Nvidia RTX 5070 Ti vs. AMD RX 9070 XT: Battle of the GPUs

While the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 sits at the pinnacle of the graphics card market with its hefty $1,999+ price tag, it's not within everyone's budget. Fortunately, you don't need to break the bank to enjoy 4K gaming. Both the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti and the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT offer more affordable alternatives while still delivering exceptional 4K gaming performance.

Currently, prices are elevated due to high demand and limited supply following their launch. However, the RTX 5070 Ti and RX 9070 XT remain the go-to choices for gamers seeking a high-end experience without the premium cost.

AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT – Photos

4 ImagesRTX 5070 Ti vs. RX 9070 XT: Specs

Comparing the specs of the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti and the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT is complex due to their differing architectures. Nvidia's CUDA cores and AMD's Shading Units, while similar in function, aren't directly comparable in numbers.

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT features 64 RDNA 4 compute units, each with 64 shader units, totaling 4,096. Additionally, each compute unit includes two AI Accelerators and one RT Accelerator, summing up to 128 and 64 respectively. The card is equipped with 16GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, which should suffice for current games, though it might be pushed to its limits at 4K in the future.

The Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti, on the other hand, also boasts 16GB of VRAM, but with the newer GDDR7 memory, which offers higher speeds and bandwidth on a 256-bit bus. It's built with 70 Streaming Multiprocessors, housing 8,960 CUDA Cores. This represents twice the shader units per compute unit, a trend Nvidia has followed since the RTX 3080. However, this doesn't necessarily translate to double the performance.

Winner: Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti

AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT & 9070 – Benchmarks

11 ImagesRTX 5070 Ti vs. RX 9070 XT: Performance

Despite the RTX 5070 Ti's superior specs on paper, the real-world performance between it and the Radeon RX 9070 XT is closely matched. Both cards excel in 4K gaming and are top contenders for 1440p gaming.

During my review of the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT, I anticipated it would lag behind the RTX 5070 Ti, particularly in ray-traced games. However, it impressively stayed within a few frames of the RTX 5070 Ti even in demanding titles like Cyberpunk 2077.

The RTX 5070 Ti does have its moments, such as in Total War: Warhammer 3, where it achieves 87fps at 4K, compared to the RX 9070 XT's 76fps. Yet, on average, the Radeon RX 9070 XT outperforms the RTX 5070 Ti by 2%, a significant achievement considering its lower price.

Winner: AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT

Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti – Photos

6 ImagesRTX 5070 Ti vs. RX 9070 XT: Software and Features

Choosing a graphics card involves more than just hardware specs; software features play a crucial role. Nvidia's RTX 5070 Ti benefits from the DLSS suite, including AI upscaling and Frame Generation. The latest DLSS 4 introduces multi-frame generation, capable of creating three AI-generated frames for each rendered frame, enhancing frame rates with a slight latency increase, mitigated by Nvidia Reflex. This feature is best used when starting from a decent frame rate, ideally above 60fps.

AMD's Radeon RX 9070 XT supports Frame Generation but can only generate one interpolated frame per rendered frame. The significant advancement is FSR 4, which introduces AI upscaling to AMD cards for the first time. Unlike previous temporal upscaling methods, FSR 4 uses machine learning for more accurate image upscaling, though it may not match the speed of FSR 3. As this is AMD's initial foray into AI upscaling, it lags behind Nvidia's more seasoned DLSS technology.

Winner: Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti

RTX 5070 Ti vs. RX 9070 XT: Price

GPU pricing remains a contentious issue, especially with the new generation cards selling out and often seeing inflated prices. While Nvidia and AMD set suggested retail prices, actual market prices can vary widely due to retailer and third-party manufacturer pricing.

At its launch price of $599, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT is a standout value, offering robust 4K performance with the new FSR 4 AI upscaler. This pricing is reminiscent of the more reasonable launch prices of flagship cards before Nvidia's upward price adjustments began with the RTX 2080 Ti.

In contrast, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti, despite its similar performance to the RX 9070 XT, carries a base price of $749. This $150 premium might be justified by features like Multi-Frame Generation, but its value depends on individual gaming needs and preferences.

Winner: AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT

The Winner Is… the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT

Both the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT and Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti are excellent choices for high-end 1440p and 4K gaming. However, the RX 9070 XT's ability to deliver comparable performance at a significantly lower price point makes it the clear winner. As prices hopefully return to normal levels, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT stands out as the best option for gamers looking to build a high-performance gaming PC without overspending. While it lacks multi-frame generation, this feature is less critical for most gamers without high-refresh 4K monitors.