Should you buy a GPU now or wait? November 2026 prices, and where they're heading

Should you buy a GPU now or wait? If you need a card, buy now, and pick one that's close to its launch price. Waiting is unlikely to save you money in the next few months. TechSpot's October price tracking, published November 2, 2026, found graphics cards up 35% in three months across the 10 countries it follows, and its outlook is blunt: "it doesn't look like pricing will return to those levels during this generation". Memory makers point the same way: TrendForce expects graphics memory prices to stay "on an upward trajectory". The least overpriced US cards in October were the RX 9070, Arc B570 and RX 9070 XT. The ones to avoid are the RTX 5080 and RTX 5090. Prices read on November 3, 2026.

Should you buy a GPU now or wait?

Buy now if you need the card, and wait only if you don't need it at all. Here's why waiting doesn't look like a winning bet this winter:

• Prices are still rising, not falling. TechSpot measured an 11% month-over-month rise in October, after 7% in September and 15% in August. Its read on the next few months: "there are no signs that graphics card prices are tapering off. In fact, various rumors and reports from retailers suggest the opposite: we haven't yet seen peak graphics card pricing."
• The cost behind the cards is going up. TrendForce, the memory market tracker, wrote on September 30, 2026 that GDDR7 demand "continues to be driven primarily by AI chips", that suppliers are winding down GDDR6, and that "These constraints are expected to keep graphics DRAM prices on an upward trajectory."
• MSRP isn't coming back soon. TechSpot's conclusion: "the days when you could actually buy these products at MSRP are becoming a distant memory, and it doesn't look like pricing will return to those levels during this generation."
• New cards won't be cheap either. Rumors reported by TechSpot say NVIDIA may replace the 16GB RTX 5080 with a 24GB version in the first quarter of 2027, at a higher price. TechSpot notes "nothing has been confirmed".

What would change this: a real drop in memory prices, or new stock arriving faster than demand. Neither is in any forecast we found. If you can live with your current card and prices drop, you'll save money, but you're betting against every current forecast.

What do GPUs cost right now?

Well above launch price, everywhere. These are the cheapest in-stock US prices TechSpot found in October 2026, next to each card's launch MSRP. TechSpot's method: each figure "represents the single lowest price for an available, in-stock model within each region", usually a base model, so a premium card will cost more.

Prices move every week, so treat these as a dated reading, not today's shelf price. The launch prices match the makers' own pages: NVIDIA's RTX 5090 page still says "Starting at $1999" and the RTX 5080 page "Starting at $999" (read November 3, 2026), and Intel launched the Arc B580 "from $249" and the B570 "from $219".

How much have GPU prices gone up in 2026?

A lot, and most of it since August. TechSpot's US figures for the cheapest in-stock card, February to October 2026:

TechSpot's summary of the year: "The market managed to keep GPU prices relatively stable throughout the first half of 2026 after an initial spike at the end of last year, but those days are over." Cards with 16GB of memory took the biggest dollar jumps, which fits the memory story. Not all of it is memory, though. On the RTX 5080, TechSpot wrote: "This is not due to memory price increases, plain and simple", and pointed to scarce supply, demand for AI work and the missing RTX 5090.

Why is the RTX 5090 so expensive?

Because there's almost none left to buy. In October, leakers claimed NVIDIA would stop using the RTX 5090's GB202 chip in new RTX 5090 cards. NVIDIA denied it, according to TechSpot's October 19 report, but TechSpot also found that NVIDIA's own US marketplace had removed the RTX 5090 option, "with the RTX 5080 sitting at the top of the list". By October the cheapest in-stock US card was $9,400, up 36% from $6,890 in September.

The RTX 5080 has filled the gap and its price followed: up 39% in the US in one month, to $2,200. TechSpot said Newegg had no RTX 5080s sold directly at the time it collected data, and that retail sources expect the wholesale cost to rise further.

Which GPUs are the best value right now?

The ones closest to their launch price. In October's US numbers that means AMD's RX 9070 series and Intel's Arc cards:

• RX 9070 16GB: the least overpriced card on the list. $700 in the US in October, 28% over its $549 launch price, with 16GB of memory.
• RX 9070 XT 16GB: the pick if you'd otherwise buy an RTX 5070. $870, 45% over its $599 launch price. TechSpot found the 9070 XT is on average the same price as the RTX 5070 across its 10 regions, and its "recent 52-game benchmark showed the Radeon model was 25% faster on average, and it packs more VRAM". It also found the RTX 5070 Ti costs about 47% more than the 9070 XT on average.
• Arc B570 10GB and B580 12GB: the budget picks. $290 and $350 in the US in October, 32% and 41% over Intel's launch prices. TechSpot says the B570 remains hard to find in some regions.
• RX 9060 XT 16GB: the cheapest new 16GB card, but no longer a bargain. $620 in the US, 78% over its $349 launch price, up 24% in one month. TechSpot still calls it "the most affordable way to get 16GB of VRAM on a current-generation GPU".
• Skip the RTX 5080 and RTX 5090 at these prices unless you truly need that speed or memory. They're the most overpriced cards on the list.

ASUS PRIME Radeon RX 9060 XT 16GB OC

AMD's RDNA 4 card with 16GB of GDDR6. Check that the listing says 16GB, not 8GB.

Best for: 1440p gaming with 16GB of VRAM for less money than the RTX 5060 Ti.

Specs, AI models it runs and rental prices →

Check price on Amazon

Today's price shows on Amazon

Choosing between two cards? See RTX 5060 Ti vs RX 9060 XT and RTX 5070 vs RX 9070. Shopping for a prebuilt instead? Check the graphics memory on the spec sheet first: our guide to the 4GB RX 9050 shows how a cheap PC can hide a cut-down card.

Are GPU prices different outside the US?

Yes. TechSpot found prices on average 44% over MSRP across its 10 countries, "but as high as 58% above in Canada and the United States", while the Philippines, Brazil and Australia were doing a bit better. Its warning for the cheaper regions: "we think what we're seeing in the US is a reflection of what's to come."

What if you're buying a GPU for local AI?

Size the memory to the model first. A local model has to fit in the card's VRAM with its context, and that decides which card you need far more than the gaming tier does. Put the model you want into our VRAM calculator, or open its page on cost to run to see the cheapest card that runs it and what renting that card costs this hour. If the card you need is one of the most overpriced ones, renting it for a project is the cheaper way in for now.

Short version: GPU prices haven't peaked yet, according to the people who track them. If you need a card, buy the one closest to its launch price, and check a dated price before you pay.