NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti
22.5Rasterization49.3
20Ray Tracing42.1
32.4Memoryspec-based59.2
76.3Efficiencyspec-based64.3
29.8Compute64.5
1 spec wins — NVIDIA GeForce GTX 97010 spec wins — NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti
InnoReviews verdict
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti wins this graphics card face-off, 53.9 to 32.6, pulling ahead mainly in compute (+35) and rasterization (+27). NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 still makes sense if its price or standout specs fit your needs better.
Which would you pick?
Key differences
Reasons to pick the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970
- 59% lower TDP: 145 W vs 350 W
- Lower launch price: $329 vs $1,199
Reasons to pick the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti
- Stronger rasterization score: 49 vs 23
- Stronger Ray Tracing score: 42 vs 20
- Stronger compute score: 65 vs 30
- 515% higher Shading units: 10,240 vs 1,664
- 430% higher 3DMark Time Spy: 19,200 vs 3,625
General
| Spec | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti |
|---|---|---|
| Announced | 2014 | 2021 |
| Architecture | Maxwell | Ampere |
| Process | 28 nm | 8 nm+71% |
| TDP | 145 W+59% | 350 W |
| Power connector | 2x 6-pin | 1x 12-pin |
Cores & Clocks
| Spec | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti |
|---|---|---|
| Shading units | 1,664 | 10,240+515% |
| RT cores | — | 80 |
| Tensor / AI cores | — | 320 |
| Base clock | 1,050 MHz | 1,365 MHz+30% |
| Boost clock | 1,178 MHz | 1,665 MHz+41% |
Memory
| Spec | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti |
|---|---|---|
| VRAM | 4 GB | 12 GB+200% |
| VRAM type | GDDR5 | GDDR6X |
| Bus width | 256 bit | 384 bit+50% |
| Bandwidth | 224 GB/s | 912 GB/s+307% |
Benchmarks
| Spec | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti |
|---|---|---|
| 3DMark Time Spy | 3,625Bottom 7% | 19,200+430%Top 27% |
| 3DMark Speed Way | — | 5,150Top 33% |
| PassMark G3D | 9,635Bottom 13% | 25,800+168%Top 18% |
| 1080p Ultra | — | 155 fpsTop 38% |
| 1440p Ultra | — | 118 fpsTop 34% |
| 4K Ultra | — | 66 fpsTop 32% |
Features
| Spec | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti |
|---|---|---|
| Upscaling | — | DLSS 4 (no FG) |
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