Nvidia RTX 5060 vs AMD Radeon RX 9060: Which is the better 1080p gaming GPU?

The Nvidia RTX 5060 and AMD Radeon RX 9060 are the prime choices for gamers in the sub-$300 market. Both GPUs are paired with 8 GB of VRAM and target similar two-fan form factors. While Nvidia's strength is better ray tracing and DLSS 4 Multi-Frame Generation, AMD fights back with stronger native rendering capabilities at 1080p. This can make choosing between the pixel pushers quite the task.

In this comparison article, we pitched the two cards' gaming performance and hardware specs against each other. Read on to find out which GPU makes the final cut.

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The Nvidia RTX 5060 and AMD Radeon RX 9060 are capable 1080p gaming GPUs

The Nvidia RTX 5060 is a capable 1080p gaming GPU (Image via Nvidia)

The RTX 5060 and 9060 non-XT are based on wildly different architectures, while they may share a similar 60-class moniker. A direct specs comparison doesn't give us much context, as both use different terms for what might be the same hardware under the hood. Regardless, let's review the on-paper claims to get an idea of what to expect.

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Specs comparison

The RTX 5060 is based on Nvidia's latest Blackwell architecture. It pairs 3,840 CUDA, 120 Tensor, and 30 RT cores. This represents a 10-15% hardware bump from the last generation. You get 8 GB of 28 Gbps GDDR7 memory based on a 128-bit memory bus. This results in a 448 GB/s bandwidth.

The AMD Radeon RX 9060 non-XT bundles a similar profile. Based on the cut-down Navi 44 GPU, it is powered by the latest RDNA 4 architecture. You get 28 Compute Units (CUs) and 1,792 Stream Processors with 8 GB of 18 Gbps GDDR6 video memory. Based on the same 128-bit bus width, you get a much smaller 288 GB/s bandwidth. Since it targets the PCIe 5.0 x8 bus, this constrains the card's memory capabilities, which AMD hopes to compensatefor with higher operating clock speeds.

Here's a side-by-side specs comparison:

Spec (key for gaming)	RTX 5060 8 GB	RX 9060 non-XT 8 GB
GPU Architecture	NVIDIA Blackwell	AMD RDNA 4 Navi 44
CUDA / Compute Units	3,840 CUDA cores	28 CUs, 1,792 stream processors
Memory Type & Size	8 GB GDDR7	8 GB GDDR6 (18 Gb/s)
Memory Bus & Bandwidth	128-bit, ~448 GB/s	128-bit, ~288 GB/s
Boost Clock	~2.50 GHz	~2.99 GHz (boost)
Ray Tracing / AI Features	4th-gen RT Cores, 5th-gen Tensor Cores, DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation	Ray accelerators + AI upscaling (FSR 4)
TDP / Power Draw	~145 W	~132 W TDP
Price	$299	$249

The RTX 5060 is the costlier GPU on paper with its $299 MSRP. However, we have frequently spotted it at $270-280. The 9060 non-XT, on the other hand, is being introduced at $249. Knowing AMD, the prices could hover around the $200-220 mark before long.

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Performance comparison

The RX 9060 non-XT delivers strong native 1080p gaming performance (Image via AMD)

Here are the FPS marks hit by either GPU in some of the latest titles. The numbers for the AMD GPU have been pulled from the official launch details, while those for the 5060 are from real-world benchmarks. These are 1080p Ultra settings benchmarks at the native resolution without DLSS or FSR.

	Nvidia RTX 5060 8 GB	AMD Radeon RX 9060 8 GB
Assassin's Creed Mirage	107 FPS	108 FPS
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6	104 FPS	98 FPS
Dragon Age: The Veilguard	113 FPS	67 FPS
F1 24	111 FPS	188 FPS
Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered	97 FPS	106 FPS
God of War: Ragnarok	52 FPS	120 FPS
Resident Evil 4 (with RT)	110 FPS	100 FPS

Overall, the Radeon RX 9060 is about 13.4% faster across the board. In comparison to the 5060's 99.1 FPS geomean, the 9060 achieves 112.4 FPS. This is without considering DLSS 4 Multi-Frame Generation, however, which puts Nvidia at a massive advantage.

Moreover, the 5060 also shines in more ray tracing and computation-heavy games like Resident Evil 4 and Dragon Age: The Veilguard. This is directly due to the superior CUDA and Tensor cores powering the card.

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Overall, the Radeon RX 9060 is a better buy for budget gamers in 2025, given it's $50 cheaper and performs 13.4% better at native resolution. The 5060 could make more sense in sale periods, given DLSS 4 remains unbeaten in its framerate multiplier capabilities.