by Picking out a GPU can be scary with options like the RTX 2080 Ti, and the RTX 3080 Ti; this is rarely an old price. Unlike these two graphics cards, gaming and creative performance has come a long way in the past several years. Which one is the most suitable for your use though? To give a full picture, let’s go through it step by step — performance and pricing, power consumption and all the raw stuff in between.
At the end of this guide you’ll understand which GPU is perfect for your gaming setup or creative workflow.
Specifications at a Glance
Lets get started with a quick spec comparison of how the RTX 2080 Ti and the RTX 3080 Ti compare against one another:
| Feature | RTX 2080 Ti | RTX 3080 Ti |
| Launch Year | 2018 | 2021 |
| Architecture | Turing | Ampere |
| CUDA Cores | 4,352 | 10,240 |
| Base Clock | 1,350 MHz | 1,365 MHz |
| Boost Clock | 1,545 MHz | 1,665 MHz |
| Memory | 11 GB GDDR6 | 12 GB GDDR6X |
| Memory Bandwidth | 616 GB/s | 912 GB/s |
| Ray Tracing Cores | 68 | 80 |
| Tensor Cores | 544 | 320 |
| Power Consumption | 260W | 350W |
| Price at Launch | $1,199 | $1,199 |
These numbers seemingly overwhelming, and so we need to break these numbers down to see them in real life.
Checkout RTX 4090 vs RX 7900 XTX
Gaming Performance: How Do They Handle Games?
RTX 2080 Ti
When it came out, the RTX 2080 Ti was a beast. However, even if you’re fine lowering your setting a few, it can still play 4K gaming at 60 FPS in many titles. For example, The Witcher 3 and Shadow of the Tomb Raider run also at ultra settings. Newer games like Cyberpunk 2077 or Starfield will use it, but only to its limits if you opt to enable ray tracing.
The RTX 2080 Ti shines for 1440p gaming. For the non 4K gamers out there, you’ll get buttery smooth performance at high settings.
RTX 3080 Ti
On the other hand, the RTX 3080 Ti manages a whole new level. This is made for 4K gaming without compromise. Even in the most modern games, like Red Dead Redemption 2 or Cyberpunk 2077, you’ll always be around 60 FPS or more and even more when ray tracing is turned on. Pair it with DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling) and the RTX 3080 Ti will pull stunning visuals while maintaining smooth framerate.
If you’re into competitive gaming at 1440p or 1080p, the RTX 3080 Ti provides incredibly high frame rates, which is perfect for esports titles like Valorant or CS:GO.
Ray Tracing and DLSS: The Big Picture
The RTX 3080 Ti has a marked edge here, both cards support ray tracing and DLSS.
- RTX 2080 Ti: The RTX 2080 Ti was the first GPU that brought real time ray tracing to the table. That’s good, but for example, ray-traced scenes without DLSS will cause frame rates to plummet.
- RTX 3080 Ti: The RTX 3080 Ti is much smoother due to the second-gen ray tracing cores and third gen tensor cores, and it also ships with double the memory as the RTX 3070. With DLSS 2.0, you can also play at higher resolutions without feeling as if you are selling your computing power to the next person in line. Put simply they look better and run faster.
Creative Work: Which One Is Better for Professionals?
But if you’re a content creator, GPU performance isn’t just all about games. Also tasks like video editing, 3D rendering, and streaming are also affected.
- RTX 2080 Ti: A combination of two custom made GPUs with 11 GB of GDDR6 memory, the RTX 2080 Ti tackle the 3D rendering, video editing, and motion graphics. That’s great for editing 4K videos or detailed ones in Blender.
- RTX 3080 Ti: Here, the RTX 3080 Ti also comes out on top. It offers nearly half of the CUDA cores, but with twice as much GDDR6X memory and renders times are slashed significantly. It’s also better for 8K video editing and for AI/Adobe Sensei or Topaz AI creative tools.
The RTX 3080 Ti is a better value for professionals who rely on GPU heavy work flows.
Power Consumption and System Requirements
Power usage is probably the main difference between these two GPUs. The RTX 3080 Ti is a more powerful card than its little brother card, but they also consume more energy such as when you stream!
| Feature | RTX 2080 Ti | RTX 3080 Ti |
| Power Consumption | 260W | 350W |
| Recommended PSU | 650W | 750W or higher |
Upgrading to the RTX 3080 Ti might mean that you’ll need to pay extra for a power supply unit (PSU) upgrade too.
Pricing and Availability
How much will it cost you to buy that GPU? That’s a big part of the decision:
- RTX 2080 Ti: Priced at $1,199 out of the box, you can often find it for $500–$700 on the secondhand market. If you don’t care about buying new hardware, then this is a perfect budget option.
- RTX 3080 Ti: It too was launched at $1,199, with high demand, it often retails for $1,000 to $1,200 or more. Stock can be limited, so you may need to hunt for one at MSRP.
Who Should Buy Which GPU?
Not quite sure which to choose yet? I’ve included a quick summary based on your needs here:
| User Type | Recommended GPU | Reason |
| Budget Gamer | RTX 2080 Ti | More affordable, still great for most games. |
| 4K Gaming Enthusiast | RTX 3080 Ti | Superior performance for demanding titles. |
| Creative Professional | RTX 3080 Ti | Faster rendering and better AI tools. |
| 1080p/1440p Gamer | RTX 2080 Ti | Excellent performance for lower resolutions. |
Future-Proofing: Is It Worth Spending More?
If you’re someone who upgrades frequently, the RTX 2080 Ti is the one for now. You are saving money while still being good in most scenarios. But if you want a GPU that will, more or less, remain relevant for a couple of years and won’t be looking painfully outdated, paying a little more for the RTX 3080 Ti is certainly worthwhile. The idea is to make it easy to play future games and applications.
Final Thoughts
The RTX 2080 Ti and RTX 3080 Ti are both excellent GPUs, but they are catering for different markets. At the cost of a slightly smaller form factor, the RTX 2080 Ti provides some fantastic performance for gamers and creators who need a larger GPU, but want it to cost a bit less. At the same time the RTX 3080 Ti is the ultimate choice for the best gaming, the best ray tracing and the best creative workflows.
Which is the best then? Now, it all really depends on your budget and what you want your GPU to do for you. Are you sticking with RTX 2080 Ti or opting for RTX 3080 Ti? Let us know, and we’ll be sure to comment below.
