RTX 2060 Mobile vs GTX 970
Head-to-head specifications
| Metric | RTX 2060 Mobile | GTX 970 | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3DMark Time Spy | 1,918 | 1,372 | +39.8% |
| Avg FPS @ 1080p | 32 | 29 | +10.3% |
| Avg FPS @ 1440p | 18 | 15 | +20.0% |
| Avg FPS @ 4K | 9 | 8 | +12.5% |
| FP32 compute (TFLOPS) | 5.5 | 3.9 | +39.8% |
| VRAM | 6 GB GDDR6 | 4 GB GDDR5 | — |
| Memory bandwidth (GB/s) | 336 | 224 | +50.0% |
| TDP (W) | 96 | 145 | — |
- RTX 2060 Mobile averages 18 fps at 1440p versus 15 fps — about 20% faster.
- RTX 2060 Mobile draws less power (96W vs 145W).
Verdict: RTX 2060 Mobile or GTX 970?
RTX 2060 Mobile advantages
- 1440p gaming (+17%)
- 4K gaming (+11%)
- Synthetic benchmark performance (+28%)
- Video memory (+33%)
- Memory bandwidth (+33%)
- Power efficiency (+34%)
GTX 970 advantages
- No decisive advantage on the tracked metrics.
Which should you choose?
- Choose the RTX 2060 Mobile if you game at 1440p.
- Choose the RTX 2060 Mobile if you game at 4K or drive a high-resolution display.
RTX 2060 Mobile vs GTX 970: which should you choose?
RTX 2060 Mobile — NVIDIA laptop graphics card (2019, Turing) with 6 GB of GDDR6, averaging 18 fps at 1440p.
GTX 970 — NVIDIA desktop graphics card (2014, Maxwell) with 4 GB of GDDR5, averaging 15 fps at 1440p; launched at $329.
RTX 2060 Mobile vs GTX 970: RTX 2060 Mobile is faster for gaming. RTX 2060 Mobile averages 18 fps at 1440p versus 15 fps — about 20% faster. RTX 2060 Mobile draws less power (96W vs 145W).
1080p, 1440p and 4K
At 1440p — the most common enthusiast resolution — the RTX 2060 Mobile averages 18 fps against 15. At 4K (9 vs 8 fps) VRAM (6GB vs 4GB) and memory bandwidth matter more.
Power and value
Board power is 96 W versus 145 W, which affects PSU headroom, case cooling and noise.
The verdict
Both are credible choices in the graphics card comparison space; the specification table above lays out every metric so you can weigh the trade-offs that matter to you. Pick the one whose strengths line up with how you will actually use it.
Frequently asked questions
Is the RTX 2060 Mobile better than the GTX 970?
RTX 2060 Mobile is the clearly stronger overall choice, winning most of the dimensions that matter. RTX 2060 Mobile averages 18 fps at 1440p versus 15 fps — about 20% faster.
What is the main difference between the RTX 2060 Mobile and the GTX 970?
RTX 2060 Mobile averages 18 fps at 1440p versus 15 fps — about 20% faster. RTX 2060 Mobile draws less power (96W vs 145W).
Which should I choose?
Choose the RTX 2060 Mobile if you game at 1440p. Choose the RTX 2060 Mobile if you game at 4K or drive a high-resolution display.
Methodology
Graphics cards are compared on 3DMark Time Spy scores, average gaming frame rates at 1080p/1440p/4K, FP32 compute throughput, VRAM capacity and type, memory bandwidth, board power (TDP) and launch MSRP — plus AI workload throughput (Stable Diffusion iterations/s and local LLM tokens/s) where measured. Vintage and server GPUs without modern benchmark results are compared on specifications only, clearly labelled. Frame rates are averages across a game suite at high settings; specific titles vary.