I bought an RTX 5060 for $300 in January for my wife's future PC, but prices have climbed and similar cards are now selling for over $500. Since the card is still sealed, I could sell it, buy an RX 9060 XT—either the 8GB or 16GB model depending on availability—and still have money left for a case or power supply. The PC will mainly be used for light 1080p gaming, so extreme performance isn't necessary. I'm also interested in avoiding GeForce Experience, particularly its recording features, although I'm unsure whether switching to AMD would introduce software headaches. Would this be a worthwhile upgrade, especially if I can find the 16GB 9060 XT at a reasonable price?
4 Answers
For a simple, dependable family PC, keeping the 5060 is also a reasonable choice. Nvidia’s software is generally straightforward, and the card is already purchased and ready to use. AMD’s Adrenalin package does include built-in game recording, so you don’t need OBS, but AMD may require a little more attention when troubleshooting drivers or settings. I’d only switch if the resale profit is substantial and you can get the 16GB 9060 XT without adding much money.
If you can sell the 5060 for around $500 and find the 16GB 9060 XT at a sensible price, I’d make the swap. You should get somewhat better performance, and the extra VRAM gives the card more breathing room for future games. For 1080p light gaming, though, the 5060 is already perfectly adequate, so this is more about taking advantage of the unusually high resale value than needing an upgrade.
I’d personally take the 9060 XT, especially the 16GB version. Selling a sealed card for far more than you paid and ending up with better hardware plus money for the rest of the build is a strong deal. Just make sure the replacement price and warranty are solid before selling the 5060.
The 16GB version is the one I’d target. It should last longer and is less likely to run into texture or settings limitations over the next few years. The 8GB model is a much less convincing trade—at 1080p the performance difference may be fairly small, so I wouldn’t sell the 5060 just to move to that one unless the price difference is excellent.
I’m specifically planning on 1080p, so VRAM probably won’t be a major issue immediately. Availability is my bigger concern, and the 8GB model still appears to have a modest performance lead in some tests.