Graphics Card Hierarchy Chart
What about this other card that’s not on the list? How do I know if it’s a good deal or not?
This will happen. In fact, it’s guaranteed to happen, because inventory levels and prices change quickly. So how do you know if that card you’ve got your eye on is a good buy in its price range?
Here is a resource to help you judge if a card is a good buy or not. The graphics card hierarchy chart groups graphics cards with similar overall performance levels into tiers. The top tier contains the highest-performing cards available and performance decreases as you go down the tiers from there.
You can use this hierarchy to compare the pricing between two cards, to see which one is a better deal, and also to determine if an upgrade is worthwhile. I don’t recommend upgrading your graphics card unless the replacement card is at least three tiers higher. Otherwise, the upgrade is somewhat parallel and you may not notice a worthwhile difference in performance.
At the request of readers, I have added mobile graphics and integrated chipsets to the hierarchy chart. I want to make it clear that there is very little performance data available for these graphics solutions. While the discrete video cards in the chart are placed in tiers based on a lot of information, many of the mobile and integrated devices in the chart are guesstimates based on their specifications. At worst, I don’t think they’re more than one tier away from their actual performance, but this is something to keep in mind when considering mobile graphics chipsets.
| Graphics Card Hierarchy Chart | ||
|---|---|---|
| GeForce | Radeon | Intel |
| Discrete: GTX 690 | ||
| Discrete: GTX 590, GTX 680 | Discrete: HD 6990 | |
| Discrete: HD 7970 | ||
| Discrete: GTX 580 | Discrete: HD 5970, HD 7870, HD 7950 | |
| Discrete: GTX 295, GTX 480, GTX 570 | Discrete: HD 4870 X2, HD 6970, HD 7850 | |
| Discrete: GTX 470, GTX 560 Ti, GTX 560 Ti 448 Core | Discrete: HD 4850 X2, HD 5870, HD 6950 | |
| Discrete: GTX 560 Go (mobile): 580M | Discrete: HD 5850, HD 6870 Mobility: 6990M | |
| Discrete: 9800 GX2, GTX 285, GTX 460 1GB, GTX 465 | Discrete: HD 6850, HD 7770 Mobility: 6900M | |
| Discrete: GTX 260, GTX 275, GTX 280, GTX 460 768 MB, GTX 460 SE, GTX 550 Ti Go (mobile): 570M | Discrete: HD 4870, HD 5770, HD 4890, HD 5830, HD 6770, HD 6790 Mobility: HD 5870, 6800M | |
| Discrete: 8800 Ultra, 9800 GTX, 9800 GTX+, GTS 250, GTS 450 Go (mobile): 560M | Discrete: HD 3870 X2, HD 4850, HD 5750, HD 6750, HD 7750 Mobility: HD 4850, HD 5850 | |
| Discrete: 8800 GTX, 8800 GTS 512 MB, GT 545 (GDDR5) Go (mobile): GTX 280M, GTX 285M, 555M (GDDR5) | Discrete: HD 4770 Mobility: HD 4860 | |
| Discrete: 8800 GT 512 MB, 9800 GT, GT 545 (DDR3) Go (mobile): 9800M GTX, GTX 260M (112), GTS 360M (GDDR5), 555M (DDR3) | Discrete: HD 4830, HD 5670, HD 6670 (GDDR5) Mobility: HD 5770, HD 5750, 6600M/6700M (GDDR5) | |
| Discrete: 8800 GTS 640 MB, 9600 GT, GT 240 (GDDR5) Go (mobile): 9800M GTS, GTX 160M | Discrete: HD 2900 XT, HD 3870, HD 5570 (GDDR5), HD 6570 (GDDR5) Mobility: 6500M (GDDR5), 6600M/6700M (DDR3) | |
| Discrete: 8800 GS, 9600 GSO, GT 240 (DDR3) Go (mobile): GTX 260M (96), GTS 150M, GTS 360M (DDR3) | Discrete: HD 3850 512 MB, HD 4670, HD 5570 (DDR3), HD 6570 (DDR3), HD 6670 (DDR3) Mobility: HD 3870, HD 5730, HD 5650, 6500M (DDR3) | |
| Discrete: 8800 GT 256 MB, 8800 GTS 320 MB, GT 440 GDDR5 Go (mobile): 8800M | Discrete: HD 2900 PRO, HD 3850 256 MB, 5550 (GDDR5) Mobility: HD 3850 | |
| Discrete: 7950 GX2, GT 440 DDR3 | Discrete: X1950 XTX, HD 4650 (DDR3), 5550 (DDR3) | |
| Discrete: 7800 GTX 512, 7900 GTO, 7900 GTX, GT 430, GT 530 Go (mobile): 550M | Discrete: X1900 XT, X1950 XT, X1900 XTX | |
| Discrete: 7800 GTX, 7900 GT, 7950 G, GT 220 (DDR3) Go (mobile): 525M, 540M | Discrete: X1800 XT, X1900 AIW, X1900 GT, X1950 PRO, HD 2900 GT, HD 5550 (DDR2) | |
| Discrete: 7800 GT, 7900 GS, 8600 GTS, 9500 GT (GDDR3), GT 220 (DDR2) Go (mobile): 7950 GTX | Discrete: X1800 XL, X1950 GT, HD 4650 (DDR2), HD 6450 Mobility: X1800 XT, HD 4650, HD 5165, 6400M Integrated: 6620G, 6550D | |
| Discrete: 6800 Ultra, 7600 GT, 7800 GS, 8600 GS, 8600 GT (GDDR3), 9500 GT (DDR2) Go (mobile): 7800 GTX, 7900 GTX | Discrete: X800 XT (& PE), X850 XT (& PE), X1650 XT, X1800 GTO, HD 2600 XT, HD 3650 (DDR3), HD 3670 Mobility: X1900, 3670 Integrated: 6520G, 6530D | |
| Discrete: 6800 GT, 6800 GS (PCIe), 8600 GT (DDR2), GT 520 Go (mobile): 7800, Go 7900 GS, 520M, 520MX | Discrete: X800 XL, X800 GTO2/GTO16, HD 2600 PRO, HD 3650 (DDR2), Mobility: X800 XT, HD 2600 XT, 3650 Integrated: 6410D, 6480G | |
| Discrete: 6800 GS (AGP) Go (mobile): 6800 Ultra, 7600 GT, 8600M GT, 8700M GT, 410M | Discrete: X800 GTO 256 MB, X800 PRO, X850 PRO, X1650 GT Mobility: HD 2600 Integrated: 6370D, 6380G | |
| Discrete: 6800, 7300 GT GDDR3, 7600 GS, 8600M GS Go (mobile): 6800, 7700 | Discrete: X800, X800 GTO 128 MB, X1600 XT, X1650 PRO Mobility: X1800, HD 5145, HD 5470 (GDDR5), HD 5450, | |
| Discrete: 6600 GT, 6800LE, 6800 XT, 7300 GT (DDR2), 8500 GT, 9400 GT Go (mobile): 7600 (128-bit) | Discrete: 9800 XT, X700 PRO, X800 GT, X800 SE, X1300 XT, X1600 PRO, HD 2400 XT, HD 4350, HD 4550, HD 5450 Mobility: X800, 3470, HD 5470 (DDR3), HD 5430, 6300M Integrated: HD 6310, HD 6320 | Integrated: Intel HD Graphics 3000 |
| Discrete: FX 5900, FX 5900 Ultra, FX 5950 Ultra, 6600 (128-bit) Go (mobile): 6800 (128-bit) Integrated: 9300, 9400 | Discrete: 9700, 9700 PRO, 9800, 9800 PRO, X700, X1300 PRO, X1550, HD 2400 PRO Mobility: X1450, X1600, X1700, 2400 XT, X2500, 3450 Integrated: HD 3200, HD 3300, HD 4200, HD 4250, HD 4290, HD 6250, HD 6290 | |
| Discrete: FX 5800 Ultra, FX 5900 XT Go (mobile): 6600, Go 7600 (64-bit) | Discrete: 9500 PRO, 9600 XT, 9800 PRO (128-bit), X600 XT, X1050 (128-bit) Mobility: 9800, X700, X1350, X1400, X2300, HD 2400 | Integrated: Intel HD Graphics (Core i5-6x1), 2000 |
| Discrete: 4 Ti 4600, 4 Ti 4800, FX 5700 Ultra, 6200, 8300, 8400 G, G 210, G 310 Go (mobile): 315M | Discrete: 9600 PRO, 9800 LE, X600 PRO, HD 2300 Mobility: 9700 (128-bit), X600, X1300 Integrated: Xpress 1250 | Integrated: Intel HD Graphics (Core i3 5x0, Core i5-6x0) |
| Discrete: 4 Ti4200, 4 Ti4400, 4 Ti4800 SE, FX 5600 Ultra, FX 5700, 6600 (64-bit), 7300 GS, 8400M GS, 9300M G, 9300M GS | Discrete: 9500, 9550, 9600, X300, X1050 (64-bit) Mobility: 9600 | Integrated: Intel HD Graphics (Pentium G) |
| Discrete: 3 Ti500, FX 5200 Ultra, FX 5600, FX 5700 LE, 6200 TC, 6600 LE, 7200 GS, 7300 LE Go (mobile): 5700, 8200M, 9200M GS, 9100 Integrated: 8200, 8300 | Discrete: 8500, 9100, 9000 PRO, 9600 LE, X300 SE, X1150 Mobility 9700 (64-bit) | Integrated: GMA X4500 |
| Discrete: 3, 3 Ti200, FX 5200 (128-bit), FX 5500, Go (mobile): 5600, 6200, 6400, 7200, 7300, 7400 (64-bit) | Discrete: 9000, 9200, 9250 Mobility: 9600 (64-bit), X300 | |
| Discrete: FX 5200 (64 bit) Go (mobile): 7200, 7400 (32-bit) Integrated: 6100, 6150, 7025, 7050 | Discrete: 9200 SE Integrated: Xpress 200M, Xpress 1000, Xpress 1150 | Integrated: GMA X3000, X3100, X3500 |
| Discrete: 2 GTS, 4 MX 440, 2 Ultra, 2 Ti, 2 Ti 200 | Discrete: 7500 | Integrated: GMA 3000, 3100 |
| Discrete: 256, 2 MX 200, 4 MX 420, 2 MX 400 | Discrete: SDR, LE, DDR, 7000, 7200 | Integrated: GMA 500, 900, 950 |
| Discrete: Nvidia TNT | Discrete: Rage 128 | Discrete: Intel 740 |
Summary
There you have it folks; the best cards for the money this month. Now all that’s left to do is to find and purchase them.
Don’t worry too much about which brand you choose, because all of the cards out there are close to Nvidia’s and ATI’s reference designs. Just pay attention to price, warranty, and the manufacturer’s reputation for honoring the warranty if something goes wrong.
Also remember that the stores don’t follow this list. Things will change over the course of the month and you’ll probably have to adapt your buying strategy to deal with fluctuating prices. Good luck!
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7970 has a great overclocking power with its 22nm. I read some news we could raise its clock to 1200MHz without any special device. I believe all the 22nm GPU has also these great overclocking power. Overclocking era might be coming to GPU world in the near future.
7970 has a great overclocking power with its 22nm. I read some news we could raise its clock to 1200MHz without any special device. I believe all the 22nm GPU has also these great overclocking power. Overclocking era might be coming to GPU world in the near future.
Its actually 28nm. But as you said, 7970 is a great overclocker. Sapphire is going to release HD 7970 Cards with 1335 MHz Core Clock, 6 G Memory Clock. Those will beat HD6990 and GTX590.
Its actually 28nm. But as you said, 7970 is a great overclocker. Sapphire is going to release HD 7970 Cards with 1335 MHz Core Clock, 6 GB Memory clock. Those will beat 6990 and GTX990.
Thanks for correcting it. yeah, it's not 22nm, but 28nm. I made a mistake in writing.
Sixth paragraph, first sentance - "AMD also (????) a bit of information about other upcoming 28 nm-based models in the Radeon HD 7000 series."
Fixed!
Shouldn't these articles be posted near the END of each month?If something big were to happen between now and the 31st this article would be doing a slight disservice in claiming something to be the "best" in value when in that one month time-frame that may no longer be the case. If the next article is posted around Feb 2 I can just think of that as the real best value of January etc.
We have three of these columns per month, and the writers turn them in at different times. With an editorial calendar planned at least two weeks in advance, it's not possible to get them posted at the same time every month.
If cards make their way onto the market on time, you can be sure the 7970 will make it into February's Best Graphics Card story, since gaming is where we *do* know the board excels.
My 3 6970s in crossfire could still hold me down for a while, but just like any enthusiast, I love to have the latest cards in my rigs. I love what AMD is doing now and might just get the 7970s when they go retail.
i always watch and pick the fastest card that doesn't require external power supply, make sure myself haven't gone mad on display card. save me money and power too.
Not really sure where you guys are looking at, but the Radeon HD 6870 can be bought for $150-160 easily, while the cheapest GTX 560 is $180. Both deliver the same performance; seems like an easy choice.
What about the GTX560TI 448core?
What about the GTX560TI 448core?
^Pointless card that was only a limited release.
With each of these I feel more and more satisfied with my decision of getting an HD 6850 for $140.
Though I do wish I had spent a little more for the 6870.
i just love seeing my GTX 285 at the top!! HEHE!!! how many years ago did i but this GPU??? WOW!!
Still running two gtx 280 atm.
It's almost an AMD show.
^ it should be.... nvidia shud really reconsider their prices
Although I always read it all, the first and last pages are the best parts of this monthly article.
Prices change all the time, but if you find the tier you need (taking into account architecture preference of your game(s), if applicable) on the chart, then choose the cheapest option from that tier, you'll have the best bang/buck at that time, while being sure you have enough bang.
And, since the information here really applies mostly to gamers, the chart could be simplified a little by compressing the lowest 7-8 tiers into a single "unplayable" tier.
Over/Under until the prices of the 6000 series start to drop with the 7000 series coming out?? I would like to grab another 6950 for x-fire but would like to get it at a reduced price =D
Gotta wonder what Nvidia is doing
The 460-768 is MIA leaving only the 550ti to compete in that price segment.
So... looks like my HD 5770 will finally take its leave. An impressive run, I've gotta say.