Best Graphics Cards (GPU) Ranking List December 2024

Finding the best graphics cards for your PC might turn out to be a challenging task. If you’re a gamer, getting even a decent graphics card has been quite difficult in recent years. You can try a variety of tactics to get a next-generation graphics card at retail, but unless you’re lucky, you’re likely to find older GPUs at higher prices. You’ll need to be a little creative with both your buying and expectations, whether you need the best graphics cards money can buy right now or something to tide you over until inventory stabilizes.

However, we are here to help you pick the best laptop or PC with the perfect graphics card. A graphic card is the soul of any gaming PC or laptop. If you don’t have a good GPU, your games will underperform, and you will face lagging issues. So without any further delay, let’s get it started.

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What is a GPU or Graphics Card?

A GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) is a dedicated processing component responsible for only video rendering, 3D animation and video playback. In simple terms, it is a highly efficient processor that helps create videos and play games. In modern computing, GPUs are part of the entire system architecture since literally everything that remotely resembles a computer has one, e.g. Smartphone, laptop, workstation, PC, Play station etc.

The GPU arose as a complement to the CPU, its near cousin (central processing unit). GPUs are specifically built to accelerate computer graphics applications. Knowing about the GPU rankings when looking for a system might help you get the one that best suits your needs.

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How to Pick the Best Graphics Card?

Picking the best graphics card for your laptop or PC is an important task. Though multiple factors come into play while choosing the best graphics card, the few that I have mentioned in this article are vital.

1. GPU Release Date

Regardless of your budget, your primary goal should be to acquire a GPU that’s the latest in its price segment. Whether you’re going for the cheaper beasts, such as the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 or more expensive variants like the GeForce RTX 3080, check their release date. The more recent the release date is, the better the GPU will perform.

Naturally, newer GPUs use advancements in technology to lower power consumption while delivering better performance. Their architectures change, leading to a change in clock speeds or memory bandwidths as well. So, keeping your budget in mind, go for a GPU that’s been released recently.

On the other hand, newer GPUs also signal the price drop of older GPUs that were more expensive previously. So, you can check out a GPU that was too expensive a few months ago but faced a price drop due to a better GPU release.

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2. Higher Clock Speeds

Most people, when looking for the best graphics cards, tend to check the VRAM capacity. While memory size is a vital aspect of a GPU, it’s not the biggest contributor to a GPU’s price. Instead, look for GPUs that have a higher clock speed.

This is similar to the clock speeds you’ll find in CPUs. Although the GPU clock speeds may not be as high as that of the CPU, higher clock speeds mean better performance. Combine this with the type of memory that the GPU uses, and you’ve got a decent GPU to buy.

For example, a GPU with a high clock speed but GDDR3 VRAM won’t perform as well as GPU with the same clock speed and GDDR5 VRAM. So, go for higher clock speeds, especially if you want to play intense games such as Cyberpunk 2077 or Red Dead Redemption 2.

3. Higher Graphics Memory

This is the factor that most people depend on when buying a new GPU. A graphics card with a high amount of graphics memory will be able to load the game’s textures much faster than an inferior GPU with less memory. Moreover, considering the fact that most modern games require 4GB VRAM or more for higher quality textures, you should go for a GPU with a substantial amount of VRAM.

A good benchmark with today’s standard of gaming would be GPUs with 6GB VRAM or more. While 4GB VRAM will suffice for the time being, these GPUs will soon be outdated. Instead, you can save the extra cash and go for the best graphics cards with 6GB VRAM or more!

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4. Reference or Non-reference

Like CPUs, high GPU usage can also lead to overheating. So, multiple manufacturers often sell GPUs with certain modifications. Most of these modifications are directed towards the GPU cooling system. However, before we dive deeper into this, you’ll have to understand the difference between reference and non-reference GPUs.

Reference GPUs come directly from the makers of GPUs such as Nvidia or AMD. These companies often sell their GPUs directly to consumers. However, they can also sell the cards to third-party companies who are entitled to make changes to the GPUs. They make their own modifications to the GPU and sell it to consumers. These modified versions of GPUs are called non-reference GPUs.

The prices of reference and non-reference GPUs vary based on the modifications. Nonetheless, if your gaming setup has no cooling system whatsoever, you should check out some non-reference GPUs with cooling system modifications before making a purchase.

5. Compatibility

Compatibility is often the most overlooked aspect when buying a graphics card. It’s ironic, as this is also one of the most important aspects you should take a look at. Your GPU must be compatible with your motherboard – both in terms of slot and space.

The motherboard you’re using must have a PCIe 16-slot, which is the slot that GPUs are plugged into. However, there must be enough space around the slot to not interfere with any of the other components on the motherboard.

For example, let’s assume that your motherboard has the required PCIe 16-slot, and you’ve bought a new GPU. However, it might turn out that your GPU’s overall size creates an issue with the rest of the motherboard’s components.

It’s either not fitting at all or creating a tight fit, which may impact overall performance. So, ensure that you check the GPU’s dimensions online on an official website and check your motherboard’s available slots before purchasing a graphics card.

6. CPU compatibility

Since the CPU and GPU work in sync to produce the beautiful graphics you see on your monitor, the GPU you’ve bought must be compatible with your GPU as well. Most games utilise both the CPU and GPU for performance. If your GPU is powerful but your CPU isn’t equally powerful, most of the graphical effects in games won’t work well.

You’ll face multiple issues in terms of texture loading, anti-aliasing, and physics effects. You should conduct thorough research before going for a particular GPU, especially to understand if it’s compatible with your CPU or not. Otherwise, either your GPU or CPU will face a bottleneck in performance.

7. Power Supply

Finally, we have the aspect of power supply. Both the CPU and GPU require extensive power to function with stability. So, when you’re choosing the best graphics card for your gaming PC, ensure that you check the power supply that you’re using currently. Although new GPUs use architectures to lower the overall power consumption, the more powerful GPUs still require a hefty amount of power.

Moreover, the power supply unit (PSU) will also provide power to your CPU and other such components of the computer. If your new GPU requires a lot of power, it won’t be able to draw the power from the supply unit unless there’s enough available, after the CPU and other components utilise a certain amount of that power.

For instance, if your PSU provides you with around 450W of power, you won’t be able to use a graphics card like Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 to its full potential. Considering all the other factors involved, you’ll require at least a 650W to 1000W PSU for both your CPU and GPU to perform at their very best. So, ensure that you’ve got the right PSU before purchasing a GPU.

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Best Graphics Cards Ranking List

To simplify your search for Graphics cards, we have created a list of the best graphics card with their ranking, benchmarks and 3Dmark performance. This list will help you find your desirable graphics card easily.

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The takeaway

Whether you’re a seasoned gamer or like to delve into video editing, your GPU is one of the most important components of your PC. A powerful GPU can make a world of difference when it comes to performance. However, considering the number of factors you’ll have to bear in mind when buying a graphics card, choosing one for your PC can be quite difficult. So, we hope that this list of the best graphics cards and the factors that you should consider before purchasing aid you in your research!

Frequently Asked Questions

Which GPU is the best for gaming?

The best GPU for gaming are Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super, Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 and Intel Arc A750. You can choose any of these GPUs to have best-in-class gaming experiences.

What is the difference between 4080 and 4090?

The major difference between the RTX 4080 and RTX 4090 is that the RTX 4090 is more powerful card and delivers greater frame rates at all resolutions and detail settings than the RTX 4080.

Which is the fastest GPU in the world?

The Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 4090 is one of the fastest GPU in the world. It offers exceptional experience, be it gaming or others. It offers an outstanding overall experience to the users.

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