If you are on a budget while building your PC, then the best-suited graphic cards for your build lie in the price range of $150 – $250. As the graphic cards in this price range have an appropriate ratio of price to performance. At the moment, there is strong competition in the market in these price ranges. The competition has also spiked up as AMD launched its Navi-based GPUs. Generally, the more competition, the more benefit the consumer gets. In this buying guide, we have arranged some of the best graphics cards under $200 or close to $200 (as the prices fluctuate often). To make the most out of your purchase we have included both the more affordable options as well as some more expensive ones. The best option for you will be dependant on your budget.
At a Glance:
Best Pick
Asus AMD Radeon R7 250
- Dust-proof fans
- Tweak II engine
- Great all-around graphics card
- Makes the most out of its low V-RAM
- Streams and plays game equally well
Staff Pick
Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1660
- WINDFORCE fans
- Direct-touch cooling pipe
- Reasonable V-RAM
- AORUS engine
- 1800MHz with overclocking ability
Budget Pick
Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB
- Modifiable Xtreme engine
- Equipped with Wind Force 2X cooling
- Powerful for most titles
- Operates 1080p gaming at 60FPS
- Durable build and efficient performance
Table of Contents
- Asus AMD Radeon R7 250
- Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1660
- Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB
- MSI GeForce GTX 1650 Super Ventus
- XFX Radeon RX 580 GTS XXX Edition
- Summary best budget graphics card GPU
- Conlusion best budget graphics card GPU
Asus AMD Radeon R7 250
Best Pick
| GPU | AMD |
| Clock Speed | 725MHz |
| Graphics Memory | 1024MB |
| Ports | DVI, HDMI, Display Port |
The Asus AMD Radeon R7 250 is a card in the price range of below $100 but is a well-rounded card. This card will not be able to perform on demanding titles, but it will run perfectly fine on a lot of titles that aren’t demanding. Moreover, this card can handle streaming like a champ. This graphic card falls in our best budget cards for casual users in 2020. The card only features a V-RAM of about 1024MB, but its engine is designed in such a way that it utilizes most of it. The card allows the user to configure the Tweak II so that the user can adjust settings on the go. Hence, the card can be easily optimized for better performance regarding each task. The fans on the Radeon R7 250 are dust-proof. Even though they are not the best fans available, but the dust-proof feature enables them to run with ease for longer periods. This feature allows the fan to compete with higher price-tagged fans in the long run.
Pros
- Dust-proof fans
- Tweak II engine
- Great all-around graphics card
- Makes the most out of its low V-RAM
- Streams and plays game equally well
Cons
- Only have a V-RAM of 1024MB
Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1660
Staff Pick
| GPU | GeForce GTX1660 |
| Clock Speed | 1800MHz |
| Graphics Memory | 6GB |
| Ports | 1x HDMI and 3x Display Port |
The GeForce GTX 1660 isn’t on par with Radeon RX 580 concerning power, but it’s on the less expensive side and also has unique features. Most of the features are similar to Radeon RX 580. The card incorporates the AORUS engine, advanced cooling technology, and has enough power that it can play most games with ease. The area where the card shines is the cooling system department. The card features a direct-touch cooling pipe in addition to two fans that rotate in opposite directions. Due to this, the card has the potential to remove an increased amount of heat from the system. We think the AORUS engine is a cherry on top. Due to the engine, the user gets a lot more control over the graphics card. Also, it is so user-friendly that the user can adjust it on the go.
Pros
- WINDFORCE fans
- Direct-touch cooling pipe
- Reasonable V-RAM
- AORUS engine
- 1800MHz with overclocking ability
Cons
- Ran a little hot in stress tests.
- Overclocking the card further was rocky
Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB
Budget Pick
| CUDA Cores | 768 |
| GPU Clock | 1392 / 1506 MHz |
| Memory Clock | 7008 MHz |
| Memory Size | 4GB GDDR5 |
The Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1050 Ti is a great choice for hardcore and intense users. The card is similar to Strix 560 unit, with a little more power. The card features a hefty 4GB of V-RAM and operation at 1468MHz. Moreover, the card has great features that enable the user to utilize the maximum performance of the card. The GTX 1050 is such a card that allows you to enjoy the latest titles in 1080p and 60 FPS. You can also play the challenging titles in 4K. That’s great value for the price! The card features a Wind Force 2X fan for effective cooling and maximum cooling. To eliminate the heat, a tunnel of air is created by fans circulating in opposite directions. Hence, there is no concern about overheating. The card is also equipped with Xtreme engine utility which is easily accessible to the user for tuning the GTX 1050. This engine allows the user to optimize the unit as required.
Pros
- Modifiable Xtreme engine
- Equipped with Wind Force 2X cooling
- Powerful for most titles
- Operates 1080p gaming at 60FPS
- Durable build and efficient performance
Cons
- Sometimes there is a software loading issue
MSI GeForce GTX 1650 Super Ventus
| GPU Interface | PCIe x16 |
| Chipset | GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER |
| Memory Size | 4GB |
| Memory Type | GDDR6 |
We are impressed by MSI GeForce GTX 1650 Super Ventus, as it offers to emerge unified memory architecture and modifiable shading technology. The card is extremely well in modern gaming due to its turning shaders. The card has a better power efficiency than the preceding generation approximately 1.4 times along with a quieter and cooler gaming experience. Also, the card features an ultra-fast GDDR6 memory that allows a gaming performance more than the GTX 16 series. Also, to discharge excessive heat an aluminum heat sink is used which also enhances the direct contact area with the memory and graphic card. The dissipation of heat is also done via a smooth airflow. If you are looking to buy the GTX 1650 Super Ventus, then behold for your geared-up gaming experience.
Pros
- Good value
- Impressive OC potential
- Power-efficient
- Operate cooler and quieter
Cons
- No factory overclocks
XFX Radeon RX 580 GTS XXX Edition
| GPU | AMD Radeon RX 580 |
| Clock Speed | 1366MHz |
| Graphics Memory: | 8GB GDDR5 |
| Ports | 3x HDMI 2.0b and 1x Display Port 1.4 |
The XFX Radeon RX 580 has a lot of extra features and is on the more powerful side of graphic cards listed below. The main features of this card, besides a powerful RX 580 GPU and V-RAM of 8GB include: a Unibody Heatsink, FreeSync 2, RX 580 uses Radeon Chill technology, enhanced cooling pipes, and enhanced cooling pipes. The card is packed with different more features, and the list of those features is too long to be described here. The clock of the card is utilized to its maximum potential as the RX 580 consists of True Clock technology. The clock of the card is hardware-based, instead of software-based. Due to this, the clock is extremely reliable and can perform far greater than what it would have given through software.
Pros
- Radeon Chill
- Eyefinity
- FreeSync 2
- 8GB V-RAM
- Unibody Heatsink
Cons
- Not much faster than Radeon RX 480, despite being larger, power-hungrier.
- XFX model we tested is big for a card in this class.
- FX card had a tricky, recessed eight-pin power connector
Summary best budget graphics card GPU
Conlusion best budget graphics card GPU
We hope that this article has helped you decide on your next graphics card purchase. If not, then please reach out to our team of experts at the contact information below for further assistance in selecting a PC component or part. When it comes to building a budget-friendly gaming rig, there are many factors involved, and choosing the best graphics cards under $200 is only one of them. So don’t forget to also consider other important components like CPU, motherboard, RAM, storage device etc). Let us know if we can be of any help!
