RTX 3080 12GB vs RTX 3080 vs RTX 3080 Ti Comparison & Benchmarks

The Nvidia GeForce RTX 30 series has been beefed up with one more new card which is the RTX 3080 12GB. RTX 3080 12GB currently sits between the RTX 3080 and the RTX 3080 Ti in the GeForce RTX 30 series lineup. GeForce RTX 3080 12GB is not an entirely new card and you can say that it is a slightly upgraded version of RTX 3080 and a cut-down version of RTX 3080 Ti. When we compare it to the AMD graphics cards then the main competitor of RTX 3080 12GB is the Radeon RX 6800 XT which is one of the top cards in the Radeon RX 6000 series. However, here I will only compare RTX 3080 12GB against its siblings RTX 3080 and RTX 3080 Ti so that you get to know how the card performs in gaming and whether you should prefer it over RTX 3080 or RTX 3080 Ti.

RTX 3080 12GB vs RTX 3080 vs RTX 3080 Ti Comparison

Below is the comparison between RTX 3080 12GB, RTX 3080, and RTX 3080 Ti graphics cards based on their specifications, performance, pricing, power consumption, and features.

GPU Architecture

All three cards are built on the Ampere GPU architecture on the 8nm fabrication process. They also use the same GA102 GPU Chip but in different configurations, as the RTX 3080 and RTX 3080 12GB use a cut-down version of the Chip and has got significantly lesser cores compared to the RTX 3080 Ti. RTX 3080 Ti comes with the highest number of GPU Cores and comes with 10240 CUDA Cores, 80 RT Cores, and 320 Tensor Cores. Here, the card with the lowest core count is the RTX 3080 as it comes with 8704 CUDA Cores, 68 RT Cores, and 272 Tensor Cores. Now coming to RTX 3080 12GB, it comes with slightly more GPU cores over RTX 3080 and has got 8960 CUDA Cores, 70 RT Cores, and 280 Tensor Cores.

Note: All cards here come with 2^nd Generation Ray Tracing Cores and 3^rd Generation Tensor Cores. Ray Tracing Cores or RT cores are used for deploying Real-Time Ray Tracing in games and Tensor cores are used for processing Artificial Intelligence (AI) related tasks such as Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) in games. 

Video RAM [VRAM]

RTX 3080 12GB and RTX 3080 Ti come with exactly the same memory capacity and configuration. They come with 12GB GDDR6X video memory with a 384-bit interface and run at a speed of 19Gbps delivering a memory bandwidth of 912GB/s. On the other hand, RTX 3080 is a little low in the memory department comparatively as it comes with 10GB GDDR6 memory having a 320-bit interface. The memory runs at speed of 19Gbps and delivers a bandwidth of 760GB/s.

Features

Features-wise, all three graphics cards are identical. All of them are loaded with the latest features and support the latest graphics APIs that include DirectX 12 Ultimate, OpenGL 4.6. The cards are VR Ready and support variable refresh rate technologies (G-Sync/FreeSync) to reduce stuttering in games for delivering a buttery-smooth gaming experience. Other important features include PCI Express 4.0 support, Real-Time Ray Tracing, DLSS 2.0 (Deep Learning Super Sampling), Nvidia Reflex, Resizable Bar, HDMI 2.1, AV1 decode, Microsoft DirectStorage API.

Gaming Performance

Here are the gaming benchmarks of these cards at 1440p and 4K resolution in the latest and popular AAA games.

1440p Benchmarks

4K Benchmarks

From the above benchmarks, we can see that RTX 3080 12GB is a little faster than RTX 3080 and slightly slower than RTX 3080 Ti. The difference in the frame rates is more pronounced at 4K resolution because, at higher resolutions, games become more dependent on the GPU and are less limited by the CPU.

Power Consumption

RTX 3080 12GB and RTX 3080 Ti have a maximum power consumption figure of 350W while RTX 3080 has a slightly lower power consumption rating of 320W. The recommended power supply for all three cards is 750W.

Pricing & Availability

RTX 3080 is the least expensive card here while RTX 3080 Ti is the most expensive one. The price of RTX 3080 12GB falls in between the RTX 3080 and RTX 3080 Ti. You can check the current prices of these graphics cards from the links given below.

Check RTX 3080 12GB Price on Amazon

Check RTX 3080 Price on Amazon

Check RTX 3080 Ti Price on Amazon

RTX 3080 12GB vs RTX 3080 vs RTX 3080 Ti Specifications

See also:

• RX 6800 XT vs RTX 3080 Comparison and Benchmarks

Final Thoughts

Well, RTX 3080 12GB is a card that is not meant to exist but it does. It is not exciting and it does bring out anything new to the RTX 30 series lineup. It is almost an RTX 3080 with slightly more memory and bandwidth and it is almost an RTX 3080 Ti with some cores cut down. Also, the power consumption of the card falls in line with the RTX 3080 Ti that comes with significantly more cores and processing power. If you can find an RTX 3080 12GB card that is priced very close to the RTX 3080 then it might be worth considering otherwise you should forget about it because RTX 3080 with 10GB VRAM can easily fulfill your high-end gaming needs comfortably and if you desire more power and memory then RTX 3080 Ti would be a better choice. If you have any queries or opinions then let me know in the comment box below.