Upgrade your Linux GPU: compare AMD and Nvidia options.
Upgrade your Linux GPU: compare AMD and Nvidia options.
Over the years I've been passionate about GPUs, especially Nvidias. I used to dual boot and now enjoy playing games smoothly on Linux with Steam and Lutris, which reignited my interest. My current setup is a 1660 Super, but it's limiting performance. I'm currently playing Cyberpunk and need better settings. Instead of buying the top Nvidia card right away, should I consider an AMD alternative for potential benefits like improved drivers or other advantages?
Why some users encounter problems with Nvidia drivers on Linux while others don’t seem to be affected can vary. I’ve experienced no issues with Nvidia drivers on Debian despite using various hardware. There are limitations when using Nvidia cards on Debian, such as the inability to adjust core clocks or fan speeds without additional software. Choose the most suitable card for your requirements, whether it’s AMD or Nvidia.
AMD performs well on Linux until you encounter specific requirements. For instance, GPU-accelerated rendering in Blender isn't possible without installing proprietary drivers; otherwise, NVIDIA might be a better choice if you don't need free software. In Davinci Resolve, HW acceleration fails with AMD regardless of whether you use the free or paid version. KDenlive only supports the inferior x264 encoder and lacks support for HEVC. You can still capture in HEVC with OBS, but compatibility remains limited across most applications. These limitations are mostly present with NVIDIA, though they don't significantly affect everyday users. Most problems were tied to NVIDIA on Wayland, which seems less critical now. Personally, I found the AMD FOSS Mesa drivers for gaming to be solid, with smooth updates and CoreCTRL overclocking functioning properly. VRAM OC, however, was completely non-functional.
I’m just starting out with Linux gaming, even though I’ve used it for a while. In the past I tried running WoW on Linux, but it was a big challenge and I didn’t want to commit that much effort to any game. Steam has made some progress in making gaming more user-friendly, and getting Cyberpunk to run without crashes took about an hour—reverting to the 470 drivers and finding the right Proton version helped. That’s fine with me. I don’t enjoy tweaking things; my PC is mainly for browsing, watching Netflix, and playing games. Convenience matters most to me. I’ve seen Nvidia get some complaints about their drivers, but I haven’t faced major problems myself. My approach is simple: if a game works, it should work—no need to overclock or stress test. I usually play older titles that fit my hardware, so I don’t have to spend a lot on the latest releases. If AMD and Nvidia are similar from a Linux perspective, I’ll look for the best deal that fits my budget.
Linux provides a restricted selection of games on Steam, limited to a few thousand titles, yet it runs Minecraft more smoothly due to its Java foundation. Often AMD GPUs underperform Nvidia ones, but I noticed two GPUs with identical specifications showing a 50% advantage in benchmarks. AMD tends to be more affordable. I generally favor Nvidia.
He shared this from a different discussion I gave before. Major DEs such as GNOME and KDE Plasma don’t even treat NVIDIA as a main focus. For example, Plasma is rejecting NVIDIA’s Wayland version and GNOME recently said NVIDIA won’t be seen as an obstacle for enabling X support. NVIDIA is known to cause trouble with Wayland. Even if your aim is gaming, we’ve seen patches for the Mesa stack fix problems that take months for NVIDIA to address. Plus, depending on your distro, versioning can be a bigger challenge, and you might not have seen those updates for a long time—especially on AMD.
My suggestion is always: For the most impressive results, prioritize your investment in time to optimize your card—NVIDIA for cutting-edge performance, AMD for a balance of features.
Examine the patterns shaping Linux gaming to guide your choices. You mentioned WoW, where developers generally avoid breaking functionality unless absolutely required. Recently, we've noticed Proton—Valve's driver-friendly "wine" setup for games—becoming more popular. Steamdeck now supports Arch-based distributions on AMD hardware, and thanks to Elden Ring, an effective anti-cheat solution is emerging for Linux. When checking compatibility via sites like protondb.com, users are increasingly adjusting settings and using environment tweaks to compensate for driver issues, while AMD users report growing support for native configurations. While this direction seems stable now, it appears unlikely to improve significantly in the near future.
most problems come from users who install upstream distros like Tumbleweed, Fedora, Arch (or similar) because Nvidia hasn't updated its drivers for the newest kernel releases. Could you consider Intel Arc? The graphics perform better on Linux than Windows, and since Linux/Proton/WINE use dxvk by default, you can run DirectX 8 and newer games without issues. Drivers from AMD and Nvidia are fully native in the kernel, making it the most seamless option on Linux.
AMD is definitely the way to go. Nvidia might create some headaches, especially if you're just starting with Linux—this could potentially damage your system. AMD offers better performance compared to Windows and very few problems.