Black Friday is usually a great time to pick up hardware deals, but it’s been a rough couple of years for bargain hunters. Chip shortages, the cryptocurrency boom, and worldwide supply chain issues have made the last two Black Fridays especially bleak for graphics card shoppers.
But with these factors more or less behind us, and with new cards from all three major GPU manufacturers motivating retailers to discount older cards, it’s finally time to look for some deals. So, if you’re hoping to find a high-power RTX 30 series from Nvidia or Radeon 6000 series from AMD, or maybe a cheaper option from newcomer Intel, it might finally be time to pull the trigger.
Because retailers are trying to clear out stock to make room for next-gen cards, almost all of these deals come with free codes for new PC games. Some also have “click here to clip coupon” offers for even deeper discounts. So, even those marked at retail prices have a little something to sweeten the deal.
Best early Black Friday Nvidia graphics card deals
PNY RTX 3050 — $320 ($10 off) at Best Buy
Nvidia Reference RTX 3060 Ti — $399.99 (retail price) at Best Buy
Maxsun RTX 3070 Limited — $549.99 ($150 off) at Newegg
MSI RTX 3080 12GB — $799.99 (retail price) at Newegg
Asus RTX 3080 10GB — $899.99 ($100 off) at Best Buy
Best early Black Friday AMD graphics card deals
Gigabyte RX 6650 XT — $259.99 ($140 off) at Newegg
MSI RX 6700 XT — $349.99 ($110 off) at Newegg
AMD Reference RX 6750 XT — $449 ($100 off) at AMD Store
AMD Reference RX 6900 XT — $679 ($330 off) at AMD Store
MSI RX 6950 XT — $779.99 ($320 off) at Newegg
AMD Reference RX 6950 XT — $849 ($250 off) at AMD Store
Best early Black Friday Intel graphics card deals
Asrock Arc A380 — $140 (retail price) at Newegg
Intel Reference Arc A750 — $290 (retail price) at Newegg
Asrock Arc A750 — $290 (retail price) at Newegg
Intel Reference Arc A770 — $350 (retail price) at Newegg
FAQ
When is Black Friday this year?
Black Friday 2022 is on Nov 25. But if you’re looking to score a deal, there’s no need to wait, as the GPU sales have already begun.
What graphics card should I buy?
Okay, that’s kind of a big question. The answer is generally “whichever one you want and can afford.” But there are a lot of factors that go into which card is actually practical for you, not the least of which is whether your PC can physically hold or power up the GPU you choose. Make sure to read PCWorld’s rankings of the best graphics cards of 2022 to make informed decisions.
Should I buy Nvidia, AMD, or Intel?
All modern desktop graphics cards connect via the PCI-Express slot on your desktop computer’s motherboard. As long as you have one slot free (and the required number of slots open to plug it into your computer case), it’ll work. The difference between Nvidia and AMD is pretty slim at most price points. Unless you’re interested in a particular feature of one brand, like Nvidia’s RTX effects or AMD’s FidelityFX SuperResolution, either will do fine.
Intel’s brand new Arc cards are a different proposition. The company is competing aggressively on price, making these cards a bargain, at least for newer games. But Intel’s drivers are still immature compared to AMD and Nvidia, especially if you’re playing older titles.
Is my desktop compatible with a new graphics card?
It’s time to break out the tape measure. Almost all modern desktops can fit at least some kind of external graphics card, as long as they have at least one PCIe slot on the motherboard. But before buying a new card, make sure your case can fit it, both in length (measured in millimeters) and in slots (the number of eternal notches at the rear of the case, not physical PCIe connections) it needs. Most mid-range cards use two slots, but more powerful ones can use three or even four.
You also need to make sure that your computer’s power supply can handle the additional watts drawn by the new GPU, and that it has the correct power connections to supply electricity to it. If not, you can always upgrade your power supply, too.
How much should I spend on a new GPU?
Generally speaking, the more you spend on a graphics card, the more powerful it will be—the better the effects and the more frames you can push in AAA games. A $1,000 card isn’t necessarily twice as good as a $500 card, but it’ll definitely be a lot better.
However, there’s such a thing as too much. If your computer is six or seven years old, the “bottleneck” of performance might be your processor or RAM, so spending four digits on a new card wouldn’t be wise.
Should I upgrade the rest of my computer too?
It depends. If you’re upgrading to a really powerful graphics card, you definitely want to make sure that your power supply can handle it. If you haven’t upgraded any of the major components in a while, it might be time for a system overhaul, too. That usually means a new processor, motherboard, and sometimes RAM, though AMD AM4 motherboards can slot in relatively new CPUs without needing any other new components.
If you’re not sure you want to drop that much on new hardware, you can always upgrade the GPU, do some testing in your favorite games, and see if you have the performance increase you want. If not, you can upgrade the other components as needed.
