As someone who has spent years tracking GPU prices and building budget gaming PCs, I never thought I'd be writing an article urging people to buy right now. But here we are in late November 2025, and I'm genuinely concerned about what's coming next year. If you've been on the fence about upgrading your graphics card, whether it's an AMD Radeon or NVIDIA GeForce GPU, this might be your last chance to grab one at a reasonable price before the market goes haywire in 2026.
Let me explain why this year-end window is so critical, what's driving the upcoming crisis, and which cards represent the best value before prices skyrocket.
The Perfect Storm Brewing for 2026
The GPU market is facing something unprecedented. While we've seen shortages before—during the crypto mining boom, during COVID-19—what's coming in 2026 is different and potentially worse. This time, it's not gamers or miners competing for cards; it's artificial intelligence data centers sucking up every available memory chip on the planet.
Samsung Electronics just raised memory chip prices by up to 60% compared to September 2025 levels, according to industry sources. That's not a typo—sixty percent. Contract prices for 32GB DDR5 modules jumped from $149 in September to $239 in November 2025. When the world's largest memory manufacturer does this, everyone else follows, and the ripple effects hit every device that uses memory—including graphics cards.
Silicon Motion's CEO described the current situation as something that has "never happened before"—a simultaneous severe shortage of HDDs, DRAM, HBM, and NAND flash, with most of their capacity already sold out through 2026. PowerColor, a major AMD board partner, recently warned customers that Black Friday 2025 might be the last chance to buy a GPU at a good price, encouraging buyers to "buy before the last week of the year before prices kick up".
AMD has already notified its supply chain partners about a second price increase affecting its entire product lineup, projected to be no less than 10% across all graphics cards. This follows an earlier internal price hike that AMD absorbed in its margins, but this time they're passing it directly to consumers. NVIDIA isn't immune either—the company has reportedly delayed its RTX 50 Super series from Q1 2026 to Q3 2026 specifically because of 3GB GDDR7 memory shortages and sky-high prices.
Why Memory Prices Are Destroying GPU Affordability
You might wonder why memory prices matter so much for graphics cards. The answer is simple: GDDR6 and GDDR7 memory chips that power GPUs come from the same manufacturers—Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron—that produce server memory for AI data centers. And right now, those data centers are paying premium prices to secure every wafer they can get their hands on.
Here's what's happening: DRAM contract prices have risen roughly 170% year-over-year, while GDDR6 has increased by around 30% as manufacturers shift capacity to AI products like HBM (High Bandwidth Memory). DDR5 consumer RAM kits jumped by up to 168% in just a couple of months. Some DDR5 32GB kits that cost $125 for most of 2025 now cost over $250.
NVIDIA's shift to smartphone-style low-power LPDDR memory in its AI servers is making things even worse. Counterpoint Research forecasts that server memory chip prices could double by the end of 2026, with overall memory chip prices rising 50% through Q2 2026. Because each AI server needs far more memory chips than a smartphone, this sudden demand shift is creating shortages the industry simply isn't equipped to handle.
When you factor in GPU board partners' margins, a $10-$15 increase in VRAM cost translates to a $25-$40 higher retail price for consumers. For higher-end cards, this ripples through with $50+ price increases. Modeling suggests the RTX 5070 could hit $600, the RTX 5060 Ti could reach nearly $500, and the RX 9060 XT would climb to $400 if manufacturers preserve current margins.
What This Means for You in 2026
The consensus among industry insiders is clear: 2026 will be brutal for GPU buyers. Memory alone could add approximately $96 to even basic office PCs, and graphics cards will see similar or worse impacts. Taiwan's major motherboard makers are already halting new development or mass production as they wait to see how pricing evolves. Brands like ASUS and MSI are "aggressively stockpiling" memory modules in anticipation of continued constraints.
The RTX 50 Super series—which was supposed to launch in early 2026 with improved VRAM configurations—has been pushed back to at least July or August 2026, a six-month delay. That means NVIDIA's mid-generation refresh with better value propositions won't arrive when gamers need it most. AMD's upcoming RDNA 5 architecture and high-end cards aren't expected until late 2026 at the earliest, leaving no high-end competition for NVIDIA throughout most of the year.
Multiple GPU manufacturers and retailers are now openly telling consumers: if you need a graphics card, buy it before the end of 2025. This isn't marketing hype—it's genuine concern from people who see the supply chain data firsthand.
The Year-End 2025 Sweet Spot: Current Prices and Deals
Here's the good news: November and December 2025 represent the best GPU pricing we've seen in over a year. Black Friday and year-end sales have pushed many cards down to or even below MSRP for the first time since launch.
For NVIDIA buyers, the RTX 5070 12GB is currently available for as low as $499—a massive discount and below NVIDIA's $549 MSRP. The RTX 5060 can be found for $279, which is $20 below the $299 MSRP. Even the RTX 5070 Ti 16GB is hitting close to its $749 MSRP after months of inflated pricing.
On the AMD side, the RX 9070 XT 16GB—which struggled to reach MSRP for most of 2025—finally dropped to $599 during November sales. That's incredible value considering this card competes directly with the RTX 5070 Ti but costs $150 less. The standard RX 9070 16GB hit $539, making it arguably the best value card of 2025. Even the budget RX 9060 XT 8GB dropped to $269 at some retailers, $30 below MSRP.
Intel's Arc B-series cards are also worth considering: the Arc B580 12GB sells for around $235-250, offering excellent 1080p and entry 1440p performance with a generous 12GB VRAM buffer.
In India specifically, prices have stabilized after months of above-MSRP gouging. The RX 9070 XT is available starting around ₹78,999-₹81,000 depending on the model, while the RTX 5060 Ti 16GB can be found for approximately ₹73,000-₹85,000. These prices are reasonable compared to the expected 10%+ increases coming in 2026.
My Recommendations: Which Cards to Buy Now
If you've been waiting for the "perfect time" to upgrade, this is it. Based on current pricing and future projections, here are the cards I'd buy right now before year-end:
Best overall value: AMD RX 9070 XT 16GB ($599). This card delivers RTX 5070 Ti-level performance with 16GB of VRAM—critical for future games—at $150 less than NVIDIA's equivalent. AMD has made huge strides with FSR 4 upscaling and improved ray tracing performance in 2025. At current prices, it's the best bang-for-buck card on the market.
Best NVIDIA option: RTX 5070 12GB ($499-529). NVIDIA seems to be clearing inventory ahead of the delayed Super launch, and the discounts are real. You get excellent 1440p performance, DLSS 4 with frame generation, and NVIDIA Reflex for competitive gaming. The $499 price point is the lowest we'll see for a long time.
Best budget pick: Intel Arc B580 12GB ($235-250). If you're on a tight budget, Intel's Arc B580 offers shocking value with 12GB VRAM—more than NVIDIA's $299 RTX 5060—and solid 1080p/1440p performance after driver improvements throughout 2025.
Best 1440p/4K powerhouse: RTX 5070 Ti 16GB ($720-749) or RTX 5080 16GB ($949-999). If you want top-tier performance and can afford it, these cards are finally approaching reasonable pricing. The 16GB VRAM ensures longevity, and DLSS 4 frame generation provides massive performance boosts in supported titles.
For AMD fans who want flagship performance, the older RX 7900 XTX 24GB is still available around ₹97,000-₹99,000 in India and offers tremendous VRAM for content creation alongside strong gaming performance.
Why I'm Not Waiting for 2026
Some people have asked me: "Why not wait for the RTX 50 Super cards or AMD's RDNA 5?" Here's my honest answer: the delays and price increases make waiting a terrible idea.
The RTX 50 Super series won't arrive until Q3 2026 at the earliest—that's 8-10 months away—and when they do launch, they'll be priced higher than current RTX 50 cards due to increased memory costs. AMD's high-end RDNA 5 cards are similarly distant, with no concrete launch dates. Meanwhile, current-gen cards will see their prices climb by at least 10% starting in early 2026, with some estimates suggesting 20-30% increases by mid-year depending on how memory prices evolve.
Digital Foundry and other tech outlets are echoing the same message: this Black Friday/year-end period might be the last chance to buy at reasonable prices before the market explodes. As someone who has covered the GPU market for years on my channels and websites, I can't remember a time when the consensus was this unanimous.
The Bigger Picture: A Market in Transition
What frustrates me most about this situation is that it's entirely predictable. The AI boom has been growing for years, yet memory manufacturers failed to scale capacity fast enough to serve both consumer and enterprise markets. Now gamers—who have already endured crypto shortages, pandemic shortages, and inflated pricing—are getting squeezed again.
Some argue this is a "deliberate" shortage, pointing out that GPU prices remained high long after the crypto crash because consumers kept paying. There's probably truth to that—if people keep buying at inflated prices, manufacturers have no incentive to lower them. But this 2026 crisis feels different because it's driven by genuine supply constraints, not artificial scarcity.
The good news is that this shortage probably won't last forever. If the AI bubble moderates or more efficient AI models reduce memory requirements, supply could normalize by late 2026 or 2027. But that's cold comfort if you need a GPU now or in the next 6-12 months.
Final Thoughts: Don't Wait
I started this article by saying I never thought I'd be urging people to buy right now. But after researching the supply chain situation, talking to industry contacts, and watching memory prices skyrocket through late 2025, I'm convinced: if you need a graphics card, buy it before December 31, 2025.
Whether you choose NVIDIA for DLSS and ray tracing, AMD for value and VRAM, or Intel for budget performance, the current deals represent a brief window of opportunity before the market shifts dramatically in 2026. GPU manufacturers are warning us. Retailers are warning us. Tech journalists are warning us.
I've been tracking PC hardware for my websites and YouTube channel for years, and I genuinely believe 2026 will be one of the worst years for GPU buyers in recent memory. Don't wait for the "perfect" card or the "perfect" price—grab something good now while you still can. Your wallet will thank you when you're not paying 20-30% more for the same hardware in six months.
The writing is on the wall. This year-end is your chance. Don't miss it.
