The enthusiast market for PC components might get a lot of attention, leading to plenty of articles on 1440p 144hz or 1080p 144hz gaming, but many gamers rely on less expensive systems. And while 1440p 144hz certainly has advantages in terms of smoothness and resolution, there are some great entry-level GPUs that will ensure 1080p 60+ FPS for years to come. And when you combine them with Freesync (or G-Sync in some cases) technology, you can have very smooth gaming at Full HD, even with a limited budget.
When we say entry-level, what we mean are the less expensive cards from this generation, or even more so the less expensive cards from previous generations. Our maximum for these entry-level GPUs is right around $300, and our goal is to be able to game at 1080p with a minimum of 60 FPS on the low end, pushing towards 144 FPS with the highest end ‘entry-level’ cards. Aside from maybe the most powerful entry-level card we will recommend, these cards are not mean for 1440p gaming unless you are comfortable on very low settings and hovering around 60 FPS in all but the most highly optimized or oldest games.
So for any budget gamers looking to make the most of their money and build a gaming rig with an entry-level GPU, these are our recommendations for you:
Best Entry-Level Graphics Cards – My Recommendations
| Best entry-level graphics cards | Design | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| Best ‘Ultra-Budget’ Entry-Level Graphics Card |  | XFX Radeon RX 570 RS 4GB |
| Best Budget Entry-Level Graphics Card |  | Zotac GTX 1060 Mini |
 | XFX RX 580 8GB GTS XXX Edition | |
| Best ‘Mid-price’ Entry-Level Graphics Card |  | ASUS GTX 1660 Dual Fan |
| Best ‘High-end’ Entry-Level Graphics Card |  | Gigabyte Windforce GTX 1660 Ti |
| Surprise Recommendation |  | AMD Radeon RX 5500 |
Best ‘Ultra-Budget’ Entry-Level Graphics Card
Following the crazy spike in mining during the Bitcoin/Ethereum craze and subsequent crash, one card specifically came down to a very affordable level. During the height of the craze, manufacturers were not meeting demand, leading to huge spikes in pricing for GPUs of all levels. And most mining rigs went with either the RX 580, which we will talk about in a little bit, or its less expensive and still very powerful little brother. Now that prices have normalized for cryptocurrency, the massive amount of those sought-after mining cards are back in the market. This means that for an ultra-budget rig that is still capable of 1080p 60FPS in almost all games at nice graphics settings, the previous choice for miners is now perfect for a gamer: the AMD Radeon RX 570.
The RX 570 comes in two flavors depending on the VRAM: an 8GB version and a 4GB version. For modern gaming, 4GB is starting to become the bare minimum, but at 1080p 60Hz (or 75Hz with Freesync), the RX570 4GB is a steal. The 4GB should not hold you back at 1080p in most games and it is considerably less pricey than the 8GB models. The RX 570 is not as power hungry as its bigger brother, meaning it will allow for a lower capacity PSU to also save a few bucks. When paired with a CPU like an i5-9100F or Ryzen 1600, this entry-level GPU is unbeatable for an ultra-budget gamer. And as a final benefit, the RX 570 is Freesync compatible, so when paired with an equally capable monitor, you should avoid any of that ugly stuttering or frame drops.
So what do we mean when we say ultra-budget? As of right now, a high-quality AIB partner RX570 card is available from XFX (a very high-quality AMD GPU manufacturer) for $130: the XFX Radeon RX 570 RS 4GB. For that price, you get a dual-fan design, an aluminum backplate, and a GPU capable of playing even modern games at 1080p 60FPS in good settings. In terms of pure price-to-performance, this card is hard to beat at any level and unbeatable in the ultra-budget category.
Best Budget Entry-Level Graphics Card
If we take one step up from the ultra-budget category, we begin to enter into the territory of cards that will let you play 1080p at 60FPS in highest settings for most modern games, and should continue to be useable in the future at somewhat lower graphics settings. On well-optimized games or older games, these cards will even push above 100FPS, and if you have a Freesync monitor (which you should to go with these cards!), you will benefit from the stutter-free play even if your 1% FPS lows are not perfect. So at the budget tier for entry-level GPUs, we recommend the AMD Radeon RX 580 or the Nvidia GTX 1060 6GB.
At this price point we see our first reasonable offering from Team Green, as the newer 1650 is less powerful and more expensive than the 1650 and the 1660 is more powerful but too expensive for this tier. But the 1060 6GB (not the 3GB version!) is a good offering, similar in power to the RX 580 and around the same price (if you can find one in stock). Similarly, the RX580 offers a modest power boost over the RX 570 while still keeping a very reasonable price. Both cards are virtually even in terms of pure power and both can use Freesync, which is great. In fact, the only real differences between the two is that the RX 580 has more VRAM (8GB vs 6GB), while the 1060 6GB draws less power and has some of the more niche Nvidia benefits, like nvenc encoding for streamers.
In terms of pricing, the RX 580 is readily available (again thanks to the return to normalcy in the cryptocurrency market). One model we especially like is the big brother to our RX 570 recommendation, the XFX RX 580 8GB GTS XXX Edition. At $180, this card offers a great feature list (dual fan, aluminum backplate, nice factory overclock, and Dual BIOS) at a very reasonable price. We recommend going with this card right now as the 1060 6GB is not easily in stock, but if you find one at a reasonable price or don’t mind buying renewed (like the Zotac GTX 1060 mini card for $150), then we would say go for it. Either of these graphics cards are perfect for a budget entry-level GPU.
Best ‘Mid-price’ Entry-Level Graphics Card
The mid-level category is another big jump up in terms of power, but at a similar hike in price. Originally in this category, we wanted to recommend cards from both Nvidia and AMD, but the AMD card that falls into this price range, the RX Vega 56, is so difficult to find, that we can’t rightfully recommend it. So our remaining card for mid-price entry-level GPU, which should guarantee you 1080p 60FPS for years to come and push 144FPS in well-optimized games, comes from Team Green: the Nvidia GTX 1660.
The GTX 1660 truly is a beautiful card. Its power draw and efficiency are astonishing, its power is more than enough for 1080p 60 FPS, and it offers compatibility with both Freesync and Gsync technology. It maintains the 6GB that was present in the 1060, which is still less than the RX 580 or RX Vega 56, but should be more than enough for 1080p gamers. The 1660 can push 100+ frames in well-optimized games and many newer titles, but will struggle with the most greedy of AAA titles (but should easily do 60 FPS).
In our minds, this card is perhaps the best of the entire article for an entry-level GPU. It may be more expensive than the RX 580, but it is also much newer and much more efficient, as well as more powerful. It may not offer RTX ray tracing features, but for an entry-level GPU, we would not expect it to anyway. With models regularly available as low as $220, such as this dual-fan ZOTAC edition, and even lower on sale, the Nvidia GTX 1660 is a very strong contender for the best entry-level graphics card, and is definitely the best in its price range.
Best ‘High-end’ Entry-Level Graphics Card
Alright, I know what you’re thinking. A high-end entry-level GPU? Isn’t that a bit of an oxymoron? Well…..I’m not sure! The line between entry-level and mid-level becomes a bit blurry at this level, but if we keep to our original criteria that entry-level is anywhere under $300, there is one more card we absolutely have to mention. So this category is for the gamers that want 1080p 144FPS right now in most games but also plan on keeping their rig for years and want to be able to play 1080p 60FPS at the highest settings for years to come. For them, whether it is technically ‘entry-level’ or not, we recommend the Nvidia 1660 Ti (and a surprise at the end at another potential recommendation!).
If our recommendation for the category above, the GTX 1660, is beautiful, the 1660 Ti is a miracle. With almost the same power draw (so even better than the already stellar efficiency of the GTX 1660), the 1660 Ti gives a nice ~15% performance boost without adding any noticeable heat or power draw. The 1660 Ti maintains Freesync and G-Sync capability and represents the peak of the Pascal architecture. For someone that wants to stay in the ‘entry-level’ world of GPUs, but wants to push the limit of that definition, this is the card to buy.
As we said, this is the highest-end of the entry-level cards, and as such, the price reflects that. For a good dual-fan partner card, we recommend the Gigabyte Windforce GTX 1660 Ti. At around $280, this card is about as expensive and powerful as we would recommend while still staying in the entry-level world of graphics cards.
Suprise Recommendation – AMD RX 5500
As promised, we have one more card we want to mention. It is not fully available and benchmarks/pricing are still unknown, but the AMD Radeon RX 5500 has been officially announced and should start being available relatively soon. This card is expected to fall somewhere in between the 1660 and 1660 Ti, so depending on pricing, this card could end up being a winner in the entry-level GPU category. Keep an eye out for further news, and a future article from PremiumBuilds, on this recently announced GPU if you are looking for an entry-level graphics card and don’t mind waiting.
Summary
| Best entry-level graphics cards | Design | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| Best ‘Ultra-Budget’ Entry-Level Graphics Card | | XFX Radeon RX 570 RS 4GB |
| Best Budget Entry-Level Graphics Card | | Zotac GTX 1060 Mini |
| XFX RX 580 8GB GTS XXX Edition | |
| Best ‘Mid-price’ Entry-Level Graphics Card | | ASUS GTX 1660 Dual Fan |
| Best ‘High-end’ Entry-Level Graphics Card | | Gigabyte Windforce GTX 1660 Ti |
| Surprise Recommendation | | AMD Radeon RX 5500 |
In conclusion, these entry-level graphics cards are perfect for anyone looking to dive into the world of gaming at the 1080p 60+ FPS tier. While the high-end starts to get close to what we would consider a mid-budget card with the Nvidia GTX 1660 and 1660 Ti, the lower budget entry-level cards like the RX 570, RX 580, and Nvidia 1060 6GB offer great value at very reasonable prices. For anyone looking for an entry-level graphics card at a budget between $130 and $280, these recommendations are perfect. And if you have some patience and don’t mind waiting, the RX 5500 should offer another interesting option when more information becomes available.