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: HD 5970 | ||
| Discrete: GTX 295, GTX 480 | Discrete: HD 4870 X2 | |
| Discrete: HD 4850 X2, HD 5870 | ||
| Discrete: GTX 280, GTX 285, GTX 470 | Discrete: HD 5850 | |
| Discrete: 9800 GX2, GTX 260, GTX 275, GTX 465 | Discrete: HD 4870, HD 4890, HD 5770, HD 5830 Mobility: HD 5870 | |
| Discrete: 8800 Ultra, 9800 GTX, 9800 GTX+, GTS 250 | Discrete: HD 3870 X2, HD 4850, HD 5750 Mobility: HD 4850, HD 5850 | |
| Discrete: 8800 GTX, 8800 GTS 512 MB Go (mobile): GTX 280M, GTX 285M | Discrete: HD 4770 Mobility: HD 4860 | |
| Discrete: 8800 GT 512 MB, 9800 GT Go (mobile): 9800M GTX, GTX 260M (112), GTS 360M (GDDR5) | Discrete: HD 4830, HD 5670 Mobility: HD 5770, HD 5750 | |
| 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) | |
| 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) Mobility: HD 3870, HD 5730, HD 5650 | |
| Discrete: 8800 GT 256 MB, 8800 GTS 320 MB, GT 220 Go (mobile): 8800M | Discrete: HD 2900 PRO, HD 3850 256 MB, 5550 (GDDR5) Mobility: HD 3850 | |
| Discrete: 7950 GX2 | Discrete: X1950 XTX, HD 4650 (DDR3) | |
| Discrete: 7800 GTX 512, 7900 GTO, 7900 GTX | Discrete: X1900 XT, X1950 XT, X1900 XTX | |
| Discrete: 7800 GTX, 7900 GT, 7950 GT | Discrete: X1800 XT, X1900 AIW, X1900 GT, X1950 PRO, HD 2900 GT | |
| Discrete: 7800 GT, 7900 GS, 8600 GTS, 9500 GT (GDDR3) Go (mobile): 7950 GTX | Discrete: X1800 XL, X1950 GT, HD 4650 (DDR2), HD 5550 (DDR3) Mobility X1800 XT, HD 4650, HD 5165 | |
| Discrete: 6800 Ultra, 7600 GT, 7800 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, HD 5550 (DDR2) Mobility: X1900, 3670 | |
| Discrete: 6800 GT, 6800 GS (PCIe), 8600 GT (DDR2) Go (mobile): 7800, Go 7900 GS | Discrete: X800 XL, X800 GTO2/GTO16, HD 2600 PRO, HD 3650 (DDR2), Mobility: X800 XT, HD 2600 XT, 3650 | |
| Discrete: 6800 GS (AGP) Go (mobile): 6800 Ultra, 7600 GT, 8600M GT, 8700M GT | Discrete: X800 GTO 256 MB, X800 PRO, X850 PRO, X1650 GT Mobility: HD 2600 | |
| 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 5550 Mobility: X800, 3470, HD 5470 (DDR3), HD 5430 Integrated: HD 3300 | |
| 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 4200 | |
| 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 | |
| Discrete: 4 Ti 4600, 4 Ti 4800, FX 5700 Ultra, 6200, 8300, 8400 G, G 210, G 310 | Discrete: 9600 PRO, 9800 LE, X600 PRO, HD 2300 Mobility: 9700 (128-bit), X600, X1300 Integrated: Xpress 1250 | |
| 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 | |
| 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) | 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 | Discrete: 9200 SE Integrated: Xpress 200M, Xpress 1000, Xpress 1150 | GMA X3000, X3100, X3500 |
| Discrete: 2 GTS, 4 MX 440, 2 Ultra, 2 Ti, 2 Ti 200 | Discrete: 7500 | GMA 3000, 3100 |
| Discrete: 256, 2 MX 200, 4 MX 420, 2 MX 400 | Discrete: SDR, LE, DDR, 7000, 7200 | GMA 500, 900, 950 |
| Discrete: Nvidia TNT | Discrete: Rage 128 | 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!
Related Stories :
- Radeon HD 7990 And GeForce GTX 690: Bring Out The Big Guns
- AMD Updates Radeon HD 7950 to Counter GeForce GTX 660 Ti
- AMD Radeon HD 7950 Review: Up Against GeForce GTX 580
- Radeon HD 6990M And GeForce GTX 580M: A Beautiful Lie
- GeForce GTX 580M SLI Vs. Radeon HD 6990M CrossFire
- AVADirect's W860CU: Mobility Radeon HD 5870 Vs. GeForce GTX 285M
- GeForce GTX 480 Poses Next to Radeon HD 5970
- Radeon HD 5770, Radeon HD 4890, And GeForce GTX 275 Overclocked
- GeForce GTX 275, Radeon HD 4890 Now Available
- Nvidia GeForce GTX Titan 6 GB: GK110 On A Gaming Card
God how I love Tom's.
I think I agree with the 5850 taking the solid recommendation and the gtx 470 not. The 5850 runs cooler, quieter, and uses less power.
However I just got my GTX 470 with the EVGA lifetime warranty and free copy of Just Cause 2 for $330, so I am happy with that choice
Other than that, like the article states, it was a relatives quiet month for video card updates. Looking forward to ATI/Nvidia's next offerings as well as driver updates.
Error on the 5770 article. Typed '5570' once in the middle.
I just bought a 5770 like a week ago for $130
The 5770 seems to be really good at OCing and economically better priced for X-fire.
i thought that the 465 was going to be a little higher
I think I agree with the 5850 taking the solid recommendation and the gtx 470 not. The 5850 runs cooler, quieter, and uses less power.
However I just got my GTX 470 with the EVGA lifetime warranty and free copy of Just Cause 2 for $330, so I am happy with that choice
Other than that, like the article states, it was a relatives quiet month for video card updates. Looking forward to ATI/Nvidia's next offerings as well as driver updates.
At $315, the GeForce GT 470 would take a solid recommendation, but at $330 it gets an honorable mention.
Here is the GTX 470 at 299.99, sans rebate, free shipping. Read between the lines and the nod goes to Nvidia
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] -_-Product
who said the 9600 disappeared.If you think so, kindly check the following links:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] -_-Product
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] -_-Product
for 9600GSO:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] -_-Product
does crossfire even increase perofrmance by that much in games? (what if the games you paly arent optimised for it?) anyways
my card is in 4th of the list (5770)
... it's ATi all over the place...
Why is the mobility HD 4860 is one tier lower than the mobility HD 4850?
My 4850 is now entering its third year of faithful use - and it's still a recommendation! I can hardly believe it.
It doesn't happen often, but this sure is a 'puter product that wasn't outdated 6 months after it came out.
I'm surprised there's no mention of GTX 470s in SLI, especially compared to a 5970.
nice that these guys get paid to chang the title of an article and just re-post the exact same article from the last 3 months.
Don well done on an other great article.
Gee the 9800gtx+ ... er GT250 is a steal at that price.
Great card ... if a little hot on the old 65nm process.
AMD need to drop the price another $10 on their remaining stock of 4 series GPU's and get them out the door ... and keep hammering NV on the 5 series front ... where is is more profitable anyway.
who said the 9600 disappeared.
There's only three models of 9600 GT and two of 9600 GSO on Newegg, and they're all overpriced.
For all practical purposes, the 9600 GSO is gone.
Best PCIe Card For ~$700: None
lol
lol trying to spend maximum allowable top-dollar geting ^^... none
I thought the 5750 was dx10, not 11...
Great and simple guide as usual but I wonder Cleeve if the GFX hierarchy might benefit from adding a tier between the GTX 285/5850 and the GTX 260/4870 levels? This tier would be NVidia: GTX275, GTX280 and GTX 465; AMD: 4890 and 5830. I think such a tier might better reflect the descrepancy in GPU power between these cards and the GTX260/4870/5770 as well as the fact that there is at least a $50-100 separation in price between the preposed tiers.
I disagree with the layout of the chart on the last page.
The 4870x2 and 5870 are about equal and a GTX295 is not as good as a GTX 480. The GTX 295 and GTX 470 should be in that gap and the 5870 should be bumped up a notch
Nice for AMD again another month with a good lineup still unmatched in many price points but one that is bothering me is that you guys keep on showing the HD5870 is more powerful than a GTX470 but they look very close matched to me these last few weeks but with power and heat the HD cards is on there own with gr8 price/performance.