10+ Best Budget Graphics Card
In a budget-friendly gaming environment, it can be difficult to stay on top of the latest games, as both your wallet and your system are being squeezed. The best budget gaming GPU no longer forces you to play low-resolution, blurry games. On the contrary, a budget graphics card no longer restricts your game enjoyment. Depending on your budget, you may be able to find some of the best budget graphics cards from a range of GPU generation manufacturers. The best budget graphics card may not have large memory but they are useful if the tasks you intend to perform are not demanding.
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MSI AMD Radeon RX 6400 Aero ITX
Release Date: January 19, 2022
Memory: 4GB GDDR6
TDP: 53W
Interface: 1x HDMI 2.1 , 1x DisplayPort 1.4a
The Pros:
PCIe power is required
A GPU that is low-profile
60 frames per second for most games
The Cons:
Comparatively, the GPU performs poorly
It’s too expensive
The PCIe 3.0 interface is bottlenecked
VRAM of 4GB
It’s not the best choice if you’re trying to maximize FPS per dollar; MSI’s RX 6400 Aero ITX graphics card retails for $160, making it the most affordable budget graphics card in its class.
The card may be found for around $130, however.
You won’t be able to record or stream videos using the RX 6400 because it lacks H.264 and H.265 video encoding support. It cannot also be overclocked, so you will be limited by the performance of the GPU.
The situation isn’t all bad, though.
Gaming performance can be satisfied with the RX 6400’s low-profile, PCIe slot power, low-profile design.
Gaming Performance
With an RX 6400, we were able to demonstrate the type of performance you can expect in-game using benchmarks from Hardware Unboxed. With the Balanced Quality preset, you can get 60 FPS even at 1080p. But what about older titles that require more performance?
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, a game with higher requirements, is almost playable at 60 FPS with the RX 6400 at 1080p and medium quality. You will have drastically lower FPS if you don’t have a system that supports PCIe 4.0. The RX 6400 performs considerably better when running at PCIe 4.0.
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MSI Radeon RX 570 ARMOR 4G OC
MSI Gaming AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT
Release Date: April 18, 2017
Memory: 4GB GDDR5
TDP: 150W
Interface: 1x HDMI 2.0, 3 x DisplayPort 1.4a, 1 x DVI-D
The Pros:
A reasonable price (new and used)
A good performance
The Cons:
GPUs that are older
VRAM is only 4GB
The RX 6400 is a faster GPU than this older model.
A MSI Radeon RX 570 ARMOR 8G OC might be available second-hand for around $150 if you’re looking at the second-hand market.
Gaming can be done with it despite its higher power draw and 4GB of GDDR5 VRAM.
Gaming Performance
Even though it is significantly older, the RX 570 has an acceleration rate of around 8%.
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MSI GeForce GTX 1650 Super Gaming X
MSI G1650VXS4C Gaming GeForce GTX
Release Date: November 22, 2019
Memory: 4GB GDDR6
TDP: 100W
Interface: 1x HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a
The Pros:
Best performance at the $150 price range
Low power draw
The Cons:
No DLSS or ray tracing support
4GB VRAM
The MSI Geforce GTX 1650 Super Gaming X is where we can see some quality performance per dollar. It may have been released in 2019, but considering its performance and price, which dropped to around $155, it can easily convince you to go team NVIDIA.
It’s also a 4GB VRAM card with a TDP of 100W, and it still ends up in a completely different performance level compared to the two AMD GPUs listed above.
Gaming Performance
Looking at that same 12-game average from the video above, we can see that the GTX 1650 Super is almost 30% faster than the RX 6400 and around 20% faster than the RX 570. It’s even faster than an RX 6500 XT, a 2022 GPU. Let’s talk about that one for a bit.
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ASUS ROG Strix Radeon RX 5500 XT
Release Date: December 12, 2019
Memory: 8GB GDDR6
TDP: 130W
Interface: 1x HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a
The Pros:
8GB of VRAM
Solid price
The Cons:
No significant disadvantages
Gaming Performance
Again, we’ll rely on Hardware Unboxed’s benchmarks to determine the value of this card.At 1080p, the RX 5500 XT outperforms the RX 6400, RX 570, GTX 1650 Super, and even the RX 6500 XT, all while costing only a dime more. Its 8GB of VRAM also gives us hope that this GPU will last much longer than the other 4GB alternatives on this list.
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Sapphire Radeon RX 6500 XT Pulse
XFX Speedster QICK210 Radeon RX 6500XT Black Gaming
Release Date: January 19, 2022
Memory: 4GB GDDR6
TDP: 130W
Interface: 1x HDMI 2.1 , 1x DisplayPort 1.4a
The Pros:
6nm process node
RDNA 2 architecture
RSR Support
The Cons:
Awful dollar-per-FPS
4GB VRAM
The RX 6500 XT is the RX 5500 XT “successor,” but in reality, it’s a worse GPU overall. Both the GTX 1650 Super and RX 5500 are better than the Sapphire Radeon RX 6500 XT Pulse. Because this graphics card costs around $165. There’s also an 8GB variant, but that one is more expensive.
However, if you are limited in choices and you are in dire need of a budget GPU that can handle 60FPS+ gaming, the RX 6500 XT can be a good choice (for the right price.)
Gaming Performance
In a modern title like Doom Eternal, the RX 6500 XT struggles to keep up with other GPUs in the same price range.
This chart shows that the 1650 Super easily outperforms the 6500 XT. Of course, we imagine that the 8GB RX 6500 XT might deliver better performance in games that require more VRAM, but the 1650 would still come out on top.
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MSI GeForce GTX 1660 Super Gaming X
MSI Gaming GeForce GTX 1660 Super
Release Date: October 29, 2019
Memory: 6GB GDDR6
TDP: 125W
Interface: 1x HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a
The Pros:
Best NVIDIA GPU under $200
6GB VRAM
The Cons:
No ray tracing
No DLSS
At around $175, this is a direct upgrade from the GTX 1650 Super, and you get an extra 2GB of VRAM, which can be appreciated if you’re looking for a more future-proof card.
The MSI GeForce GTX 1660 Super Gaming X is slightly more expensive than the GTX 1650 Super and RX 5500 XT, coming closer to $200, but the extra FPS might be worth it.
Gaming Performance
In Cyberpunk 2077, with settings on Medium, the 1660 Super delivers a smooth 60 FPS gaming experience.Overall, this graphics card is about 15% faster than the RX 5500 XT, so definitely worth the extra ~$15.
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Sapphire Radeon RX 5600 XT Pulse
Release Date: January 21, 2020
Memory: 6GB GDDR6
TDP: 150W
Interface: 1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a
The Pros:
Best price-per-performance
Best card under $200
The Cons:
Slightly higher power draw compared to alternatives
The Sapphire Radeon RX 5600 XT Pulse offers one of the best, if not the best, FPS per dollar you can get right now. Moreover, with a price tag of just under $200, it can be a very lucrative offer.
It’s considerably faster than every single GPU we’ve listed above. The only downside might be that it has only 6GB of VRAM. Of course, an extra 2GB of VRAM would go a long way, but it’s not a deal breaker.
Gaming Performance
This time around, we used Gamers Nexus’ benchmark on Horizon Zero Dawn. The Sapphire RX 5600 XT is miles ahead of the RX 6500 XT (around 35% faster). It also outperforms the 1660 Super and the RTX 3050 (more on this GPU later) by about 15%.For a price tag close to the GTX 1660 Super and less than $200, the RX 5600 XT is the King of Budget GPUs.
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ASUS Dual Radeon RX 6600
ASUS Dual AMD Radeon™ RX 6600
Release Date: October 13, 2021
Memory: 8GB GDDR6
TDP: 132W
Interface: 1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a
SEE PRICE
The Pros:
Best performance under $250
8GB of VRAM
The Cons:
No significant cons
Because of its very competitive price point, the RX 6600, specifically this ASUS Dual, is currently one of the best budget GPUs available. It’s often priced around $230-240.
This is a big jump in price compared to the other GPUs on this list, but this GPU is worth its money once you check out its performance.
Gaming Performance
Looking at the 12-game average in Hardware Unboxed’s video (timestamped below), the RX 6600 outperforms old-generation high-end GPUs like the RTX 2070.The RX 6600 is even on par with the RTX 3060, a $300+ GPU.Even though the previously mentioned RX 5600 XT does have the best price-per-performance, the RX 6600 is still a good pick since it can deliver 60FPS at high quality.
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EVGA GeForce RTX 3050 XC Black
EVGA GeForce RTX 3050 XC Gaming,
Release Date: January 4, 2022
Memory: 8GB GDDR6
TDP: 130W
Interface: 1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a
The Pros:
No real advantages over the competition
The Cons:
Expensive
Disappointing performance
Considerably better alternatives
This card might be Nvidia’s biggest disappointment from the RTX 3000 series. Its performance won’t leave you impressed and even less impressed once you see the price. Its MSRP is around $250, which is already high. Roughly, the EVGA RTX 3050 XC Black sells for about $290, making it an even worse buy.
Gaming Performance
The RTX 3050, a GPU from 2022, barely surpasses the 2019 GTX 1660 Super which is over $100 cheaper. Based on this chart, the RTX 2060, RX 5600 XT, and RX 6600 are all much better budget graphics cards.
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Sapphire Radeon RX 6600 XT Pulse OC
Release Date: July 30, 2021
Memory: 8GB GDDR6
TDP: 160W
Interface: 1x HDMI 2.1, 2x DisplayPort 1.4a
The Pros:
Best performance under $300
Considerably faster than other GPUs at this price point
The Cons:
Higher power draw
The RX 6600 XT is the RX 6600’s big brother. It is also at 8GB of VRAM, but it has a higher TDP, and it’s clocked higher.
You can find this Sapphire RX 6600 XT Pulse OC for around $290. Similar to the RTX 3050, but the performance is where these two differentiate.
Gaming Performance
Sapphire RX 6600 XT Pulse OC Gaming Performance
The numbers on the chart above show that the RX 6600 XT can be up to 50% faster than the $290 RTX 3050.
It is evident that AMD’s card is superior in terms of performance, so if you’re looking for the most performance out of your $300, go for the RX 6600 XT.
Honorable Mentions
We went through some of the best GPUs you can buy with a budget price of under $300. Of course, anything above that isn’t really “budget.”
However, we have a few extra GPUs we thought we should mention from which you can choose from:
RTX 2060 – solid GPU, comparable performance to RTX 3050. Good option if cheaper than $250.
RTX 2060 Super– slight upgrade 2060, but usually about $50 more expensive.
RTX 2070– costs around $290 but can deliver some serious performance.
GTX 1660 Ti– similar performance to the 1660 Super. Worth considering.
RX 5700/XT– Both are great cards if you can find them under $250. Performance is comparable to the RTX 2070.
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Final thoughts on Best Budget Graphics Card
Raw performance and benchmarks can give a good idea of what you can get from a graphics card. However, multiple factors have not been considered in these benchmarks/charts we posted above. And yes, it’s essential to consider those factors to get a clearer picture of the GPU’s capability.
For example, NVIDIA’s superior ray tracing performance compared to AMD. DLSS is also a huge part of all RTX graphics cards, which can bring significant performance uplifts. AMD’s FSR 2.0 can also create a leap in FPS on both AMD and NVIDIA cards. AMD Smart Access Memory is another feature that can boost FPS. Either way, we hope that this list of the ten best budget graphics cards on the market right now will help you choose the right one.