The most affordable current-generation graphics cards are AMD’s RX 6600 and Nvidia’s RTX 3060. To find out which is superior, I tested them in 9 different games at 1080p resolution.
| PROS | PROS |
| Decent 1080p performance. Single 8-pin power connector. Supply should be okay. | Incredible 1080p performance. Smaller PC case friendly. Power efficient. |
| CONS | CONS |
| Only 8GB VRAM. Poor ray tracing performance. | Doesn’t need 12GB RAM. Not good for crypto mining. |
SPECS: RX 6600 VS RTX 3060
| OVERVIEW | RX 6600 | RTX 3060 |
| Card Status | Official | Official |
| Manufacturer | AMD | NVIDIA |
| Release Date | 13th October, 2021 | 25th February, 2021 |
| GPU | RX 6600 | RTX 3060 |
| GPU | 7nm Navi 23 XL | 8nm GA106-300 |
| Cores : TMUs : ROPs | 1792 : 112 : 64 | 3584 : 112 : 48 |
| CLOCKS | RX 6600 | RTX 3060 |
| Base Clock | 1626 MHz | 1320 MHz |
| Boost Clock | 2491 MHz | 1777 MHz |
| Effective Memory Clock | 14000 Mbps | 15000 Mbps |
| Max Computing Pwr (FP32) | 8.93 TFLOPS | 12.74 TFLOPS |
| MEMORY | RX 6600 | RTX 3060 |
| Memory Size | 8192 MB GDDR6 | 12288 MB GDDR6 |
| Memory Bus Width | 128-bit | 192-bit |
| Memory Bandwidth | 224 GB/s | 360 GB/s |
| PHYSICAL | RX 6600 | RTX 3060 |
| Interface | PCI-Express 4.0 x16 | PCI-Express 4.0 x16 |
| Thermal Design Power | 132 W | 170 W |
Nvidia’s RTX 3060 has twice the memory capacity of AMD’s Radeon 6600, at 12GB. With increased memory bandwidth and a larger memory interface on the 3060, the memory is also faster. However, things like CUDA cores and Stream Processors aren’t exactly comparable.
PRICE DIFFERENCE: RX 6600 VS RTX 3060
Both of these graphics cards have MSRPs of $330, so I decided to compare them. However, in 2021, MSRP will be completely meaningless. It’s still an excellent starting point for figuring out where both companies view their respective products fitting in the market.
The RTX 3060 is currently selling for at least $660 USD, which is double the MSRP, according to the units that are currently in stock. The MSRP of the RX 6600 was $330, but the most costly model was $450, making it at least $200 cheaper than the 3060.
At this point it’s only fair to compare AMD’s and Nvidia’s current-generation graphics cards, as they’re both quite competitively priced.
PERFORMANCE: RX 6600 VS RTX 3060
TEST SYSTEM SPECS:
Ryzen 9 5900X – BUY
ASUS ROG X570 Crosshair VIII Hero – BUY
32GB RAM DDR4 3800Mhz – BUY
9 Games Tested at 1080p Resolution With Highest Settings of Every Game.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
| RX 6600 | 62 FPS |
| RTX 3060 | 58 FPS |
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla was put through its paces using the benchmark, and AMD fared admirably. At 1080p resolution, the 6600 achieves an average frame rate that is 6.4% faster. differences.
Far Cry 6
| RX 6600 | 87 FPS |
| RTX 3060 | 91 FPS |
At 1080p, the RTX 3060 has an 4.5% advantage in average frame rate. FSR support is available for AMD and Nvidia graphics cards, allowing for improved performance.
Forza Horizon 4
| RX 6600 | 151 FPS |
| RTX 3060 | 142 FPS |
When it comes to Forza Horizon 4, Radeon graphics typically outperform NVIDIA’s, and the 6600 managed to do so at 1080p.
Days Gone
| RX 6600 | 114 FPS |
| RTX 3060 | 122 FPS |
Days Gone performs better on Nvidia cards. At 1080p maximum settings, the 6600 still managed about 115 frames per second, while the 3060 managed an additional 7% better average frame rate.
CYBERPUNK 2077
| RX 6600 | 64 FPS |
| RTX 3060 | 74 FPS |
The Nvidia GPU performed better in Cyberpunk 2077. In terms of average frame rate at 1080p, the 3060 had a 15.6% edge over the 6600, but both were still above 60 FPS at high settings, so it’s not like the 3060 is unplayable; it’s just ahead by a hair.
Hitman 3
| RX 6600 | 145 FPS |
| RTX 3060 | 144 FPS |
Regardless of the graphics card used, Hitman 3 came really close to being perfect. At 1080p, there’s only a 1 FPS difference, which is comfortably within the error margin.
Red Dead Redemption 2
| RX 6600 | 64 FPS |
| RTX 3060 | 65 FPS |
Red Dead Redemption 2’s benchmark also showed that the 6600 had a slight advantage at 1080p resolution, but the difference isn’t particularly noticeable.
Microsoft Flight Simulator
| RX 6600 | 67 FPS |
| RTX 3060 | 69 FPS |
Although Microsoft Flight Simulator lacks DLSS, it still manages to outperform the 6600. At 1080p high settings the 3060 was able to maintain a 60 FPS frame rate, but the theoretically cheaper 6600 was also able to do so.
Horizon Zero Dawn
| RX 6600 | 87 FPS |
| RTX 3060 | 91 FPS |
Horizon Zero Dawn had the advantage on the 3060, however the difference is just about 3 or 4 frames per second at 1080p. However, this is another DLSS-supported game, so turning it on will give the 3060 an additional boost.
FINAL VERDICT: RX 6600 VS RTX 3060
Even though the RX 6600 is currently out of supply, I assume that’s because everyone else noticed the value in it. After all, the price differential alone makes it the clear winner. It may not even be that much better than the 5600 XT from the previous generation, but despite the fact that it stinks, it’s the best we can do for the money in 2021.
