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 4060

2023

Why buy it

✅+110.7% higher PassMark G3D performance.
✅Costs $130 less on MSRP ($299 MSRP vs $429 MSRP).
✅Delivers 202.3% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 65.4 vs 21.6 G3D/$ ($299 MSRP vs $429 MSRP).
✅Access to a newer frame-generation stack with DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation (2023).
✅More future proof: Ada Lovelace (2022−2024) on 5nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

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

Radeon R9 390X

2015

Why buy it

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

Trade-offs

❌Lower PassMark G3D performance (9,278 vs 19,548).
❌No equivalent frame-generation stack like DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation (2023).
❌Poor future-proofing: 2015-era hardware with 8 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌
43.5% HIGHER MSRP
$429 MSRPvs$299 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 21.6 vs 65.4 G3D/$ ($429 MSRP vs $299 MSRP).

GeForce RTX 4060

2023

Radeon R9 390X

2015

Why buy it

✅+110.7% higher PassMark G3D performance.
✅Costs $130 less on MSRP ($299 MSRP vs $429 MSRP).
✅Delivers 202.3% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 65.4 vs 21.6 G3D/$ ($299 MSRP vs $429 MSRP).
✅Access to a newer frame-generation stack with DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation (2023).
✅More future proof: Ada Lovelace (2022−2024) on 5nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

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 PassMark G3D performance (9,278 vs 19,548).
❌No equivalent frame-generation stack like DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation (2023).
❌Poor future-proofing: 2015-era hardware with 8 GB of VRAM is already a legacy-tier option for modern games.
❌
43.5% HIGHER MSRP
$429 MSRPvs$299 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 21.6 vs 65.4 G3D/$ ($429 MSRP vs $299 MSRP).

Quick Answers

So, is GeForce RTX 4060 better than Radeon R9 390X?

Yes. GeForce RTX 4060 is clearly the better overall GPU here. You are also looking at 19,548 vs 9,278 in G3D Mark. On top of that, GeForce RTX 4060 is a 2023 card with DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation, while Radeon R9 390X is a 2015 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 4060 is the more future-proof choice for 2026 and beyond. You are getting a newer 2023 generation instead of 2015, 110.7% more raw performance headroom, better frame-generation support with DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation (2023) instead of FSR upscaling, and a 5nm process instead of 28nm. That broader feature stack should age better as more games lean on modern upscaling and frame-generation support.

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

GeForce RTX 4060 is the smarter buy today, but it is not as lopsided as a simple winner label makes it sound. GeForce RTX 4060 is about $130 cheaper on MSRP at $299 MSRP versus $429 MSRP, and you are getting 110.7% higher G3D Mark. It also leads G3D-per-dollar by 202.3%. That is why the better overall card still comes out as the smarter buy today, not just the faster one.

Is Radeon R9 390X still worth buying for gaming in 2026?

Yes. Radeon R9 390X 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 $429 MSRP, even if GeForce RTX 4060 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 4060 Benchmark Check

Radeon R9 390X Benchmark Check

Path of Exile 2

Preset	GeForce RTX 4060	Radeon R9 390X
1080p
low	167 FPS	135 FPS
medium	152 FPS	115 FPS
high	134 FPS	94 FPS
ultra	115 FPS	57 FPS
1440p
low	137 FPS	113 FPS
medium	114 FPS	96 FPS
high	99 FPS	70 FPS
ultra	90 FPS	42 FPS
4K
low	86 FPS	39 FPS
medium	74 FPS	36 FPS
high	62 FPS	22 FPS
ultra	55 FPS	19 FPS

Open GeForce RTX 4060 Open Radeon R9 390X

Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

Preset	GeForce RTX 4060	Radeon R9 390X
1080p
low	392 FPS	187 FPS
medium	334 FPS	165 FPS
high	268 FPS	137 FPS
ultra	211 FPS	107 FPS
1440p
low	240 FPS	131 FPS
medium	209 FPS	106 FPS
high	169 FPS	85 FPS
ultra	137 FPS	65 FPS
4K
low	119 FPS	60 FPS
medium	98 FPS	50 FPS
high	82 FPS	45 FPS
ultra	63 FPS	37 FPS

Open GeForce RTX 4060 Open Radeon R9 390X

Counter-Strike 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Preset	GeForce RTX 4060	Radeon R9 390X
1080p
low	812 FPS	418 FPS
medium	642 FPS	334 FPS
high	551 FPS	278 FPS
ultra	440 FPS	209 FPS
1440p
low	535 FPS	313 FPS
medium	443 FPS	251 FPS
high	379 FPS	209 FPS
ultra	329 FPS	157 FPS
4K
low	365 FPS	209 FPS
medium	297 FPS	167 FPS
high	234 FPS	139 FPS
ultra	186 FPS	104 FPS

Open GeForce RTX 4060 Open Radeon R9 390X

League of Legends

League of Legends

Valorant

Preset	GeForce RTX 4060	Radeon R9 390X
1080p
low	746 FPS	283 FPS
medium	613 FPS	247 FPS
high	536 FPS	206 FPS
ultra	440 FPS	163 FPS
1440p
low	594 FPS	204 FPS
medium	486 FPS	180 FPS
high	421 FPS	144 FPS
ultra	330 FPS	110 FPS
4K
low	358 FPS	115 FPS
medium	308 FPS	94 FPS
high	285 FPS	77 FPS
ultra	220 FPS	57 FPS

Open GeForce RTX 4060 Open Radeon R9 390X

Valorant

Valorant

Check FPS for your specific build

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of GeForce RTX 4060 and Radeon R9 390X

GeForce RTX 4060

The GeForce RTX 4060 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in May 18 2023. It features the Ada Lovelace architecture. The core clock ranges from 1830 MHz to 2460 MHz. It has 3072 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 115W. Manufactured using 5 nm process technology. It features 24 dedicated ray tracing cores for enhanced lighting effects. G3D Mark benchmark score: 19,548 points. Launch price was $299.

Radeon R9 390X

The Radeon R9 390X is manufactured by AMD. It was released in June 18 2015. It features the GCN 2.0 architecture. The boost clock speed is 1050 MHz. It has 2816 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 275W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 9,278 points. Launch price was $429.

⚡

Graphics Performance

In G3D Mark, the GeForce RTX 4060 scores 19,548 versus the Radeon R9 390X's 9,278 — the GeForce RTX 4060 leads by 110.7%. The GeForce RTX 4060 is built on Ada Lovelace while the Radeon R9 390X uses GCN 2.0, both on 5 nm vs 28 nm. Shader units: 3,072 (GeForce RTX 4060) vs 2,816 (Radeon R9 390X). Raw compute: 15.11 TFLOPS (GeForce RTX 4060) vs 5.914 TFLOPS (Radeon R9 390X). Boost clocks: 2460 MHz vs 1050 MHz.

Feature	GeForce RTX 4060	Radeon R9 390X
G3D Mark Score	19,548+111%	9,278
Architecture	Ada Lovelace	GCN 2.0
Process Node	5 nm	28 nm
Shading Units	3072+9%	2816
Compute (TFLOPS)	15.11 TFLOPS+155%	5.914 TFLOPS
Boost Clock	2460 MHz+134%	1050 MHz
ROPs	48	64+33%
TMUs	96	176+83%
L1 Cache	3 MB+335%	0.69 MB
L2 Cache	24 MB+2300%	1 MB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

A critical advantage for the GeForce RTX 4060 is support for DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation. This allows it to generate entire frames using AI/Algorithms, essentially doubling the frame rate in CPU-bound scenarios or heavy ray-tracing titles. The Radeon R9 390X lacks specific hardware/driver support for this native frame generation tier.The GeForce RTX 4060 gives access to NVIDIA DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling), widely regarding as the superior upscaling method for image quality. The Radeon R9 390X relies on FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution), which is capable but generally slightly noisier than DLSS in motion.

Feature	GeForce RTX 4060	Radeon R9 390X
Upscaling Tech	DLSS 3.5 Super Resolution	FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
Frame Generation	DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	Yes (DLSS 3.5)	No
Low Latency	NVIDIA Reflex	AMD Anti-Lag

💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards feature 8 GB of video memory. Memory bandwidth: 272 GB/s (GeForce RTX 4060) vs 384 GB/s (Radeon R9 390X) — a 41.2% advantage for the Radeon R9 390X. Bus width: 128-bit vs 512-bit. L2 Cache: 24 MB (GeForce RTX 4060) vs 1 MB (Radeon R9 390X) — the GeForce RTX 4060 has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

Feature	GeForce RTX 4060	Radeon R9 390X
VRAM Capacity	8 GB	8 GB
Memory Type	GDDR6	GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth	272 GB/s	384 GB/s+41%
Bus Width	128-bit	512-bit+300%
L2 Cache	24 MB+2300%	1 MB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 Ultimate (GeForce RTX 4060) vs 12 (12_0) (Radeon R9 390X). Vulkan: 1.3 vs 1.2. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 4.

Feature	GeForce RTX 4060	Radeon R9 390X
DirectX	12 Ultimate	12 (12_0)
Vulkan	1.3+8%	1.2
OpenGL	4.6	4.6
Max Displays	4	4

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC 8th gen (GeForce RTX 4060) vs VCE 2.0 (Radeon R9 390X). Decoder: NVDEC 5th gen vs UVD 4.2. Supported codecs: H.264,H.265/HEVC,AV1 (GeForce RTX 4060) vs H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1 (Radeon R9 390X).

Feature	GeForce RTX 4060	Radeon R9 390X
Encoder	NVENC 8th gen	VCE 2.0
Decoder	NVDEC 5th gen	UVD 4.2
Codecs	H.264,H.265/HEVC,AV1	H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The GeForce RTX 4060 draws 115W versus the Radeon R9 390X's 275W — a 82.1% difference. The GeForce RTX 4060 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 550W (GeForce RTX 4060) vs 750W (Radeon R9 390X). Power connectors: 8-pin vs 6-pin + 8-pin. Card length: 240mm vs 277mm, occupying 2 vs 2 slots. Typical load temperature: 73°C vs 80.

Feature	GeForce RTX 4060	Radeon R9 390X
TDP	115W-58%	275W
Recommended PSU	550W-27%	750W
Power Connector	8-pin	6-pin + 8-pin
Length	240mm	277mm
Height	111mm	129mm
Slots	2	2
Temp (Load)	73°C-9%	80
Perf/Watt	170.0+404%	33.7

💰

Value Analysis

The GeForce RTX 4060 launched at $299 MSRP, while the Radeon R9 390X launched at $429. The GeForce RTX 4060 costs 30.3% less ($130 savings) on MSRP. Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 65.4 (GeForce RTX 4060) vs 21.6 (Radeon R9 390X) — the GeForce RTX 4060 offers 202.8% better value. The GeForce RTX 4060 is the newer GPU (2023 vs 2015).