What’s the absolute best graphics card in 2023?

The best graphics card of 2023 will cost more than most complete gaming rigs, but it’s worth sacrificing to maintain 100+ FPS while ray tracing in 4K.

With dozens of anticipated titles coming out in 2023 and considerable price drops hitting the market, it’s not a bad time to upgrade your GPU. For gamers who want the absolute best experience, quite a few high-end options should last for years if purchased today. Of course, they require a massive amount of money, power, and space, but if you want the absolute best graphics card on the market, here are your options.

The RTX 4090 is the best graphics card in 2023

If you’re looking for the absolute most powerful GPU on the market, the answer is as clear as day. The Nvidia RTX 4090 is consistently ranked as the most powerful graphics card, with the only close competitor being its apprentice, the 4080. With 24 gigabytes of GDDR6 VRAM and Nvidia’s most advanced processor, nothing can compare in terms of raw power. Every feature from DLSS 3 to ray tracing is present and accounted for, which should be the case for a card that starts at over $2,200.

The RTX 4090 is not meant for the average gamer but is instead targeted at consumers willing to pay top dollar for the absolute best. To get the full potential out of this card, it’s important also to have a four-digit power supply and a pinnacle processor such as an Intel i9-13900K or AMD Threadripper. Assuming you own such a machine, every game from Cyberpunk 2077 to Minecraft should run at maximum framerate at the highest settings and resolution.

Is AMD’s RX 6950 XT a worthy 4090 competitor?

AMD has chosen not to compete with Nvidia for the absolute top spot on the GPU totem pole. Instead, the chip manufacturer chose to undercut the competition with the RX 6950 XT. With 16 gigabytes of VRAM and 47.31 teraflops of peak output, this “budget” option is more than enough to render the most intensive modern games at the highest settings. This card represents the final culmination of the RX 6000 series and can take full advantage of its well-developed drivers.

Compared to the RTX 4090, the 6950 XT is less than half the price with considerably more than half the performance. Thanks to the announcement of the 7000 series to be released throughout 2023, the older models have considerably dropped in price. It’s now possible to find examples for under $1,000, but the cheapest 6950 XTs in most online stores sell for slightly more than that.

Intel ARC 770 is a contrarian choice for best GPU

If your definition of best factors is rarity and uniqueness, the Intel ARC series may be a decent option. Intel is no stranger to the processor game, but this line is the first set of graphics cards made by the manufacturer. The 770 is its flagship so far, but it costs less than half of the above options with a relatively cheap $500 asking price.

As for how it compares to the above cards, it can’t come close to either on processing power. What it does offer is the cheapest way to get 16 gigabytes of VRAM in your system. It also comes with a brand-new development platform that will likely match AMD and Nvidia in the future. It’s far from the best card in terms of power per dollar, but it will definitely impress your computer friends as the shiniest new toy on the block.