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

2021

Why buy it

✅64.2% more average FPS across 48 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅Costs $471 less on MSRP ($329 MSRP vs $800 MSRP).
✅Delivers 422.1% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 51.7 vs 9.9 G3D/$ ($329 MSRP vs $800 MSRP).
✅Access to DLSS 2 Super Resolution (2020).
✅50% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (12 GB vs 8 GB).

Trade-offs

❌Fewer clear downsides in this head-to-head, aside from the usual pricing and availability swings.

Quadro M5500

2016

Why buy it

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

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than GeForce RTX 3060 across 48 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌Less VRAM, with 8 GB vs 12 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌No DLSS support; it relies on Upscaling support instead.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2016-era hardware with 8 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌
143.2% HIGHER MSRP
$800 MSRPvs$329 MSRP

GeForce RTX 3060

2021

Quadro M5500

2016

Why buy it

✅64.2% more average FPS across 48 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅Costs $471 less on MSRP ($329 MSRP vs $800 MSRP).
✅Delivers 422.1% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 51.7 vs 9.9 G3D/$ ($329 MSRP vs $800 MSRP).
✅Access to DLSS 2 Super Resolution (2020).
✅50% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (12 GB vs 8 GB).

Why buy it

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

Trade-offs

❌Fewer clear downsides in this head-to-head, aside from the usual pricing and availability swings.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than GeForce RTX 3060 across 48 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌Less VRAM, with 8 GB vs 12 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
❌No DLSS support; it relies on Upscaling support instead.
❌Poor future-proofing: 2016-era hardware with 8 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌
143.2% HIGHER MSRP
$800 MSRPvs$329 MSRP

Quick Answers

So, is GeForce RTX 3060 better than Quadro M5500?

Yes. GeForce RTX 3060 is clearly the better overall GPU here. GeForce RTX 3060 averages 64.2% more FPS across 48 tracked games in our benchmark data. You are also looking at 16,995 vs 7,915 in G3D Mark. On top of that, GeForce RTX 3060 is a 2021 card with DLSS Super Resolution, while Quadro M5500 is a 2016 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?

GeForce RTX 3060 is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer 2021 generation instead of 2016, 114.7% more raw performance headroom, more VRAM at 12 GB instead of 8 GB, and better upscaling support with DLSS 2 Super Resolution (2020) instead of no meaningful modern upscaling stack. 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 is the smarter buy today, but it is not as lopsided as a simple winner label makes it sound. GeForce RTX 3060 is about $471 cheaper on MSRP at $329 MSRP versus $800 MSRP, and you are getting 64.2% more estimated average FPS across 48 tracked games in our benchmark data and 114.7% higher G3D Mark. It also leads G3D-per-dollar by 422.1%. That is why the better overall card still comes out as the smarter buy today, not just the faster one.

Is Quadro M5500 still worth buying for gaming in 2026?

Yes. Quadro M5500 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 $800 MSRP, even if GeForce RTX 3060 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 RTX 3060 Benchmark Check

Quadro M5500 Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	GeForce RTX 3060	Quadro M5500
1080p
low	149 FPS	108 FPS
medium	131 FPS	91 FPS
high	118 FPS	78 FPS
ultra	99 FPS	52 FPS
1440p
low	126 FPS	92 FPS
medium	104 FPS	77 FPS
high	92 FPS	59 FPS
ultra	80 FPS	38 FPS
4K
low	67 FPS	36 FPS
medium	58 FPS	33 FPS
high	39 FPS	21 FPS
ultra	32 FPS	18 FPS

Open GeForce RTX 3060 Open Quadro M5500

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	GeForce RTX 3060	Quadro M5500
1080p
low	354 FPS	229 FPS
medium	310 FPS	198 FPS
high	249 FPS	151 FPS
ultra	195 FPS	120 FPS
1440p
low	222 FPS	170 FPS
medium	196 FPS	144 FPS
high	160 FPS	116 FPS
ultra	128 FPS	91 FPS
4K
low	110 FPS	98 FPS
medium	94 FPS	82 FPS
high	77 FPS	69 FPS
ultra	60 FPS	52 FPS

Open GeForce RTX 3060 Open Quadro M5500

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	GeForce RTX 3060	Quadro M5500
1080p
low	765 FPS	356 FPS
medium	612 FPS	285 FPS
high	510 FPS	237 FPS
ultra	382 FPS	178 FPS
1440p
low	535 FPS	267 FPS
medium	432 FPS	214 FPS
high	366 FPS	178 FPS
ultra	287 FPS	134 FPS
4K
low	367 FPS	178 FPS
medium	298 FPS	142 FPS
high	221 FPS	119 FPS
ultra	176 FPS	89 FPS

Open GeForce RTX 3060 Open Quadro M5500

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	GeForce RTX 3060	Quadro M5500
1080p
low	523 FPS	234 FPS
medium	452 FPS	202 FPS
high	383 FPS	164 FPS
ultra	319 FPS	140 FPS
1440p
low	428 FPS	183 FPS
medium	371 FPS	159 FPS
high	298 FPS	125 FPS
ultra	245 FPS	104 FPS
4K
low	279 FPS	100 FPS
medium	259 FPS	80 FPS
high	225 FPS	63 FPS
ultra	186 FPS	50 FPS

Open GeForce RTX 3060 Open Quadro M5500

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of GeForce RTX 3060 and Quadro M5500

GeForce RTX 3060

The GeForce RTX 3060 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in January 12 2021. It features the Ampere architecture. The core clock ranges from 1320 MHz to 1777 MHz. It has 3584 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 170W. Manufactured using 8 nm process technology. It features 28 dedicated ray tracing cores for enhanced lighting effects. G3D Mark benchmark score: 16,995 points. Launch price was $329.

Quadro M5500

The Quadro M5500 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in April 8 2016. It features the Maxwell 2.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 1140 MHz to 1165 MHz. It has 2048 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 150W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 7,915 points.

⚡

Graphics Performance

In G3D Mark, the GeForce RTX 3060 scores 16,995 versus the Quadro M5500's 7,915 — the GeForce RTX 3060 leads by 114.7%. The GeForce RTX 3060 is built on Ampere while the Quadro M5500 uses Maxwell 2.0, both on 8 nm vs 28 nm. Shader units: 3,584 (GeForce RTX 3060) vs 2,048 (Quadro M5500). Raw compute: 12.74 TFLOPS (GeForce RTX 3060) vs 4.772 TFLOPS (Quadro M5500). Boost clocks: 1777 MHz vs 1165 MHz.

Feature	GeForce RTX 3060	Quadro M5500
G3D Mark Score	16,995+115%	7,915
Architecture	Ampere	Maxwell 2.0
Process Node	8 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	3584+75%	2048
Compute (TFLOPS)	12.74 TFLOPS+167%	4.772 TFLOPS
Boost Clock	1777 MHz+53%	1165 MHz
ROPs	48	64+33%
TMUs	112	128+14%
L1 Cache	3.5 MB+367%	0.75 MB
L2 Cache	3 MB+50%	2 MB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The GeForce RTX 3060 gives access to NVIDIA DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling), widely regarding as the superior upscaling method for image quality. The Quadro M5500 relies on FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution), which is capable but generally slightly noisier than DLSS in motion.

Feature	GeForce RTX 3060	Quadro M5500
Upscaling Tech	DLSS 2 Super Resolution	Upscaling support
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	NVIDIA Reflex	Standard

💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

The GeForce RTX 3060 comes with 12 GB of VRAM, while the Quadro M5500 has 8 GB. The GeForce RTX 3060 offers 50% more capacity, crucial for higher resolutions and texture-heavy games. Bus width: 192-bit vs 256-bit. L2 Cache: 3 MB (GeForce RTX 3060) vs 2 MB (Quadro M5500) — the GeForce RTX 3060 has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce RTX 3060	Quadro M5500
VRAM Capacity	12 GB+50%	8 GB
Memory Type	GDDR6	GDDR6
Bus Width	192-bit	256-bit+33%
L2 Cache	3 MB+50%	2 MB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 Ultimate (GeForce RTX 3060) vs 12 (12_1) (Quadro M5500). Vulkan: 1.3 vs 1.2. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 4.

Feature	GeForce RTX 3060	Quadro M5500
DirectX	12 Ultimate	12 (12_1)
Vulkan	1.3+8%	1.2
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
Max Displays	4	4

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC 7th Gen (GeForce RTX 3060) vs NVENC (Maxwell) (Quadro M5500). Decoder: NVDEC 5th Gen vs NVDEC (Maxwell). Supported codecs: AV1,H.265,H.264,VP9 (GeForce RTX 3060) vs H.264,H.265,VP9,MPEG-2,VC-1 (Quadro M5500).

Feature	GeForce RTX 3060	Quadro M5500
Encoder	NVENC 7th Gen	NVENC (Maxwell)
Decoder	NVDEC 5th Gen	NVDEC (Maxwell)
Codecs	AV1,H.265,H.264,VP9	H.264,H.265,VP9,MPEG-2,VC-1

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce RTX 3060 draws 170W versus the Quadro M5500's 150W — a 12.5% difference. The Quadro M5500 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 550W (GeForce RTX 3060) vs 350W (Quadro M5500). Power connectors: 8-pin vs PCIe-powered. Card length: 242mm vs 0mm, occupying 2 vs 0 slots. Typical load temperature: 75 vs 85.

Feature	GeForce RTX 3060	Quadro M5500
TDP	170W	150W-12%
Recommended PSU	550W	350W-36%
Power Connector	8-pin	PCIe-powered
Length	242mm	0mm
Height	112mm	0mm
Slots	2	0-100%
Temp (Load)	75-12%	85
Perf/Watt	100.0+89%	52.8

💰

Value Analysis

The GeForce RTX 3060 launched at $329 MSRP, while the Quadro M5500 launched at $800. The GeForce RTX 3060 costs 58.9% less ($471 savings) on MSRP. Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 51.7 (GeForce RTX 3060) vs 9.9 (Quadro M5500) — the GeForce RTX 3060 offers 422.2% better value. The GeForce RTX 3060 is the newer GPU (2021 vs 2016).