.3 (Radeon VII) — the GeForce GTX 1060 offers 73.4% better value. The newer card here is Radeon VII (2019 vs 2016).

Feature	GeForce GTX 1060	Radeon VII
MSRP	$249-64%	$699
Performance per Dollar	40.4+73%	23.3
Codename	GP104	Vega 20
Release	May 27 2016	February 7 2019
Ranking	#137	#125

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