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Graphics card prices have come down by a solid margin, and now is the best time to choose a video card for gaming systems. Several manufacturers are hosting massive sales to get rid of the surplus RTX 30 series and RX 6000 series video cards before the next-gen graphics cards launch within a few more weeks.
Many companies sell AIB versions of the graphics cards launched by AMD and Nvidia. Most of these aftermarket variants pack better cooling and bumped-up clock speeds. Some options are cheaper than the reference video cards launched by the manufacturers to make the GPUs more accessible to a wider audience.
However, picking the best series from a video card manufacturer can be a bit intimidating when faced with a dozen choices. All video cards claim to have the same performance, thus, determining the best one for a build largely depends on the cooling quality, aesthetics, and price of the particular variant.
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Here are the best manufacturers to choose from and their most notable series.
Note: This list is subjective, in no particular order, and reflects the writer's opinions.
A guide to purchasing graphics cards from the best manufacturers in the industry
1) Micro-Star International (MSI)
Micro-Star International, or MSI in short, is a leading PC hardware and laptop manufacturer. The Taiwanese company is well-known for its high-end and budget graphics card offerings.
The MSI Suprim X lineup is arguably one of the best in the market. The company is also known for its high-quality Gaming X and Gaming Z lineups. On a budget, the Ventus 3x and 2x graphics cards are some of the best-selling designs.
MSI designs and sells both Nvidia Geforce and AMD Radeon video cards.
2) ASUS
Alongside MSI and Gigabyte, ASUS is a leading PC hardware, smartphone, and laptop manufacturer. ASUS is well-known for its high-end PC hardware. The ROG Strix lineup is established for its over-the-top presentation and quality of components.
In addition to ROG Strix, the company is also known for its budget-oriented TUF lineup and offers the KO and Dual lineup of GPUs on a budget. Recently, ASUS partnered with cooling hardware manufacturer Noctua to bring a silent and thermally efficient RTX 3070 to the market.
ASUS sells both Nvidia Geforce and AMD Radeon video cards.
3) Gigabyte
Gigabyte is another leading third-party AIB video card manufacturer. The company is also famous for its motherboards, monitors, and other PC hardware.
Gigabyte's Aorus Master and Vision series is known for packing high-quality hardware and aesthetics. On a budget, Gigabyte offers the Gaming OC lineup that packs binned GPUs targeted at pure performance. The Eagle lineup is a tier below the Gaming OC card and mainly focuses on mainstream performance other than high-quality chips and thermals.
The Taiwanese company also has both Nvidia Geforce and AMD Radeon offerings.
3) Inno3D (for Nvidia Geforce video cards only)
Inno3D is one of the oldest graphics card manufacturers in the market. The company is known for its out-of-the-box designs. Inno3D has also offered some of the best-performing hardware in the market that does not cost a fortune.
The flagship offering from Inno3D is the iChill X4 lineup. Unlike most GPUs in the market, the graphics cards in this lineup pack a fourth fan targeted towards MOSFET cooling. Inno3D also sells slightly cut-down iChill X3 GPUs.
The company is known for its Twin X2 and X3 OC lineups on a budget. Both of these series pack budget offerings that do not pack high-end components.
Overall, Inno3D is one of the best manufacturers to choose from if users want to save a buck. However, the company does not manufacture AMD Radeon GPUs.
5) Colorful (for Nvidia Geforce video cards only)
Colorful is a leading Nvidia Geforce video card manufacturer. The company is well-established for its iGame Vulcan series, which packs some of the best cooling hardware. Vulcan GPUs also come with a tiltable display that can be used as a system spec monitor.
In addition to the high-end Vulcan graphics cards, the company also offers a slightly cut-down iGame Ultra series, Advanced OC, and the budget BattleAX lineup. The GPUs in the iGame Ultra lineup are known for their aesthetics and high-end components. However, users miss out on RGB and features like a tiltable display.
BattleAX GPUs are budget performance-oriented GPUs with just the necessary features to get the video card working at its full potential.
Overall, Colorful is a great graphics card manufacturer, but they do not sell AMD Radeon GPUs.
6) Sapphire (for AMD Radeon video cards only)
Sapphire manufactures some of the highest-quality video cards on the market. However, they are limited to the production of AMD Radeon GPUs only. Sapphire GPUs have a distinguished design language and quality barrier that only the highest-end GPUs from other manufacturers can touch.
The Nitro+ lineup from the company is undoubtedly the best performer in the bunch. However, the extra quality comes at a premium. The Nitro+ SE lineup is a slightly cut-down version of the higher-end cards. If users are looking for a cost-effective solution, they can look for a budget Sapphire Pulse lineup.
7) XFX (for AMD Radeon video cards only)
XFX is popular for its high-quality graphics cards that do not cost a lot. Their Speedster SWFT 319 lineup of GPUs includes several offerings that can be the cheapest on the market, but they perform exceptionally well.
On the high-end, XFX has the Speedster MERC 319 lineup, known for its thermal efficiency and build quality. However, this American video card manufacturer is only limited to AMD Radeon GPUs.
Notable mentions
Apart from the video card manufacturers listed above, there are a few others that are worth checking out. These include American graphics card manufacturer EVGA and Taiwanese companies Galax and Zotac.
EVGA
The FTW3 Ultra series from EVGA is arguably one of the best options on the market. On a budget, EVGA has an XC3 Ultra lineup. However, the company does not sell AMD Radon video cards.
Zotac
Another notable manufacturer is Zotac. The company's AMP Extreme Holo, AMP Holo, and Trinity OC lineups are based on some high-quality components.
Apart from these series, the company sells the Tianqi OC and PGF OC series exclusively in the Asian market. However, Zotac cards can be notorious in terms of thermal efficiency. Zotac only sells Nvidia Geforce video cards.
Galax
Galax also manufactures some high-quality graphics cards on the market. Their notable series includes the 1-click-OC lineup, which mainly focuses on budget offerings. On the high-end spectrum, the company sells the SG series of video cards. Like EVGA and Zotac, Galax only sells Nvidia Geforce graphics cards.
