Best Budget Graphics Cards in 2022

XFX Radeon RX 580 GTS

Top-end Performance With VR Capabilities

The RX 580 has the newest version of Polaris, and all of the features that were in the previous rendition of the RX have been upgraded. It has 8GB of memory, 4th generation GCN cores, a whole new interface, and its engine has been upgraded substantially.

The RX 580 provides gamers with top-end performance and long-lasting durability. It’s a good budget graphics card for less than $200, and it outperforms a lot of other cards in its class. It’s even capable of playing VR games with ease. However, the 1366Mhz clock speed isn’t the most impressive. It’s plenty of processing speed to satisfy most people, but it’s a little too slow for people who demand a lot from their graphics cards.

MSI GAMING GeForce RTX 2060

For Those Looking For Raw Power

The RTX 2060 is a little more expensive than a lot of the other items on this list, but it’s still a solid option to use as a budget graphics card. It has 6GB of memory and boasts a speedy 1710MHz clock. Even though it has less memory than a number of cheaper options, the memory is GDDR6, meaning its memory system can run faster and more efficiently than many older models.

There aren’t a whole lot of extra features to talk about. That’s one of the reasons that we only suggest this card to people who are looking for raw power. It has some performance advantages over cheaper cards, but it doesn’t bring as much value to the table. However, it does come with a digital copy of Anthem, so that’s one bonus feature that adds a little bit of value to the overall package.

 ASUS ROG Strix Radeon RX 560

Great for Getting Into PC Gaming

The Strix RX 560 is a low-budget graphics card that provides just enough power to let you get into PC gaming. It’s not very powerful, but it can handle the majority of new games on moderate settings or higher. For less than $140, that’s actually pretty impressive.

It has 4GB of V-RAM, and it has a clock that can be boosted to 1285MHz. It also has 1024 stream processors to help speed it up a little bit. If you’re the type of gamer that likes RGB lighting, you’ll be happy to know that the Strix RX 560 has RGB lighting installed, and it’s programmable to look and behave the way you want it to.

While the Strix RX 560 isn’t very powerful, it does have Tweak II installed, so you can easily manage your RX 560’s performance settings. If you’re just streaming YouTube videos, you can lower its performance a bit, and if you’re playing a demanding game, you can give it a little boost

 Gigabyte Geforce GTX 1050 Ti

Ideal for Those on a Tight Budget

The GeForce GTX 1050 Ti isn’t the most powerful graphics card, but it uses NVIDIA’s new Pascal architecture to improve its performance, and it’s a lot cheaper than the other GeForce models.

While the GTX 1050 only has 4GB of V-RAM, it can handle 1080p gaming at 60FPS, and it can stream video in 8K. That’s all due to the new Pascal system that NVIDIA has implemented into the GTX 1050 Ti. This may not be the best choice for every gamer, but it is a solid graphics card, and we recommend it to anyone that is on a tight budget.

MSI Gaming GeForce GTX 1660 Ti

Fastest GPU in this Price Range

The GTX 1660 Ti is one of the higher-end performance graphics cards on this list. It’s faster than almost every other card on this list, and it still costs less than $300.

It has a powerful GeForce GPU, a 1750MHz clock, 6GB of the latest V-RAM technology, and it’s compatible with the GeForce Experience software that NVIDIA created to monitor their graphics cards. It also has a pre-installed tuning utility that allows you to manage its settings.

In our opinion, this is a great card for playing the latest games, and it isn’t too expensive. It’s probably the best budget graphics card that you’re going to find for less than $300. That being said, it has a couple of drawbacks. It’s a little too large to fit into an SFF chassis, and you can find a better budget graphics card for 1080p gaming. However, this card is far more flexible than anything in its price range, and it’ll make the majority of gamers happy.

XFX RX-590P8DFD6 Radeon Rx 590 Fatboy

An Impressive Price-to-Performance Ratio

The XFX RX 590 is optimized to perform admirably for all kinds of gamers, and it’s also affordable. It isn’t without its flaws, but it is one of the top budget graphics cards. It’s simply more flexible than other cards.

The RX 590 has 8GB of GDDR6 V-RAM, and it’s capable of being overclocked to above-average speeds. The amount of power that the XFX RX 590 has for its price is fairly impressive. It’s VR-ready, and it can handle a lot of the most demanding titles for a low price point.

MSI Gaming GeForce GTX 1660

An Affordable Alternative to the 1660 Ti

We’ve covered several GeForce graphics cards, so you should know what to expect from the GeForce line. This card is no exception to the usual GeForce quality. It provides a lot of power to gamers, without costing a lot. It doesn’t have as many features as higher-end graphics cards, but it’s a great budget graphics card for gaming.

It has a faster processor than the majority of cards on this list, but it lacks the V-RAM power of other cards that cost the same amount. The GTX 1660 has a 1830MHz clock, but only 6GB of GDDR5 memory. Most of the other cards in this price range use GDDR6, and that can make this card underperform in certain situations. If you can’t afford the 1660 Ti, then 1660 is the card for you.

Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1050

Incredibly Affordable 1080p Gaming

This is essentially a downgraded version of the GTX 1050 Ti, but that isn’t necessarily a drawback. It’s a lot cheaper, and it’s still capable of providing a decent gaming experience. In fact, it’ll be difficult to find a card this cheap that doesn’t cost $50 more.

Unlike the 1050 Ti, the 1050 only has 2GB of V-RAM. However, it does have the same Pascal architecture that the Ti has, so it can make the most of its 2GB of V-RAM.

The 1050 also has a downgraded clock, but it’s still faster than other options on our list. It can run at 1518MHz, and NVIDIA claims that it can play games in 1080p despite its lower specs.

XFX Radeon RX 570

Fairly Powerful With an Advanced Cooling System

The RX 570 is another card that’s suitable for people on a low budget. It doesn’t have the fanciest features, but it is fairly powerful, and it has a decent cooling system to let it run for long periods of time.

Despite its cheap price, it has 8GB of memory, and it’s designed to allow you to mine cryptocurrency without having extra equipment. The processor isn’t the fastest, but it’s good enough to play a large selection of games without stuttering.

The XFX cooling system is what really sets the RX 570 apart from the rest of the graphics cards we’re reviewing. Despite being cheap, the cooling system is more advanced than you can find in systems twice as expensive.

Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1060 Windforce

High Performance Matched With Stellar Cooling

The 1060 Windforce sacrifices some of the power of the basic 1060 for an advanced cooling system. That makes it a little bit weaker, but it can perform at its peak for far longer than the basic 1060. If you’re okay with sacrificing a little bit of power for longer sessions, then the 1060 Windforce is for you.

It only has 3GB of memory, but the GeForce Experience software and the included performance utility will allow it to be manipulated for better performance. The clock is pretty fast as it can run at 1797MHz, and it only requires 400 watts of power from your power unit. That level of efficiency isn’t too common in this price range.

The Windforce fans in the 1060 Windforce are designed to suck the heat out of the 1060, and a direct-touch cooling pipe actively works to lower the card’s temperature.