NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 12GB
Specifications, where the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB sits for gaming, the processor worth pairing with it, and the frame rate the pair returns at every resolution.
Ryzen 5 5600
The GeForce RTX 3060 12GB and the Ryzen 5 5600 return about 41 fps on High at 1440p with neither part wasting the other. A processor slower than the Ryzen 5 5600 leaves the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB idling, and a faster one adds no frames to a GeForce RTX 3060 12GB at this resolution.
Check current priceon Amazon See the full bottleneck result for this pairGeForce RTX 3060 12GB specifications
| Manufacturer | NVIDIA |
| Released | 2021 |
| Video memory | 12 GB |
| Board power | 170 W |
| Gaming performance index | 30.0 (RTX 4090 = 100) |
What these numbers mean for the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB
On our index the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB scores 30.0, which places it 53rd of the 89 graphics cards we track and puts it faster than roughly 41% of them.
The GeForce RTX 3060 12GB and the GeForce RTX 2070 land on exactly the same index score of 30.0, so on raw throughput the two are interchangeable and the choice between them comes down to memory, power draw and price on the day.
12 GB of memory is comfortable at 1440p and adequate at 4K in most titles, which puts the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB on the right side of the memory question for every resolution its 30.0 index score lets it drive.
At 170 W the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB sits in the mainstream power bracket, so a competent supply of around 500 W total handles the whole machine and cooling is a matter of normal case airflow rather than special planning.
Released in 2021, the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB is a card most people now meet on the used market or in an existing build rather than on a shelf, and after 5 years the only price worth judging a GeForce RTX 3060 12GB on is what it costs today.
GeForce RTX 3060 12GB frame rate at each resolution
The GeForce RTX 3060 12GB paired with the Ryzen 5 5600 on the High preset with 16 GB of system memory. The card is the limit throughout, so the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB falls the full 56% from 55 fps to 24 fps as the pixel count rises.
| Resolution | Estimated fps | Limited by |
|---|---|---|
| 1080p (1920 x 1080) | 55 fps | GPU |
| 1440p (2560 x 1440) | 41 fps | GPU |
| 4K (3840 x 2160) | 24 fps | GPU |
How the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB compares
6 cards sit within 30% of the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB on our gaming index, running from the Radeon RX 6700 XT at +30% to the GeForce RTX 2080 at +13%, a window narrow enough that price, memory and power decide it rather than raw speed.
What to pair with the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB, and when to upgrade
Best CPU for the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB
When the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB becomes the limit, the GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16GB is the next step worth paying for: 48.0 on our index against 30.0, a jump of 60%, which is roughly where an upgrade stops being something you have to look at a counter to notice. See its specs.
Check the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB against your own parts
GeForce RTX 3060 12GB specifications on this page are from NVIDIA, while its performance index of 30.0 is modelled from published benchmark data for the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB rather than measured on a test bench, and every frame rate above follows from that figure. How we calculate this