We tell you about our experience and we contrast with data which are the graphics card brands that fail the least in the market . Reliability, in a component like the GPU, pays off because it is perhaps the most expensive piece of PC in the whole team.

Reliability is an important aspect in any PC component, but it is more important in graphics cards because they are, perhaps, the most expensive component. In addition, it fulfills gaming and professional functions that are key for professionals and users. We want you to buy with the best criteria, so we are going to show you the 5 most reliable brands of graphics cards on the market.

EVGA

First, we come across EVGA , a graphics card builder that achieves a super low RMA processing rate . We have probed the general opinions of the users of these GPUs, contrasted with the figures of Puget Systems and with our own experience.

I have to remember that, most of the time, the reliability of the GPU depends a lot on the model we are in. For example, the RX 5700 XT had a lot of RMA procedures at the time, while the RTX 2080 Super was one of the least visited the workshop.

Leaving aside the software and the specific model, the assembler is the one who has to provide enough quality to the user so that the reliability of the graphics card is good. And in this case, EVGA is the best, or one of the best.

Specifically, EVGA’s GTX 1080 Ti was a product that had virtually no warranty procedures from users. It is true that Pascal was a good generation, but it must be emphasized when an assembler does it very well.

Also keep in mind that EVGA is not a bestselling brand, but its products have higher quality and are priced higher than mainstream brands (ASUS, MSI or GIGABYTE). So it is normal that more ASUS / MSI / GIGABYTE graphics cards visit the workshop because EVGA is not sold that many.

In addition, EVGA is a brand that usually offers long warranty periods on its GPUs, which we do not see in other rival brands.

KFA2

Without a doubt, it is “the hidden one” of all the brands of graphics cards that we will see around here, as far as its reliability is concerned. Considered a “second line” brand, it sells many graphics cards and few are returned or processed for warranty.

For example, Mindfactory sold 26,560 in 2020 and only 477 were returned , which is an RMA rate of 1.80% . We are talking about figures that improve MSI, ASUS and NVIDIA, but we must remember that KFA2 only works with NVIDIA : it does not sell AMD GPUs.

In spite of everything, it is a brand that is related to “premium” products, which have passed through our offices and have left a great taste in the mouth.

In 2018, Puget Systems claimed that the graphics cards with the best failure rate were from NVIDIA , regardless of the assembler. Yes it is true that at that time what was coming the most was Pascal (GTX 1000) and AMD Radeon was in the doldrums. So I like to focus more on Mindfactory data because it dates back to 2020.

M: YES

It has always been said that it is one of the most reliable graphics card brands on the market , and in our experience we have to say the same. Both in AMD models, as in NVIDIA models, MSI always measures up and does not charge a high surcharge.

According to Mindfactory, a German store, MSI graphics cards from AMD are more reliable than those from NVIDIA. That said, in 2020 Mindfactory sold 50,860 MSI-NVIDIA GPUs and 8290 MSI-AMD GPUs, so it is normal that more RMAs are processed than the former.

The Taiwanese brand is positioned as a consistent , reliable value for money and with a great presence in the market because it is a mainstream brand.

ASUS

ASUS is one of the most trusted graphics card brands , and it is an aspect that the company takes very seriously. Both ASUS and GIGABYTE have trademarks related to component reliability (ULTRA DURABLE at GIGABYTE or military grade trainers at TUF).

It is true that the reliability is not the same in the ROG Strix models , as in the DUAL models, for example. The former are built in a more refined way and prepared to give 100% in the battle (overclock, better cooling, etc.). On the contrary, the Dual range is not bad at all, but they are obviously lower quality products.

Likewise, it is considered one of the ” Big Three “, along with MSI and GIGABYTE because it is a mainstream brand that is rarely talked about badly. You have to add, like MSI or GIGABYTE, a degree of difficulty because ASUS manufactures completely different products: monitors, laptops, mice, motherboards, routers, everything! Of the “Big 3”, the one that manufactures the most products would be ASUS in terms of variety.

Sapphire

It only works with AMD GPUs , but it is arguably the assembler that sells the most Radeon models of all. Its biggest rival is PowerColor, and I tell you that MindFactory classified it as the brand with the most RMAs of all, 5.40% are returned!

At Sapphire, it ‘s a different reality: out of 13,360 sales , 321 models passed through the workshop, which is equivalent to an RMA index of 2.41% . That said, the most reliable brand for AMD cards seems to be MSI , although it is true that they sold 8,290 GPUs compared to Sapphire’s 13,360.

I have to say that I expected a higher index in Sapphire, but it is true that it is a mythical assembler that has been around since the inception of ATI . Now, with the arrival of the RX 6000 , we can say that Sapphire will have more importance because it is the “assembler par excellence” at AMD.

GIGABYTE

The users are opting GIGABYTE NVIDIA to AMD, and if we speak in numbers, are more reliable NVIDIA graphics cards that AMD (in the case of GIGABYTE). We break it down:

• AMD : 5,990 sales, 176 returns -> 2.94% RMA ratio.
• NVIDIA : 27,480 sales, 689 returns -> 2.51% RMA ratio.

It is true that the differences are tiny, despite the fact that more NVIDIA is sold than AMD. Generally speaking, GIGABYTE is one of the most trusted brands when it comes to graphics cards , and in our experience none have failed us.

In fact, even with the RTX 3000 capacitor scandal (which turned out to be an NVIDIA problem), GIGABYTE was one of the best responders, making clear the pampering they put into GPU components.

PNY, ASRock and Zotac

We finish this compilation of the most reliable graphic card brands on the market with 3 brands with the least presence in terms of sales. Let’s differentiate them well:

• ASRock (only sells AMD): 2,250 sales, 48 ​​returns -> 2.15% RMA.
• PNY (NVIDIA only sells): 460 sales, 8 returns -> 1.72% RMA.
• Zotac (NVIDIA only sells): 3,560 sales, 97 returns -> 2.73% RMA.

The least reliable of the 3 would be Zotac, while PNY would be the most reliable. As a curiosity, Zotac is not always the cheapest , but there are PNY models that surprise and are placed at the same price or even below Zotac.

Even so, it is true that PNY has its XLR8 range that has higher quality and, therefore, a higher price than any Zotac. We do not think it is a bad reliability on the part of Zotac, based on the data that we have put from GIGABYTE previously.

What are the most trusted brands for AMD and NVIDIA?

After all, if you are only interested in a specific brand, you will be interested in knowing which one is the most reliable in AMD and NVIDIA, right? Well, we sum it up this way:

• AMD -> MSI, ASRock and Sapphire.
• NVIDIA -> ASUS, EVGA, KFA2 and GIGABYTE.

We hope this information has been helpful to you. If you have any questions, comment below and we will answer you shortly.