Top 10 Graphics Cards To Buy For Gaming or Content-Creation, 2021

The graphics card is easily the heart of a gaming PC as well as a content-creation PC. A single graphics card cannot serve all the purposes. Some may have distinct features than the others.

A gamer might want a graphics card that produces high frame rates regularly, whereas a workstation PC’s purpose may be to produce rasterized images or videos quickly. There are several graphics cards to choose from, and for your convenience, we have built a list of the top 10 graphics cards to consider buying.

In this list of top 10 graphics cards, you will know about various mainstream products that are currently ruling the market. Users are fighting in various forums over several issues: AMD vs NVIDIA, which graphics card is best, or what is the best budget graphics card, we have sorted them out for you. Have a look at the list of best GPU 2020.

Best Graphics Cards List Of 2021

1. AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT:

AMD dramatically reduced the base pricing of the model just before the launch to weaken NVIDIA’s powerful new launch of the RTX 2060 Super by some margin. Games that need DLSS or Ray-Tracing is not well-suited by the RX 5700 XT because it lacks Tensor cores and Ray-Tracing. Although it beats the RTX 2060 in raw horsepower by producing 5-10% better.

The RX 5700 XT, is definitely among the top 10 graphics card that efficiently uses power due to the presence of AMD’s 7nm process and supports Image Sharpening, developed by AMD, which produces sharper graphics without hampering the gaming performance. The RX 5700 XT costs $50 lower than the RTX 2060 and has excellent clock speeds that can be a viable choice for gamers.

Specs:

• GPU Cores: 2560
• Base Clock: 1605 MHz
• Boost Clock: 1905 MHz
• GFLOPS: 9754
• Memory: 8GB DDR6
• Memory Clock: 14 GT/s
• Memory Bandwidth: 448GB/s

2. NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660:

Next in our list of top 10 graphics cards, is the GTX 1660, which replaces the GTX 1060, at the same time performs 13-15% better than the latter. It is a modern, and a good option in the entry-level graphics card section which has the Turing architecture at its base which is the case for the RTX line-up by NVIDIA.

It is a powerhouse at a $250 price point and gives a decent performance. The GTX 1660, with Turing architecture paired with the vastly obtainable GDDR5 VRAM.

Specs:

• GPU Cores: 1408
• Base Clock: 1530 MHz
• Boost Clock: 1785 MHz
• GFLOPS: 5027
• Memory: 6GB DDR5
• Memory Clock: 8 GT/s
• Memory Bandwidth: 192GB/s

3. NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090:

This entry comes at a very expensive price among the top 10 graphics card. Only better by 10-15% in performance, the RTX 3090 replaces the Titan RTX series at a very high cost. It is the fastest out there, among the top 10 graphics cards, containing the GA102 chip. NVIDIA has claimed that the RTX 3090 introduces Titan-like features and performance in the GeForce branding.

The RTX 3090 is the solitary GeForce Ampere product that has NVLink support, which is very useful for gaming as well as performance workstations. It has a massive 24GB GDDR6X VRAM which will help in fully using the heavy content-creation-software and help the user get the optimal level performance. AMD RX 6900 XT pose stiff competition to the RTX 3090 in conventional rasterization.

In few SPECviewperf apps, the graphics card may perform below expectancy but can outperform in some SPECviewpref testing. The RTX 3090 is by far the fastest graphics card out there and you can ultimate performance while playing games in which DLSS and Ray-Tracing are enabled.

Specs:

• GPU Cores: 10496
• Base Clock: 1395 MHz
• Boost Clock: 1695 MHz
• TFLOPS: 35.56
• Memory: 24GB DDR6X
• Memory Clock: 19.5 GB/s
• Memory Bandwidth: 936.2GB/s

4. AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT:

Presently, a user can get easily confused about what card to choose in the top 10 graphics card currently available in the market. Whether to consider the previous generation cards or spend a huge amount of money to get a brand new generation one.

RX 5600 XT operates in between them by eliminating a few features and lowering performance. At a very reasonable price, this top 10 graphics card entry, is one of the established GPUs that can offer an outstanding performance boost.

At launch, it was priced at around $250, but its cheapest version is offered by ASRock Phantom which is around $300. The RX 5600 XT doesn’t have features like DLSS and Ray-Tracing but it sports a 14GB/s memory clock out of the box. We have to wait until the launch of FidelityFX Super-Resolution by AMD, to see if the RX 5600 XT will support DLSS-like tech.

Specs:

• RDNA2 Cores: 2048
• Base Clock: 1400 MHz
• Boost Clock: 1800 MHz
• TFLOPS: 8.07
• Memory: 6GB DDR6
• Memory Clock: 12-14 GT/s
• Memory Bandwidth: 288 to 336GB/s

5. AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT:

The RX 6800 XT undoubtedly produce excellent performance among another top 10 graphics card due to the presence of the new AMD RDNA2 architecture, and it is the best graphics card right now by AMD.

The RX 6800 XT, a member of the top 10 graphics card list, easily handles 4K gaming in different graphics settings and is one of the ‘top 10 graphics cards’ out there. The GPU used in it was termed ‘Big Navi’ by the devotes before launch, due to its beast-like build that supports Ray-Tracing through VulkanRT or DirectX Ray-Tracing.

Specs:

• GPU Cores: 4608
• Base Clock: 1700 MHz
• Boost Clock: 2105 MHz
• TFLOPS: 16.17
• Memory: 16GB DDR6
• Memory Clock: 16 GT/s
• Memory Bandwidth: 512GB/s

6. NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 Super:

This NVIDIA graphics card comes with dedicated DLSS and Ray-Tracing support and offers a good value for money in the mid-tier graphics card section of NVIDIA as well as the top 10 graphics card available.

The RTX 2070 Super produces excellent quality performance at 1440p gaming in several A-listed games in high settings. The Geforce RTX 2070 also does a quality job in most 4K gaming scenarios. So, it is very much near the performance level of the original RTX 2080.

Specs:

• GPU/Cuda Cores: 2560
• Base Clock: 1605 MHz
• Boost Clock: 1770 MHz
• GFLOPS: 9062
• Memory: 8GB DDR6
• Memory Clock: 14 GT/s
• Memory Bandwidth: 448GB/s

7. NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 Super:

Along with the RTX 2070 super, the RTX 2060 Super is built for the upcoming Ray-Tracing and DLSS that enables the future of gaming. This card is a ‘top 10 graphics card’ that comes with an assurance of performance. The RTX 2060 prevails vanilla 2070 in performance, replacing the latter costing much less.

There is no doubt that this card easily enters the list of top 10 graphics cards because it can handle 1080p and 1440p games without much hassle. But if you already own a GTX 1070-range graphics card then don’t jump onto the RTX 2060 Super right now.

It may be an option for those who own 970 or lower version cards. The RTX 2060 Super can serve for another 5 years to come and can be a wise choice considering the ever-changing gaming technology.

Specs:

• GPU Cores: 2176
• Base Clock: 1470 MHz
• Boost Clock: 1650 MHz
• GFLOPS: 7181
• Memory: 8GB DDR6
• Memory Clock: 14 GT/s
• Memory Bandwidth: 448GB/s

8. NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Super:

Next in our list of top 10 graphics cards, is the RTX 2080, the best in the market in terms of price to performance ratio. It cost around $700 but for that price, it delivers optimal level performance.

The RTX 2080 doesn’t have catchy features but it poses competitions to AMD’s 5000-series. Powered to deliver excellent 4K gaming performance, this graphics card comes without a reference-level tax imposed by NVIDIA.

Specs:

• GPU Cores: 2944
• Base Clock: 1515 MHz
• Boost Clock: 1800 MHz
• GFLOPS: 10958
• Memory: 8GB DDR6
• Memory Clock: 16 GB/s

• Memory Bandwidth: 448GB/s

9. NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti:

If you are a gamer that irrespective of price, wants any of the top 10 graphics cards, then this one is for you. The RTX 2080 Ti is the fastest graphics card currently available if only numeric figures are compared. It supports Ray-Tracing and if you want to enjoy games at 4K at high settings, then this might your best choice.

Specs:

• GPU Cores: 4352
• Base Clock: 1350 MHz
• Boost Clock: 1545 MHz
• TFLOPS: 13.4
• Memory: 11GB DDR6
• Memory Clock: 14 GT/s
• Memory Bandwidth: 616GB/s

10. AMD Radeon RX 5500 XT 8GB:

The RX 5500 XT is the best budget AMD card that matches the performance levels of the GTX 1650 super. This is one of the top 10 graphics cards that are available for around $200 and can be a good choice for your gaming PC.

It is a good option for 1080p gaming in 60 fps or more while running in medium to high settings. If you are a PC owner that is unable to control the heat required for the fast-GPU, and you have a minimum solitary 6-pin PEG power connector, the RX 5500 XT is the right choice for you.

Specs:

• GPU Cores: 1408
• Base Clock: 1737 MHz
• Boost Clock: 1845 MHz
• TFLOPS: 5.2
• Memory: 8GB DDR6
• Memory Clock: 14 GB/s
• Memory Bandwidth: 224GB/s

FAQs

• What is the best budget graphics card?

Various users could have various needs and their budgets may differ. Spending $200 may be enough for a low-end graphics card. So, AMD RX 570 or NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti would be a budget-friendly option.

• Should I buy an RTX 2080 TI or wait for the 3000 series?

Going for the RTX 2080 Ti at this time is not a good option because the new generation of Ampere-based graphics cards is about to be released. The to-be-released 3000 series Ampere-based GPUs offer much better performance compared to the RTX 2080 Ti.

• Is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 future proof? (2020)?

Definitely. When Sony calculated PS5’s performance, the result was in between RTX 2060 Super and RTX 2070. As Sony has already declared that PlayStation 5’s lifeline will be for a minimum of 5 years, the RTX 2070 will be “future proof” for the next 5 years.

• Is the RX 580 8GB till a good graphics card in 2020?

The RX 580 8GB still produces good results when running AAA titles at 1080p.  You may not receive high frame rates but it still manages to give a decent performance in 2020.

• What is the best graphics card?

There are a lot of graphics cards and top 10 graphics cards tagged by various other forums out there for you to choose from. But your need and budget will determine your choice. Go through our list to know about them. Few choices are: RX 570, RX 560, and NVIDIA GTX 1650 (Non-Super Variant), GTX 1050 Ti.

• What GPU is the best budget for gaming?

RX 580 8GB is a good choice for gamers. These are astonishingly powerful and cost about $160. You can also consider RX 570 4GB which costs under $120 or the NVIDIA 1060 3GB or 6GB variant.

• What do you think about the NVIDIA GTX 1660 Ti? (2019)?

It is a decent graphics card. If we consider it in the NVIDIA hierarchy, it stays lower than the last-gen GTX 1070 and higher than the last-gen GTX-1060.

• Is the RTX 2060 Super a high-end GPU?

Here goes. 2080 Ti> 2080> 2070> 2060> 1660> 1650. Although it easily outperforms most of the GPUs of the past-gen, it is certainly not the best in the top 10 graphics card in 2020.

• What is the best GPU for the i5 8600k?

If you want to fully use the potential of your i5-8600k CPU, you should go with GTX 1080 Ti or an RTX 2080. The i5-8600k can reach up to 5 GHz with an excellent cooling setup. So, using those cards can extract every bit of the speed out of the 144 Hz refresh-rate capable 1440p monitor.

• Is the GeForce GTX 1060 a good budget GPU for 2020?

Yes. It is a good option that can run most games from 2019 on a 1080p resolution but you need to mix it with low-med settings. Available for $100-120, the FTX 1060 6GB variant should be considered instead of the 3GB version.

Our Choice:

AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT

Team Red’s RX 6800 XT is our pick from the list of top 10 graphics cards. It provides excellent features and breathtaking performance in both gaming and content creation.

Gaming Experience:

Enthusiasts will be thrilled upon using this item from the top 10 graphics card. It has an enormous boost in gaming experience compared to the previous RX 5700 XT.

Gaming Performance:

It provides the best gaming performance among the several AMD cards that we have come across in recent years. Due to the presence of a massive 16GB DDR6 memory, this card provides excellent performance and is future proof for years to come.

4K Gaming:

It can easily handle 4K gaming due to being based upon the RDNA2 architecture.

1440P Gaming:

The card comfortably produces 60 FPS or more regularly due to massive VRAM.

1080P Gaming:

It can also handle 1080P gaming at ease for years to come.

Gaming Rig:

PC gamers, streamers who want to build an absolute powerhouse can go for this monster which sports unique features.

Play Games, AAA titles:

Cyberpunk 2077, Kentucky Route Zero, Spider-Man Miles Morales, and several other triple-A titles can be easily played using this graphics card.

Graphics Card Comparison:

The RX 6800 XT has a boost clock of 2105 MHz that beats NVIDIA’s flagship RTX 3080 easily which sports 1710 MHz. It easily is among the best value for money option out there.

Other AMD Cards:

If compared to other AMD cards, the RX 6800 XT has 4608 GPU cores in comparison to RX 6800’s 3840 and RX 5700 XT’s 2560. The RX 6800 XT beats the other AMD variants in boost clock, base clock as well as VRAM speed, making it a stand out choice.

Conclusion:

Several entries build the top 10 graphics cards list. It solely depends on your needs as well as your budget to choose one. You can go for an AMD card or NVIDIA graphics card that depends on your PC setup.

AMD and NVIDIA’s reference model is has been used by ASUS to produce ASUS ROG STRIX 2070 Super which we have previously discussed on our website which could have been a part of the list of top 10 graphics card along with MSI RTX 2060 Gaming Z.

The detailed discussion above about the top 10 graphics cards will surely answer your questions and help you get the right product.

Sources: AMD Official Website, Graphics cards, 22nd December 2020.