Finally, if you have a solid internet connection, you can also stream your games from a cloud server for a solid 1080p gaming experience. We recommend Nvidia’s surprisingly good GeForce Now service, which lets you play a lot of the games you already have in your existing PC libraries. Here’s what you need for a good GeForce Now experience.
- Why Are Graphics Cards So Expensive Right Now?
- The Global Chip Shortage
- Demand is wild right now
- Supply woes
- Integrated vs discrete GPUs
- Mobile vs desktop
- Current Retail GPU Market
- How About Used GPUs?
- Graphics
- Storage
- Method 1: Newegg, EVGA, and Micro Center
- Method 2: Use a stock tracker
- Solution 1: Buy Used, Last-Gen GPUs
- Solution 2: Buy A Prebuilt PC
Why Are Graphics Cards So Expensive Right Now?
You’ve probably noticed now how expensive graphics cards are. But why? Here are the reasons for the high prices.
It’s hard to get hold of a new graphics card at the moment. Whether you are looking for a new generation or legacy card, all cards on the market today are overpriced and with limited availability.
In short: the current demand for graphics cards far exceeds the total available supply. How did this happen? Why is supply not keeping up with demand?
In this article, we’ll look at the reasons why graphics cards are so expensive these days. Many of these factors are obvious. On the other hand, others may surprise you.
The Global Chip Shortage
Why are GPUs so expensive? Economics, my dear Watson. Supply, demand, and resource allocation determine how available or expensive a good or service is, especially with what the general public sees and has access to.
We are currently facing a global chip shortage that could go on indefinitely. We use semiconductor chips in everything from computers to airplanes; producers all over the world have had to cut or limit production due to scarcity.
This applies not only to graphics cards, but also to other sectors, including laptops, phones, and video game consoles.
At WePC, we’re a big believer in building your own computer. Once you know what you are doing, it’s not only fun, but typically offers better value over buying pre-built PCs or investing in console games, and gives you the ability and knowledge to improve your system and keep it running much longer.
Demand is wild right now
Demand for gaming hardware increased during the pandemic, and everyone was bored and stuck at home. In the early days of blockages in the US and China, the amazing Nintendo Switch console turned red-hot. Even replacement controllers and some games were hard to find.
Steam released 25.2 exabytes (or 25.2 million 1 terabyte hard drives) in 2020.
Supply for the Nintendo Switch has become much more accessible over time, but when new graphics cards and next-gen PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X consoles came out last fall, they also suffered from massive demand (and still have it). PC gaming flourished during the pandemic, and Steam was setting new concurrent user milestones, seemingly every other week.
People just want to have fun. Lots of people – even those who weren’t before.
Supply woes
While both Nvidia and AMD have said they ship the same or more graphics cards than previous releases, it still wasn’t enough to keep up with overwhelming demand, for several different reasons.
Lisa Su, the CEO of AMD, holding the rare RDNA 2 graphics chip.
As for AMD, the company not only released the Radeon RX 6000 series last fall, but also the best-in-class Ryzen 5000 desktop and laptop processors and next-gen consoles that feature AMD chips combining Ryzen and Radeon on a single die. The company also plans to launch the Radeon RX 6000 series mobile graphics processors for laptops soon.
Each of these products is produced by TSMC foundry in Taiwan using the same 7nm process. Everyone is fighting for the same wafers with a 7nm chip. AMD likely had to prioritize its next-gen console pricing during the key holiday sales season under deals with Microsoft and Sony. Ryzen processors – which were also missing – not only Intel’s top champions for the first time in a long time, but they use much smaller dies than the large Radeon chips, so they’re likely to be higher on the totem than graphics cards until the 7nm crunch dissipates a bit. That said, TSMC doesn’t expect its “supply chain tightness” to fully relax until new production facilities go live in 2023. Sigh.
The introduction of Radeon GPUs with smaller matrices (such as the aforementioned Radeon RX 6700 XT) could also make AMD more economical to focus on producing graphics cards. The smaller the cube, the more chips you can get from one wafer.
In addition to AMD’s specific staple of TSMC, the chip industry is generally suffering from delivery issues. Even car makers and Samsung have warned they are struggling to keep up with demand. We heard whispers that the components used to make chips – from the GDDR6 memory used in modern GPUs to the backing material that is essentially used to build chips – were also missing. It seems every industry is seeing a huge demand for all kinds of chips these days.
There was also a lack of memory chips that work with the graphics processor of the graphics card.
“There are other issues in the industry that our entire supply chain team across the PC ecosystem is looking at,” Radeon CEO Scott Herkelman told us in an exclusive interview on the launch of the Radeon RX 6700 XT. “Some parts of the graphics card – and even the motherboard – are now even longer, so you have to plan a little longer.”
Nvidia agrees. “After what we see with wafers and silicon… there are some limitations to the substrates and components. We are still working on our supply during the quarter and we believe that… demand is likely to exceed supply in the fourth quarter for general games, ”Nvidia’s chief financial officer Colette Kress told investors last November.
And it seems to be getting worse. Asus, one of the largest suppliers of PC components in the world, has just told investors that “The most pressing issue for the GPU right now is the lack of an Nvidia GPU. In the first quarter, there was a quarter-on-quarter drop of shipments. Due to this shortage, we are seeing price increases. ” Unfortunately, Nvidia says it expects the demand for GeForce GPUs in 2021 to exceed supply.
Cultural events also play a minor role. “Most people don’t know that the Chinese New Year happened in February,” said Herkelman. Workers in overseas factories usually have a week or more off on vacation, which is good for them, but doesn’t help with the supply of this constant shortage.
Due to COVID-19, an increasing number of people work remotely or stay at home as often as possible. This led to an increased demand for personal electronics. GPU prices are now high because the market is hungry for them than ever.
Integrated vs discrete GPUs
Most modern processors have integrated graphics, which are essentially graphics processors built into the processor itself or otherwise closely related to the processor. These integrated graphics tend to be lower-performance options, providing enough power to run your operating system and run web browsers, email clients, productivity apps, and other routine software, but they don’t do anything more than regular (or older) games. This changes quickly as processors get more powerful, but for now, if you want to play games, a separate (or discrete) GPU is probably your best bet.
Standalone GPUs range from relatively inexpensive, entry-level options to incredibly powerful GPUs that alone can cost well over £ 400,000. You can purchase discrete GPUs as part of off-the-shelf systems, for a PC you build yourself, or to upgrade an older GPU.
Mobile vs desktop
Choosing a graphics processor isn’t just important when building or purchasing a new desktop computer. Many gaming-focused laptops also use discrete graphics processors. If gaming on the go is a high priority, make sure your laptop has a GPU that is capable of playing the games of your choice, and you don’t rely solely on integrated graphics with lower CPU power.
Laptop GPUs used to be much less powerful than their full-size desktop cousins due to space constraints and thermal considerations. Now they are closer to parity than ever. Many modern gaming laptops use discrete GPUs whose performance is very close to that of their desktop counterparts or is optimized to fit an impressive amount of power into very thin and light notebooks.
You no longer have to choose between portability and power.
Finally, you can buy a used card. This is a good option if you want to get a card below the retail price, especially when the scalpers are leveling out and the prices of the used hand keep going down. However, you have to be careful with purchases on the secondary market.
Current Retail GPU Market
eBay’s tracking of current GPU prices in the third week of each month for new products and completed sales shows good news around the world. GPU prices continued to fall month by month, and scalpers were unable to sell their cards as much as in any other month, which lasted around January. These eBay prices are effectively showing us how much people are currently willing to pay for GPUs, and we are seeing a downward trend that hopefully should continue to drag the rest of the market with it.
| Manufacturer’s suggested retail price | average eBay price in May | average eBay price in June | average price of eBay in July | Current price inflation | Price increase from May to June | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GeForce RTX 3090 | 400,500 | 3628 | 3500 962 | 3,500,599 | 73% | -12% |
| GeForce RTX 3080 Ti | 400 200 | 3,500,187 | 400 905 | 59% | -13% | |
| GeForce RTX 3080 | 700 PLN | 3500.601 | 400 948 | 400 623 | 132% | -17% |
| GeForce RTX 3070 Ti | 600 PLN | 400 323 | 400 085 | 81% | -18% | |
| GeForce RTX 3070 | pLN 500 | 400,660 | 400.261 | 400 075 | 115% | -15% |
| GeForce RTX 3060 Ti | pLN 400 | 400 617 | 400.255 | 400 012 | 153% | -19% |
| GeForce RTX 3060 | 330 | 977 | 830 | $ 723 | 119% | -13% |
| Radeon 6900 XT | 400,000 | 400 972 | 400 932 | 400,460 | 46% | -24% |
| Radeon 6800 XT | 650 | 400 690 | 400 450 | 400 282 | 97% | -12% |
| Radeon 6800 | $ 580 | 400 518 | 400,210 | 400 087 | 87% | -10% |
| Radeon 6700 XT | $ 480 | 400 088 | 907 | 733 | 53% | -19% |
| Average | 92% | -16% |
Nvidia’s GPUs are still more inflated than their AMD counterparts in the scalper market, though several GPUs – including the LHR RTX 3080 Ti and RTX 3070 Ti support – currently sell for less than twice the suggested retail price. Prices for these cards have dropped by 12 to 19 percent, and as prices are to some extent related to mining profitability, all models from the RTX 3070 Ti to the RTX 3060 Ti are available at roughly the same price, which of course would not be the case in the normal market.
on average, GPUs still cost roughly double the MSRP.
Meanwhile, on the AMD side, the price of the RX 6900 XT has dropped significantly, dropping 24% last month, the highest value of any current-generation graphics card. This makes this GPU much more in line with its performance and mining profitability compared to other GPUs when it used to be over-inflated before. While on average GPUs still cost roughly double their suggested retail price, these AMD cards are only inflated by 70%.
As in previous months, the RX 6700 XT continues to be the most cost-effective card of the current generation for gamers looking to buy a GPU now. Its value is significantly better than the others in terms of cost per frame using our latest 1440p benchmarks, contributed to poor mining performance and consumer preference for RTX GPUs – a nice bonus for people who are looking for such a value.
How About Used GPUs?
Prices for used GPUs have also dropped over the past month, at a rate similar to that of the current generation cards. For example, Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 20 series dropped an average of 15%, with particularly high drops for cards like the RTX 2080 Ti, which are currently below the 400,000 MSRP.
| Manufacturer’s suggested retail price | average eBay price in May | average eBay price in June | average price of eBay in July | Current price inflation | Price increase from May to July | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GeForce RTX 2080 Ti | 400,000 | 400 458 | 400 219 | 952 | -5% | -22% |
| GeForce RTX 2080 Super | 700 PLN | 400 047 | 887 | 788 | 13% | -11% |
| GeForce RTX 2080 | 700 PLN | pLN 953 | 834 PLN | 686 | -2% | -18% |
| GeForce RTX 2070 Super | pLN 500 | $ 881 | 784 | $ 638 | 28% | -19% |
| GeForce RTX 2070 | pLN 500 | $ 838 | $ 678 | pLN 603 | 21% | -11% |
| GeForce RTX 2060 Super | pLN 400 | pLN 800 | 707 | pLN 613 | 53% | -13% |
| GeForce RTX 2060 | 350 | $ 641 | 549 | pLN 476 | 36% | -13% |
| Average | twenty% | -15% |
However, folks interested in previous-gen low-end GPUs are not so lucky, as the RTX 2060 is still overpriced with an average selling price of $ 476 compared to the $ 350 suggested retail price when it was launched two and a half years ago.
The GTX 16 series card market looks much better this month. When we checked in June, the price cuts of current-generation high-end GPUs due to the fall in cryptocurrency did not cause any major price changes in the mainstream segment. But this month, we are starting to see price drops all the way to the GTX 1650, which has now caught up with other GPUs. Neither of these cards are particularly amazing right now, as they are all priced well above their manufacturer’s suggested prices, but the lower prices are what we like to see.
| Manufacturer’s suggested retail price | average eBay price in May | average eBay price in June | average price of eBay in July | Current price inflation | Price increase from May to July | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GeForce GTX 1660 Ti | $ 280 | 585 | $ 481 | pLN 428 | 53% | -11% |
| GeForce GTX 1660 Super | 230 | 582 | $ 495 | 425 | 85% | -14% |
| GeForce GTX 1660 | 220 | 497 | pLN 430 | $ 359 | 63% | -17% |
| GeForce GTX 1650 Super | $ 160 | pLN 346 | 326 | $ 291 | 82% | -11% |
| GeForce GTX 1650 | pLN 150 | 299 | 295 | 248 | 65% | -16% |
| Average | 70% | -14% |
Then we move on to the GeForce 10 series, which saw a greater than average drop in prices in the used market. At this point, every card, except the GTX 1060 6GB, is now below its premiere suggested retail price, which is a milestone for those old Pascal cards. It should be noted that this is also not a great situation as most of these GPUs came out in 2016, but lower prices are welcome.
The more powerful the GPU (sometimes called graphics card), the more information can be computed and displayed in less time, and therefore the better your overall gaming experience will be.
Graphics
As the technical requirements for the latest triple-A (AAA) games and design software continue to grow, you need to know that your computer’s graphics card can keep up. Gamers, designers, engineers and everyone who cares about exceptional graphics quality in their work and entertainment will find something to love in our range of graphics cards.
We have the latest models from AMD and NVIDIA to make sure there’s something for everyone. These graphics cards can help you with everything from improving your desktop PC’s overall visual performance to adding incredibly immersive detail to complex 3D and virtual reality designs. You can always find the correct card in the HP Store to get the results you need.
Storage
Make sure you always have enough space on your computer to keep all your work and data in one place by replacing your hard drive with one of our great options. Thanks to the user-friendly design that makes it easy to replace and remove the hard drive, you can quickly increase your computer’s storage space.
Discover an easy and affordable solution to back up your work and enjoy the luxury of extended storage. We have hard drives in a variety of sizes so you can find the right storage solution to keep everything important in one place.
For smoother overall desktop performance check out our HP Desktop RAM Upgrade Range. Check out our RAM modules for an inexpensive option that gives you faster startup times and allows you to run more programs simultaneously for smoother multitasking.
Our RAM modules are optimized for several different HP desktops, so you can easily find the one you need. It also allows you to enjoy the same HP Limited Warranty benefits you have on a memory upgrade desktop PC.
These people have entered the high-end graphics card market and are not going to leave any time soon. They are often knowledgeable, well connected, and sufficiently funded to buy out the best of the best before anyone else has a chance to interfere.
Method 1: Newegg, EVGA, and Micro Center
If you want to get your new graphics card as close to the list price as possible, there are three options: Newegg Shuffle, EVGA Queuing System, and Micro Center Store. It is possible to get a graphics card by all three methods, but your mileage will vary depending on where you are located, how much money you are willing to spend, and how urgent you are in your search for a new card.
Newegg Shuffle is probably the most popular way to get a new graphics card. Shuffle is a lottery that takes place daily on the Newegg website. Every day, Newegg selects a list of high-demand products – mostly graphics cards, but sometimes also processors and consoles – that users can choose for a chance to buy. After the lottery closes, Newegg draws the winners and gives them a short time to log in and check.
However, it is not a perfect system. On average, around 100,000 people enter each draw, so you can enter every day for months and still not be selected. After all, it’s a lottery, so there’s an element of luck. In addition, Newegg often combines cards with other components that you may not need, such as a power supply or motherboard. You cannot return a bundled item separately, so you have to sell it yourself or incur additional costs.
The EVGA queue system is more forgiving. Instead of a lottery, EVGA allows users to buy cards on a first come, first served basis as stocks become available. Unlike Newegg Shuffle and many other methods of purchasing a graphics card, EVGA sells its cards at a list price. Yes, you can buy the RTX 3080 for $ 699.
However, this is entirely dependent on when EVGA has new stocks available. Instead of a general lottery, you have to choose each individual model you want to buy and be ready to buy when your name comes up.
Finally, you can buy the card in person if you have a Micro Center close to you. Many locations have graphics cards available for days, and if they aren’t at your local store, you may arrive in the morning when they have more stock to get a card. This is probably the best way to get a new graphics card for a reasonable price, but it assumes you have the Micro Center close to you.
Method 2: Use a stock tracker
If you want to get a new graphics card, you can use the inventory tracking tool. There are several inventory tracking tools available via YouTube Live Stream, Discord Servers, and Browser Extensions, but they all do the same thing: constantly check your graphics cards are available from retailers.
The fixitfixitfixit user has been broadcasting live on YouTube and Twitch for several months, and a Discord server is also connected to the broadcast. It tracks AMD and Nvidia graphics card inventory at Amazon, Newegg, Best Buy, and Antonline, as well as several other retailers (including Office Depot and B&H Photo).
In addition, there are inventory tracking extensions such as Distill and HotStock that can check for you. Both have free and paid tiers depending on how often you want to check your sites and how many products you want to monitor. However, it is possible that sellers prohibit you from using these tools. Users are reporting closure of accounts at Newegg and Best Buy thanks to anti-bot measures at these retailers.
If you want to use this method, we recommend following your Twitter share tracking account. This way, you don’t have to constantly monitor the live stream or risk your account being blocked. Accounts like @stock_drops and @LeBlarstOfTimes send tweets when new cards are released. Keep an eye on these and similar accounts, and be sure to turn on tweet notifications. If you do, all you have to do is check when you get the notification.
But in the end? The current cost of international shipping now adds significant costs to most PC hardware, several graphics card manufacturers and system integrators told PCWorld.
Solution 1: Buy Used, Last-Gen GPUs
One possible solution is to purchase a used GPU of comparable power to what you are looking for, either from the previous generation of the same manufacturer or from a competitor. This works best in the mid-range, where higher-end GPUs will be thicker counterparts.
The alternative GPUs in the market you are using, listed below, should provide a rough equivalent (give or take ~ 10 percent more or less) to these GPUs on your system. Try to buy as late as possible to avoid GPU end-of-life and to get better support for the latest games.
It should be noted that even these cards will be more expensive than usual as people use inflated prices to earn more selling in the secondary market. Even so, it’s definitely worth a look at ebay or Craigslist to see if you can find some good deals. EBay will have higher prices but will have better buyer protection. There is also a Hardware Replacement Subreddit.
Here are some useful replacements for Nvidia and AMD GPUs:
- Replacement for Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060: RTX 2070, RTX 2060 Super, GTX 1660 Ti / RX 5700
- Replacement for Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 Ti / AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT: RTX 2080, RTX 2080 Super, GTX 1080 Ti / RX 5700 XT
- Replacement for Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 / AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT, RX 6800: RTX 2080 Ti
- Replacement for Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 / AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT: Nvidia Titan RTX
- Nvidia GeForce RTX 3090 / AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT replacement
Solution 2: Buy A Prebuilt PC
It may physically hurt for PC building enthusiasts (like us), but precompilation may be one of the best options these days. Companies like iBuyPower or CyberpowerPC buy their GPUs in bulk from vendors, so they are less affected by the GPU shortage and associated price increases, although it is still to be expected that some will emerge. This is a reversal of the norm – were it not for the lack of a GPU, buying a finished computer would be a little more expensive than building it yourself from the same / equivalent components.
If you are going to buy a prefabricated online gaming PC, we advise you to stick to specialized retailers such as iBuyPower or CyberpowerPC or possibly Origin. They offer the best performance for your money. Alienware and the like may look great, but tend to be overpriced for the components they ship with iBuyPower and Cyberpower should offer the best PC precompilations you can get on the market, both in terms of build quality and price.
Micro Center is almost the last major retailer of desktop hardware in the United States and remains relevant in helping deal with the GPU shortage. The way they do this is to lower GPU prices for those who buy a full PC from the Microcenter store. If you are buying a brand new computer and not just upgrading your existing computer, this is probably the safest way to save the biggest money. MicroCenter’s rebates in these situations tend to be about as close to the suggested retail price as possible. Just remember to call in advance and make sure that the microcenter you choose actually has the equipment you need in stock and is ready to discount it.For UK buyers, SCAN is a good counterpart to the full PC versions.
In addition to these PC gaming specialists, you can of course also buy ready-made gaming PCs straight from Amazon and Best Buy.
