Versus Engine
Nvidia GeForce RTX 3090 (Used) vs Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 (32GB)
Specs, price and the one trade-off that actually decides it — Nvidia GeForce RTX 3090 (Used) against Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 (32GB), side by side.
Cheaper to start
Nvidia GeForce RTX 3090 (Used)
Starts about $1,399 lower.
Rated higher
Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 (32GB)
9.7 vs 8.5 on our design scale.
Standout
Nvidia GeForce RTX 3090 (Used)
24 GB GDDR6X memory
Nvidia GeForce RTX 3090 (Used)
The second-hand market's favourite: 24GB of VRAM around $600, and the basis of most cheap multi-GPU rigs.
Where it wins, where it doesn't
Pros
- 24GB of GDDR6X memory for handling large datasets and complex scenes
- Support for multi-monitor setups with up to four displays
- High boost clock speeds for enhanced performance
Cons
- Requires a high-power supply, 750W or 850W, which can be a limitation for some systems
Specifications
- Card Dimensions / Length12.3" (313 mm) | 12.3" (313 mm)
- Card Dimensions / Slot3-Slot | 3-Slot
- Card Dimensions / Width5.4" (138 mm) | 5.4" (138 mm)
- Display Support / HDCP2.3 | 2.3
- Display Support / Multi Monitor4 | 4
- Display Support / Standard Display ConnectorsHDMI (2), 3x DisplayPort (3) | HDMI (2), 3x DisplayPort (3)
- GPU Engine Specs / Base Clock (GHz)1.56 | 1.40
- GPU Engine Specs / NVIDIA CUDA™ Cores10752 | 10496
- GPU Engine Specs / Ray Tracing Cores2nd Generation | 2nd Generation
- Memory Specs / Memory Interface Width384-bit | 384-bit
- Memory Specs / Standard Memory Config24 GB GDDR6X | 24 GB GDDR6X
- Technology Support / CUDA Capability8.6 | 8.6
- Technology Support / Game Ready DriversYes | Yes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA ArchitectureAmpere | Ampere
- Technology Support / NVIDIA BroadcastYes | Yes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA DLSSYes | Yes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA FreeStyleYes | Yes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA G-SYNC™Yes | Yes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA GPU Boost™Yes | Yes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA HighlightsYes | Yes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA NVLink™ (SLI-Ready)Yes | Yes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA OmniverseYes | Yes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA ShadowPlayYes | Yes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA Studio DriversYes | Yes
- Technology Support / Photo ModeYes | Yes
- Technology Support / VR ReadyYes | Yes
- Thermal and Power Specs / Maximum GPU Temperature (in C)92 | 93
- Thermal and Power Specs / Required System Power (W) (5)850 | 750
- Thermal and Power Specs / Supplementary Power Connectors3x PCIe 8-pin cables (adapter in box) OR 450W or greater PCIe Gen 5 cable | 2x PCIe 8-pin (adapter to 1x 12-pin included)
- architecture—
- Boost Clock1.86 GHz | 1.70 GHz
- Card Dimensions / SFF-Ready Enthusiast GeForce Card—
- cuda_cores—
- Display Support / Maximum Digital Resolution7680x4320 | 7680x4320
- Founders Edition Thermal Power Specs / Graphics Card Power (W)450 | 350
- GPU Engine Specs / Shader Cores—
- GPU Engine Specs / Tensor Cores (AI)—
- memory—
- Memory Size24 GB | 24 GB
- Memory TypeGDDR6X | GDDR6X
- memory_bandwidth—
- memory_bus—
- recommended_psu—
- Technology Support / AV1 Decode—
- Technology Support / AV1 Encode—
- Technology Support / Microsoft DirectX ® 12 UltimateYes | Yes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA ® GeForce Experience ™Yes | Yes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA App—
- Technology Support / NVIDIA Decoder5th Generation | 5th Generation
- Technology Support / NVIDIA Decoder (NVDEC)—
- Technology Support / NVIDIA Encoder7th Generation | 7th Generation
- Technology Support / NVIDIA Encoder (NVENC)—
- Technology Support / NVIDIA ReflexYes | Yes
- Technology Support / PCI Express Gen 4Yes | Yes
- Technology Support / PCI Express Gen 5—
- Technology Support / Ray Tracing—
- Technology Support / Resizable BARYes | Yes
- Technology Support / RTX Remix—
- Technology Support / Tensor Cores3rd Generation | 3rd Generation
- Technology Support / Vulkan 1.4, OpenGL 4.6—
- Technology Support / Vulkan RT API, OpenGL 4.6Yes | Yes
- total_graphics_power—
Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 (32GB)
The fastest consumer card available, with 32GB of GDDR7 — and the power bill to match.
Where it wins, where it doesn't
Pros
- 32GB GDDR7 — runs 70B-class models quantised on a single card
- Fastest consumer silicon available
- Avoids the complexity of a multi-GPU build
Cons
- Roughly double the 5080's price for far less than double the performance
- 600W-class power delivery dictates case and PSU choices
- Poor value for anything that is not memory-bound
Specifications
- Card Dimensions / Length304 mm
- Card Dimensions / Slot2-Slot
- Card Dimensions / Width137 mm
- Display Support / HDCP2.3
- Display Support / Multi Monitorup to 4 (4)
- Display Support / Standard Display Connectors3x DisplayPort (2) , 1x HDMI (3)
- GPU Engine Specs / Base Clock (GHz)2.01
- GPU Engine Specs / NVIDIA CUDA™ Cores21760
- GPU Engine Specs / Ray Tracing Cores4th Generation
- Memory Specs / Memory Interface Width512-bit
- Memory Specs / Standard Memory Config32 GB GDDR7
- Technology Support / CUDA Capability12.0
- Technology Support / Game Ready DriversYes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA ArchitectureBlackwell
- Technology Support / NVIDIA BroadcastYes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA DLSSDLSS 4 Super Resolution DLAA Ray Reconstruction Frame Generation Multi Frame Generation
- Technology Support / NVIDIA FreeStyleYes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA G-SYNC™Yes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA GPU Boost™Yes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA HighlightsYes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA NVLink™ (SLI-Ready)No
- Technology Support / NVIDIA OmniverseYes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA ShadowPlayYes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA Studio DriversYes
- Technology Support / Photo ModeYes
- Technology Support / VR ReadyYes
- Thermal and Power Specs / Maximum GPU Temperature (in C)90
- Thermal and Power Specs / Required System Power (W) (5)1000
- Thermal and Power Specs / Supplementary Power Connectors4x PCIe 8-pin cables (adapter in box) OR 1x 600 W PCIe Gen 5 cable
- architectureBlackwell
- Boost Clock—
- Card Dimensions / SFF-Ready Enthusiast GeForce CardFounders Edition Yes Varies by manufacturer
- cuda_cores21760
- Display Support / Maximum Digital Resolution—
- Founders Edition Thermal Power Specs / Graphics Card Power (W)—
- GPU Engine Specs / Shader CoresBlackwell
- GPU Engine Specs / Tensor Cores (AI)5th Generation
- memory32GB GDDR7
- Memory Size—
- Memory Type—
- memory_bandwidth1792 GB/s
- memory_bus512-bit
- recommended_psu1000W
- Technology Support / AV1 DecodeYes
- Technology Support / AV1 EncodeYes
- Technology Support / Microsoft DirectX ® 12 Ultimate—
- Technology Support / NVIDIA ® GeForce Experience ™—
- Technology Support / NVIDIA AppYes
- Technology Support / NVIDIA Decoder—
- Technology Support / NVIDIA Decoder (NVDEC)2x Sixth Generation
- Technology Support / NVIDIA Encoder—
- Technology Support / NVIDIA Encoder (NVENC)3x Ninth Generation
- Technology Support / NVIDIA Reflex—
- Technology Support / PCI Express Gen 4—
- Technology Support / PCI Express Gen 5Yes
- Technology Support / Ray TracingYes
- Technology Support / Resizable BAR—
- Technology Support / RTX RemixYes
- Technology Support / Tensor Cores—
- Technology Support / Vulkan 1.4, OpenGL 4.6Yes
- Technology Support / Vulkan RT API, OpenGL 4.6—
- total_graphics_power575W