Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 12GB

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Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 12GB
If you own a GPU from a prior generation, like the GTX 1060 or even at GTX 1070, then the RTX 3060 is a decent upgrade in terms of performance, but you'd be better off spending a little more on the Ti version.
– As reviewed by TechSpot on Mar 2021
Ampere
Architecture
Midrange
Product Tier
3584
Shader Cores
48
ROPs
112
TMUs
28
RT Cores
12 GB
Memory
GDDR6
Memory Type
360 GB/s
Bandwidth
170 W
TDP
$398
Price
GPU Snapshot
Release date:Feb 25, 2021Price at Launch:$329
Type:DesktopArchitecture:Ampere
Generation:RTX 30 seriesProduct Tier:Midrange
VRAM Capacity:12 GBTotal Board Power:170 W
Core Configuration
Shader Cores:3584TMUs:112
ROPs:48L2 Cache:3 MB
Memory
VRAM Capacity:12 GBMemory Type:GDDR6
Memory Speed:15 GbpsMemory Bus:192-bit
Bandwidth:360 GB/s
Graphics Processing
Base Clock:1.32 GHzBoost Clock:1.78 GHz
FP32 Throughput:12.7 TFLOPsRay Tracing:Yes
Ray Tracing Cores:28Process Size:8nm
Process Name:Samsung 8NDie Size:276 mm²
Power & Connectivity
Total Board Power:170 WPower Connectors:1x 8-pin
Bus Interface:PCIe 4.0 x16HDMI Support:HDMI 2.1
DisplayPort Support:DP 1.4aDSC:1.2a
Max Displays:4
Media & Software Support
DirectX Support:12 UltimateShader Model:6.6
Vulkan Version:1.4OpenGL Version:4.6
Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060
A newer model is available:
Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060

GPU Benchmarks

GPU benchmark scores are aggregated from dozens of tests conducted in TechSpot's labs, compiled from our full library of GPU reviews and gaming benchmarks. Scores are normalized to a shared baseline and organized by resolution, covering rasterized workloads exclusively. Ray tracing and upscaling technologies are disabled to guarantee consistent, like-for-like comparisons.

[GPU] 1080p Gaming

[GPU] 1440p Gaming

[GPU] 4K Gaming

Price History

Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 12GB pricing

Last 6 months
Price Date
Current $397 Mar 9, 2026
Highest* $494 Jan 25, 2026
Lowest* $311 Sep 13, 2025
Average $394
* Prices are based on listings from Newegg and other major retailers over the past 12+ months.
TechSpot is supported by its audience. We may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site. Learn more here.

Reviews and Ratings

80

Average Score

Based on 8 reviews

9.4

User Score

Based on 4,680 reviews

Reviewers Liked

  • Small, cool, and relatively quiet
  • Performs similarly to RTX 2070 Super when ray tracing is enabled
  • DLSS can bring ray tracing within reach
  • Features two HDMI 2.1 ports
  • Full Ampere feature set
  • 12GB of memory

Reviewers Didn't Like

  • Not a great choice for 1440p
  • Little headroom in the latest games
  • Just 8% faster than RX 5700 at 1080p
  • Won't appeal to RTX 20-series owners

Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 8GB: Why You Should Avoid It: The new 8GB version of the GeForce RTX 3060 is noticeably slower than the original, and in a number of instances was significantly slower in our testing. In our opinion this is a horrible anti-consumer move by Nvidia, it serves little more than to line their pockets while misleading and potentially ripping off customers.

By TechSpot on

GeForce RTX 3060 vs Radeon RX 6600 XT: In a nutshell: the RTX 3060 offers similar rasterization performance, superior ray tracing, DLSS support, a bigger VRAM buffer, and a full PCIe 4.0 x16 connection, making it a better product – and if available at the same price, the obvious option.

By TechSpot on

Radeon RX 6600 XT vs. GeForce RTX 3060: The Radeon RX 6600 XT currently offers gamers significantly more value than the GeForce RTX 3060, and therefore should be the go-to option for those looking this level of performance. Unless you play specific games that are favored by DLSS/RT enhancements, that's our clear recommendation.

By TechSpot on
75

If you own a GPU from a prior generation, like the GTX 1060 or even at GTX 1070, then the RTX 3060 is a decent upgrade in terms of performance, but you'd be better off spending a little more on the Ti version.

By TechSpot on
60

Nvidia's GeForce RTX 3060 is an okay graphics card for no-compromises 1080p gaming in a time where being good enough is all it takes to sell out. EVGA's custom XC Black Gaming version offers no frills but runs cool and quiet.

By PCWorld on
70

If you’ve specifically been waiting for a $300-ish card to replace an aging GPU, you’ll be satisfied with lower settings over the next couple of years, and you can actually find an RTX 3060 at its retail price, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. But I’d set aside $500 for an RTX 3070, and though I settled for a $400 RTX 3060 Ti, I can’t imagine settling for a 3060 instead.

By The Verge on
80

RTX 3060 can be described as a perfectly fine GPU, but we wouldn’t go further than that. It does, however, make for an interesting few weeks as we wait and see what AMD can bring to the table with its RX 6700 and RX 6700 XT.

By KitGuru on
90

MSI has put a lot of expensive hardware on this card. While a lot of it hasn’t made it a faster card, it’s one of the best looking graphics cards, and it’s exquisitely engineered too. It’s got so many features to provide more stable voltages, lower temperatures, lower noise levels and well, that’s exactly what it does. It’s everything a gamer could want, really, but it really down to you if you’re willing to pay extra for such things.

By eTeknix on
90

MSI's new GeForce RTX 3060 GAMING X TRIO is in a funky spot... do you get the RTX 3070? Probably. It's a great card nonetheless, a worthy successor to the popular GTX 1060.

By TweakTown on
85

Considering Nvidia's target audience for the GeForce RTX 3060, it hits the mark. Pricing is obviously all over the map right now so any conclusions drawn today may not ring true in the long term, but at the GeForce RTX 3060's intended price range, it is a solid choice.

By HotHardware on
90

The card is just under 202 mm long and is strictly a 2-slot card which means it is going to fit in pretty much any case out there. On top of that EVGA has given it a nice factory overclock up to 1882 MHz (GPU Boost). The cooling system does a great job and is not all that loud either. One thing you really might like about this card is that it does not have any RGB lighting on it at all!

By ThinkComputers on

While there's a lot to like here, the RTX 3060 is undoubtedly not as strong a value as the RTX 3060 Ti. That card costs around 20% more ($400 vs $330), yet provides a significant boost to frame-rates -- especially at 1440p and 2160p, where the Ti is often 26 to 36% faster. For 1080p gaming, the RTX 3060 is sufficient, but in a world where graphics cards are freely available at their recommended retail price, I'd suggest that people with a bit of flexibility in their budget consider the Ti instead, even if it means accepting a smaller hard drive or less RAM to start out.

By EuroGamer on
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