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Best PCI Cards: under $100

Best PCI Express (PCIe) Card For Under $50:

Radeon HD 4650 (Check Prices)

Great 1280x1024 performance in most games, 1680x1050 with lowered detail

You will not find a card that packs more punch than ATI’s Radeon HD 4650 at the alluring $50 price point. With solid stock performance and an overclockable GPU, this card is an excellent starting point for our list of recommendations, and a wholly worthwhile upgrade if you’re currently stuck using a motherboard limited to integrated graphics.

Best PCI Express (PCIe) Card For $70:
Radeon HD 5570 (Check Prices)

Great 1680x1050 performance in most games, 1920x1200 in many games with lowered detail

At $70, the Radeon HD 5570 can take a recommendation for being a solid performer at a relatively low price, and won’t disappoint folks who don’t want to upgrade their power supply to accommodate a more powerful graphics card.

Best PCI Express (PCIe) Card For $80:
GeForce 9600 GT (Check Prices)

Great 1680x1050 performance in most games, 1920x1200 in most games with lowered detail

The GeForce 9600 GT is still a great entry-level performer, thanks in part to its high-end 256-bit memory interface and speedy DDR3 memory. It’s a solid choice on an $80 budget, even if the architecture on which it centers is showing its age.

While the GeForce GT 240 is beginning to encroach on this card’s price territory, the 9600 GT remains a bit faster than even the GDDR5 version of the newer card, and its recommendation remains secure for the time being. While fluctuating GeForce 9800 GT prices have edged out the GeForce 9600 GT last month, that card can no longer be found for $80 at the time of writing, allowing the GeForce 9600 GT to retain it’s former recommendation.

Just in case you have an extra $700.00 to spend then this is the ultimate graphics card

Best PCIe Card For ~$700:

Radeon HD 5970 (Check Prices)

3,200 shader processors. There isn’t much more I need to say about the brutal rendering muscle that characterizes the world’s fastest graphics card, the Radeon HD 5970. With two Radeon HD 5870 GPUs onboard, the only things I can complain about are scant availability and an extremely high price tag. Availability has improved over time; the price not so much. But if you’re in the market for this card, price probably isn’t an issue.

Read the full review of ATI’s Radeon HD 5970 for more information on the card