Gaming doesn’t have to be expensive. Budget-conscious gamers love mid-range graphics cards because they’re affordable, versatile, and have lots of features. In addition to delivering the best gaming experience, high-end GPUs are often expensive.
Here’s an in-depth look at mid-range graphics cards, their advantages over high-end GPUs, and how to choose one when building a gaming rig.
GPUs in the Midrange: What Are They
For gamers, midrange graphics cards strike the perfect balance of price and performance. In addition to offering something better than entry-level GPUs, these GPUs are intended for value-oriented consumers. The prices of mid-range graphics cards are usually between $250 and $500, not hundreds or thousands like flagship GPUs. Furthermore, these GPUs can handle most modern AAA games at 1080p or 1440p settings at High/Ultra settings.
There’s a big difference between midrange GPUs and high-end GPUs when it comes to the number of CUDA cores (for Nvidia GPUs) and Compute Units (for AMD GPUs). Compute Units and CUDA cores work differently, but they’re both used to evaluate GPU performance (although they’re not the only thing). There are 3584 CUDA cores in the Nvidia RTX 3060, and 10496 CUDA cores in the Nvidia RTX 3090. A AMD RX 6600 has 28 CUs and a AMD RX 6900 XT has 80 CUs.
Mid-Range GPUs Have a Lot of Benefits
Because they’re cheaper and more accessible than high-end cards, midrange graphics cards are great. Here’s why you should use a midrange GPU.
1. Getting a Better Deal
Most enthusiast-grade GPUs are more expensive than mid-range graphics cards. In terms of raw performance, mid-range graphics cards can often match up to flagship GPUs from previous generations when it comes to Ray Tracing, DLSS, XeSS, and FSR.
As an example, Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3060 Ti set a narrow lead over Nvidia’s last-gen Turing flagship when compared with the RTX 2080 Super. On top of being 6-7% faster, the RTX 3060 Ti also cost less than the outgoing RTX 2080 Super at $399.
2. Energy-Saving and Heat-Reduction
GPU fabrication technology has improved over the years, making mid-range graphics cards a lot more power-efficient. They work flawlessly with most mid-tier power supplies and are usually rated for 200W-220W.
The power profile of midrange graphics cards is balanced, and they generate less heat. To maintain a safe operating temperature under full load, they rarely need a big, beefy cooling system.
3. Design That’s Compact
A mid-range GPU is designed to be more compact because it consumes less power and produces less heat. If you mount a mid-range GPU horizontally, it’s roughly the same length as an ATX motherboard.
In a mini-ITX case, an entry-level graphics card can fit enough clearance for other components to fit, even if you’re building a small form factor PC.
Gaming PC GPUs: How to Choose
With so many options on the market, choosing a midrange graphics card for your gaming PC can be quite overwhelming. To help you decide, here are a few quick tips.
Allocation of Funds
Gaming PCs should have a GPU that takes up 30-40% of the budget. A $300-400 graphics card can make a great addition to a $1,000 PC build.
AIB vs. Reference Design
An early adopter might want to go with a Reference or Founders Edition GPU since they come in smaller form factors and are cheaper than AIBs. Third-party graphics cards are more appealing if you want overclocking headroom, a powerful power delivery system, and a robust cooling system.
Dimensions
Check to see if your PC case has enough room to fit a full-sized graphics card. The only way to make sure it’s compatible is to get a compact GPU with one or two fans.
Pre-requisites for PSUs
Ensure that your power supply matches the GPU model you’re interested in buying. The recommended power supply wattage for midrange graphics cards is around 550W-650W.
Plugs & Sockets
Check that your PSU has all the PCIe power connectors you need. Graphics cards in the midrange usually need a combination of 6- and 8-pin power cables.
Size of Memory
In today’s market, midrange graphics cards have 8GB-12GB of VRAM, which is plenty for games at 1080p, 1440p, or even 4K. It might be a good idea to get a GPU with more memory if you’re planning to run some of the most graphically demanding AAA games.
MBytes of Memory
For a mid-range GPU to perform better, it needs to have a higher memory bandwidth. Due to a massive reduction in bus width and theoretical bandwidth, Nvidia’s cut-down 8GB GeForce RTX 3060 is 15-20% slower than the original 12GB model. At the moment, Nvidia, AMD, and Intel all have great GPU options under $300. As far as mid-range graphics cards go, AMD’s Radeon RX 6700XT stands out as the best option if you’re looking for rasterization performance over real-time ray tracing.
You can’t go wrong with the Intel Arc A770 or the GeForce RTX 3060 if you’re looking for a mid-range GPU. It’s easy to see that Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3060 takes the lead in older DX11/DX9 titles, while Intel’s Arc A770 dominates newer DX12 titles.
There’s No Better Graphics Card Than a Midranger
Gamers on a budget who want a decent gaming experience can save money with mid-range graphics cards. Simply put, these GPUs offer great performance at nearly half the price of previous flagships.