GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Vs RTX 4080 GPU: Which One To Buy? (Updated)

This article will compare NVIDIA’s GeForce RTX 4070 Ti vs RTX 4080. Some of you might be in the market for a new graphics card but need help deciding which one is the better value or better buy. The RTX 4080 is currently NVIDIA’s second fastest GPU, while the RTX 4090 is the fastest without any competition. Meanwhile, the RTX 4070 Ti is generally on par with the RTX 3080 Ti when it comes to raw performance and can get faster with the help of DLSS 3. There’s also a 50% increase from the RTX 4070 Ti’s starting price to the RTX 4080. So, the price difference is somewhat significant. Let’s find out which is the better buy, the RTX 4080 or RTX 4070 Ti.

UPDATE: There’s an update regarding pricing and availability of these GPUs.

GeForce RTX 4080 or RTX 4070 Ti – Which Ada Lovelace GPU?

We have reviewed the RTX 4080 and RTX 4070 Ti previously. So I won’t go into details about the GPUs architecture and features in this article. But I’ll give you a quick summary of their respective specifications.

According to NVIDIA, the GeForce RTX 4080 has 9,728 CUDA cores, providing 49 Shader-TFLOPS of power for traditional rasterized graphics. It also comes with 304 4th gen Tensor Cores offering 780 Tensor-TFLOPS (with Sparsity) for AI processing and DLSS; paired with 76 3rd gen Ada RT Cores capable of 113 RT-TFLOPS for powering next-generation ray-traced graphics. Finally, it has 16GB of GDDR6X memory, with an effective speed of 22.4Gbps, running on a 256-bit memory interface.

Meanwhile, NVIDIA says that the RTX 4070 Ti is faster than the previous flagship GPU, the RTX 3090 Ti. However, the RTX 4070 Ti is only faster thanks to its DLSS 3 frame generation technology. Based on our testing, its performance is closer to the RTX 3080 Ti in raw power. In addition, NVIDIA also markets the RTX 4070 Ti towards 1440p gaming instead of 4K UHD. The graphics card is powerful enough to play games at 4K, even without the help of DLSS.

Below are the full specifications of the RTX 4080 and RTX 4070 Ti.

GeForce RTX 4080 and RTX 4070 Ti Specifications

Check the latest pricing and availability: (#ad)
GeForce RTX 4080 graphics cards are available on Amazon here.
GeForce RTX 4070 Ti graphics cards are available on Amazon here.

Synthetic Benchmarks

Using 3DMark’s benchmark suite, the RTX 4080 is certainly faster than the RTX 4070 Ti. But the performance difference varies from one type of benchmark and resolution to another. For example, in Fire Strike, which is a 1080p test and uses DirectX 11, the RTX 4080 is around 17% faster than the RTX 4070 Ti. However, in Speed Way, which is a DirectX 12 test with ray tracing, the RTX 4080 is around 31% faster.

We can’t fully conclude yet based on this information alone. And these are not real game tests anyway. However, the 3DMark benchmark tests give us a rough idea of their performance difference. So, now let’s check out some results from actual games.

GeForce RTX 4080 vs RTX 4070 Ti – RT and DLSS Game Benchmarks

First, let’s see how the RTX 4080 and 4070 Ti differ when ray tracing and DLSS are enabled. As you can see from the result above, at 1080p, the RTX 4080 performs nearly with the RTX 4070 Ti. It tells us that there is some bottleneck happening here, and you should not buy an RTX 4080 if you have a 1920×1080 monitor.

The RTX 4080 performs better on higher resolution, like 4K UHD, or when the game is really graphics intensive, like Cyberpunk 2077 and the Witcher 3 Next Gen version. In Plague Tale Requiem, the performance difference is somewhat evenly apart and scaled well, unlike in Guardians of the Galaxy.

Next, let’s check out the other game titles that use traditional rasterization.

GeForce RTX 4080 vs RTX 4070 Ti – Game Benchmarks

The performance difference between the RTX 4070 Ti vs. RTX 4080 varies depending on one game to another. But generally speaking, the RTX 4080 is around 20% to 30% faster than the RTX 4070 Ti. In a lower resolution, like 1080p, the performance difference between the two GPUs is smaller. Meanwhile, the RTX 4080 performs better at higher resolution and is best suited for 2160p or 4K UHD.

However, I was surprised that the RTX 4070 Ti somehow outperformed or performed on par with the RTX 4080 on the new Witcher 3 Next-Gen version. I’m unsure if some optimizations need to be implemented and/or if the RTX 4080 was bottlenecked by the lower resolution. Nevertheless, the performance difference between the two GPUs became apparent on 4K UHD.

Let’s summarize the results that we got.

RTX 4080 vs RTX 4070 Ti Summary Results

I only have a small sample size, only 14 games, but this should be enough to give us some idea of the performance difference between the two GPUs. On 1080p, the RTX 4080 is only ~5% faster than the RTX 4070 Ti. It is due to the resolution bottlenecking the RTX 4080. In the first place, the RTX 4080 wasn’t meant for 1080p gaming. Again, avoid buying an RTX 4080 if your monitor is only 1080p.

At 2560×1440, the performance difference widens a bit. The RTX 4080 is around 10.5% faster than the RTX 4070 Ti. By the way, the RTX 4070 Ti is a GPU marketed toward 1440p gaming. Finally, at 4K UHD, the RTX 4080 is around 16% faster than the RTX 4070 Ti, on average.

Now that we know their performance difference, it’s time to discuss their price difference.

Pricing Difference

The GeForce RTX 4080 starts at $1,200. That’s the price of the Founders Edition or any RTX 4080 with base model specs. However, expect that custom graphics cards from NVIDIA’s partners will sell their RTX 4080 at a higher price. On top of that, some retailers jack up the price, making it almost priced as an RTX 4090. If that’s the case, it’s better to get the much faster RTX 4090 instead. The RTX 4090 starts at $1,700, by the way. However, it’s difficult to find an RTX 4090 graphics card at that price in the current market.

On the other hand, the RTX 4070 Ti starts at $800 for the base model. However, unlike the RTX 4080, the RTX 4070 Ti does not have a Founders Edition. So all of the RTX 4070 Ti cards are from AIC partners. It also means that most RTX 4070 Ti cards on the market are the “OC” variant or premium cards. As a result, only a few RTX 4070 Ti are priced at around $800. Most RTX 4070 Ti are around $900 to $1,200. The more expensive cards tend to be the premium or flagship models.

Unfortunately, for a (very) small “OC” and/or premium design, NVIDIA’s partners price their cards higher than the starting price. “OC” really doesn’t matter since these cards boost higher naturally, thanks to NVIDIA Boost technology. You can also manually OC the card if you need to. But since prices vary from retailer to retailer, I recommend you get the cheaper one. Don’t worry about OC and non-OC cards. Get the cheaper one unless you want a particular design and look.

Interestingly, when I published this article, Zotac’s GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Trinity retailed for $800 USD. This model comes with a stock clock speed or is a “base model” but with a custom cooling solution. However, if you want a more premium-looking graphics card or better design and aesthetics, be prepared to pay extra.

UPDATE: We’re just a few months away and 2023 is done. Most RTX 4070 Ti graphics cards are (still) sticking to their MSRP. Most good RTX 4070 Ti cards are currently selling for around $800+ USD, which is alright, considering the starting price of an RTX 4070 Ti is $799 (as dictated by NVIDIA). As for the RTX 4080, there’s some price movement already, and some are selling below the $1,200 MSRP. You can check the latest prices via the links below.

Check the latest pricing and availability: (#ad)
GeForce RTX 4070 Ti graphics cards are available on Amazon.com here.
GeForce RTX 4080 graphics cards are available on Amazon.com here.

You can also check out some of the best RTX 4080 cards here, and the best RTX 4070 Ti cards here.

GeForce RTX 4070 Ti vs RTX 4080 Conclusion – So, Which One?

You have seen the data and the numbers above, and the results speak for themselves. In my opinion, between the RTX 4070 Ti and RTX 4080, the RTX 4070 Ti is the better value. It is significantly cheaper, but the performance is not that far from an RTX 4080. The RTX 4070 Ti is a great graphics card for 1440p gaming, and you could also use it for 4K gaming if you are okay with adjusting some settings to get a smooth frame rate.

However, if you are gaming on a 4K UHD monitor or have a screen resolution equivalent to 4K UHD, the RTX 4080 may be the “better” option between the two. But honestly, if you have the money to spend more than a thousand dollars for a graphics card, the current flagship RTX 4090 is the way to go.

I would only recommend the RTX 4080 over the RTX 4090 if the price of the RTX 4090 is significantly high or unreasonable. Sometimes retailers take advantage of the market. And between the RTX 4090 and RTX 4080, the former is the more popular graphics card.

As always, be sure to check the current prices. I’ve mentioned the starting MSRP above. Don’t overpay for an already expensive graphics card.