Nvidia RTX 5080 vs RTX 4090: Which Is the Better GPU?

Both Nvidia RTX 5080 and RTX 4090 are 4K gaming-class GPUs capable of delivering some of the best performance. But which is the best GPU?

Picture of Nvidia RTX 5080 vs RTX 4090 — Nvidia RTX 5080 vs RTX 4090 (Image via ASUS | MSI)

The Nvidia RTX 5080 and RTX 4090 are two of the most powerful GPUs in the world. The former is an 80-class graphics card in the latest RTX 50 series, while the latter is a 90-class card of the older RTX 40 series. The question most users have is whether the new RTX 5080 can beat the older RTX 4090, and that’s exactly what we plan to find today.

In this article, we are comparing the Nvidia RTX 5080 and RTX 4090 in detail to find out which is the best GPU and which one you should buy.

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Note: Parts of this article are subjective and reflect the writer’s opinions.

Nvidia RTX 5080 vs RTX 4090: Detailed Comparison

The Nvidia RTX 5080 is based on the latest Blackwell architecture and has the latest GDDR7 memory. On the other hand, the RTX 4090 is based on the older Ada Lovelace architecture. Let’s look at the specs of the two GPUs to get a better idea of what they are equipped with.

Specs Comparison

Picture of ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 5080 — ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 5080 (Image via ASUS)

Here are the specs of the Nvidia RTX 5080 and RTX 4090:

Specifications	Nvidia RTX 5080	Nvidia RTX 4090
Architecture	Blackwell	RDNA 4
Shader cores	10752	16384
RT cores	84	128
TMUs	336	512
ROPs	112	176
Base core clock speeds	2295 MHz	2235 MHz
Boost core clock speeds	2617 MHz	2520 MHz
Memory capacity	16GB GDDR7	24GB GDDR6X
Memory bus width	256-bit	384-bit
Memory bandwidth	960.0 GB/s	1.01 TB/s
Manufacturing node	5nm	5nm
Thermal design power (TDPs)	360W	450W

The specs table above paints an interesting picture.

Performance Comparison

You will find the gaming benchmarks of Nvidia RTX 5080 and RTX 4090 below:

Games	Nvidia RTX 5080	Nvidia RTX 4090
God of War Ragnarok	108 FPS	123 FPS
Cyberpunk 2077	67 FPS	76 FPS
Silent Hill 2	58 FPS	64 FPS
Alan Wake 2	59 FPS	69 FPS
Forza Horizon 5	135 FPS	146 FPS
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2	56 FPS	62 FPS
Star Wars Outlaws	49 FPS	64 FPS
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024	52 FPS	58 FPS
Ghost of Tsushima	74 FPS	85 FPS
Black Myth Wukong	59 FPS	68 FPS

Note: The two GPUs tested here were evaluated at a 4K resolution with High/Ultra Settings, unless otherwise specified. All the FPS numbers were sourced from the Testing Games channel on YouTube. For the tests, the two graphics cards were paired with a Ryzen 7 9800X3D CPU.

The Nvidia RTX 4090 delivered 13.6% more FPS on average than the RTX 5080. However, the difference can be much larger in individual games. The performance gap between the two GPUs should be even wider in ray tracing, as the former has significantly more RT cores than the latter.

Price Comparison

Picture of MSI GeForce RTX 4090 Gaming Trio X — MSI GeForce RTX 4090 Gaming Trio X (Image via MSI)

The Nvidia RTX 5080 is currently selling for around $1,249 to $1,299 on Amazon. Unfortunately, the RTX 4090’s production ended last year, so it is no longer available for purchase, but it sells for around $1,300 to $1,800 in the used market. The average cost is around $1,500, which was also the official MSRP of the RTX 4090. This makes it 20% more expensive than the RTX 5080, despite being used.

Final Verdict on Nvidia RTX 5080 vs RTX 4090

The Nvidia RTX 4090 is the best GPU here, but its general unavailability and higher pricing make it not worth the trouble in late 2025. You should just buy the RTX 5080 and use the saved money for other PC components, such as faster DDR5 RAM. This GPU also supports DLSS 4 Multi-FG, which can be useful for users with 185Hz or 240Hz monitors.

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Nvidia RTX 5080 vs RTX 4090: Which Is the Better GPU?