RTX 5070 vs RX 9070: Which Midrange GPU Should You Buy?
RTX 5070 vs RX 9070 compared using 2026 benchmarks: 1440p FPS, ray tracing, 12GB vs 16GB VRAM, power draw and current US and India prices, with a clear pick.
The RTX 5070 vs RX 9070 question used to be a coin toss, because both launched at $549. In September 2026 it is not close any more. The Radeon RX 9070 is the one to buy: it is about 8% faster in standard rendering, has 16GB of video memory instead of 12GB, and costs roughly $170 less in the US.
The GeForce RTX 5070 still has real strengths. DLSS 4.5 is excellent, it is a touch quicker in ray traced games at 1440p, and Nvidia’s software support is more consistent. If you find one near the Radeon’s price, it becomes a fair fight again. At today’s prices it is not.
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Quick Verdict
- Buy the RX 9070 if you want the faster 1440p card with 16GB of VRAM for less money. This is the right pick for most people.
- Buy the RTX 5070 if you rely on DLSS and Multi Frame Generation in every game, use Nvidia-only creative or AI software, and can find it within about 10% of the RX 9070’s price.
RTX 5070 vs RX 9070: Specs and Prices
These two were designed as direct rivals, and the spec sheets look similar until you reach the memory line. For a refresher on what a graphics card’s parts do, see our dedicated GPU explainer.
| Spec | RTX 5070 | RX 9070 |
|---|---|---|
| GPU cores | 6,144 CUDA cores | 3,584 shaders (56 compute units) |
| Video memory (VRAM) | 12GB GDDR7 | 16GB GDDR6 |
| Memory bus | 192-bit | 256-bit |
| Rated board power | 250 W | 220 W |
| Minimum PSU (manufacturer) | 650 W | 650 W |
| Measured gaming power (TechPowerUp) | 229 W | 233 W |
| Power connector (reference spec) | One 16-pin, or two 8-pin via adapter | Two 8-pin |
| Upscaling and frame generation | DLSS 4.5, Multi Frame Generation up to 6x | FSR 4, ML Frame Generation 2x |
| Average FPS at 1440p, 25 games (TechPowerUp) | 101.3 | 109.3 |
| Launch MSRP | $549 | $549 |
| US street price (approx., September 2026) | about $800 to $820 | about $630 |
| India street price (approx., September 2026) | about ₹90,000 to ₹1.13 lakh | about ₹70,000 to ₹78,000 |
Prices are approximate, checked in September 2026, and they shift often. The core numbers in that table are not comparable between Nvidia and AMD. We explain why in GPU Core Count Explained.
Check current prices: Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 on Amazon.in and AMD Radeon RX 9070 on Amazon.in.
RTX 5070 vs RX 9070 Benchmarks: 1440p and 4K Gaming Performance
In standard rendering (rasterization, meaning no ray tracing), the RX 9070 is consistently the faster card.
TechPowerUp (25 games, maximum settings, no upscaling, retested May 2026):
| Resolution | RTX 5070 | RX 9070 | Lead |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1080p average | 136.4 FPS | 146.4 FPS | RX 9070 by 7% |
| 1440p average | 101.3 FPS | 109.3 FPS | RX 9070 by 8% |
| 4K average | 58.1 FPS | 64.0 FPS | RX 9070 by 10% |
| 1440p minimum FPS | 85.6 FPS | 92.6 FPS | RX 9070 by 8% |
Minimum FPS is your worst-moment frame rate, the one you feel as stutter. The Radeon holds a higher floor as well as a higher average.
Tom’s Hardware’s June 2026 hierarchy agrees. Across 11 rasterized games it recorded 104.0 FPS for the RX 9070 and 96.4 FPS for the RTX 5070 at 1440p, which is also an 8% gap, and called the RX 9070 the 1440p raster value champion.
TechSpot’s launch review found a smaller 4% lead for the Radeon over 18 games. Driver updates since then appear to have helped AMD.
Two examples from TechPowerUp’s 2026 data. In Cyberpunk 2077 at 1440p the RX 9070 managed 116.0 FPS to the RTX 5070’s 105.5 FPS. In Black Myth: Wukong at 1440p it was 44.2 FPS against 41.7 FPS, a game where both cards need upscaling.
Winner: RX 9070.
Ray Tracing Performance
Ray tracing models how light bounces around a scene, and it has traditionally been Nvidia’s turf. This time the picture is messier than you’d expect.
At 1080p and 1440p, the RTX 5070 is ahead in the heavier tests. Tom’s Hardware measured 51.5 FPS vs 47.6 FPS across eight ray traced games at 1440p, an 8% lead for the GeForce. TechSpot’s launch testing had the RX 9070 16% slower than the RTX 5070 over six ray traced games. In Cyberpunk 2077 with ray tracing at 1440p, TechPowerUp recorded 46.0 FPS vs 44.3 FPS.
TechPowerUp’s broader 2026 ray tracing index actually puts the RX 9070 about 7% ahead at 1440p, because its game list includes lighter ray traced titles where the Radeon does well.
At 4K the result flips everywhere, and the reason is memory. Tom’s Hardware has the RX 9070 at 25.8 FPS against 22.7 FPS, and TechPowerUp shows the Radeon roughly 35% ahead, because the RTX 5070 runs out of VRAM.
Winner: RTX 5070 at 1440p in demanding ray traced games, by a small margin. RX 9070 at 4K.
VRAM: 12GB vs 16GB
VRAM is the memory on the card itself, holding textures and lighting data. When a game needs more than the card has, performance does not dip gently. It falls off a cliff.
TechSpot’s September 2026 testing shows what that looks like. In Cyberpunk 2077 at 4K with Ray Tracing Ultra, the RTX 5070 collapsed to an unplayable 9 FPS average. In Star Wars Outlaws at 4K with its heaviest lighting setting, TechSpot says the RTX 5070 ran into severe memory limitations. Its launch review saw the same thing in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle.
To be fair to Nvidia, this mostly happens at 4K with ray tracing. TechPowerUp’s reviewer says 12GB will not limit you in current games at 1080p and 1440p. Tom’s Hardware is more cautious about ray tracing at 1440p, but points out that DLSS 4.5 takes some pressure off because it looks good at lower internal resolutions.
Still, a graphics card is something you keep for four or five years. I would rather have the 16GB.
Winner: RX 9070.
DLSS 4.5 vs FSR 4
Upscaling renders at a lower resolution and lets AI rebuild a sharp image. Frame generation slots AI-made frames between real ones to smooth out motion.
This is the RTX 5070’s best argument. DLSS is supported in over 1,000 titles according to Tom’s Hardware, and Multi Frame Generation can multiply frame rates by up to 6x. AMD’s FSR 4 is a big step up from older versions, but it is in fewer games and its frame generation is capped at 2x. Tom’s Hardware also notes that Radeon owners cannot turn on path tracing at all in some recent releases such as Pragmata and Resident Evil Requiem.
That software edge is why Tom’s Hardware picked the RTX 5070 as its best midrange card in June 2026, when the two were about $25 apart.
Winner: RTX 5070.
Power Draw and PSU Needs
There is almost nothing in it. TechPowerUp measured 229 W for the RTX 5070 and 233 W for the RX 9070 during gaming, and 12 W vs 8 W at idle. TechSpot found the Radeon drawing anywhere from a few watts to 20% more depending on the game.
Both makers recommend a 650 W power supply. The RX 9070 uses two standard 8-pin plugs on reference-spec cards. The RTX 5070 uses the newer 16-pin connector and includes an adapter.
Winner: Tie.
RTX 5070 vs RX 9070: Price and Value
On launch day, RTX 5070 vs RX 9070 was an even fight on price, with both at $549. The 2026 memory shortage has pushed everything up, but Nvidia cards much more than AMD’s.
TechSpot’s late-August tracker found the cheapest in-stock RTX 5070 in the US at about $800, which is 46% over MSRP. The cheapest RX 9070 was about $630, just 15% over, and TechSpot called it one of the best prices on the market. In early September it reported most RTX 5070 models at around $820.
Using TechPowerUp’s 1440p averages, that works out to about $7.90 per frame for the RTX 5070 and $5.76 per frame for the RX 9070. You would be paying 27% more for the slower card with less memory.
In India, TechSpot’s tracker listed the lowest prices at ₹90,000 for the RTX 5070 and ₹70,300 for the RX 9070 in late August. On 30 September 2026, PC Studio and MD Computers listed RTX 5070 cards from ₹1,02,000 and RX 9070 cards at about ₹77,600 to ₹77,900. One caution: there were far fewer RX 9070 models in stock than RTX 5070 models at the Indian retailers I checked.
Winner: RX 9070, by a wide margin.
Which One Should You Buy?
1440p gamer: RX 9070. Faster, more VRAM, cheaper.
4K gamer on a budget: RX 9070. The RTX 5070’s 12GB is the wrong amount of memory for 4K with ray tracing.
Ray tracing fan at 1440p: RTX 5070 has a small edge, and DLSS helps a lot here. But consider stretching to an RX 9070 XT, which TechSpot found 24% faster than the RTX 5070 across 52 games at 1440p, for less money.
Student or first-time builder: RX 9070. It works with standard 8-pin power cables and leaves money for the rest of the build.
Creator or local AI user: RTX 5070, because many creative and AI tools are built around Nvidia’s CUDA software. Be aware that 12GB also limits AI model size.
India buyer: RX 9070 if you can find stock, since it is about ₹25,000 cheaper. If it is unavailable, check the RX 9070 XT before defaulting to the RTX 5070.
What to Check Before You Buy
- RX 9070 is not the RX 9070 XT or the RX 9070 GRE. The GRE has 12GB and is slower. Read the listing carefully.
- RTX 5070 is not the RTX 5070 Ti. The Ti has 16GB and costs far more.
- Power connectors. Confirm what the exact partner model uses, and whether your power supply has the cables.
- Card size. Nvidia’s own RTX 5070 is a compact 242 mm, but partner cards for both GPUs are often much longer.
- Monitor. Both cards are best matched to a 1440p high-refresh display.
- Warranty and seller. Terms vary by brand and country. In India, buy with a GST invoice from an authorised retailer.
FAQ
Is the RX 9070 faster than the RTX 5070?
Yes, in standard rendering. TechPowerUp and Tom’s Hardware both measured it about 8% ahead at 1440p in 2026. The RTX 5070 is slightly faster in demanding ray traced games at 1440p.
Is 12GB of VRAM enough on the RTX 5070?
At 1080p and 1440p, yes for now. At 4K with ray tracing it is not, and reviewers have recorded severe slowdowns in games like Cyberpunk 2077 and Star Wars Outlaws.
Which has better upscaling, the RTX 5070 or RX 9070?
The RTX 5070. DLSS 4.5 is in far more games than FSR 4 and offers frame generation up to 6x, against 2x on the Radeon.
What power supply do I need for the RTX 5070 or RX 9070?
Nvidia and AMD both recommend 650 W. Measured gaming power draw is about 230 W for either card.
What is the RTX 5070 price in India?
As of September 2026 it runs from about ₹90,000 to ₹1.13 lakh. The RX 9070 price in India is about ₹70,000 to ₹78,000, though fewer models are in stock.
Should I buy the RTX 5070 or the RX 9070?
The RX 9070 for most people. It is about 8% faster at 1440p in standard rendering, has 16GB of VRAM against 12GB, and costs roughly $170 less in the US. Choose the RTX 5070 only if you need DLSS or Nvidia-only software and can find it near the Radeon’s price.
Bottom Line
In the RTX 5070 vs RX 9070 comparison, buy the RX 9070. It is faster in most games, its 16GB of VRAM will age better than 12GB, and at September 2026 prices it is the cheaper card by about $170 in the US and around ₹25,000 in India.
The RTX 5070 only makes sense if DLSS or Nvidia-specific software is essential to you and you can find it close to the Radeon’s price. Otherwise this is one of the easier GPU decisions of the year.
Check the latest price: AMD Radeon RX 9070 on Amazon.in.
More GPU Comparisons
- Best RTX 5070 Ti and 5070 Cards: ASUS TUF vs MSI Ventus vs Gigabyte Gaming OC vs ZOTAC Twin Edge
- Best RTX 5080 Cards: ASUS TUF vs MSI Gaming Trio vs Gigabyte AORUS vs ZOTAC AMP
- Best RX 9070 XT Cards: Sapphire Nitro+ vs Pulse vs PowerColor Red Devil vs XFX Mercury vs ASUS TUF
- RTX 5050 vs Arc B570: Cheapest Worthwhile GPU
- RTX 5060 Ti 16GB vs RX 9060 XT 16GB: Which Is Worth It?
- RTX 5060 vs Arc B580 vs RX 9060 XT 8GB: Best Budget Gaming GPU
- RTX 5070 Ti vs RX 9070 XT: The Best High-End Value GPU
- RTX 5090 vs RTX 5080: Is the Flagship Worth Triple the Price?
Sources
- TechPowerUp: Sapphire Radeon RX 9070 GRE Pulse review (2026 GPU test suite, average FPS, minimum FPS, ray tracing and power charts)
- TechPowerUp: Gigabyte GeForce RTX 5050 Gaming OC review (idle power chart)
- Tom’s Hardware: GPU Benchmarks Hierarchy 2026
- Tom’s Hardware: Best Graphics Cards for Gaming in 2026
- TechSpot: AMD Radeon RX 9070 review
- TechSpot: GeForce RTX 5070 vs Radeon RX 9070 XT, 2026 Update
- TechSpot: Graphics Card Prices Are Rising Fast (Again), Q3 2026 GPU pricing update
- Nvidia: GeForce RTX 5070 family official specifications
- AMD: Radeon RX 9070 official specifications
- MD Computers (India): graphics card listings
- PC Studio (India): graphics card listings
