“What graphics card within my budget gives me the best bang for my buck?”

That simple question cuts to the core of what people hunting for a new graphics card look for: the most oomph they can afford. Sure, the technological leaps behind each new GPU can be interesting on their own, but most everyone just wants to crank up the detail settings on Battlefield and get right to playing.

Answering the question can be a bit trickier than it seems. Raw performance is a big part of it, but factors like noise, the driver experience, and supplemental software also play a role in determining which graphics card to buy. And do you want to pay Nvidia’s RTX premium to get in on the bleeding edge of real-time ray tracing?

Let us make it easy for you. We’ve tested nearly every major GPU that's hit the streets over the past couple of years, from $100 budget cards to $1,200 luxury models. Our knowledge has been distilled into this article—a buying guide with recommendations on which graphics card to buy, no matter what sort of experience you’re looking for.

Note: There are customized versions of every graphics card from a slew of vendors. For example, you can buy different GeForce GTX 1660 models from EVGA, Asus, MSI, and Zotac, among others.

We’ve linked to our formal review for each recommendation, but the buying links lead to models that stick closely to each graphics card’s MSRP. Spending extra can get you hefty out-of-the-box overclocks, beefier cooling systems, and more. Check out our “What to look for in a custom card” section below for tips on how to choose a customized card that’s right for you.

We’re entering a quiet period for fresh graphics hardware (finally) but that doesn’t mean that things are totally quiet. Several leaks and rumors, such as this one from Tom’s Hardware, suggest that a new GeForce GTX 1650 GPU is currently being tested. It’s expected to launch in late April for around $180.
Radeon graphics cards based on a new “Navi” architecture are expected to launch sometime in 2019, but AMD hasn’t publicly stated any sort of release window for the GPUs.

Best budget graphics card

Gigabyte Aorus Radeon RX 570

The Gigabyte Aorus is a gorgeous, well-performing graphics card. The Radeon RX 570 is the best sub-$200 gaming option around—but it isn't much of a step up over the RX 470.

The best low-cost graphics card you can buy right now didn’t start off as one. The AMD Radeon RX 570 started off as a $180 refresh of the already-great Radeon RX 470, but now that 2018’s cryptocurrency crunch is over and Nvidia’s new wave of mainstream GPUs is starting to crest, this family of graphics cards is starting to get cheap. Like, really cheap. “You can always find a Radeon RX 570 for $130 with two free games thrown in” cheap.

That’s an incredibly enticing price for a superb 1080p graphics card that can hit the hallowed 60 frames per second mark at High or Ultra settings in most modern games. You may need to tinker with some visual settings to achieve that goal, though. Both 4GB and 8GB versions are available. Always take more memory if you can afford it in a graphics card, but the cheaper 4GB models should hold up fine at 1080p resolution in most games.

The insane value proposition of these discounted Radeon RX 570 graphics cards have rendered true budget GPUs like the GeForce GTX 1050 Ti and Radeon RX 560 obsolete unless you need a graphics card that doesn’t require any extra power connections. Just get one of these—and enjoy those free games while you’re at it.

Best 1080p graphics card

EVGA GeForce GTX 1660 XC Ultra

Nvidia's GeForce GTX 1660 and EVGA's superb XC Ultra custom design result in a new mainstream gaming champion. This is the graphics card you want for 1080p gaming at 60 frames per second.

Buckle up: While AMD claims the victory in the budget category, from here on out, the best graphics cards all belong to Nvidia, which recently rolled out both GeForce RTX 20-series and GTX 16-series GPUs.

Many PC gamers play on basic 1080p, 60Hz monitors, thanks to their compelling blend of resolution, speed, and affordable pricing. The best graphics card for feeding those displays is Nvidia’s $220-and-up GeForce GTX 1660, which we crowned “the new ‘sweet spot’ champion” in our review. The GTX 1660 beats the snot out of the Radeon RX 580—our previous long-standing sweet spot recommendation—in performance, soaring well past 60 fps in the games in our testing suite. It’s even faster than the Radeon RX 590, a card that costs $40 more at retail. On top of the performance advantage, the GeForce GTX 1660 comes equipped with 6GB of RAM, runs cool, and is incredibly power-efficient compared to its Radeon rivals. Plus, modern GeForce GPUs now play nice with affordable FreeSync monitors as well as pricier G-Sync display option. The GTX 1660 is a no-brainer.

A GREAT 120HZ/144HZ 1080P GAMING OPTION

EVGA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti XC Ultra

The EVGA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti XC Ultra strips out fancy extras to focus purely on great performance in all functional areas. It's an outstanding all-around graphics card.

Well, most of the time. We’ve recently witnessed incredibly good sales for the Radeon RX 580 that bring it down to the $170 or $180 range, with two free triple-A games thrown in. The GeForce GTX 1660 pummels it, but if you can find a deal that juicy, the Radeon RX 580 still delivers an outstanding 1080p gaming experience.

Conversely, if you’re playing on a 1080p monitor with an ultra-fast 120Hz or 144Hz refresh rate, consider investing in the more powerful $280 GeForce GTX 1660 Ti instead. It provides significantly more performance legroom than the GTX 1660, and you’ll appreciate it at those higher speeds. The GTX 1660 Ti could double as an entry-level 1440p gaming card, too.

Best 1440p graphics card

Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 Founders Edition

The Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 Founders Edition delivers superb 1440p and 1080p gaming as well as real-time ray tracing in an affordable package. The design of the graphics card is stunning, too.

Now we’re getting into the futuristic stuff—the GeForce RTX 20-series graphics cards, rife with hardware dedicated to real-time ray tracing and AI enhancements. But beyond those bleeding-edge extras, Nvidia’s RTX GPUs can just plain game.

The GeForce GTX 1660 and 1660 Ti are fine options for a decent 1440p/High gaming experience, but you won’t be able to crank graphics options to the max and still hit 60 fps in many games. That’s where the $350 GeForce RTX 2060 comes into play. This card delivers outstanding frame rates at 1440p even with all the bells and whistles turned on. It can feed the needs of a high-refresh-rate 1080p display, too.

Gigabyte GeForce RTX 2060 Windforce OC

The GeForce RTX 2060 is about 10 to 20 percent faster than the previous-gen GTX 1070, our last 1440p gaming champion. While it can’t quite topple the GTX 1080 or Radeon Vega 64 in raw performance, it costs a lot less than those options while running much cooler, quieter, and more efficiently. It trades blows with AMD’s Radeon Vega 56, but that card costs more while lagging behind the RTX 2060 in those crucial quality-of-life considerations.

Here’s where Nvidia’s bet on the future of gaming takes shape. The cutting-edge Turing GPU inside the 2060 and its pricier RTX siblings enable real-time ray tracing and AI-enhanced image processing, thanks to hardware dedicated to those tasks. The first wave of RTX-enabled games have been slow to appear, but they’re finally picking up steam, with Battlefield V, Final Fantasy XV, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Anthem, and Metro Exodus—which offers the best RTX implementation so far—flying the flag for Nvidia’s new tech.

Up here in the “firmly enthusiast” $500-ish territory you’ve got two options: Nvidia’s $500 GeForce RTX 2070 and AMD’s $500 Radeon RX Vega 64. And really, you’ve only got one option. The Radeon card has suffered from severe pricing inflation and availability woes since its August 2017 launch, and frankly it can’t compete with the RTX 2070 in performance or real-world bang-for-buck.

These graphics cards push a 144Hz 1440p monitor damned well in many games, or inch ever-closer to 60 fps at 4K resolution, especially if you pair them with a G-Sync monitor like the luscious, $600 ASUS ROG Swift PG278QR (though it costs more than the graphics cards themselves).

Our pick for the best of the bunch, the GeForce RTX 2070, actually flirts with or surpasses 60 fps at 4K in many of the games we’ve tested thanks to its enhanced performance. Bumping in-game graphics settings from Ultra down to High should send the card’s frame rates soaring past the mark.

The GeForce RTX 2070 offers a 10- to 15-percent average performance improvement over the GTX 1080 Founders Edition. That grows to just over 20 percent in games that respond well to hardware that can process GPU compute tasks asynchronously, like Rainbow Six Siege and Middle-earth: Shadow of War. Nvidia’s one-click Scanner auto-overclocking tool makes adding around 5 percent more performance a breeze.

Plus, Nvidia’s GeForce RTX GPUs are infused with dedicated hardware that support real-time ray tracing and enhance visuals with the power of machine learning and the company’s Saturn V supercomputer—feats no other graphics cards can match. The RTX 2070 has half as many dedicated ray tracing cores as the $1,200 GTX 2080 Ti, so if you want peak ray tracing performance, you’ll need to spend more.

Regardless, the GeForce RTX 2070 comes with that dedicated hardware in case the features do catch fire. Coupled with the performance boost in traditional games, it’s a no-brainer unless you find a GTX 1080 at an exceptional discount. We recommend EVGA’s GeForce RTX 2070 XC ($550 on Newegg), an overclocked, custom-cooled model that’s significantly cheaper than Nvidia’s Founders Edition card.

Best 4K graphics card at 60Hz

Asus ROG Strix RTX 2080

The powerful, massive Asus ROG Strix RTX 2080 lets you choose between chilly temperatures or near-silent operation, outclassing the Nvidia Founders Edition in every way. It's huge and very pricey, though.

If you want to dive headfirst into the word of 4K gaming, you want either the GeForce RTX 2080 or AMD’s Radeon VII, each of which will set you back $700. Practically, you’ll probably wind up with an RTX 2080, since the supply of Radeon VIIs has been very limited since launch.

AMD Radeon VII

AMD's Radeon VII is a fast, memory-rich graphics card loaded down with the latest technologies. It trades blows with Nvidia's GeForce RTX 2080 in 4K gaming.

Both cards run neck-and-neck in traditional gaming performance, delivering a consistent 60 frames per second at 4K resolution with plenty of graphical bells and whistles cranked, though each GPU claims significant victories over the other in select games. The GeForce RTX 2080 is slightly faster on average. In games that can’t quite hit 60 fps at Ultra graphics settings, dialing back the anti-aliasing (which isn’t a necessity at pixel-packed 4K) and turning some visual options to High will get you there. Like the GeForce RTX 2070, these are excellent candidates for pairing with a 4K G-Sync monitor, and they deliver superb high refresh-rate 1440p gaming experiences too.

You can’t go wrong with either of these graphics cards (unless you already have a similarly performing GTX 1080 Ti, that is). The Radeon VII packs a massive 16GB of HBM2 blazing along at 1TBps of bandwidth, which outpaces the RTX 2080’s 11GB of GDDR6 memory and could provide a substantial boost in content creation tasks if you use your GPU for work as well as play. On the flip side, the GeForce RTX 2080 Founders Edition works with Nvidia’s ultra-popular CUDA compute workloads, runs much quieter than the Radeon VII, and offers the same real-time ray tracing and Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) capabilities as its RTX brethren.

The best 4K, 144Hz graphics card

Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Ti Founders Edition

Nvidia's GeForce RTX 2080 Ti costs significantly more than its predecessor, but it's also the first graphics card capable of gaming well past the 4K/60 barrier. If you can afford it, this graphics card can feed a 4K, 144Hz monitor like no other, and it's built for the future with dedicated ray tracing hardware.

The gaming world finally blew past the 4K/60 barrier in summer, 2018. Between the release of 4K, 144Hz G-Sync HDR monitors like the Acer Predator 27 and the September 27 release of Nvidia’s monstrous GeForce RTX 2080 Ti, you no longer need to compromise on sheer face-melting speed to achieve maximum fidelity. You can have your cake and eat it, too.

Acer Predator X27

The GeForce RTX 2080 Ti surpasses the hallowed 60-fps barrier across our entire benchmarking suite, save for in Ghost Recon Wildlands, which designed its upper-tier graphics settings to melt even the most potent GPUs. If you disable anti-aliasing and drop the graphics options from Ultra to High—reasonable, common compromises at 4K resolution that sacrifice little in visual quality—then it clears 80 fps across the board. This puppy howls.

4K gaming performance with High graphics settings and no anti-aliasing. The GeForce RTX 2080 Ti is the green bar.
The card might get even faster in the future, too. Like the other GeForce RTX 20-series GPUs, it includes dedicated hardware for Deep Learning Super Sampling, which improves performance by a whopping 39 percent in Nvidia’s demos. If developers embrace DLSS, the RTX 2080 Ti could become even more fearsome, and while initial uptake has been slow, dozens of titles have lined up ray tracing or DLSS support. Our deep-dive into the Nvidia Turing GPU inside the GeForce RTX 2080 and 2080 Ti explains these new technologies in detail if you’re.

But be warned: This glorious future for gaming doesn’t come cheap if you want to buy in today. The first G-Sync HDR monitors go for a cool $2,000, though a less-vibrant 4K, 144Hz G-Sync display will launch soon for $1,300. And while the GeForce RTX 2080 Ti ostensibly starts at $1,000—already a $300 increase over the GTX 1080 Ti—the Nvidia RTX 2080 Ti costs $1,200 at Best Buy or GeForce.com in reality. Custom, overclocked models by the likes of EVGA and MSI cost even more in some cases. Living on the cutting-edge never comes cheap, but this generation, it’s truly luxury-priced.

If you can afford it, though, playing HDR games at 4K, 144Hz is nothing short of glorious.

What to look for in a custom card
If you want to shop beyond the scope of our picks, know that finding the right graphics card can be tricky. Various vendors offer customized versions of every GPU. For example, you can buy different Radeon RX 570 models from Sapphire, XFX, Asus, MSI, and PowerColor.

To help narrow down the options and find the right card for you, you should consider the following things when doing your research:

Overclocks: Higher-priced custom models are often overclocked out-of-the-box to varying degrees, which leads to higher performance.

Cooling solutions: Many graphics cards are available with custom coolers that lower temperatures and fan noise. The vast majority perform well. Liquid-cooled graphics cards run even cooler, but require extra room inside your case for the tubing and radiator. Avoid graphics cards with single-fan, blower-style cooling systems if you can help it, unless you have a small-form-factor PC or plan on using custom water-cooling blocks.

Length: Many graphics cards are of a similar size, but longer and shorter models of many GPUs exist. Double-check that your chosen graphics card will fit in your case before you buy.

Compatibility: Not all hardware supports a wide range of connectivity options. Higher-end graphics cards may lack DVI ports, while lower-end monitors may lack DisplayPorts. Ensure your graphics card and monitor can connect to each other. Likewise, make sure your power supply meets the recommended wattage for the graphics card you choose.

Real-time ray tracing and DLSS: While any graphics card can technically process real-time ray tracing, only Nvidia’s GeForce RTX graphics cards contain hardware dedicated to running the bleeding-edge tech at acceptable frame rates. They also include dedicated tensor cores for processing machine learning tasks such as Deep Learning Super Sampling, which uses AI to speed up the performance of your games with minimal hit to visual fidelity—in theory. In reality, image quality can take a hit under DLSS, although Nvidia has rapidly fixed games where the issue rears its head. That’s the beauty of machine learning. It can always get better.