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NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB) vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060

NVIDIA
VS
NVIDIA
Performance
GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)
17,40117% of 104,937
GeForce RTX 306063% better
28,37527% of 104,937

The GeForce RTX 3060 has 63% better performance than the GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB) for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark.

Performance per dollar
GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)
58.236% of 161.45
GeForce RTX 306048% better
86.2553% of 161.45

The GeForce RTX 3060 has 48% better value for the money than the GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB) for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark.

Shop GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)
Shop GeForce RTX 3060
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Summary

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About the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB) GPU

The GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB) is an end-of-life desktop graphics card by NVIDIA. It launched in Q3 2016 with a suggested retail price of $299. Its GP106 chip that powers the GPU uses the Pascal architecture and is fabricated on the 16 nm process.

This GPU is paired with 6 GB of GDDR5 VRAM. Its 2,002 MHz memory clock and 192 bit interface gives it a bandwidth of 192.2 Gb/s. This impacts how much data it can store, and how fast it transfers the data to and from memory.

The GTX 1060 (6 GB) is a dual slot graphics card, taking up 2 PCIe slots. It supports DVI, HDMI 2.0, DisplayPort 1.4a display ports. This desktop card has a TDP of 120 W. NVIDIA recommends using a power supply of at least 300 W with this card. A power supply lower than this might result in system crashes and potentially damage your hardware.

The GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB) has the 130th highest 3DMark 11 Performance GPU score among the 540 benchmarked GPUs in our database. It achieves 16.58% of the performance of the best benchmarked GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090. Its 17,401 score and $299 launch price (MSRP) gives it a performance per dollar of 58.2. This is the 57th best in value for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark.

About the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 GPU

The GeForce RTX 3060 is a desktop graphics card by NVIDIA. It launched in Q1 2021 with a suggested retail price of $329. Its GA106 chip that powers the GPU uses the Ampere architecture and is fabricated on the 8 nm process.

This GPU is paired with 12 GB of GDDR6 VRAM. Its 1,875 MHz memory clock and 192 bit interface gives it a bandwidth of 360 Gb/s. This impacts how much data it can store, and how fast it transfers the data to and from memory.

The RTX 3060 is a dual slot graphics card, taking up 2 PCIe slots. It supports HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4a display ports. This desktop card has a TDP of 170 W. NVIDIA recommends using a power supply of at least 450 W with this card. A power supply lower than this might result in system crashes and potentially damage your hardware.

The GeForce RTX 3060 has the 83rd highest 3DMark 11 Performance GPU score among the 540 benchmarked GPUs in our database. It achieves 27.04% of the performance of the best benchmarked GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090. Its 28,375 score and $329 launch price (MSRP) gives it a performance per dollar of 86.25. This is the 29th best in value for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark.

General Info

General overview of the GPU, including details like its manufacturer, release date, launch price, and current production status.

InfoGeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)GeForce RTX 3060
ManufacturerNVIDIANVIDIA
ArchitecturePascalAmpere
Market SegmentDesktopDesktop
Release DateQ3 2016Q1 2021
Launch Price (MSRP)$299$329
Production StatusEnd-of-lifeActive
ShopCheck PriceCheck Price

Gaming Performance

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Select a game to compare FPS metrics

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Riders Republic
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FPS Benchmarks

This table showcases the average frame rate (FPS) achieved both GPUs in at various resolutions. Frame rate is a crucial indicator of how smoothly the GPU can run the game. A higher FPS generally translates to a smoother gameplay experience.

  • Frames Per Second
FPS data for Riders Republic
Riders Republic
GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)GeForce RTX 3060
Low - 720p
--
198 FPS
Medium - 1080p
--
124 FPS
High - 1080p
--
102 FPS
Ultra - 1080p
--
79 FPS
QHD - 1440p
--
64 FPS
4K UHD - 2160p
--
36 FPS
FPS Source: Notebookcheck

Compare Frames Per Second (FPS)

The average frame rate (FPS) in can be compared to similar GPUs to assess relative performance. Generally, higher FPS results in a smoother gameplay experience.

Choose Baseline GPU:GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB) orGeForce RTX 3060

Compare Cost Per Frame

The average cost per frame in can be compared to similar GPUs to assess relative value. Generally, a lower cost per frame implies better value for your money.

Choose Baseline GPU:GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB) orGeForce RTX 3060

Benchmark Performance

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Performance
GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)
17,40117% of 104,937
GeForce RTX 306063% better
28,37527% of 104,937

The GeForce RTX 3060 has 63% better performance than the GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB) for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark.

The GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB) is ranked 130th with a score of 17,401, and the GeForce RTX 3060 is ranked 83rd with a score of 28,375.

Performance per dollar
GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)
58.236% of 161.45
GeForce RTX 306048% better
86.2553% of 161.45

The GeForce RTX 3060 has 48% better value for the money than the GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB) for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark.

The GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB) is ranked 57th with a performance per dollar of 58.2, and the GeForce RTX 3060 is ranked 29th with a performance per dollar of 86.25.

Relative Performance

The average score in the benchmark test can be compared to similar GPUs to assess relative performance. Generally, powerful GPUs tend to have higher scores.

Choose Baseline GPU:GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB) or
GPUBenchmark Performance
GeForce GTX 108029,263+68%
Radeon RX Vega 5629,086+67%
GeForce RTX 306028,375+63%
GeForce GTX 1070 Ti27,503+58%
GeForce RTX 206027,162.5+56%
GeForce GTX 98017,604.5+1%
Radeon R9 FURY17,543+1%
GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)17,401
Radeon R9 Nano17,282-1%
Radeon R9 290X16,167.5-7%

Relative Value For Money

The average performance per dollar in the benchmark test can be compared to similar GPUs to assess relative value. A higher score implies a better value for your money.

Choose Baseline GPU:GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB) or

Benchmark Scores

This table showcases the average performance scores achieved by both GPUs across industry-standard benchmark tests. These scores provide a valuable insight into overall performance. Powerful GPUs tend to have higher scores.

  • Popular
BenchmarkGeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)GeForce RTX 3060
3DMark Time Spy Graphics
4,194
8,559
(+104.08%)
3DMark Time Spy Score
4,631
8,721
(+88.32%)
3DMark Cloud Gate Graphics
77,035
120,745
(+56.74%)
3DMark Fire Strike Standard Graphics
12,984
21,379
(+64.66%)
3DMark Night Raid Graphics
55,760
96,914
(+73.81%)
3DMark 11 Performance Score
15,802
25,149
(+59.15%)
Cinebench R15 OpenGL 64 Bit
148.7
246.6
(+65.84%)
PassMark G3D Mark
10,073
17,045
(+69.21%)
PassMark G2D Mark
758
979
(+29.16%)
Benchmarks Source: Notebookcheck

Technical Specs

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Graphics Processor

General information about the graphics processing unit like their architecture, manufacturing process size, and transistor count. Newer GPU architectures generally bring efficiency improvements and may introduce technologies that enhance graphical capabilities.

SpecGeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)GeForce RTX 3060
CodenameGP106GA106
ArchitecturePascalAmpere
Process Size16 nm8 nm
Transistors4,400 million12,000 million

Memory Details

Memory specifications like their capacity, bandwidth, and clock speeds. GPU memory stores graphics data like frames, textures, and shadows which helps display rendered images. These specs are crucial for graphics-intense applications like gaming and 3D modeling.

SpecGeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)GeForce RTX 3060
Memory Size6 GB12 GB
Memory TypeGDDR5GDDR6
Memory Bandwidth192.2 Gb/s360 Gb/s
Memory Clock2,002 MHz1,875 MHz
Memory Interface192 bit192 bit
L1 Cache48 KB128 KB
L2 Cache1,536 KB3 MB

Board Compatibility

Compatibility information like their slot size, bus interface, power consumption, and display support. These specs are useful for verifying compatibility with your motherboard, power supply, and monitor.

SpecGeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)GeForce RTX 3060
Slots2 slots2 slots
Bus InterfacePCIe 3.0 x16PCIe 4.0 x16
Thermal Design Power (TDP)120 W170 W
Suggested PSU300 W450 W
Power Connectors1x 6-pin1x 12-pin
OutputsDVI, HDMI 2.0, DisplayPort 1.4aHDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4a

Cores & Clock Speeds

Processing power information like its cores and clock speed. These specs impact how fast they can process graphics. Each type of core or component serves a specific computational purpose.

SpecGeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)GeForce RTX 3060
CUDA Cores1,2803,584
Stream Multiprocessors (SM)1028
Texture Mapping Units (TMU)80112
Render Output Units (ROP)4848
Tensor Cores--112
Ray Tracing Cores--28
Core Clock Speed1,506 MHz1,320 MHz
Core Clock Speed (Boost)1,709 MHz1,777 MHz

Theoretical Performance

Theoretical performance numbers derived from the raw specifications of the different components like core count and clock speeds. While these provide a glimpse into peak processing power, they do not represent real-world performance.

SpecGeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)GeForce RTX 3060
Pixel Fill Rate82.03 GPixel/s85.3 GPixel/s
Texture Fill Rate136.7 GTexel/s199 GTexel/s
FP32 Performance4.38 TFLOPS12.74 TFLOPS
FP64 Performance136.7 GFLOPS199 GFLOPS

API Support

Graphics API versions supported by these graphics cards. APIs evolve over time, introducing new features and functionalities. Older GPUs may not support recent versions.

SpecGeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)GeForce RTX 3060
DirectX12 (12_1)12 Ultimate (12_2)
OpenCL3.03.0
OpenGL4.64.6
Shader Model6.76.7

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* Performance rating, performance per dollar, and rankings are based on the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark and MSRP.