RTX 4060 vs RX 7600: Best Midrange GPU in 2025

In the ever-evolving landscape of PC gaming, choosing the right graphics card is paramount to a satisfying experience. As we step into 2025, the midrange GPU market continues to be a battleground for performance and value. Two contenders stand out in this segment: NVIDIA’s GeForce RTX 4060 and AMD’s Radeon RX 7600. Both promise solid 1080p gaming, with some capabilities extending into 1440p, but they approach this goal with different architectures, features, and price points. This article will delve deep into a comprehensive comparison of these two popular GPUs, examining their specifications, real-world performance benchmarks, pricing, and overall value proposition to help you decide which is the best midrange GPU for your needs in 2025.

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060: An Overview

Launched as part of NVIDIA’s Ada Lovelace architecture, the GeForce RTX 4060 aims to deliver efficient 1080p gaming with the benefits of DLSS 3 and advanced ray tracing capabilities. While initially met with mixed reactions due to its 8GB VRAM and 128-bit memory bus, the RTX 4060 has found its niche as a power-efficient option for gamers who prioritize NVIDIA’s ecosystem features. By 2025, it has become a popular choice among PC gamers, as evidenced by its significant presence in hardware surveys [1].

Key Specifications (RTX 4060):

•Architecture: Ada Lovelace (AD107 GPU)

•CUDA Cores: 3072

•Boost Clock: Up to 2460 MHz

•Memory: 8GB GDDR6

•Memory Interface: 128-bit

•Memory Bandwidth: 272 GB/s

•TGP (Total Graphics Power): 115W

The RTX 4060’s relatively low power consumption makes it an attractive option for users with smaller power supplies or those looking to build energy-efficient systems. Its support for DLSS 3, which includes Frame Generation, can significantly boost frame rates in supported titles, offering a performance advantage in scenarios where raw rasterization power might fall short. However, the 8GB VRAM can be a limiting factor in some demanding titles at higher resolutions or with ultra texture settings, especially as games become more graphically intensive.

AMD Radeon RX 7600: An Overview

AMD’s Radeon RX 7600, based on the RDNA 3 architecture, is AMD’s answer to the midrange market, offering a compelling alternative to NVIDIA’s offerings. It aims to provide strong 1080p gaming performance at a competitive price point. The RX 7600 emphasizes raw rasterization performance and comes with AMD’s FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR) technology, which is an open-source upscaling solution compatible with a wider range of GPUs.

Key Specifications (RX 7600):

•Architecture: RDNA 3 (Navi 33 GPU)

•Compute Units: 32

•Boost Clock: Up to 2655 MHz

•Memory: 8GB GDDR6

•Memory Interface: 128-bit

•Memory Bandwidth: 288 GB/s

•TBP (Total Board Power): 165W

The RX 7600, while having a higher TBP than the RTX 4060, still maintains a reasonable power draw. Its strength lies in its solid 1080p performance across a wide range of games. While it lacks NVIDIA’s proprietary DLSS 3 Frame Generation, FSR continues to evolve and offers a viable alternative for boosting frame rates. The 8GB of VRAM is a common point of discussion for both cards, and similar to the RTX 4060, it can be a bottleneck in certain scenarios at higher settings or resolutions.

Performance and Pricing: A Head-to-Head Comparison

When evaluating midrange GPUs, real-world performance and pricing are often the most critical factors. Based on benchmarks from early 2025, both the RTX 4060 and RX 7600 offer compelling performance for 1080p gaming, with the RTX 4060 generally holding a slight edge in many titles, particularly when DLSS 3 is leveraged. However, the RX 7600 often provides a more competitive price-to-performance ratio.

Performance Benchmarks (Relative to a top-tier card at 1080p Ultra) [2]:

GPU	1080p Ultra	1080p Medium	1440p Ultra	4K Ultra
RTX 4060	55.1%	72.7%	41.9%	27.8%
RX 7600	53.2%	72.3%	39.2%	25.4%

Note: These percentages represent relative performance, with 100% being the top-performing card in the benchmark suite. Actual frame rates (fps) are also provided in the raw data.

In 1080p gaming, the RTX 4060 consistently delivers strong performance, often surpassing 60 frames per second (fps) in demanding titles at high settings. Its efficiency is notable, consuming less power while delivering comparable or slightly better rasterization performance than the RX 7600 in many scenarios. The RX 7600, while slightly behind in raw rasterization in some benchmarks, remains a very capable 1080p card, often hitting similar frame rates, especially in titles optimized for AMD hardware.

At 1440p, both cards begin to show their midrange limitations, though they can still provide playable experiences with adjusted settings or by utilizing upscaling technologies like DLSS or FSR. The RTX 4060’s DLSS 3 with Frame Generation can provide a significant uplift in frame rates at 1440p in supported games, making it a more viable option for higher resolution gaming if the game supports the technology.

Pricing (as of September 2025):

•NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060: MSRP $299, with current market prices ranging from $299 to $500.

•AMD Radeon RX 7600: MSRP $269, with current market prices ranging from $239 to $299.

The pricing landscape in 2025 shows the RX 7600 generally being more affordable than the RTX 4060. This price difference can make the RX 7600 a more attractive option for budget-conscious gamers, especially if raw rasterization performance at 1080p is the primary concern and features like DLSS 3 are not a deciding factor.

Features and Ecosystem: Beyond Raw Performance

Beyond raw performance numbers, the features and ecosystem surrounding each GPU play a significant role in the overall user experience. Both NVIDIA and AMD offer distinct advantages in this regard.

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 – The NVIDIA Ecosystem:

NVIDIA’s strength lies in its comprehensive ecosystem, which includes:

•DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling): The RTX 4060 supports DLSS 3, which includes Frame Generation. This AI-powered upscaling technology can significantly boost frame rates by generating entirely new frames, leading to a smoother and more immersive gaming experience, especially in graphically intensive titles. While DLSS 3 requires specific hardware (RTX 40-series GPUs), its impact on performance can be substantial.

•Ray Tracing: NVIDIA has been at the forefront of real-time ray tracing, and the RTX 4060 offers dedicated RT Cores for accelerated ray tracing performance. While the 4060 might struggle with ray tracing at higher resolutions or settings, it can still provide a noticeable visual enhancement in supported games at 1080p, particularly when combined with DLSS.

•NVIDIA Broadcast: This software suite leverages AI to enhance live streams, voice chats, and video calls with features like noise removal, virtual backgrounds, and eye contact correction.

•NVIDIA Reflex: Designed for competitive gamers, NVIDIA Reflex reduces system latency (input lag) in supported titles, providing a more responsive gaming experience.

•CUDA: NVIDIA’s CUDA platform is widely adopted in professional applications for GPU-accelerated computing, which can be a factor for users who also engage in content creation, scientific computing, or other GPU-intensive tasks beyond gaming.

AMD Radeon RX 7600 – The AMD Ecosystem:

AMD’s ecosystem focuses on open standards and broad compatibility:

•FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution): FSR is AMD’s open-source spatial upscaling technology. Unlike DLSS, FSR is not limited to specific hardware and can be used on a wide range of GPUs, including older AMD cards, NVIDIA cards, and even integrated graphics. While FSR 2.0 and later versions offer impressive image quality, they generally do not include frame generation capabilities like DLSS 3.

•Radeon Anti-Lag & Radeon Boost: These features aim to reduce input lag and dynamically adjust resolution to maintain higher frame rates, respectively, similar to NVIDIA Reflex.

•AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition: AMD’s software suite provides a user-friendly interface for managing GPU settings, optimizing games, and accessing features like Radeon Chill (power saving) and Radeon Image Sharpening.

•Open Standards: AMD’s commitment to open standards, such as FreeSync for adaptive sync monitors, can offer broader compatibility and potentially lower costs for peripheral hardware.

In summary, NVIDIA’s ecosystem, particularly DLSS 3 with Frame Generation, offers a significant advantage in terms of performance uplift in supported titles. However, AMD’s FSR provides a more accessible upscaling solution for a wider range of hardware. For users who prioritize cutting-edge ray tracing performance and AI-powered features, the RTX 4060 might be more appealing. For those who prefer open standards and broader compatibility, the RX 7600 presents a strong case.

Conclusion: Which Midrange GPU is Right for You in 2025?

Both the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 and the AMD Radeon RX 7600 are strong contenders in the midrange GPU market for 2025, each offering a compelling set of features and performance for 1080p gaming. The choice between them largely depends on your priorities and budget.

Choose the RTX 4060 if:

•You prioritize access to NVIDIA’s ecosystem, especially DLSS 3 with Frame Generation, which can provide significant performance uplifts in supported titles.

•You are interested in more advanced ray tracing capabilities, even if it means adjusting settings for optimal performance.

•You value power efficiency and are building a system with a lower wattage power supply.

•You engage in professional applications that heavily leverage NVIDIA’s CUDA platform.

Choose the RX 7600 if:

•You are looking for the best price-to-performance ratio for raw rasterization at 1080p.

•You prefer open-source technologies like FSR, which offers broad compatibility across various hardware.

•You are building a budget-conscious gaming PC and want to maximize your gaming performance per dollar.

•You are less concerned with cutting-edge ray tracing or Frame Generation and prioritize solid traditional gaming performance.

In 2025, both GPUs represent excellent value for midrange gaming. The RTX 4060 often edges out the RX 7600 in raw performance and feature set, particularly with DLSS 3, but typically comes at a slightly higher price point. The RX 7600, on the other hand, offers a highly competitive performance-per-dollar, making it an attractive option for gamers who want solid 1080p performance without breaking the bank. Ultimately, the ‘best’ midrange GPU is the one that best fits your specific gaming habits, budget, and feature preferences.

References

[1] XDA-Developers. (2025, May 2). Nearly 10% of PC gamers use this GPU, and I finally understand why. https://www.xda-developers.com/nvidia-rtx-4060-2025-revisit/ [2] Tom’s Hardware. (2025, August 13). The GPU benchmarks hierarchy 2025: Ten years of graphics card.