If you want to buy a good graphics card for gaming but have a strict budget then a refurbished graphics card can fulfill your needs. Also getting a good deal on a refurbished graphics card is very important otherwise you may be risking your hard-earned money. Refurbished Graphics Cards are graphics cards that are returned by the customer for no reason or they may have developed some minor fault in their warranty period which is now fixed permanently. If there was some fault in the card then it is fixed and the card is tested to make sure that it is working fine with full glory.
All refurbished graphics cards are cleaned, tested, re-packed, and then labeled as refurbished for sale. These graphics cards also come with a warranty which generally depends on the condition of the card and the manufacturing date. Some older generation graphics cards (with older GPU architecture) are also sold as refurbished products. These refurbished graphics cards are cheaper than brand new graphics cards and attract a lot of attention from users who are on a serious budget. A refurbished graphics card may also be known as a used graphics card in some cases.
There are also some risks associated with refurbished graphics cards which include a very short warranty period and they may also have a lower life span depending on the previous condition of the card. Generally refurbished GPUs or graphics cards run fine without any issues but there is always a debate among users that whether they should buy a refurbished graphics card or not. So here in this post, I am going to list down the various factors that you should keep in mind when buying a refurbished graphics card and how to get the best deal on refurbished graphics cards online or offline.
Types of Refurbished Graphics Cards
- New Cards returned by customers for no reason
- Cards returned as part of an exchange program
- Cards returned because the box was damaged in shipping
- Cards returned because of minor defects but are now fixed
- Cards returned because of minor scratches, color, or cosmetic defects
- Older working graphics cards made to look new
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- How to find if the Graphics Card is compatible with your PC?
- How to Find Good Graphics Card when shortage die to Mining
Refurbished Graphics Card Buying Guide, Tips & Advice
The question that most of the users asked is Is it safe to buy a refurbished graphics card? To answer this, here I am providing you with the complete guide on buying a refurbished graphics card with top tips. Also here you can find out how to find the best deal or best-refurbished graphics card for your gaming build.
Price Difference
If the price difference between a refurbished graphics card and a new graphics card (both with the same GPUs) is not huge then it is not generally advisable to go for a refurbished card. The price difference should be 20 to 50 dollars or greater (depending on the graphics card’s original price) in order to get the best value for money and get the same performance from the refurbished graphics card otherwise it is better to buy the new graphics card which will give you more warranty and peace of mind.
Graphics Card / GPU Model
Graphics Card Model or GPU is also an important factor when buying a refurbished graphics card because if you buy too old model then you won’t be able to get that much performance in the latest games with decent frame rates. So just remember that if you want to buy an older model of graphics card then it should not be older than two generations. This applies to both Nvidia and AMD graphics cards. If you are unsure about the older graphics card performance then you can see its benchmarking scores for gaming and computation on the internet.
Seller
Check the seller feedback, rating, and reviews when buying a refurbished graphics card online. If the seller has good ratings and reviews then it is pretty safe to buy a refurbished graphics card from it. You may also contact the seller and ask about the card’s condition and its history.
Warranty
Warranty is also one of the most important factors when buying a refurbished graphics card. Check out how much warranty the refurbished graphics card is carrying i.e. whether it is in days, months, or years. More warranty means, more peace of mind and you don’t have to worry too much about that graphics card.
See also:
Final Words
Buying a Refurbished Graphics Card has its own pros and cons. If you can find a refurbished graphics card with the latest GPU at a low price then you can certainly save some money and get the same performance as the new one. But if you are an unlucky one and your refurbished graphics card fails after some time then you cannot do anything about it as it does have a very short warranty period. Here you will be losing twice your money because you may have to buy another card (obviously a new one) which will cost you more than the refurbished one. If you still have some queries on refurbished graphics cards or graphics cards then feel free to ask me by leaving a comment below.
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Hey Akshat,
I am still a little nervous deciding which graphics card I want to buy. There is an EVGA GeForce GTX 1060 SSC GAMING refurbished graphics card going for $160 at the moment. I was originally going to buy a ZOTAC GeForce GTX 1060 6gb graphics card but right now I’m lost. I will leave a link below for reference.
EVGA GeForce GTX 1060 SSC GAMING: https://www.evga.com/products/product.aspx?pn=06G-P4-6267-RX
ZOTAC GeForce GTX 1060 6gb: https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500454&ignorebbr=1
Thank you for your time and I hope you can help me make the right choice.
-Anthony
I think it is better to go for the new ZOTAC GeForce GTX 1060 6GB for 50 bucks more, because the price difference is not that huge, and this Zotac card has GDDR5X RAM that can be easily overclocked to higher speeds. Also, this card has smaller form factor (is lesser in length, 211mm), and have no trouble fitting in smaller computer cases. Hope this helps!
Hi akshat,
From where can i get discontinued graphics card specifically zotac gtx 295.
May be on online classified sites e.g. ebay, olx etc.
How are the Zotac GPU. How is Colorful GPU compare to Zotac. I am either looking for Zotac GT-710 2GB or colorful GVN710 D3 2GB. Which is better?
Zotac is better than Colorful, when it comes to support, service, availability and overall quality of the card.
So, I’ve been looking to improve my graphics card as I just bought all the dlc I didn’t have for warhammer 2 during the summer sale. In doing my research I settled on the amd rx 580 line. My first pick was the powercolor amd Radeon red dragon 8gb being sold at $245 CAD on amazon. However, upon further inspection I found a refurbished midi Radeon rx 580 4gb for $180 on newegg. The 8gb version is $330 on Amazon (I can’t find a 4gb) but, the warranty is only 90 days. What should I do?
Better to go with the 8GB one, because 4GB VRAM is not enough for modern day titles.
Ok, thanks
I come once again oh great purveyor of wisdom. This seems almost like a no brainer but I was looking at other refurbished cards and I found a ZOTAC geforce gtx 1070 for $225 CAD and it seems to be $600 everywhere else. Also, the warranty is 2 years cause it’s from ZOTAC’s website. Should I go for it?
https://store.zotac.com/zotac-geforcer-gtx-1070-refurbished-zt-p10700e-10b-r
GTX 1070 is much faster than RX 580 (around 30% faster). So, between them go for the GTX 1070 for sure, especially at this price.
I saw a DDR5 1060 6 gb for 170 bucks… Should I buy it?
What brand and model?
Sir will Rx580 Armour 8gb will be paired good with core i3 8100 and mobo b360 or GTX1060 6gb
Go with the RX 580 because it is a little faster and has more VRAM.
Gigabyte GeForce RTX 2070 8GB Windforce OC Triple Fan GDDR6 Video Card GPU found for $330 refurbished by manufacturer or buy a new 2060 super for $70 more
I would say buy a new RTX 2060 Super as the performance is almost similar to RTX 2070 and why take the risk with so much money.
Good evening, sir:
With used 1080 ti GPUs running around $400-450 for ASUS/MSI/Gigabyte/ZOTAC cards on Ebay and Craigslist, what do you think of refurbished $499 for a PNY 1080 ti Founder’s Edition with a 90 day warranty from the vendor?
Thank you very much for your knowledge & courtesy.
At this price ($499) you can easily get a brand new RTX 2070 SUPER (GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 2070 Super Windforce OC 8G) that performs almost the same as GTX 1080 Ti and comes with RT Cores (for Ray Tracing) and Tensor Cores for DLSS.
Thank you for the speedy reply and sound advice, Akshat. I am a sim racer building his first PC. Coming from a console, I plan to run 1080p 24″-27″ triples on very good graphics settings with a Ryzen 3700X paired with a X570 MB to give me a little margin for future upgrades. I have not experienced many older sim racing titles which may lack some eye candy of newer releases but which often have superior physics and a plethora of mod cars and tracks. With the exception of Asetto Corsa Competizione (ACC), I am hoping most sim titles should fair well with the ca. 2017 1080 ti. With so few games utilizing ray tracing and ACC only showing a demo, I have told myself I can do without an RTX card. However, I am concerned that the 1080 ti leaves a bit on the “latest & greatest” table with its GDDR5 instead of GDDR6, but its 11GB is still a hefty advantage vs. the 20-series 8GB. With newer GPU releases from the Big 2 later this year possibly pushing some GPU prices downward, I will look for a 1080ti deal closer to $400 for the time being to play now and (inevitably) PAY MORE later.
Ok but thoroughly check the used/refurbished card before making a final deal.
Hello Akshat,
I play Fallout 4 and Skyrim SE, 1140p @75hz. I have a laptop with a GTX 980, but it struggles at that resolution. Similar to Chris, I’m looking at a refurbished PNY 1080 ti at Newegg. For the same money, will an RTX 2070 Super push the same resolution and frequency for those games?
I think it would be better to invest in a RTX 2070 because you can benefit from features such as DLSS and Ray Tracing in supported games. RTX 2070 is only 5 FPS slower (on average) than GTX 1080 Ti.
Hey Akshat,
Thank you for the fast reply. Ray tracing and DLSS aren’t compelling features, I’m more interested in the power to push the resolution, frequency and FPS. It’s hard to decide without seeing them side by side you know? I understand the 1080 ti is an amazing card and probably can’t go wrong with one but the latest drivers are probably focused towards the newer RTX series right? I’ve considered the RX 5700 XT, but read that the drivers are less than stable. Any thoughts there? That and the refurb question. Is it really refurbed or just checked to see if it turns on and then reboxed?
Yes, drivers for newer cards like RTX 2070 will be more optimized for latest games. Radeon RX 5700 XT is a good card too but the drivers are not the best and they regularly have one or more annoying issues. According to me, RTX 2070 is the best card here. Refurbished generally means the card is used but has been tested and works as expected.
ATM Amazon has this – ASUS Dual GeForce RTX 2080 DirectX 12 8GB 256-Bit GDDR6 PCI Express 3.0 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card Model DUAL-RTX2080-O8G-EVO (Renewed) –
for $549.99.
I’ve had GTX1080s, and a RTX2070. I much prefer the RTX.
I just ordered one of the above RTX 2080. Hope it’s a winner.
Akshat,
I am curious of your opinion here for a choice o have on a few cards:
On Facebook marketplace, someone has a used asus strix 1080 ti for $450 if I trade my 1060. He also has a zotac 1080 ti for $380 with the trade.
Other choice is waiting on a local shop (pretty trusted around here) that told me they could get a refurbished 2080 ti for somewhere in the $350 range once his supplier can start back up after Covid.
What do you think?
A 2080 Ti at $350 looks like an amazing deal. Also, it is better buy a refurbished card from a local trusted shop rather than on facebook marketplace.
Hey man! I’ve just purchased 2 x 2080ti for 900 USD each Refurbished, against the 1400 USD each that those PNY 2080ti costs. Does the offer worth the risk?
Thanks.
Yes if they are in good condition and are working fine.
how can I be sure? the seller says in publication:
“Video Card Only. This Video Card has been Manufacturer refurbished by PNY. PNY tests the Video Card and confirms that it is fully functional. This Video Card may show slight signs of use. This Video Card comes inside an anti-static bag, packaged in a plain box with an PNY refurbished label on the outside.”
Can you send me the link.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/124075815815
Looks quite legit and the seller feedback/rating is also good. Try to contact the seller and see how and whether he responds or not.
Should I buy this card:
MSI Radeon VEGA 56 8GB Air Boost OC HBM2 Video Graphics Card GPU for $300.
Is it a good deal? It comes included with a 30 day warranty from seller (Computer Headquarters) but I can add a one year extended warranty for 25 and a 2 year for $60. What do you recommend? And will this card be able to do Overwatch and Valorant at 1440p 165 fps?
I think it is much better to go for Radeon RX 5600 XT (Sapphire PULSE RX 5600 XT) that will cost under $300 and gives you better performance and power efficiency. With this card, you can get the desired FPS in overwatch @1440p high preset. Check at https://graphicscardhub.com/best-rx-5600-xt/
I am a bit late here, but am in the same boat. I just bought an MSI 2070S for $800CAD with 2 year warranty at Memory Express. I have the option to get a refurbished 2080TI for the exact same price, but without any warranty. I don’t remember the model at this time unfortunately. Do you think it is worth the risk?
I think you should keep the MSI 2070S only.
Hi bro, so bro I am getting gtx 1660 msi ventus blacbox which is a refurbished GPU and one sellers is providing me 6 month warranty and other seller also selling same refurbished GPU with 1 year warranty and he is charging 25$ more, so from which seller do u prefer to buy GPU?
I would go with the cheaper one because if the card can run trouble free for 6 months then It will likely to last another 6 months or more easily.
Ok, thank you!
Hi!, I’m going to build a low budget build, and i saw a refurbished AMD Radeon Pro WX 3100 4GB GPU which only costs £80, my original plan was to buy a Ryzen 5 4600g , but seeing this cheap graphics card, should I instead buy a ryzen 3300x and that graphics card?
https://www.etb-tech.com/dell-amd-radeon-pro-wx-3100-4gb-lp-graphics-card-p74p5.html?currency=GBP that’s the link.
AMD Radeon Pro WX 3100 is a workstation graphics card for use with Solidworks, AutoCAD etc. Are you building this PC for gaming or work?
Probably for gaming but nothing compares to it in price. So would it be better if i waited for ryzen 4000?
How much is your budget for the graphics card and processor?
I have a total of around £550 for the pc build. Around 450 since i also need to buy a monitor. I have around £200 for the cpu and gpu.
Ok, I think AMD Radeon Pro WX 3100 4GB with Ryzen 3 3300X would be the best option.
Thank you!
Hi Akshat, I am thinking to buy a refurbished MSI 1660TI Gaming X, the seller is also giving 6 months warranty. I want to ask how good MSI refurbished cards are? Should I buy it?
Well, if the card works fine then it is worth considering. MSI GeForce GTX 1660 Ti GAMING X 6G is a very good card.
Hey man i need help here. There’s a Manufacturer refurbished Gigabyte 2080 Super Windforce OC For $913 AUD with 1 year warranty. Is that a good deal? Or should i get a brand new Galax 2070 Super for $800 AUD? Please reply and thanks!
I think it is better to go with a brand new RTX 2070 SUPER because the amount is too much for taking any risk.
So if I get a refurbished EVGA 2080 super for $600, would that be worthwhile?
I think it is better to wait for the RTX 3070 that costs only $499.
I just saw that news yesterday, but thanks! I’m excited for it!
Hello Akshat,
What do you think about ASUS ROG STRIX RTX2070 GAMING OC Refurbished & Repaired ? Now i can get it around ~250$, warranty Period is around ~10 months. In your opinion Is it worth to buy ?
For $250 I think it is a pretty nice deal if the card is in good condition and works well.
Hi akshat
I found a gigabyte 1660 super oc 2 fans refurbished from newegg for 209.99$
And 3 months parts warranty ( 90days)
Should i go for it or not? Especially these days gpu’s are so rare and the new ones cost above 300$ now
Thanks
Well, It sounds like a pretty good deal especially during the time when there is a shortage of GPUs. If the card is working fine and 3 months warranty is there then I would go for it.
hey akshat,
i know this post is old but i was planning on buying a gaming pc setup and as you probably already know the prices are disgusting right now. the card i want (NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Super Founders Edition Graphics Card) new is 2000 dollars, but the refurbished one is 1,200 dollars. they are being sold through amazon by “renewed technology group” should i do this one? any reply would be much appreciated. thank you so much !
Look for the seller’s rating and if it is above 4 stars then it is a positive sign. Also, ask the seller about the card’s history and if it has been repaired or not? If he responds and everything looks good then you can consider it.