Home > Smartphone processors comparison > Snapdragon 870 vs Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 – what's better?

Snapdragon 870 vs Snapdragon 7 Gen 3

Snapdragon 870
VS
Snapdragon 7 Gen 3
Snapdragon 870
Snapdragon 7 Gen 3

We compared two 8-core processors: Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 (with Adreno 650 graphics) and Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 (Adreno 720). Here you will find the pros and cons of each chip, technical specs, and comprehensive tests in benchmarks, like AnTuTu and Geekbench.

  1. Review
  2. Differences
  3. Benchmarks
  4. AnTuTu v11
  5. GeekBench 6
  6. Gaming
  7. Specs
  8. Comments (17)

Review

General comparison of performance, power consumption, and other indicators
CPU Performance
Single and multi-core processor tests
Gaming Performance
GPU performance in games and OpenCL/Vulkan
Battery life
Efficiency of battery consumption
NanoReview Score
Overall chip score

Key Differences

Main differences and advantages of each chip
Pros of Qualcomm Snapdragon 870
  • Supports 72% higher memory bandwidth (44 against 25.6 GB/s)
  • Has 1 MB larger L3 cache size than the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3
  • 22% higher CPU clock speed (3200 vs 2630 MHz)
Pros of Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 3
  • Has a smaller size transistor (4 versus 7 nm)
  • Higher GPU frequency (~46%)
  • Better instruction set architecture

Benchmarks

Performance tests in popular benchmarks
SoC:
Snapdragon 870
vs
Snapdragon 7 Gen 3

AnTuTu 11

The AnTuTu Benchmark measures CPU, GPU, RAM, and I/O performance in different scenarios
Snapdragon 870
1010069
Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 +2%
1027925
CPU 378231 411404
GPU 155526 217586
Memory 174975 154808
UX 301337 244127
Total score 1010069 1027925
Samples [102 tests] [175 tests]
Submit your AnTuTu result

GeekBench 6

The GeekBench test shows raw single-threaded and multithreaded CPU performance
Single-Core Score
Multi-Core Score
Asset compression 160.2 MB/sec 155 MB/sec
HTML 5 Browser 86.7 pages/sec 80.6 pages/sec
PDF Renderer 116.8 Mpixels/sec 101.8 Mpixels/sec
Image detection 80 images/sec 55.5 images/sec
HDR 108 Mpixels/sec 92.7 Mpixels/sec
Background blur 12 images/sec 11.4 images/sec
Photo processing 33.5 images/sec 21.8 images/sec
Ray tracing 4.41 Mpixels/sec 3.9 Mpixels/sec
Samples 34 tests 26 tests
Compute Score (GPU)
Background blur 5.01 images/sec 6.81 images/sec
Face detection 2.04 images/sec 3.22 images/sec
Horizon detection 0.19 Gpixels/sec 0.14 Gpixels/sec
Edge detection 0.26 Gpixels/sec 0.2 Gpixels/sec
Gaussian blur 0.21 Gpixels/sec 0.18 Gpixels/sec
Feature matching 0.03 Gpixels/sec 0.06 Gpixels/sec
Stereo matching 10.3 Gpixels/sec 15.9 Gpixels/sec
Particle physics 650.5 FPS 395.6 FPS
API OpenCL Vulkan
Samples 18 tests 19 tests

3DMark

A cross-platform benchmark that assesses graphics performance in Vulkan (Metal)
3DMark Steel Nomad Light
Score - 490
Stability - 98%
Graphics test - 4 FPS
3DMark Wild Life Extreme
Score 1224 1596
Stability 99% -
Graphics test 7 FPS 9 FPS

PCMark 3.0

Benchmark for evaluating overall system performance in everyday workloads
PCMark 3.0
Web score 11701 12784
Video editing score 5825 7333
Data manipulation score 9987 10354
Photo editing score 28690 25101
Writing score 15274 12578
Phones tested 2 models 2 models

Gaming

Table of average FPS and graphics settings in mobile games
PUBG Mobile 88 FPS
[Ultra]		 -
Call of Duty: Mobile 59 FPS
[Ultra]		 -
Fortnite 27 FPS
[Ultra]		 -
Shadowgun Legends 102 FPS
[Ultra]		 -
World of Tanks Blitz 107 FPS
[Ultra]		 -
Genshin Impact 49 FPS
[Ultra]		 -
Mobile Legends: Bang Bang 60 FPS
[Ultra]		 -
Device Xiaomi Black Shark 4
1080 x 2400		 -
We provide average results. FPS may differ, depending on game version, OS and other factors.

Recent User Tests

The latest benchmark tests that have been submitted by users
Qualcomm Snapdragon 870
DateBenchmarkResult
πŸ“˜ 2026-09-28 (Shiro1577)AnTuTu 121179210
πŸ“˜ 2026-09-27 (sayato)AnTuTu 121239133
πŸ“˜ 2026-09-23 -> AzuNoBelAnTuTu 121251812
πŸ“˜ 2026-09-23 (Ambarukmo_id)AnTuTu 121182612
πŸ“˜ 2026-09-21 -> sbx.777AnTuTu 121143560
Add View all (144)
Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 3
DateBenchmarkResult
πŸ“˜ 2026-09-10 (Bali)AnTuTu 111044174
πŸ“˜ 2026-08-11 (Baclaven)AnTuTu 11947758
πŸ“˜ 2026-07-26 (Raad)AnTuTu 111022189
πŸ“˜ 2026-07-20 (Tapnbridge)AnTuTu 111051017
πŸ“˜ 2026-07-15 (Iulitic211Rg)AnTuTu 111102591
Add View all (188)

Specifications

Full list of technical specifications of Snapdragon 870 and Snapdragon 7 Gen 3

CPU

Architecture 1x 3.2 GHz – Kryo 585 Prime (Cortex-A77)
3x 2.42 GHz – Kryo 585 Gold (Cortex-A77)
4x 1.8 GHz – Kryo 585 Silver (Cortex-A55)		 1x 2.63 GHz – Kryo Prime (Cortex-A715)
3x 2.4 GHz – Kryo Gold (Cortex-A715)
4x 1.8 GHz – Kryo Silver (Cortex-A510)
Cores 8 8
Frequency 3200 MHz 2630 MHz
Instruction set ARMv8.2-A ARMv8.6-A
L1 cache 512 KB -
L2 cache 1 MB -
L3 cache 4 MB 3 MB
Process 7 nanometers 4 nanometers
Transistor count 10.3 billion -
TDP (Sustained Power Limit) 6 W 6 W
Manufacturing TSMC TSMC

Graphics

GPU name Adreno 650 Adreno 720
Architecture Adreno 600 Adreno 700
GPU frequency 670 MHz 975 MHz
Pipelines 3 2
Shading units 256 256
Total shaders 768 512
FLOPS 1029.1 Gigaflops 998.4 Gigaflops
Vulkan version 1.1 1.3
OpenCL version 2.0 2.0
DirectX version 12.1 -

AI Accelerator

Neural processor (NPU) Hexagon 698 Yes

Memory

Memory type LPDDR5 LPDDR5
Memory frequency 2750 MHz 3200 MHz
Bus 4x 16 Bit 2x 16 Bit
Max bandwidth 44 Gb/s 25.6 Gb/s
Max size 16 GB 16 GB

Multimedia (ISP)

Storage type UFS 3.0, UFS 3.1 UFS 2.2, UFS 3.1
Max display resolution 3840 x 2160 2880 x 1800
Max camera resolution 1x 200MP, 2x 25MP 1x 200MP
Video capture 8K at 30FPS, 4K at 60FPS 4K at 60FPS, 1K at 120FPS
Video playback 8K at 30FPS, 4K at 60FPS 4K at 60FPS, 1080p at 120FPS
Video codecs - H.264
- H.265
- VP8
- VP9		 - H.264
- H.265
- VP8
- VP9
Audio codecs - AAC
- AIFF
- CAF
- MP3
- MP4
- WAV		 - AAC
- AIFF
- CAF
- MP3
- MP4
- WAV

Connectivity

Modem X55 Snapdragon X63
4G support LTE Cat. 22 LTE Cat. 18
5G support Yes Yes
Download speed Up to 7500 Mbps Up to 5000 Mbps
Upload speed Up to 3000 Mbps Up to 3500 Mbps
Wi-Fi 6 6
Bluetooth 5.2 5.4
Navigation GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS, SBAS, NAVIC GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS, NAVIC

Info

Announced January 2021 November 2023
Class Flagship Mid range
Model number SM8250-AC SM7550-AB
Official page Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 official site Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 official site
Successor - - Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3

Cast your vote

So, which SoC would you choose?
1785 (50.6%)
1741 (49.4%)
Total votes: 3526

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3. Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 vs Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 (1)
4. Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 vs MediaTek Dimensity 8200 (25)
5. Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 vs Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 (17)
6. Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 vs Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 (4)
7. Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 vs MediaTek Dimensity 8300 (14)
8. Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 vs Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 (3)
9. Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 vs Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 2 (19)
10. Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 vs MediaTek Dimensity 7200 (2)
Compare other chipsets (190+)

Comments

Please give your opinion on the comparison of Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 and Snapdragon 870, or ask any questions
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Avatar
Dennis April 10, 2026 at 12:05 AM
GPU wise 7 gen 3 is a little bit better for gaming 870 only have higher score because faster storage UFS 3.1
+8 Reply
Avatar
Kev August 25, 2026 at 02:20 PM
870 has better single core & multi core on geekbench, I'd take that any day than just better gpu driver tbh
0 Reply
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Kru October 2, 2025 at 01:05 PM
SD 870 is still an undisputed legend!
+22 Reply
Avatar
Janzter2123 March 11, 2026 at 11:58 AM
True Snapdragon cant beat it
+2 Reply
Avatar
Huh? May 31, 2025 at 07:18 AM
i dont like Snapdragon SoC that much...they heat up more easier than Dimensity SoC, plus Mediatek has taken the lead with 9300 and 9400 SoC for this Gen and previous Gen of SoC, however Snapdargon has better support for most app and emulators...but that gap slowly closing as well.
+14 Reply
Avatar
ItzFam February 1, 2025 at 09:08 PM
Yoo mid range has gone crazy over the years...they can easily be compared with old legends πŸ’€πŸ’€
+37 Reply
Avatar
Guna March 1, 2025 at 02:07 AM
Nope, 870, 865 are still powerful. I would definitely choose them over new mid rangers
+26 Reply
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Sora March 3, 2025 at 04:45 AM
Guna, Picking those mean you won't get any latest OS updates. My Xiaomi Pad 6 won't get Android 16 because Snapdragon will not release kernel for new OS. It's fast but will never be updated.
+4 Reply
Avatar
NONAME April 13, 2025 at 11:28 AM
Sora, Sora, I don't care about that, I use a Motorola Edge 20 Pro with custom ROM, so if you look at it from that point of view, it's trivial.
+4 Reply
Avatar
Sam April 17, 2024 at 07:18 PM
I've used both the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 and Snapdragon 870 phones, specifically the Poco F5 and Realme GT Neo 3T. I've tried out both stock ROMs and custom ROMs on these phones. In terms of performance, the 870 is far superior. However, the 7+ Gen 2 is more efficient. I prefer the 870 with a 6000 mAh battery. It performs excellently - even after 5 hours of constant gaming, it still provides consistent performance with no throttling. The system also doesn't heat up as much, making it highly stable with the best sustained performance.
+129 Reply
Avatar
Lolwat August 31, 2024 at 07:36 AM
Far superior in which game? Or which app? Are both devices running same resolution and settings? Are they at their max clockspeeds? Temperature?
+20 Reply
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Sammo September 2, 2024 at 09:28 AM
Lolwat, Pubg Codm CPU throttling etc 870 has better sustained performance over longer sessions on stock ROMs But it depends on UI Realme UI is always better than HyperOS Both on custom ROMs provide excellent performance no throttling at all like superior OS Evolution X ROM And AOSP ROMs 870 heats up more 44Β°c 7+ gen 2 stays under 39Β°c 7+ gen 2 is more powerful and more efficient 5.30 hours SOT in pubg in Realme GT Neo 3T 870 on pubg at 60 fps Almost 7 hours of SOT in Poco F5 7+ gen 2 in pubg at 60 fps
+12 Reply
Avatar
notfan October 30, 2024 at 06:56 PM
Sammo, LoL that temperature reading are came from OEM's thermal designs, u can't tell which chip is cooler or not Generally 7+gen2 many be more powerful and cooler but 870 still providing good mid range tier performance
+8 Reply
Avatar
Manong November 18, 2025 at 10:20 PM
it depends... if your thermal paste has ran out you might think it will not heat up?
0 Reply
Avatar
Potato. April 7, 2024 at 06:37 AM
This is still a V8 chip with a Gen 3 sticker. I suggest getting the 7 Plus as it's much superior. The 870 outperforms this one since it almost doubles the memory bandwidth. That's a huge deal.
+95 Reply
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King Miracle. August 20, 2024 at 10:02 AM
Memory bandwidth has little to zero impact on true performance. Take that with a pinch of salt.
+10 Reply
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Potato. October 13, 2024 at 02:33 PM
King Miracle., Well, once everything is loaded in, sure, but the loading times for everything are way faster even on old flagships. Thats why some of the new midrange mediateks seem so fast, because they have huge bandwiths. This is assuming both devices use the same UFS type storage, obviously.
+12 Reply
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