If you‘re looking to build or upgrade your gaming PC, two of the most popular graphic card options in the mid-range segment are the Nvidia GTX 1050 Ti and the GTX 1060. Both deliver good 1080p performance at medium to high settings in modern titles.
But which is better for your needs and budget? In this detailed face-off, we compare every metric between the 1050 Ti and 1060 side-by-side – from core hardware specs to real-world gaming benchmarks. You‘ll also get tips on getting the best deal when buying one of these GPUs.
1050 Ti vs 1060 – Quick Summary
Before we dig into the nitty-gritty comparisons, here is a high-level overview.
GTX 1050 Ti
- Budget-friendly card for 1080p gaming
- Good for eSports titles and older AAA games
- Faster than previous generation 950 series
- Over 75+ FPS in most games at Medium settings
- Launched in October 2016 at $139
GTX 1060
- Big leap in performance over 1050 Ti
- 90+ FPS in modern games at High settings
- Smooth 1440p gaming experience
- VR ready with 6GB video memory
- Launched in July 2016 starting $249
Now let‘s compare the specs and performance of the 1050 Ti and 1060 in detail.
Detailed Hardware Specifications Comparison
Here is a specs comparison table looking at every metric from core hardware to memory, clock speeds, power draw and more.
| Specification | GTX 1050 Ti | GTX 1060 |
|---|---|---|
| GPU Codename | GP107 | GP106 |
| Manufacturing Process | 14 nm | 16 nm |
| Die Size | 132 mm2 | 200 mm2 |
| CUDA Cores | 768 | 1280 |
| Texture Units | 48 | 80 |
| Texture Rate | 49.2 GTexel/s | 80 GTexel/s |
| Pixel Rate | 48.8 GPixel/s | 80 GPixel/s |
| Clock Speed | 1290 MHz | 1506 MHz |
| Boost Clock | 1392 MHz | 1708 MHz |
| Memory | 4GB GDDR5 | 3GB / 6GB GDDR5 |
| Memory Bus | 128-bit | 192-bit |
| Memory Bandwidth | 112 GB/s | 192 GB/s |
| Release Date | Oct 2016 | Jul 2016 |
| TDP | 75 watts | 120 watts |
| Power Connector | None | 1 x 6-pin |
| Outputs | HDMI 2.0b DisplayPort 1.4 DVI-D |
HDMI 2.0b DisplayPort 1.4 Dual-link DVI-D |
| Dimensions | 17 x 11.5 x 3.5 cm | 28 x 15 x 3.5 cm |
| DirectX | 12 | 12 |
| OpenGL | 4.5 | 4.5 |
| VR Ready | No | Yes |
| Launch Price | $139 | $249 |
Right off the bat, you can observe meaningful differences in key areas:
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Significantly higher CUDA cores – The 1060 squeezes in 1280 cores over the 1050‘s 768. More CUDA cores translate into faster processing capabilities.
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Faster clock speeds – At base and boost clocks, the 1060 bests the 1050 Ti meaning quicker video processing and frame rendering
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Better memory and bandwidth – The 1060 ships with faster 6 or 8 GB GDDR5 memory modules taking total bandwidth to 192 GB/s vs 112 GB/s on the 1050 Ti. This results in improved performance with higher resolution textures and assets in VRAM.
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Higher power but no external connector – The 1050 Ti pulls only 75W allowing most motherboard PCIe slots to power it without any connector. But the 1060 needs a 6-pin connector to feed its 120W appetite.
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Bigger die size and dimensions – At 314 mm2 the 1060 chip is significantly larger than the 1050 Ti‘s 132 mm2 die. And the overall card length is 1.7x bigger.
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VR ready – With its faster clock speeds and bandwidth, the 1060 meets minimum specs for powering VR headsets like the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive.
As you can see, while both cards share Pascal architecture and 4th gen Tensor cores, the 1060 simply has more resources with its full GP106 GPU compared to the cut-down GP107 chip on the 1050 Ti. And you pay a premium for that extra performance.
Now let‘s see how these specs translate into real-world gaming numbers.
Performance and Benchmark Comparison
Synthetic benchmarks are one thing, but gamers care about fps in actual games. Will those higher CUDA cores and memory bandwidth make a noticeable difference to your experience? Absolutely.
Here is a look at average fps performance in popular games at 1080p resolution. The data has been averaged between multiple benchmark sources – the exact test bed components differ but all follow standard testing methodologies.
On average across modern AAA games released within the last 3 years, the 1060 provides 53% higher frame rates over the 1050 Ti at High quality settings! And a whopping 81% improvement at Highest settings with all eye-candy maxed out. That‘s well above the 70 fps mark for butter-smooth gameplay.
Now the 1050 Ti itself is no slouch, consistently hitting over 60 fps across eSports titles like CS:GO, Dota 2 etc. So if you play online multiplayer games more, want to save money and aren‘t too fussed about max fidelity graphics, the 1050 Ti gets the job done on a tight budget.
But for story-based single player titles, the 1060 offers headroom for higher resolutions and future proofing. 1440p gaming is very doable with fps numbers only dipping ~15% compared to 1080p. And you can always tweak some settings down from Ultra. That‘s why for serious gamers who want the best visuals, we recommend stepping up to the 1060.
Real World Impact: That 50% performance uplift with the 1060 translates into much richer, immersive scenery and smoother gameplay without annoying lag or frametime spikes. Cranking up the eye candy is what it‘s all about!
Of course raw performance depends on rest of your components too – processor, system RAM, storage etc. Our benchmark numbers assume modern parts all around. As the GPU is easiest to upgrade, the 1060 drop-in provides an instant experience boost versus balancing every old component.
Now let‘s take a look at how pricing and availability compares between the two graphics cards today.
Current Pricing and Deals
Considering these GPUs launched years back, it‘s natural for once high sticker prices to come down substantially. Here‘s a historical price trend since release:
- When first released in 2016, the 1050 Ti retailed just under $150. The higher spec 1060-6GB debuted at $300+.
- Like most PC hardware, graphics cards saw massive price hikes in 2018 due to crypto mining demand. Mid-range cards were hardest hit with 500%+ price increases!
- Thankfully the boom and bust crypto cycle has subsided and GPU prices are back to sane levels in 2022. There are periodic supply shortages but no where as drastic.
- Now in Jan 2023, the GTX 1050 Ti is widely available at $170 which is great value historically. Meanwhile the cheapest 6GB 1060 models hover between $210 to $230.
I track tech prices across multiple retailers to spot the best deals. Here are current recommendations if you‘re buying one of these cards today:
Best Value 1050 Ti
EVGA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti SC Gaming
- Dual fan cooler and quality components
- Small size great for compact builds
- $175 (Follow link for latest price)
Best Value 1060 6GB
MSI Geforce GTX 1060 Ventus XS
- Twin frozr cooling keeps temps down
- RGB lighting adds flair
- $229 (Check link for today‘s price)
I hope you found this GTX 1050 Ti versus 1060 guide useful. Let‘s wrap up with final thoughts.
Conclusion – Which is the Better Buy in 2023?
For pure performance and future proofing against new game demands, the GTX 1060 6GB beats out the 1050 Ti hands down. You‘ll enjoy 50%+ faster framerates in AAA titles for smoother, artifact-free gaming. And there‘s room to push higher resolutions while retaining playable frame rates.
However if you‘re on a tight budget or play less demanding eSport titles, the 1050 Ti still delivers decent 1080p performance while saving $50+. It‘s the best value card under $200 that can run most games at Medium to High settings nicely. Pair it with a modern quad core CPU and 16GB system RAM, and you have a nice 1K gaming PC build.
So in summary:
Get the 1050 Ti if you want:
- 1080p gaming under $800 total budget
- Play fast paced online multiplayer games
- Don‘t care about maxing all settings
Get the 1060 6GB if you want:
- Future proof 1080p and 1440p gaming
- Highest fidelity graphics in AAA games
- Buttery smooth 60+ FPS performance
- Entry level VR gaming
If you found this comparison helpful, please share it with fellow gamers who maybe deciding between these two cards. Have fun shopping and happy gaming!
