Nvidia RTX 5070 vs AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT: Which is the better gaming GPU?

The Nvidia RTX 5070 and AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT are high-end graphics cards designed for 1440p gaming without compromises. They are both filled to the brim with the latest hardware and AI upscaling technologies in the market, making them some of the best options in the midrange. However, choosing between Nvidia and AMD can be difficult this generation, especially because both manufacturers have a lot to offer.

In this article, we have detailed the specs and performance differences between the pixel pushers. Let's dive into what you can expect with either of the 70-class offerings.

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Both the Nvidia RTX 5070 and AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT are capable graphics cards

The Nvidia RTX 5070 is designed for premium 1440p gaming (Image via Nvidia)

The RTX 5070 and Radeon RX 9070 XT are both built for QHD gaming. However, they can handle 4K pretty comfortably as well. Although there are some issues with running more demanding titles, especially if you turn ray tracing on, casual gamers can have a good time at both resolutions.

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Specs comparison

In terms of specs, you get fancy hardware with both GPUs. However, the wildly different architectures powering the cards mean that there's little in common between them. The Nvidia cards are based on Blackwell, which focuses more on better hardware packaging for improved efficiency and AI hardware. The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT delivers higher performance through bump in hardware specs.

The RTX 5070 bundles 6,144 CUDA cores in total. Other than this, you get 12 GB of GDDR7 VRAM, which is pretty fast, but the limited buffer and bus width means that the overall performance remains low.

The RX 9070 XT, on the other hand, is AMD's flagship-grade offering for now. With 4,096 shaders and the latest Navi 48 XTX graphics processor, it is considerably faster than the last-gen RX 7700 XT. However, you mustn't expect it to beat the Radeon RX 7900 XTX.

The detailed specs sheets of the two GPUs are as follows:

Specification	NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070	AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT
Architecture	Blackwell	RDNA 4
CUDA Cores / Shaders	6144 CUDA Cores	4096 Shaders
Base Clock Speed	2,325 MHz	2,400 MHz
Boost Clock Speed	2,512 MHz	2,970 MHz
Memory Type	GDDR7	GDDR6
Memory Capacity	12 GB	16 GB
Memory Bus Width	192-bit	256-bit
Memory Bandwidth	672 GB/s	644 GB/s
Ray Tracing Cores	48	64
Tensor Cores / AI Accelerators	192	128
TDP (Power Consumption)	250W	304W

In terms of pricing, Nvidia takes the lead. The 5070's MSRP is $549, while the AMD GPU will set you back by $599. However, in terms of real-world pricing, both GPUs are being sold for hundreds of dollars more than the suggested introductory tags.

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Performance comparison

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT is a high-end gaming GPU (Image via Gigabyte)

Performance is the main deal for most gamers when it comes to choosing GPUs. In this regard, both offerings bundle enough rendering capabilities to handle the latest titles without issues. However, the performance delta can be significant in some games, which, coupled with certain hardware limitations, gives AMD an upper hand.

Here's a look at the performance figures each GPU can pull off. The numbers have been sourced from the YouTube channel Testing Games.

	Nvidia RTX 5070	AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT
Alan Wake 2	35 FPS	44 FPS
Forza Horizon 5	139 FPS	195 FPS
Red Dead Redemption 2	114 FPS	145 FPS
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2	64 FPS	75 FPS
Ghost of Tsushima	72 FPS	106 FPS
Cyberpunk 2077	90 FPS	113 FPS
Cyberpunk 2077 w/ RT	45 FPS	52 FPS
Horizon Forbidden West	94 FPS	125 FPS
Kingdom Come Deliverance 2	69 FPS	69 FPS
Black Myth Wukong	45 FPS	51 FPS
God of War: Ragnarok	110 FPS	150 FPS

On average, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT is about 25.67% faster than the Nvidia GPU. This is staggering and completely justifies the $50 markup (that is if the cards are available at the MSRP).

Looking at individual games, the 9070 XT is 47.22% faster in Ghost of Tsushima, 40.29% faster in Forza Horizon 5, and 36.36% faster in God of War: Ragnarok. These numbers put the AMD GPU at a significant advantage, which is the better buy if you don't want to upgrade for some time to come.

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Overall, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT is a much better buy than the Nvidia RTX 5070. The GPU costs $50 more. However, the much higher framerate figures obtained from it make it worthwhile. If you don't have as much cash to spend, however, consider looking at the RX 9070. Do note that none of these GPUs are selling at MSRP as of writing, and the 5070 wins the pricing battle in terms of the listed price tags on Amazon and Best Buy.