Graphics card: the ultimate comparison of the best 2020 cards

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When you build a computer, all the components are obviously important, but there is a category to choose well: the graphics card. What is the best card for your usage and budget? Comparative.

The graphics card is an essential computer component for playing, but not only, it can also be used for streaming, video editing, 3D, etc.

There is indeed an embarrassment of choice with AMD and NVIDIA which regularly launch new graphics cards and the various assemblers who then offer “custom” (or “custom”) versions. It’s a complex universe to approach, but with some research it is ultimately very easy to navigate, this is one of the reasons why we created this guide to buying graphics cards.

Before the arrival of the next-gen consoles, which should arrive at the end of the year, it is often appropriate to equip oneself because one of the main advantages of a PC is still to be upgradeable. This is why we have created this comparative guide to the best graphics cards on the market.

The best graphics cards in 2020:

Sapphire RX 5500 XT Pulse 8 GB
MSI Radeon RX 5700 Gaming X
Asus GeForce RTX 2080 Super ROG Strix Gaming OC
Gigabyte GeForce RTX 2060 Super Gaming OC 3X
ZOTAC GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER Twin Fan

These are the two manufacturers of graphics cards (GPU) for the general public. It’s an eternal debate, like between AMD and Intel for processors (CPU). Each manufacturer has its advantages and disadvantages.

First, note that there are reference graphics cards, called Founders Edition from NVIDIA. They are directly designed by the manufacturer and are the first to be released.

Then there are the “custom” graphics cards, based on the reference model, but which make changes to frequencies, cooling, design, etc. Most assemblers such as ASUS, Asrock, EVGA, Gigabyte, MSI and others still offer “custom” graphics cards today. These are often factory overclocked, to gain performance, and often offer better cooling.

There is something for all uses, all tastes … and all prices. In this comparison, we will try to best recommend the best graphics card for playing in Full HD, Quad HD or 4K Ultra HD, for streaming or video editing.

This comparison will evolve over time, because like other computer components (processor, motherboard, etc.), there are indeed new graphics cards that are released regularly.

Some technical terms
❓ What are the terms to know?
We discussed above the difference between reference graphics cards and “customs”, let’s also talk about the different technical terms to know to properly understand this comparison.

📈 What is a graphics processor?
As the name suggests, it is the processor of your graphics card. It is therefore designed by AMD or NVIDIA for consumer GPUs. The latest graphics processors are the RX 5000 from AMD and the RTX 2000 from NVIDIA. Like the processor (CPU) of your PC, the graphics processor has a certain frequency and a finesse of engraving.

🧠 What is graphics memory?
The graphics memory is the RAM of the graphics card. Some models have 4, 6, 8 … or 11 GB. There are several types of memory: GDDR5, GDDR6, etc.

⚡️ What is Ray Tracing?
Ray tracing is a novelty from NVIDIA, present exclusively on GeForce RTX. Concretely, it is a real-time light calculation technique, which brings more realism for players and more ease for game developers. It has been used for a long time by professionals, especially in animation studios, but required a lot of hardware power.

❤️ What are CUDA hearts?
CUDA core: this is the number of calculation units in an NVIDIA graphics card.

Our selection of the best graphics cards in 2020
Graphics card for 1080p: Sapphire RX 5500 XT Pulse 8 GB
Sapphire RX 5500 XT Pulse 8 GoThe RX 5000 are part of the latest generation of AMD graphics cards, which are based on the RDNA architecture and benefit from a 7 nm engraving finesse and the support of the new PCI Express 4.0. To date, there is the RX 5500, RX 5500 XT, RX 5600, RX 5600 XT, RX 5700 and RX 5700 XT.

The Radeon RX 5500 XT, which makes up the entry level on this new architecture, undoubtedly offers the best value for money / performance. Indeed, it allows you to play quite easily in Full HD thanks to 4 or 8 GB of GDDR6 type memory. I recommend starting on the model with 8 GB of graphics memory, a more sustainable choice, but the 4 GB model remains efficient.

This “custom” model from the Sapphire brand is effective for its price. In terms of performance, we get honorable performances in 1080p on Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (53 fps on average), Grand Theft Auto V (65 fps), Shadow of the Tomb Raider (62 fps), The Division 2 (57 fps) or Encore F1 2019 (69 fps) – according to the specialized site AnandTech.

Regarding noise pollution, the two fans are stopped at rest and are very quiet even under load, when the graphics card is used a lot: 39 dBa (on Shadow of the Tomb Raider). It is the best graphics card for 1080p in terms of value for money.