AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT: In-Depth Review

For the last couple of generations, AMD has been fiercely competing with Nvidia at the high end of the graphics card market. However, with the launch of the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT, Team Red has strategically shifted its focus from the ultra-high-end segment dominated by the RTX 5090 to creating the best graphics card for the majority of gamers—a goal it has unequivocally achieved.

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT, priced at $599, goes head-to-head with the $749 GeForce RTX 5070 Ti, positioning it as one of the top GPUs available today. What sets it apart is the inclusion of FSR 4, marking the first time AMD has brought AI upscaling to its graphics cards. This feature makes the Radeon RX 9070 XT the go-to choice for 4K gaming, especially for those who aren't ready to spend $1,999 on the RTX 5090.

Purchasing Guide

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT will be available starting March 6, with a base price of $599. Be aware that prices may vary, as third-party cards could be priced higher. Aim to purchase one for under $699 to get the best value.

AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT – Photos

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Specs and Features

Built on the RDNA 4 architecture, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT showcases significant enhancements in its shader cores, but the real highlight is the integration of new RT and AI Accelerators. The AI Accelerators drive FidelityFX Super Resolution 4 (FSR 4), introducing AI upscaling to AMD's lineup for the first time. While FSR 4 may not boost frame rates beyond what FSR 3.1 offers, it significantly enhances image quality. For those prioritizing performance, the Adrenalin software provides an easy toggle to disable FSR 4.

AMD's improvements to the shader cores have resulted in better performance per core. Despite having fewer Compute Units (64) than its predecessor, the Radeon RX 7900 XT (84), the 9070 XT delivers a notable generational performance increase at a more affordable price. Each Compute Unit contains 64 Streaming Multiprocessors, totaling 4,096, alongside 64 ray accelerators and 128 AI accelerators.

The RX 9070 XT comes with 16GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, a reduction from the RX 7900 XT's 20GB on a 320-bit bus. This represents a compromise in both capacity and bandwidth, yet it remains sufficient for most 4K gaming scenarios. The new architecture is more power-efficient, but the RX 9070 XT's power budget is slightly higher at 304W compared to the 7900 XT's 300W. In testing, the 9070 XT's peak power consumption was lower than the 7900 XT's, hitting 306W versus 314W.

Cooling the RX 9070 XT should be straightforward with its standard power budget. Notably, AMD isn't releasing a reference design for this model, meaning buyers will depend on third-party manufacturers. The Powercolor Radeon RX 9070 XT Reaper, with its compact triple-fan design, maintained temperatures at 72°C during testing.

The card requires two 8-pin PCI-E power connectors and comes with three DisplayPort 2.1a and one HDMI 2.1b port, in line with modern expectations. The addition of a USB-C port would have added flexibility, but its absence is not a major drawback.

FSR 4

For years, AMD has sought an AI upscaling solution to rival Nvidia's DLSS. The existing versions of FidelityFX Super Resolution suffered from ghosting and fuzziness. FSR 4, powered by the AI accelerators in the Compute Units, addresses these issues by analyzing previous frames and game engine data to upscale lower-resolution images to native resolution. While image quality improves over FSR 3, there's a slight performance hit.

In Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 at 4K Extreme settings, the RX 9070 XT achieved 134 fps with FSR 3.1 set to "Performance," dropping to 121 fps with FSR 4, representing a 10% performance loss but with enhanced image quality. In Monster Hunter Wilds, the performance dropped from 94 fps with FSR 3 and ray tracing to 78 fps with FSR 4—a 20% decrease. This performance hit is expected due to the more resource-intensive nature of AI upscaling, yet AMD believes the improved image quality justifies it, particularly for single-player games.

FSR 3.1 remains available for those who prefer it, and FSR 4 can be toggled off in the Adrenalin software if needed.

AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT & 9070 – Benchmarks

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Performance

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT delivers outstanding performance for its price, undercutting the Nvidia Geforce RTX 5070 Ti by 21% while being, on average, 2% faster. Despite some games favoring the RTX 5070 Ti, the RX 9070 XT holds its own impressively.

Across a comprehensive test suite, the RX 9070 XT was 17% faster than the RX 7900 XT, which launched at $899 two years ago, and 2% faster than the RTX 5070 Ti. At 4K, the RX 9070 XT shines, maintaining its lead and positioning itself as the best entry-level 4K graphics card, even with ray tracing enabled.

All tests were conducted using the latest drivers available. Nvidia cards were tested with Game Ready Driver 572.60, except for the RTX 5070, which used review drivers. AMD cards were tested on Adrenalin 24.12.1, except for the RX 9070 XT and RX 9070, which used pre-release drivers provided by AMD.

In 3DMark benchmarks, the RX 9070 XT outperformed the RX 7900 XT by 18% in Speed Way, though it lagged 18% behind the RTX 5070 Ti. In Steel Nomad, the performance gap widened, with the RX 9070 XT 26% faster than the RX 7900 XT and 7% ahead of the RTX 5070 Ti.

Test System

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D

Motherboard: Asus ROG Crosshair X870E Hero

RAM: 32GB G.Skill Trident Z5 Neo @ 6,000MHz

SSD: 4TB Samsung 990 Pro

CPU Cooler: Asus ROG Ryujin III 360

In Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, the RX 9070 XT outpaced the RTX 5070 Ti by 15%, while the RX 7900 XT was only 6% behind the new card. In Cyberpunk 2077, traditionally favoring Nvidia, the RTX 5070 Ti led by just 5% over the RX 9070 XT, a narrow margin given the price difference.

Metro Exodus, tested without upscaling at 4K, saw the RX 9070 XT achieve 47 fps, nearly matching the RTX 5070 Ti's 48 fps, and significantly outperforming the RX 7900 XT's 38 fps. In Red Dead Redemption 2, the RX 9070 XT reached 125 fps, outpacing the RTX 5070 Ti's 110 fps and the RX 7900 XT's 106 fps.

However, in Total War: Warhammer 3, the RX 9070 XT fell 13% behind the RTX 5070 Ti, with 76 fps compared to the RTX 5070 Ti's performance. In Assassin's Creed Mirage, the RX 9070 XT regained its lead, achieving 163 fps, surpassing the RTX 5070 Ti's 146 fps and the RX 7900 XT's 150 fps.

A standout performance came in Black Myth Wukong, where the RX 9070 XT reached 70 fps at 4K with the Cinematic Preset and FSR at 40%, compared to the RTX 5070 Ti's 65 fps. The RX 7900 XT managed only 60 fps, highlighting the significant improvements in the RX 9070 XT's Ray Accelerators.

In Forza Horizon 5, the RX 9070 XT achieved 158 fps, a 5% improvement over the RTX 5070 Ti's 151 fps, showcasing its competitive edge.

Announced quietly at CES 2025, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT feels like a strategic move to counter Nvidia's Blackwell graphics cards. At $599, it represents a return to sensible pricing in the graphics card market. While it doesn't match the speed of the RTX 5080 or RTX 5090, these cards are overkill for most gamers and come with a much higher price tag.

The Radeon RX 9070 XT harks back to the days of the GTX 1080 Ti, which launched at $699 in 2017 as the fastest consumer card of its time. Though it doesn't claim that title, the RX 9070 XT feels like the first worthy flagship since then.