I'm building a new gaming PC soon and can't decide between two similarly priced graphics cards. I'm upgrading from an i5-10400F and GTX 1660 Super, so either option would be a major improvement. I mainly play competitive games, including The Finals and Marvel Rivals, but I also want to play AAA titles such as Elden Ring and Cyberpunk 2077. I currently use a 1080p monitor, though I'd like to move to 1440p in the future.
Where I live, the RX 9060 XT 16GB costs about 28,000 EGP, or roughly $560, while the RTX 5060 Ti 8GB costs around 26,000 EGP, or approximately $520. The 16GB version of the RTX 5060 Ti costs more than 35,000 EGP and is outside my budget. I'm concerned that choosing AMD might mean giving up better features such as DLSS and ray tracing, but I'm also worried that 8GB of VRAM may become limiting, especially at 1440p. The card will be paired with a Ryzen 5 7500F and 16GB of DDR5 memory. Which would be the better choice for gaming over the next few years?
4 Answers
I’d avoid basing the decision on rumored future features. The RTX 5060 Ti may have somewhat better ray-tracing performance, lower power use, and access to Nvidia’s software features, but neither card is really an ideal ray-tracing powerhouse. The 8GB limitation is more immediate and relevant, so the 16GB Radeon makes more sense for a gaming-only build.
The Radeon is the better value unless you specifically need Nvidia features or want the simplest possible driver experience. AMD cards can occasionally require more troubleshooting, and some Windows updates or driver releases can cause problems for certain systems, but the hardware itself is capable. If you’re comfortable reinstalling drivers or adjusting settings when necessary, the 9060 XT should serve you well.
The RX 9060 XT 16GB is the clear choice at these prices. Performance is broadly comparable, but the extra VRAM gives it much more breathing room for newer games and future 1440p use. An 8GB card at this price is already close to the minimum in demanding titles, and features like upscaling can’t completely compensate when a game runs out of VRAM.
If you can find a used RTX 4070 or RTX 4060 Ti 16GB at a similar price, those could be worth considering, but between the two new cards listed here, I’d buy the RX 9060 XT 16GB. The extra $40 is well spent, especially if you plan to upgrade to 1440p. Just make sure the system has 32GB of RAM eventually, since 16GB is also starting to feel tight in newer games.
That’s what worries me most about the Nvidia card. I’d like the features, but the 16GB version is too far outside my budget, while the Radeon is still barely affordable.