Looking to increase those frame rates? Graphics card pricing is finally getting reasonable again, and Amazon’s Prime Early Access Sale, colloquially known as Prime Day 2 or October Prime Day, starts Oct 11 and through Oct 12—hopefully to the benefit of desktop gamers looking to score a deal.
For almost two years, the quadruple-action combo of pandemic gaming demand, worldwide chip shortages, cryptocurrency boom, and scalpers trying to get rich on all three at once kept graphics card prices sky high. But now we’re finally seeing them drop down to more sane levels, with a 50% dive this calendar year alone. And now that new cards from Nvidia and AMD are on the horizon, and with Intel coming in to compete directly on price, it’s a great time to hunt for deals on cards from the last generation.
Amazon is being pretty cheeky trying to squeeze in a second Prime Day sale in the same year, especially just a month before the consumer spending mania that is Black Friday. But since so much has changed in the GPU market since this year’s first Prime Day in July, we’re happy to get a second chance at some low prices. Of course you’ll need to be an Amazon Prime subscriber to take advantage of the deals—here’s how you can score a subscription for free.
Best Nvidia graphics card deals
- MSI RTX 3060 12GB, $379.99 ($20 off at Newegg)
- Zotac RTX 3060 Ti 8GB, $399.99 (retail price at Amazon)
- Nvidia RTX 3060 Ti 8GB, $399.99 (retail price at Best Buy)
- MSI RTX 3070 LHR 8GB (Refurbished), $449.00 ($50 off at Amazon)
- Gigabyte RTX 3070 8GB, $419.99 ($60 off at Newegg)
- Gigabyte RTX 3070 Ti 8GB, $589.99 ($50 off at Newegg)
- PNY RTX 3080 LHR 12GB Triple Fan, $749.99 ($50 off at Amazon)
- MSI RTX 3080 12GB, $739.99 ($60 off at Newegg)
- Asus RTX 3080 Ti 12GB, $892.00 ($308 off at Amazon)
- Zotac RTX 3090 24GB, $869.99 ($630 off at Amazon)
- Zotac RTX 3090 Ti, $999.99 ($1000 off at Amazon)
- Asus RTX 3090 Ti, $1089.99 ($910 off at Amazon)
- Nvidia RTX 3090 Ti, $1099.99 ($900 off at Best Buy)
- MSI RTX 3090 Ti X Trio OC 24GB, $1304.99 ($695 off at Amazon)
Best AMD graphics card deals
- PowerColor RX 550 Low Profile, $69.99 ($10 off at Amazon)
- PowerColor RX 6400 4GB Low Profile, $125.99 ($44 off at Amazon)
- PowerColor RX 6600 8GB, $209.99 ($50 off at Amazon)
- Asus RX 6600 8GB, $259.99 ($80 off at Amazon)
- Gigabyte RX 6600 8GB, $239.99 ($90 off at Best Buy)
- Gigabyte RX 6650 XT 8GB, $284.99 ($115 off at Newegg)
- PowerColor RX 6650 XT, $293.99 ($96 off at Amazon)
- Asrock RX 6800 XT 16GB, $549.99 ($100 off at Newegg)
- Asrock RX 6900 XT 16GB, $669.99 ($330 off at Newegg)
With stocks of graphics cards high and new models ready to hit shelves, Amazon’s competitors won’t be sitting on their hands during the sale. We’ll be scouring the web for the best deals on GPUs from other major sellers too, like Best Buy, Newegg, Walmart, and eBay. And most of the time, they’ll let you score a deal without needing to buy a subscription first.
Author: Michael Crider, Staff Writer
Michael is a former graphic designer who's been building and tweaking desktop computers for longer than he cares to admit. His interests include folk music, football, science fiction, and salsa verde, in no particular order.