Looking to take advantage of ray tracing to immerse you in your favourite gaming worlds, but don’t have a GPU that supports it?
We’ve broken down all the key details you need to know, along with showcasing a selection of five of the best GPUs for ray tracing.
What is Ray Tracing?
Ray tracing is a type of rendering technique that simulates the way in which light behaves in the real world. By intelligently taking the point of view of the camera, ray tracing looks at the image, traces it back to the original light source, takes into account any extra textures, and then renders any lifelike shadows or detail.
Ray tracing, paired with various display upscalers and powerful multi-frame generation, introduces lifelike shadows and lighting to your games. Worlds become more realistic, emulating the way in which objects and even people interact with light in the real world. These vibrant and detailed landscapes all help to enhance your in-game immersion even further.
Want to learn more about ray tracing and whether it’s worth it for gaming? We’ve broken everything you need to know in our dedicated blog post.
What GPU Do I Need for Ray Tracing?
To fully utilise ray tracing, your PC needs to meet a few basic requirements, which we’ve broken down in the table below.
| Ray Tracing – Minimum Specs |
|---|
| Dedicated GPU with ray tracing hardware – NVIDIA RTX 20 Series or higher / AMD Radeon RX 6000 Series or higher / Intel ARC A Series or higher |
| At least 8GB RAM |
| Intel Core i5 CPU or equivalent |
If your PC meets these basic requirements, you’ll have everything you need to take full advantage of ray tracing.
However, later generations, such as the RTX 50 or AMD Radeon 9000 Series, have been built upon more advanced GPU architectures, armed with extensive support for ray tracing. Features such as onboard Neural Shaders and even AI enhancements such as NVIDIA GeForce Experience and DLSS, all help to better immerse you in your favourite gaming worlds.
The Best GPUs for Ray Tracing
If you’re looking to upgrade your GPU to harness ray tracing, we’ve showcased a selection of our best graphics cards that are RTX-compatible. No matter if you are team NVIDIA or AMD, there’s a GPU here to suit every type of gamer and budget.
Intel ARC B580 12GB PCI-Express GDDR6 Limited Edition Graphics Card
The Intel ARC B580 is an incredible choice for gamers on a budget. This graphics card utilises advanced Xe2-HPG architecture, alongside Intel’s latest generations of AI and RT accelerators. As such, you can enjoy beautiful visuals, with smooth frame rates and realistic lighting effects in all your favourite games. What’s more, the massive 12GB of GDDR6 VRAM means your gameplay workloads will be faster and more efficient than ever before!
Intel ARC B580 12GB PCI-Express GDDR6 Limited Edition Graphics Card
GRA-INT-03759
£529.99 GBP
(incl. VAT)
FREE SHIPPING
in stock
ADD TO BASKETSapphire Nitro Radeon RX 9060 XT XT OC 16GB GDDR6 Graphics Card
Next up, we have the Sapphire Nitro Radeon RX 9060 XT OC GPU. This is an exceptional option for entry-level gamers looking for a bit more bang for their buck. Built using AMD RDNA 4 architecture, the RX 9060 XT is optimised for 1080p and 1440p gaming. Boasting 32 Compute Units, your games will be rendered in stunning detail, while the advanced AI and RT accelerators power AMD’s latest breakthroughs in AI upscaling and real-time ray tracing for smoother gameplay and photorealistic lighting effects. What’s more, this GPU comes with 16GB of super-fast GDDR6 VRAM on a 128-bit memory bus, keeping your games lag free even when the action picks up.
Sapphire Nitro+ Radeon RX 9060 XT Gaming 16GB GDDR6 PCI-Express Graphics Card
GRA-SPR-05181
£619.99 GBP
(incl. VAT)
FREE SHIPPING
in stock
ADD TO BASKETGigabyte Radeon RX 9070 XT OC 16GB GDDR6 Graphics Card
Taking things up another level is the Gigabyte Radeon RX 9070 XT OC. This GPU utilises AMD’s innovative RDNA 4 architecture. As such, it comes with 64 Compute Units that can reach a boost clock of 3060MHz. This performance is then paired with advanced AI and RT accelerators to ensure your games will look and play better than ever before. Plus, with 16GB of GDDR6 VRAM on a wide 256-bit interface, you’ll enjoy smooth and efficient gaming, even when your settings are set to their highest.
Gigabyte Radeon RX 9070 XT Gaming OC 16GB GDDR6 PCI-Express Graphics Card
GRA-GIG-04215
£899.99 GBP
(incl. VAT)
FREE SHIPPING
in stock
ADD TO BASKETASUS GeForce RTX 5070 Ti TUF Gaming OC 16GB GDDR7 Graphics Card
Switching over to Team Green, we have the ASUS GeForce RTX 5070 Ti TUF Gaming OC. This mid-range GPU delivers exceptional performance thanks to the powerful Blackwell architecture. This boasts 8960 CUDA cores, clock speeds of up to 2610MHz, and 4th Gen RT and 5th generation Tensor cores. Using this combination of hardware, the RTX 5070 Ti can render your games in superb detail, with smooth frame rates and realistic lighting effects. Plus, the 16GB of GDDR7 always keeps your gaming and professional workloads smooth and efficient.
Asus GeForce RTX 5070 Ti TUF Gaming OC White 16GB GDDR7 PCI-Express Graphics Card
GRA-ASU-05203
£1399.99 GBP
(incl. VAT)
FREE SHIPPING
in stock
ADD TO BASKETASUS GeForce RTX 5080 OC 16GB GDDR7 Graphics Card
For the ultimate gaming performance, we have the ASUS GeForce RTX 5080 ROG Astral OC. This incredible GPU is built using NVIDIA Blackwell architecture and features a phenomenal 10752 CUDA cores. With overclocked boost speeds of up to 2790MHz, you can enjoy even the latest AAA titles at 4K resolutions, with beautiful graphics. Plus, the 4th-generation RT and 5th-Gen Tensor cores power NVIDIA’s latest innovations such as DLSS 4, which facilitate smoother frame rates and photorealistic lighting effects. Even during hectic battles! Plus, with 16GB of GDDR7 VRAM, you can game and create content with minimal lag or latency.
Asus GeForce RTX 5080 ROG Astral OC 16GB GDDR7 PCI-Express Graphics Card
GRA-ASU-03929
£1999.99 GBP
(incl. VAT)
FREE SHIPPING
out of stock
ADD TO BASKETStill Looking for the Perfect GPU?
Do none of these graphics cards fit the bill? Overclockers UK stocks plenty of models from both NVIDIA and AMD that support ray tracing. You can explore our full collection with the simple click of a button.
In Need of an Upgrade?
Do You Utilise Ray Tracing?
Do you game with RTX on? How has ray tracing enhanced your gaming performance? Let us know in the comments below.
- 5 min read
Ruth Rowley
Author
Ruth has been with Overclockers UK for over four years and has gone on to write about everything ranging from in-depth hardware guides to monthly game releases.
Outside of writing blog posts, she can be found wrapped in a blanket with her black cat, engrossed in a book or playing life-simulation games such as The Sims, Stardew Valley, and Animal Crossing.
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