GeForce RTX 3060 Ti vs Radeon HD 6790

NVIDIA

GeForce RTX 3060 Ti

2020Core: 1410 MHzBoost: 1665 MHz

Popular choices:

VS
AMD

Radeon HD 6790

2011Core: 840 MHz

Popular choices:

RTX 3060 Ti

Performance Spectrum - GPU

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.

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 RTX 3060 Ti

2020

Why buy it

  • 754.9% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • Delivers 384.1% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 50.9 vs 10.5 G3D/$ ($399 MSRP vs $149 MSRP).
  • Access to DLSS 2 Super Resolution (2020).
  • 700% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (8 GB vs 1 GB).
  • More future proof: Ampere (2020−2025) on 8nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

  • 33.3% higher power demand at 200W vs 150W.

Radeon HD 6790

2011

Why buy it

  • Costs $250 less on MSRP ($149 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).
  • Draws 150W instead of 200W, a 50W reduction.
  • Measures 240mm instead of 242mm, a 2mm shorter card that is more SFF-friendly.

Trade-offs

  • Lower average FPS than GeForce RTX 3060 Ti across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
  • Less VRAM, with 1 GB vs 8 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
  • No DLSS support; it relies on FSR Upscaling / FSR 4 (2025) instead.
  • Very weak future-proofing: 2011-era hardware with 1 GB of VRAM is already obsolete for modern gaming and is hard to recommend today.
  • Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 10.5 vs 50.9 G3D/$ ($149 MSRP vs $399 MSRP).

Quick Answers

So, is GeForce RTX 3060 Ti better than Radeon HD 6790?
Yes. GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is clearly the better overall GPU here. GeForce RTX 3060 Ti averages 754.9% more FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. You are also looking at 20,312 vs 1,567 in G3D Mark. On top of that, GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is a 2020 card with DLSS Super Resolution, while Radeon HD 6790 is a 2011 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 RTX 3060 Ti is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer 2020 generation instead of 2011, 1196.2% more raw performance headroom, more VRAM at 8 GB instead of 1 GB, and the stronger feature stack with DLSS Super Resolution 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 RTX 3060 Ti is the smarter buy by a wide margin. GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is about 167.8% more expensive on MSRP at $399 MSRP versus $149 MSRP, and you are getting 754.9% more estimated average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data and 1196.2% higher G3D Mark. Radeon HD 6790 really only makes sense now as a very cheap stopgap or a used-market placeholder.
Is Radeon HD 6790 still worth buying for gaming in 2026?
No, not for a fresh gaming build. Radeon HD 6790 is 2011 hardware with 1 GB of VRAM, 1,567 in G3D Mark, and FSR upscaling. That is simply too far behind to be an easy modern recommendation.

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.

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

PresetGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon HD 6790
1080p
low152 FPS23 FPS
medium137 FPS13 FPS
high118 FPS8 FPS
ultra100 FPS4 FPS
1440p
low131 FPS11 FPS
medium107 FPS6 FPS
high91 FPS3 FPS
ultra82 FPS1 FPS
4K
low77 FPS4 FPS
medium65 FPS3 FPS
high50 FPS1 FPS
ultra43 FPS1 FPS
Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

PresetGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon HD 6790
1080p
low425 FPS66 FPS
medium366 FPS38 FPS
high296 FPS26 FPS
ultra248 FPS17 FPS
1440p
low272 FPS29 FPS
medium229 FPS18 FPS
high190 FPS11 FPS
ultra156 FPS9 FPS
4K
low133 FPS8 FPS
medium114 FPS6 FPS
high96 FPS5 FPS
ultra73 FPS3 FPS
League of Legends

League of Legends

PresetGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon HD 6790
1080p
low859 FPS71 FPS
medium693 FPS56 FPS
high602 FPS47 FPS
ultra457 FPS35 FPS
1440p
low658 FPS53 FPS
medium529 FPS42 FPS
high452 FPS35 FPS
ultra343 FPS26 FPS
4K
low434 FPS35 FPS
medium346 FPS28 FPS
high275 FPS24 FPS
ultra221 FPS18 FPS
Valorant

Valorant

PresetGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon HD 6790
1080p
low580 FPS71 FPS
medium514 FPS56 FPS
high424 FPS47 FPS
ultra373 FPS35 FPS
1440p
low478 FPS53 FPS
medium427 FPS42 FPS
high335 FPS35 FPS
ultra290 FPS26 FPS
4K
low285 FPS35 FPS
medium266 FPS28 FPS
high234 FPS24 FPS
ultra195 FPS18 FPS

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of GeForce RTX 3060 Ti and Radeon HD 6790

NVIDIA

GeForce RTX 3060 Ti

The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in December 1 2020. It features the Ampere architecture. The core clock ranges from 1410 MHz to 1665 MHz. It has 4864 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 200W. Manufactured using 8 nm process technology. It features 38 dedicated ray tracing cores for enhanced lighting effects. G3D Mark benchmark score: 20,312 points. Launch price was $399.

AMD

Radeon HD 6790

The Radeon HD 6790 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in April 4 2011. It features the TeraScale 2 architecture. The core clock speed is 840 MHz. It has 800 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 150W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 1,567 points. Launch price was $149.

Graphics Performance

In G3D Mark, the GeForce RTX 3060 Ti scores 20,312 versus the Radeon HD 6790's 1,567 — the GeForce RTX 3060 Ti leads by 1196.2%. The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is built on Ampere while the Radeon HD 6790 uses TeraScale 2, both on 8 nm vs 40 nm. Shader units: 4,864 (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs 800 (Radeon HD 6790). Raw compute: 16.2 TFLOPS (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs 1.344 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 6790).

FeatureGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon HD 6790
G3D Mark Score
20,312+1196%
1,567
Architecture
Ampere
TeraScale 2
Process Node
8 nm
40 nm
Shading Units
4864+508%
800
Compute (TFLOPS)
16.2 TFLOPS+1105%
1.344 TFLOPS
ROPs
80+400%
16
TMUs
152+280%
40
L1 Cache
4.8 MB+2900%
0.16 MB
L2 Cache
4 MB+700%
0.5 MB

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti gives access to NVIDIA DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling), widely regarding as the superior upscaling method for image quality. The Radeon HD 6790 relies on FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution), which is capable but generally slightly noisier than DLSS in motion.

FeatureGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon HD 6790
Upscaling Tech
DLSS 2 Super Resolution
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 RTX 3060 Ti comes with 8 GB of VRAM, while the Radeon HD 6790 has 1 GB. The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti offers 700% more capacity, crucial for higher resolutions and texture-heavy games. Bus width: 256-bit vs 128-bit. L2 Cache: 4 MB (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs 0.5 MB (Radeon HD 6790) — the GeForce RTX 3060 Ti has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

FeatureGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon HD 6790
VRAM Capacity
8 GB+700%
1 GB
Memory Type
GDDR6
GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth
448 GB/s
Unknown
Bus Width
256-bit+100%
128-bit
L2 Cache
4 MB+700%
0.5 MB
🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 Ultimate (12_2) (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs 11.2 (11_0) (Radeon HD 6790). Vulkan: 1.3 vs N/A. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.4. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 3.

FeatureGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon HD 6790
DirectX
12 Ultimate (12_2)+7%
11.2 (11_0)
Vulkan
1.3
N/A
OpenGL
4.6+5%
4.4
Max Displays
4+33%
3
🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC (Ampere) (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs None (Radeon HD 6790). Decoder: NVDEC (Ampere) vs UVD 3.0. Supported codecs: H.264,H.265,VP9,AV1 (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4 (Radeon HD 6790).

FeatureGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon HD 6790
Encoder
NVENC (Ampere)
None
Decoder
NVDEC (Ampere)
UVD 3.0
Codecs
H.264,H.265,VP9,AV1
H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti draws 200W versus the Radeon HD 6790's 150W — a 28.6% difference. The Radeon HD 6790 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 600W (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs 450W (Radeon HD 6790). Power connectors: 8-pin vs 2x 6-pin. Card length: 242mm vs 240mm, occupying 2 vs 2 slots. Typical load temperature: 75 vs 80.

FeatureGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon HD 6790
TDP
200W
150W-25%
Recommended PSU
600W
450W-25%
Power Connector
8-pin
2x 6-pin
Length
242mm
240mm
Height
112mm
111mm
Slots
2
2
Temp (Load)
75-6%
80
Perf/Watt
101.6+877%
10.4
💰

Value Analysis

The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti launched at $399 MSRP, while the Radeon HD 6790 launched at $149. The Radeon HD 6790 costs 62.7% less ($250 savings) on MSRP. Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 50.9 (GeForce RTX 3060 Ti) vs 10.5 (Radeon HD 6790) — the GeForce RTX 3060 Ti offers 384.8% better value. The GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is the newer GPU (2020 vs 2011).

FeatureGeForce RTX 3060 TiRadeon HD 6790
MSRP
$399
$149-63%
Performance per Dollar
50.9+385%
10.5
Codename
GA104
Barts
Release
December 1 2020
April 4 2011
Ranking
#73
#759