Graphics Card (GPU) For Mining Crypto

Apr 21, 2020
19:04
2 min reading

Choise.com team

What is GPU Mining?
How To Choose The Best GPU For Mining?
Best Graphics Card For Mining

Cryptocurrencies have changed the face of digital transactions and created a revolution in the financial sector. Mining plays an essential role in developing this industry, ensuring the efficiency and sustainable development of digital currencies.

While mining crypto has proven to be a highly profitable activity within the last decade, the rising costs of electricity and equipment, combined with lower profits due to the reward halving events are making mining harder than ever before.

Turning a profit in this field now largely depends on being able to secure cheap electric supply and invest in the best graphic cards for mining.

In this article, we’ll walk through the best GPU for mining available today. But before we get to that point, let’s do a recap on some basic concepts.

What is GPU Mining?

Getting started with cryptocurrency mining isn’t as scary as it seems at first sight. Nowadays, there are options like Cloud Mining that allow you to rent someone’s mining equipment and let them do the heavy lifting. Of course, that’s the less profitable alternative.

When it comes to mining ‘yourself’, then you have three different options to keep in mind:

CPU Mining: a process that relies on processors to mine cryptocurrencies. While popular back in the old days, it’s becoming obsolete due to the rise of GPU and ASIC machines.
GPU Mining: the entry-point to crypto mining. This is a balanced approach to mining that will bring profits when configured for the right currencies.
ASIC Mining: these are special devices that are built with a single purpose in mind — mining cryptocurrency with the highest possible efficiency.

Through GPU mining, the miners can validate transactions on the blockchain, and get rewarded for their efforts and expenses with cryptocurrency.

That said, it’s important to invest in the best GPU mining graphic cards in order to reap the benefits of cryptocurrency mining.

How To Choose The Best GPU For Mining?

When it comes to choosing the best from the abundance of GPUs for mining, there are plenty of things that you need to take into consideration. Take a look at three of the essential tips that you must keep handy while purchasing GPUs for mining.

Look At The Hash Rate

When you are choosing a GPU, make sure to divide the price by the hash rate to ascertain the hash rate unit cost. The lower the number, the better. So, to ensure the cost-efficiency of the GPU, you need to calculate the hash rate.

Don’t Be Afraid Of Used Graphic Cards

Under general circumstances, no one would prefer to buy used graphic cards. But, when it comes to the purpose of mining, you can think about used ones.

Buying a used GPU is also a great idea to recoup your investment faster. It is evident that you would need to replace your GPU after a few years of intense crypto mining, so it is better to invest in a used one than on a brand new one.

Pick A Side Nvidia or AMD

When you start searching for the best GPU for mining, a common question you would come across is whether you want Nvidia or AMD. According to industry experts, here’s how the two of them would typically compare side by side:

	AMD Mining	Nvidia Mining
Price	Low	High
Noise	Loud	Silent
Power Efficiency	Pour	Optimal
Heat Production	High	Low
Resale Value	Low	Acceptable
Coin Flexibility	Low	High

Best Graphics Card For Mining

Now that we revised the factors you need to consider for selecting the best GPU for mining, here are a few top picks that will further help you in making a well-informed decision.

Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Ti

First up in the list is the latest update in line of Nvidia GPUs RTX 2080 Ti — the leading model of the GeForce line of Nvidia, which was released in August 2019.

Those who are looking for a competitive and cutting edge architecture can prefer Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Ti over anything. Real-time adaptive sharing, ray tracing, AI, and Turning architecture are the major highlights of this particular model.

Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060

Another powerful name in the GeForce line of models is the RTX 2060, which is yet another popular choice among the miners. Supporting the Turning architecture and boasting all the trending features, RTX 2060 gives a cut-throat competition to the 2080 Ti.

You can mine a wide range of coins that includes, Grin, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, Ravencoin, Beam, Zcoin, etc. It is also a good pick for new miners.

Nvidia GTX 1080 Ti

For years and more, GTX 1080 Ti has remained a strong and powerful graphic card used for mining purposes. It is ideally used for mining and gaming and does a pretty good job at that.

Though it is quite heavy on the pocket, the features and performance of GTX 1080 Ti are certainly incomparable. Many popular coins like Ethereum, Ravencoin, Zcoin, Zelcash, etc., can be mined using GTX 1080 Ti.

Nvidia GTX 1070 Ti

It is the lower version of the GTX 1080 Ti, and it is a lot cheaper as well. So, if you are thinking of saving some money, you can probably think about buying Nvidia GTX 1070 Ti. It is one of the productive GPUs from Nvidia that can serve your purpose.

You might have to compromise on the memory as it only got 8GB Gddr5. This particular Nvidia model is cost-efficient and high on its performance. It’s a perfect combination that you can vouch for.

Nvidia GTX 1070

If you are a constant cryptocurrency miner, you would know how popular GTX 1070 is among the miners. When it comes to efficiency, Nvidia GTX 1070 can effectively beat its peers.

The low electricity consumption is another great thing about this particular model that makes it so popular among the miners. Those who love to mine crypto coins still consider GTX 1070 as the ideal choice of GPU.

Nvidia GTX 1060

Next up in the line of Nvidia GTX is the GTX 1060, which is best known for its accessibility. Another major highlight of this GTX model is its affordability. To be precise, it is five times cheaper than the top GTX model.

This Nvidia graphic card has both 3 and 6 GB memory versions. But it is better to go with the 6 GB version, as 3 GB is no longer compatible with Ethereum. So, it is essential to choose the memory according to the coin you need to mine.

AMD Radeon VII

One of the sleekest and efficient red graphics cards from AMD, Radeon VII, will never disappoint you in terms of its hash rate. It gives out 90 Mh/s but has a high power consumption.

However, its features can certainly beat the Nvidia Titan V. You can mine some crypto coins like Metaverse, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, and Monero. Apart from the high power consumption, AMD Radeon VII can become an ideal choice for many miners.

AMD RX Vega 56

The features and specifications of AMD Radeon RX 56 can definitely compete with the Nvidia GTX 1070. Furthermore, it is much cheaper than GTX 1070. High power consumption is the only drawback that AMD RX Vega 56 has on its part. It has 210 W of power consumption.

Other than that, you can use this amazing AMD model for your mining needs. You can mine Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, Monero, Metaverse with AMD RX Vega 56.

AMD Radeon RX 580

This particular model from AMD has gained ample recognition among the miners. Due to its optimal and low consumption rate and 30 Mh/s, AMD Radeon RX 580 has managed to emerge as a popular choice of GPU for the permanent miners.

It is a well-balanced model that has a perfect blend of features. For its impressive features and impeccable performance, the demand for RX 580 is quite high and often hard to find.

AMD Radeon RX 570

Another AMD model that is popular among the miners is AMD Radeon RX 570. It was launched as the transition model in the Radeon line of AMD when there was a shortage of graphic cards. Right after its launch, miners started liking this transition model.

The model rose to such popularity that it managed to grab a good market share at the time of launch. Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, Metaverse, and Expanse are the crypto coins that you can mine from AMD Radeon RX 570.

AMD Radeon RX 480

It is one of the recent additions to the Radeon line of AMD models. This particular model was launched in the second quarter of 2016. So, it has all the trending features that you would be looking into a GPU for mining.

This equipment has decent power consumption and a hash rate that is enough to complete your mining efficiently. You can mine coins like Metaverse, Ethereum, and Ethereum Classic. It is also popular for its affordability as well.

AMD Radeon RX 470

Though RX 470 is quite low on performance than the RX 480, you would not experience any possible lag during the mining. Stable operation with different load situations is the most significant takeaway of this particular AMD model.

Metaverse, Ethereum Classic, Ethereum, and Expanse can be mined with Radeon RX 470. You can also save on the cost when buying AMD Radeon RX 470.

The bottom line

Best graphicsprocessingunit for mining cryptocurrency:

Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Ti
Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060
AMD Radeon VII
Nvidia GTX 1080 Ti
Nvidia GTX 1070 Ti
Nvidia GTX 1070
Nvidia GTX 1060
AMD RX Vega 56
AMD Radeon RX 580
AMD Radeon RX 570
AMD Radeon RX 480
AMD Radeon RX 470

GPU mining is the most common form of cryptocurrency mining. It is vital to select the best GPU for mining to make the process more streamlined and efficient.

There is a wide range of GPUs available in the market that are ideally meant for mining. The above mentioned were some of the hot picks from both Nvidia and AMD line of GPUs. If the abundance of GPUs is confusing, you can take this list into consideration.