RTX 4070 vs RX 7900 XTX – which graphics card should you go for?

Updated on April 13, 2023 by Rory Greig

Posted in Tech

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We’re looking at the RTX 4070 vs RX 7900 XTX to get a sense of how the new card from Nvidia might perform against AMD’s flagship.

The RTX 4070 is the latest edition to Nvidia’s 40-series family, and the positive reviews are rolling in. Fresh off the bat, we’re all over questions like whether the 4070 can do 4K, and whether it’s future-proof.

Where to buy RTX 4070:

Amazon US

Best Buy

Newegg

Newegg (in stock)

The RX 7900 XTX sits atop the RDNA 3 pile, being the most powerful GPU AMD has ever released. It performs exceptionally well in any Triple-A title you care to think of and comes with a $999 price, which is not bad considering the performance it offers in return.

To make the comparison as simple as possible we’ve broken it down into several sections. This should give you an overview of what we know so far about the RTX 4070, and how it compares to the RX 7900 XTX. Let’s get into it.

RTX 4070 vs RX 7900 XTX – specs

	Rumoured RTX 4070 specs	RX 7900 XTX specs
Architecture	Lovelace	RDNA 3
CUDA Cores	5,888	6,144
Base Clock	1,920MHz	1,855MHz
Base Clock	2,505MHz	2,499MHz
GDDR6X VRAM	12GB	24GB
Bus width	192 bit	384 bit
Dimensions	not known	287 x 110 x 51mm

As you can see, the RX 7900 is packing some pretty impressive specs, such as a full 384 bit bus width and a massive 24GB of VRAM. These are both essentially the highest you ever see in a modern GPU, showing just how high-end the AMD card is.

This is not to say that the 12GB of VRAM and 192 bit bus width expected in the RTX 4070 are weak or limiting, it is just that they are geared toward the mid-range market. It is still looking likely that the card will perform well up to 4K and have exceptional ray tracing.

RTX 4070 vs RX 7900 XTX – architecture

Architecture has a huge effect on a GPU’s performance and the ones we find in the RTX 4070 and RX 7900 XTX each have different focuses and strengths.

Ada Lovelace GPU architecture, which is inside every RTX 40-series card, excels at both ray tracing and AI neural graphics. Thanks to its 3rd generation Ray Tracing cores these GPUs can model, track, and map individual rays of light generated in games, simulating how they reflect and diffuse onto surfaces. It also features 4th generation Tensor cores. These power the AI upscaling and optimization algorithms. As a result, processing power is freed up for other tasks, allowing the GPUs to get more performance from the same hardware.

Meanwhile, RDNA 3 is also capable at ray tracing and AI optimization but it is not the main focus. AMD geared RDNA 3 towards energy optimization, delivering a performance per watt efficiency level that is industry-leading. This means that the RX 7900 XTX is able to sustain its high-performance level without demanding an incredibly powerful PSU.

RTX 4070 vs RX 7900 XTX – performance

Long story short, the RTX 4070’s performance is very similar to that of the RTX 3080, potentially with an edge.

Expect frame rates of around 80-90 fps at 4K resolutions in even the most demanding of games, which is seriously impressive.

However, even this high performance cannot compete with the brute power of the RX 7900 XTX. This is the most powerful card that AMD has ever released and they’ve got the benchmarks to prove it. In fact, in a lot of tests, the XTX is very close to the RTX 4080 in terms of performance, in some games even beating its average higher frame rates.

One area where it is likely the RTX 4070 will perform better is with ray tracing. Nvidia has always led the field here and, with its Lovelace architecture, it is a technology the card will be well equipped to handle.

RTX 4070 vs RX 7900 XTX – price

Nvidia has confirmed that the RTX 4070 will be priced at a respectable $599. This makes it the most affordable Ada Lovelace GPU we’ve seen so far, by quite a considerable margin too, undercutting the next cheapest by $200.

AMD flagship RX 7900 XTX meanwhile launched with an MSRP of $999. This is a considerable amount more than the RTX 4070 goes for, but let’s not forget that for that you get considerably better performance. Another thing to consider is that it is very likely that the RX 7900 XTX will cost less to run over the course of the year, thanks to its seriously impressive energy efficiency.

RTX 4070 vs RX 7900 XTX – which one should you go for?

Hopefully, this article has given you a sense of where in the crowded GPU market the RTX 4070 fits in, and how it compares to the RX 7900 XTX.

Essentially it is a choice between a medium-end GPU and a high-end one, meaning that any choice between the two comes down to price versus performance.

If you are looking for a mid-range card, it is looking likely that the RTX 4070 is a great one to go for. As the most budget-friendly way to get the many benefits of the Lovelace architecture, it is likely to be especially popular with those who want to make use of ray tracing.

If you want to get your hands on some of the most powerful gaming gear out there, the RX 7900 XTX is a brilliant top-range card. It can provide frame rates suitable for professional gaming in a range of titles, offering performance akin to the RTX 4080 while significantly undercutting it on price. However, it is by no means cheap coming in at around $1K. It can also falter somewhat when it comes to ray tracing.

Frequently asked questions

Does the RX 7900 XTX have DLSS?

No, the RX 7900 XTX does not use DLSS.

Will the RTX 4070 have DLSS 3?

Yes, because the card uses Nvidia’s Ada Lovelace architecture it will be able to make use of the groundbreaking DLSS 3.