Introduction
There’s a plethora of interesting graphics cards to buy for under $600. Whilst a surge in GPU prices means that AMD and NVIDIA’s flagship graphics cards are no longer available at this point, there are still plenty of high-quality offerings that sit below the $600 mark.
Since the arrival of the RTX 4000 and Radeon 7000 series, the market is now inundated with GPUs for those looking to build a 1440p gaming PC. In this article, we’ll be covering a number of options, all of which are readily available for under $600, to see which graphics card offers the best value to gamers.
Best GPU Under $600: AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT
When searching for a graphics card for $600 or less, you can’t go wrong with AMD’s Radeon RX 7800 XT. This mid-range graphics card is one of the best value propositions within PC gaming, offering top-tier performance at 1440p. On top of this, the RX 7800 XT sits comfortably under the $600 mark, making it easy to pick up a card variant with enhanced thermals and appearance for your gaming PC build.
Best GPUs Under $600
1. AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT
Ever since the RX 7800 XT first released back in September 2023, it has quickly solidified itself as one of the best value for money components on the market. Coming at a starting price of $500, gamers with a $600 budget will have no issues finding one of these cards.
With that investment, gamers can expect excellent 1440p gaming performance in all the latest games, as well as a graphics card that can handle 4K gaming. In addition, the 16GB of VRAM and strong clock speeds gives the RX 7800 XT plenty of raw performance to support the increasing demands of modern games.
| Key Specs | AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT |
|---|---|
| Video Memory Capacity | 16GB GDDR6 |
| Memory Bus | 192-Bit |
| Core Clock Speed | 2.12GHz |
| Boost Clock Speed | 2.4GHz |
| Stream Processors | 3840 |
| Ray Accelerators | 60 |
| Power Consumption | 263W |
| MSRP | $499 |
Compared to the alternatives within the $600 price range, the biggest downside of the RX 7800 XT is the limited ray tracing performance. This is primarily down to AMD’s RDNA 3 architecture falling short of the enhancements available on NVIDIA’s Ada Lovelace GPUs. That being said, the arrival of AMD’s FSR 3.0, and subsequently Fluid Motion Frames, helps alleviate some of these drawbacks.
Pros
- 1440p performance
- Competitive pricing
- 16GB VRAM
Cons
- Relies on FSR 3.0
- Often above MSRP
Suggested Article: Best GPUs Under $700
2. NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER
After a fairly tepid reception to the initial RTX 4000 series of graphics cards, NVIDIA announced the RTX 4000 SUPER series at CES 2024, which included a revision of the RTX 4070. As the first RTX 4000 SUPER GPU to launch, a lot was riding on the RTX 4070 SUPER’s release. Luckily for NVIDIA, this card has been well received.
Offering a boost in clock speeds and additional cores compared to the original RTX 4070, the RTX 4070 SUPER provides optimal performance at 1440p in a variety of games, as well as some legs at 4K. On top of this, these improvements don’t come with an increased price tag, as the RTX 4070 SUPER boasts the same MSRP price tag that the RTX 4070 launched with.
| Key Specs | NVIDIA RTX 4070 SUPER |
|---|---|
| Video Memory Capacity | 12GB GDDR6X |
| Memory Bus | 192-Bit |
| Core Clock Speed | 1.98GHz |
| Boost Clock Speed | 2.48GHz |
| CUDA Cores | 7168 |
| RT Cores | 56 |
| Power Consumption | 220W |
| MSRP | $599 |
Not only does this make the RTX 4070 SUPER a solid value proposition, it has also led the original RTX 4070 to drop down in price. This gives NVIDIA gamers more mid-range GPUs to choose from while providing better competition for the highly valuable AMD Radeon 7000 series offerings.
Whilst the likes of the RX 7800 XT still provide a better value proposition for gamers, there are a few advantages that come with the RTX 4070 SUPER. Mainly, the improved DLSS support allows gamers to significantly bolster their GPUs frame rates and ray tracing capabilities, which is highly beneficial in demanding AAA releases.
Pros
- 1440p gameplay
- DLSS 3.0
- Value for money
Cons
- $599 MSRP
- Limited availability
3. AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT
For gamers looking to use as little of their $600 budget as possible, without having to majorly sacrifice gaming performance, the RX 7700 XT is one of the cheapest GPUs on the market that is great for 1440p gaming. Arriving at the same time as the RX 7800 XT, this graphics card was initially overlooked by most, due to the more powerful card being the better price to performance offering.
However, the RX 7700 XT has since dropped in price, allowing it to cement its own position in a congested mid-range market. Offering comparable performance to NVIDIA’s RTX 4070, this graphics card will have no issues providing competitive gameplay at 1440p in all the latest releases. Plus, the 12GB of VRAM allows this GPU to avoid some of the concerns with performance longevity that have affected some lower-tier offerings.
| Key Specs | AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT |
|---|---|
| Video Memory Capacity | 12GB GDDR6X |
| Memory Bus | 192-Bit |
| Core Clock Speed | 2.17GHz |
| Boost Clock Speed | 2.54GHz |
| Stream Processors | 3456 |
| Ray Accelerators | 54 |
| Power Consumption | 245W |
| MSRP | $449 |
In a similar fashion to the RX 7800 XT, the disadvantage of this GPU compared to the NVIDIA counterparts come with the FSR integration. Though plenty of improvements are being made to this technology, the benefits of DLSS leads to a superior gaming experience when AI upscaling is enabled.
Pros
- Cheaper pricing
- Rasterised performance
- 12GB VRAM
Cons
- Ray tracing performance
- Better options for $600
4. NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070
The RTX 4070 was the first, and arguably the only, GPU from the original RTX 4000 series that offered a respectable value for money proposition. With an initial MSRP of $599, the arrival of the RTX 4070 SUPER has caused pricing for this GPU to drop, making the already strong value offering even better.
Built on NVIDIA’s Ada Lovelace architecture, the RTX 4070 brought a number of significant upgrades over the previous generation. The most notable upgrade was that of DLSS. With NVIDIA’s resolution upscaling tech receiving an upgrade to DLSS 3.0, this GPU introduced innovative technology such as ‘Frame Generation’, leading to enhanced frame rates and visuals in a wide range of titles.
| Key Specs | NVIDIA RTX 4070 |
|---|---|
| Video Memory Capacity | 12GB GDDR6X |
| Memory Bus | 192-Bit |
| Core Clock Speed | 1.92GHz |
| Boost Clock Speed | 2.48GHz |
| CUDA Cores | 5888 |
| RT Cores | 46 |
| Power Consumption | 200W |
| MSRP | $549 |
Admittedly, the release of AMD’s Radeon 7000 series and the RTX 4070 SUPER has somewhat overshadowed this graphics card, the performance, pricing, and features of the RTX 4070 makes this a great choice for a mid-range gaming PC. With the SUPER variant of this card being on the cusp of the $600 limit, the RTX 4070 is a great option for those wanting to pick up a premium GPU model that offers enhanced cooling and aesthetics while staying below the allocated budget.
Pros
- 1440p performance
- Ray tracing gameplay
- DLSS 3
Cons
- RX 7800 XT as competition
- Same pricing as 4070
How We Tested the Best GPUs under $600
In order to test and evaluate the best GPUs under $600, we run a number of gaming benchmarks in a wide range of titles. We then use these results to compare the performance of each GPU to other options on the market. On top of performance, there are a number of factors that we take into account such as value-proposition, power consumption, VRAM capacity, and more. For more information on our procedures and testing methodologies, check out our detailed rundown of how we test GPUs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is DLSS or FSR better?
NVIDIA’s resolution scaling tech is stronger than ever and has once again cemented itself as the industry leader with DLSS 3.0.
Can I game at 4K with these GPUs?
Yes. Whilst all of the graphics cards listed are best suited to 1440p gaming, they will provide ample performance at 4K settings.
Are These GPUs Good at Ray Tracing?
Yes. The inclusion of DLSS 3.0 and FSR 3 leads to great ray tracing performance in the latest titles.
