Top Graphics Cards for Gaming PCs in 2025

When you're setting out to build or upgrade your gaming PC, the best graphics cards are often the first thing that comes to mind. There's a simple reason for that: When it comes to PC games, GPUs are the most impactful component in determining your rig's raw frame rates. Quite simply, most of the time, a better graphics card directly results in better performance – at least up to a point. With Nvidia's RTX 5090 and RTX 5080 cards available today, here are the best graphics cards on the market right now.

TL;DR: These Are the Best Graphics Cards:

Our Top Pick### Zotac Gaming Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Super

2See it at Amazon### Gigabyte Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090

2See it at Newegg### Gigabyte AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX

1See it at Amazon### Gigabyte AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT

0See it at Amazon### MSI Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060

0See it at AmazonThese days, GPUs have legitimately become a luxury good. With graphics cards like the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 costing upwards of $1,999, you can expect to pay top dollar for top performance. Prices are still way higher than they were when the GTX 970 blew my mind in 2014 – even when adjusted for inflation. However, if you temper your expectations, you can still get a solid gaming experience for a fraction of that price, especially if you're okay with gaming at 1440p or 1080p.

I've been reviewing graphics cards for the last four generations, and I've personally benchmarked, built with, and played games using every GPU on this list. If none of these strike your fancy, feel free to comment below what kind of gaming experience you're looking for, and I'd be happy to help you find the perfect card for your build.

What to Look for in a Graphics Card

While it would be easy to just tell you to get the most powerful graphics card on the market for the best gaming experience, the truth is that picking a GPU requires a bit more thought. Not all graphics cards are created equal, and everyone needs something a little different out of their PCI-E brick.

The resolution you play games at is the first thing you want to figure out. Whether you already have a gaming monitor you love or you're looking to build up an entire gaming battlestation, decide on your resolution first. This is because a graphics card that's great at 4K isn't exactly going to translate to an amazing 1080p graphics card. Just take a look at the Nvidia RTX 5090. While the new flagship flies at 4K, it can actually be slower than much cheaper graphics cards at 1080p, due to CPU bottlenecking. Instead, if you're playing at 1080p, something like the Intel Arc B580 is going to be a much better fit. You're still going to get solid gaming performance, but at a much lower price, which you can use to buy more games. Likewise, 1440p gamers are probably best off buying something like the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT or the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Super.

Budget is also a huge concern, and graphics cards are only getting more expensive these days. It would be awesome if everyone could afford an Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090, but that's just not the world we live in. These days, the floor sits around $200-$250. For that price, you can get a solid 1080p graphics card without having to go back to a previous generation. If you have a bit more cash, something like the Nvidia RTX 4060 will unlock all of Nvidia's exclusive bells and whistles – though they're much less important on a lower-end GPU.

If you really want to go all-out, you can get an amazing graphics card for around $1,000. Both the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX and Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 will provide an awesome 4K gaming experience, and the one you choose should ultimately depend on how much you care about ray tracing. For most people that just want raw gaming performance, the Radeon RX 7900 XTX is probably going to be a better option, but you're going to want to wait a minute for AMD's next-generation offering. I don't know how well the Radeon RX 9070 XT is going to perform until I benchmark it, but it should prove to be great for 4K gaming, especially with the upcoming FSR 4.

With more expensive graphics cards, power is going to be a big concern. You're going to want to make sure you check which power supply you have, and check it against the power requirements for the graphics card you're looking at. Something like the Intel Arc B580 can get away with a 450W PSU, but you're going to want to make sure you have something much more powerful for the Radeon RX 7800 XT, for instance. You don't need to go overboard and fork over the cash for a power supply that offers twice the recommended power; just make sure you have enough juice to keep your GPU going.

5 Images1. Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Super

The Best Graphics Card for Most People

Our Top Pick### Zotac Gaming Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Super

2This RTX 4070 Super from Zotac is the best graphics card for most people, packed with an awesome dual-fan cooler and all the performance you'll need. See it at AmazonProduct SpecificationsCUDA Cores/Stream Processors7168Base Clock1,980MHzBoost Clock2,475MHzVideo Memory12GB GDDR6XMemory Bandwidth504.2GB/sMemory Bus192-bitPower Connectors1 x 16-pinOutputs1 x HDMI 2.1, 3 x DisplayPort 1.4 Size10.5 x 4.4 x 1.7 inches (L x W x H)PROSGood power for the moneyCan break into 4K in some gamesCONSShould have had 16GB of VRAMWhile it kind of hurts to call any GPU that costs $599 affordable, that's kind of what the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Super is going for. For a mid-range price, you're getting an extremely solid graphics card that can pump out 1440p-ready gaming performance, and can even stretch into 4K in certain games. It's not the most powerful graphics card out there right now, but this would be Goldilocks' choice.

When I reviewed the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Super, I found it to be an extremely strong contender, and probably the best of the mid-generation refresh cards that Nvidia launched at CES 2024. While it still has the same 12GB of VRAM that held the original RTX 4070 back, the RTX 4070 Super is packed with 7,168 CUDA cores, compared to 5,888 in the original model. That's a 21% jump in shading cores, and this difference is reflected in gaming performance.

Nvidia RTX 4070 Super Benchmarks

3 ImagesJust looking at a game like Cyberpunk 2077, which absolutely loves CUDA, you can see a 12% jump in performance over the RTX 4070 at 1440p. And, at 4K, the RTX 4070 Super is 13% faster than its predecessor in CD Projekt Red's demanding RPG. Likewise, when running a game like Forza Horizon 5 at 4K, the RTX 4070 Super manages an impressive 123 fps, compared to the 94 fps of the original RTX 4070. That's a 30% increase in performance at the same launch price.

No matter which game you play at 1440p, you're going to get extremely good performance out of the RTX 4070 Super, and that'll translate into 4K gaming more often than not. And with 1440p gaming growing in popularity, there's never been a better time to upgrade to a card that can really soar at that resolution.

Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 – Photos

5 Images2. Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090

The Best Nvidia Graphics Card

### Gigabyte Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090

2The Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 is now the most powerful graphics card on the market, even if it claims that title with a bit less force than in previous generations. See it at NeweggProduct SpecificationsCUDA Cores/Stream Processors21,760Base Clock2.01GHzBoost Clock2.41GHzVideo Memory32GB GDDR7Memory Bandwidth1,792 GB/sMemory Bus512-bitPower Connectors1 x 16-pinOutputs1 x HDMI 2.1b, 3 x DisplayPort 2.1bSize (Founders Edition)11.9 x 5.39 x 1.9 inches (L x W x H) (Dual Slot)PROSThe most powerful consumer GPU out there, period. DLSS 4 multi frame gen will help further boost frame rates.CONSGeneration-on-Generation improvement not very excitingThere's no way around it, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 is the most powerful graphics card on the market right now. Full stop. While it doesn't mark the same kind of generational growth that the RTX 4090 or even the RTX 3090 did, there's no getting around the fact that it provides the best gaming performance you can get right now – especially when you take DLSS multi-frame generation into account.

Not only is the RTX 5090 bigger than the 4090, now coming with 21,760 CUDA cores and 32GB of GDDR7 memory, but it also has a much higher power budget. When I reviewed the RTX 5090, I found the next-gen graphics flagship would peak at a staggering 578W, a huge increase from the 448W of the RTX 4090. With all that extra power, Nvidia also had to find a better way to dissipate heat, and introduced a new cooler for its Founders Edition. Instead of doubling down on the triple-fan design of the last couple of generations, Team Green actually found a way to slim the design back down to a dual slot cooler, something I haven't seen in a flagship Nvidia graphics card since the RTX 2080 Ti.

Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 – Benchmarks

14 Images