DEV Community: Tom Hall The latest articles on DEV Community by Tom Hall (@tom_hall_fc0443470624c721). https://dev.to/tom_hall_fc0443470624c721 https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F3987267%2F53ec76f6-7fa2-4969-a369-6c95fd4856c4.jpg DEV Community: Tom Hall https://dev.to/tom_hall_fc0443470624c721 en GPU power draw is up 92% in a decade Tom Hall Tue, 16 Jun 2026 19:04:42 +0000 https://dev.to/tom_hall_fc0443470624c721/gpu-power-draw-is-up-92-in-a-decade-k69 https://dev.to/tom_hall_fc0443470624c721/gpu-power-draw-is-up-92-in-a-decade-k69 <p><em>Originally published on <a href="https://specpeak.com/blog/gpu-power-and-efficiency-2026" rel="noopener noreferrer">SpecPeak</a>.</em></p> <p>Modern GPUs keep getting faster and a lot hungrier. I pulled every desktop GPU in the SpecPeak database that has both a PassMark G3D score and a rated TDP (131 cards) and looked at how power, performance and efficiency moved from 2016 to 2026. Three findings stood out.</p> <h2> Power draw is up ~92% in a decade </h2> <p>The typical card we track drew 132W in 2016. In 2025 it is 253W, a 92% jump. Peak performance roughly tripled over the same window, but a growing share of each generation's gains is paid for in watts, not architecture.</p> <h2> The fastest card is not the most efficient </h2> <p>On performance-per-watt the RTX 5090 ranks 104th of 131. Mid-range parts (RTX 4060, RTX 4070, RX 9060) lead. The 2023 RTX 4060 delivers roughly 2.5x the performance-per-watt of the 2025 RTX 5090.</p> <h2> A generation that went backwards </h2> <p>The 2023 RTX 4060 posts 169.6 PassMark per watt; its 2025 successor, the RTX 5060, manages 143.1. The older card is about 18% more efficient. Same pattern between the 4060 Ti and the 5060 Ti.</p> <h2> How it was computed </h2> <p>Efficiency = PassMark G3D / rated TDP (a comparative proxy, not measured wall power). Dataset: the 131 desktop GPUs on SpecPeak with both values, as of June 2026.</p> <p>Full report with tables and the per-year breakdown: <a href="https://specpeak.com/blog/gpu-power-and-efficiency-2026" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://specpeak.com/blog/gpu-power-and-efficiency-2026</a></p> analytics news performance