AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT Review
Long the 1440p value king. 16GB of VRAM, strong rasterization, and prices have dropped further with the RX 9000 launch. Ray tracing is its main weakness.
Architecture & Overview
The AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT is built on the AMD RDNA 3 architecture, fabricated on a TSMC N5/N6 process and launched in 2023. It pairs 3,840 shading cores with 60 ray tracing cores and 0 tensor/AI cores, clocked up to 2430 MHz boost. The memory subsystem is 16GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, delivering 624 GB/s of bandwidth — the data pipeline that ultimately determines how much of the card's compute can actually be fed in real-world workloads.
With a 263W TDP, the card draws power through 2x 8-pin and is rated for a 700W minimum PSU. Physically it measures 267mm long and occupies 2.5 expansion slots — important sizing numbers to check against your case before buying.
Performance Breakdown
Ranked #12 of 15 GPUs in our database by 3DMark Time Spy score. The next card up is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER (~3.5% faster). The next card down is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16GB (~21.1% slower).
Real-World Gaming Performance
1080p gaming is this card's home. High settings are comfortable in modern titles; ultra works with some tweaks. 1440p is feasible at medium/high with upscaling enabled. 4K is beyond its scope.
Pros & Cons
What we like
- Excellent value score (84/100) — high performance per dollar
- Generous 16GB VRAM — comfortable for modern AAA textures at 4K
What to watch out for
- Weak ray tracing (36/100) — consider alternatives if RT matters to you
CPU Pairing Recommendation
Pair with an affordable CPU like the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X or similar. Spending more on the CPU won't meaningfully help this GPU — budget should go toward the GPU or faster RAM.
Not sure if your pairing is balanced? Run the numbers through our bottleneck calculator to check.
Full Specifications
| Spec | Value |
|---|---|
| VRAM | 16GB GDDR6 |
| Memory Bus | 256-bit |
| Memory Bandwidth | 624 GB/s |
| Boost Clock | 2430 MHz |
| Base Clock | 1295 MHz |
| CUDA / Stream Cores | 3,840 |
| Ray Tracing Cores | 60 |
| Tensor Cores | 0 |
| Process Node | TSMC N5/N6 |
| PCIe Interface | PCIe 4.0 x16 |
| TDP | 263W |
| Recommended PSU | 700W |
| Power Connectors | 2x 8-pin |
| Length | 267 mm |
| Slot Width | 2.5 slots |
| Display Outputs | 2x DP 2.1, 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x USB-C |
| 3DMark Time Spy | 17,200 |
| Release Year | 2023 |
Best For
- 1440p ultra
- 1080p competitive
Compare With Nearest Peers
vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER
$499 vs $599
vs AMD Radeon RX 9070
$499 vs $549
vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070
$499 vs $549
Frequently Asked Questions
What PSU do I need for the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT?
What power connector does the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT use?
How much VRAM does the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT have?
Does the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT fit in my case?
Is the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT good for ray tracing?
Where to Buy the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT
The AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT launched at $499 MSRP. Real-world prices vary by retailer, partner card, and stock — we recommend checking Amazon for current pricing on Founders Edition and aftermarket models from ASUS, MSI, Gigabyte, and others.
View AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT on Amazon →