NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080
Head-to-head comparison: specs, benchmarks, ray tracing, and value. Which is right for your build?
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090
The undisputed king of consumer GPUs. The RTX 5090 delivers untouchable 4K performance, dominates ray tracing with 4th-gen RT cores, and runs DLSS 4 with multi-frame generation. With 32GB of GDDR7, it's also a beast for AI and content creation workloads. The catch: $1999 MSRP, 575W TDP, and you'll need a 1000W PSU minimum.
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NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080
The smart enthusiast pick. The RTX 5080 hits the sweet spot between performance and price, delivering near-RTX 4090 performance for half the cost of the 5090. 16GB of GDDR7 is enough for any current 4K title, and DLSS 4 closes the gap to the 5090 in supported games. A great pairing for high-refresh 1440p or 4K 120Hz.
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| Spec | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 |
|---|---|---|
| Price (MSRP) | $1,999 | $999 |
| VRAM | 32GB GDDR7 | 16GB GDDR7 |
| Memory Bus | 512-bit | 256-bit |
| Memory Bandwidth | 1792 GB/s | 960 GB/s |
| CUDA / Stream Cores | 21,760 | 10,752 |
| Boost Clock | 2407 MHz | 2617 MHz |
| Ray Tracing Cores | 170 | 84 |
| TDP | 575W | 360W |
| 3DMark Time Spy | 41,500 | 27,800 |
| Rasterization Score | 100/100 | 73/100 |
| Ray Tracing Score | 100/100 | 71/100 |
| Value Score | 62/100 | 78/100 |
The Verdict
Based on raw performance, ray tracing capability, and value, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 comes out ahead in this comparison. That said, the right pick depends on your budget, target resolution, and whether you care more about ray tracing, rasterization, or VRAM capacity. Both cards have their place — read the individual reviews for the full breakdown.