The advent of compact and powerful hardware has revolutionized the mini-ITX PC market, allowing users to build performance-oriented systems in a small form factor. Despite their small size, these compact systems can pack a punch, especially when equipped with the right graphics card.
Whether you're a hardcore gamer, content creator, or just need an efficient workstation, the best GPUs for your compact PC have you covered. In this article, we take a look at the best GPUs that will actually fit into your favorite mini-ITX case.
The best budget mini-ITX GPU
Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1660 Ti OC
- Fits into a low budget
- Respectable 1080p performance
- Compact design
- Fans can get loud
Suitable for your budget mini-ITX build, the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti is a great choice, specifically the Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1660 Ti OC model. Measuring 225.65mm in length and with a thickness of 40.5mm, this dual-fan GPU should easily fit inside most compact cases. Despite being four years old, it should offer excellent performance for 1080p gaming and run most high-end AAA titles at 60 frames per second (fps) with graphics settings set to either medium or high. It comes with 6GB of GDDR6 VRAM with a 192-bit memory interface, and is factory tuned to offer core clock speeds of up to 1800MHz, higher than the reference clock of 1170MHz.
You do need to keep in mind that it does not come with any ray tracing or Tensor cores, which means you can't really expect high-end lighting textures or AI processing from this graphics card. It requires a single 8-pin PCIe power connector and can draw up to 170 watts of power, higher than the rated 120W. The GPU also comes with a protective backplate, two 90mms fan, and a single heat pipe for cooling.
Usually selling for about $210, this particular model is currently available for as low as $189 on Newegg, which is a steal.
The smallest RTX 30-series GPU
MSI GeForce RTX 3060 Aero ITX 12G OC
- Super-compact design
- 12GB VRAM
- Excellent 1080p performance
- Support for DLSS, ray tracing, Reflex
- Limited frame rates at 1440p
Just 172mm in length and 43mm thick, the MSI GeForce RTX 3060 Aero ITX 12G OC is one of the smallest GPUs on our list. It is also a great option if you want to invest in a compact Nvidia 30-series card for your small form-factor system or even a home theater PC. The GPU comes with boost clock speeds of up to 1792MHz, 15Gbps memory bandwidth, and 12GB of GDDR6 VRAM for those demanding games. For I/O, you get three DisplayPort 1.4a and an HDMI 2.1 that supports 4K resolution at 120Hz refresh rate.
The RTX 3060 is based on the Ampere architecture, with 2nd-generation ray tracing cores and 3rd-generation Tensor cores. It supports various Nvidia technologies including DLSS, Reflex, Resizable BAR and more. This particular GPU model comes with dual copper heat pipes, a single cooling fan, and a backplate to increase the overall toughness.
Performance-wise, the RTX 3060 12GB is actually pretty impressive, and offers better value per dollar when compared to the newly launched RTX 4060. Expect modern AAA-games to run pretty well with the highest graphics settings at 1080p resolution, and you can even push to 1440p resolution at 60 fps by tweaking your game's graphics settings and using DLSS.
The MSI GeForce RTX 3060 Aero ITX 12G OC is currently selling for $279 on Newegg, and you can also look at the Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3060 Eagle OC 12G, which is selling for $289 on Amazon.
The best value compact GPU
PowerColor Fighter AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT
- Good 1440p performance
- Better value than RTX 4060 series
- 12GB of VRAM
- Potential performance boost with SAM
- Requires 650W PSU
- Poor Ray Tracing performance
- No DLSS
The latest midrange Nvidia GeForce RTX 40-series GPUs have turned out to be disappointing, but AMD has you covered. The Radeon RX 6700 XT offers the best price-to-performance ratio and can easily beat the Nvidia RTX 4060 and match up to the RTX 4060 Ti, while being considerably cheaper. It also comes with 12GB of DDR6 VRAM, which means it can keep up with demanding games with ease. Do note that the RX 6700 XT can beat similarly priced Nvidia GPUs in raw performance across the board, but lags behind when it comes to ray tracing and DLSS 3.
There are various models to choose from, but we suggest the PowerColor Fighter AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT as it is pretty compact and suitable for small form-factor builds. It measures 228mm in length and is 39mm thick, with dual 90mm fans and triple cooper pipes for cooling. The GPU offers up to 2581MHz boost clock speeds, plus three DisplayPort 1.4a out and one HDMI 2.1 out. It comes with a considerably high TDP of up to 230W, so make sure that you have at least a 650W power supply.
The PowerColor Fighter AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT is currently selling for $349 on Amazon and Newegg, which is about $50 lower than the launch price of the Nvidia RTX 4006 Ti.
The best RTX 40-series GPU for mini-ITX build
Asus Dual GeForce RTX 4070 OC Edition 12GB
- RTX 3080 performance for $100 less
- Only two slots
- DLSS 3
- Remarkable efficiency
- 1440p gaming at 100+ fps
- Beaten by AMD's RX 6950 XT
- Far below RTX 4070 Ti
If you really want to harness the performance of Nvidia's latest 40-series GPUs, then the RTX 4070 is a good choice for two reasons. Firstly, it isn't massive like the RTX 4080 and 4090, and compared to the entire 40-series lineup, the price=to-performance ratio of this GPU is actually worth it. Based on the latest Ada Lovelace architecture, the RTX 4070 comes with new streaming multiprocessors that deliver 2x the performance and power efficiency, 4th-generation Tensor cores for 4x performance with DLSS 3, and 3rd-generation ray tracing cores for improved lighting textures.
The graphics card is capable of running games at 1440p at over 100 fps which is pretty much at par with the previous-gen RTX 3080. It offers boost clock speeds of up to 2480MHz, 12GB of GDDR6X memory, and a rated TDP of just 200W. You can go for the Asus Dual GeForce RTX 4070 OC Edition 12GB, which is priced around $609. As the name suggest, it has a dual-fan configuration with dimensions of 267.01 x 133.94 x 51.13mm. You can even go for the Zotac Gaming GeForce RTX 4070 Twin Edge OC, which is selling for $10 less and is slightly more compact with a length of 225.5 mm and 40.1mm thickness.
Most powerful GPU for mini-ITX PCs
EVGA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti XC3 Ultra Gaming
- Smallest RTX 3080 GPU
- Powerful 4K performance
- Almost as powerful as the RTX 3090
- Expensive
- Limited availibilty
It can be difficult to fit beefy GPUs in compact cases, but what if you don't want to compromise on performance? In such a scenario, the EVGA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti XC3 Ultra Gaming is well-suited for the job, especially if you have a modern mini-ITX case that offers space for up to a 300mm GPU. It is currently one of the smallest RTX 3080 Ti graphics card on the market at 285mm, and is capable of offering excellent 4K gaming performance. The only model that comes close is Nvidia's own RTX 3080 Ti Founders Edition, which is also 285mm in length, but currently sells for $200 to $300 more than the EVGA offering.
The EVGA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti XC3 Ultra Gaming comes with a triple fan design, three DisplayPort 1.4a and one HDMI 2.1 ports, 12GB of 384-bit GDDR6X memory, and boost clock speeds of 1725MHz. Additionally you can harness Nvidia's technology chops, including DLSS, ray tracing, Reflex and more. You can grab this GPU for $1,199 from Newegg and about $1,329 from Amazon.
Best Intel GPU for mini-ITX builds
Intel Arc A770 Limited Edition
- Great 1080p and 1440p gaming performance
- Competitive ray tracing performance
- Relatively inexpensive
- Resizable BAR is necessary
- XeSS needs some work
Intel introduced its first proper desktop GPU at a time when the GPU market was quite volatile due to the massive chipset shortages and inflated prices. The Arc A770 is a surprisingly good midrange GPU capable of solid 1080p and 1440p gaming performance. During its launch, it wasn't suitable for certain games, but with the latest driver updates it has become quite a competitive option. It isn't super expensive ($350 at launch) and measures just under 300mm in length, just like the RTX 3080 Ti option we've mentioned above.
The Arc A770 is available with either 8GB or 16GB of GDDR6 memory, and we recommend going for the latter since modern games have become quite resource-heavy. It features a 256-bit memory bus, dedicated 32 Ray Tracing cores, clock speeds of up to 2,100MHz, and a TDP of 225W. It is a bit hard to get your hands on this specific model of the GPU, but if you are lucky, you can grab one for between $350 to $450.
Frequently Asked Questions
Barring the top-of-the-line RTX 4080 and RTX 4090 GPUs, it is possible to fit most RTX 40 series GPUs in a mini-ITX cabinet right up to the RTX 4070. Of course, everything depends on what kind of case you have. If you are going for a super-compact sub-15- liter build, then you may face issues with fitting a big GPU.
It is best to double-check the case measurements and compatibility before spending your money. It is also recommended to consider cable management, especially with the recent 12VHPWR connector issue faced on the new RTX 40-series GPUs.
A bunch of mini-ITX cases today offer GPU clearance of 300mm to 350mm. Some of these include the Cooler Master NR200P, Fractal Design Terra, NZXT H1 V2, Lian Li Q58, and the Hyte Revolt 3. You should easily find the exact GPU compatibility of a case by referring to the manual or specifications on the respective manufacturer's webpage.
Mini-ITX is the standard compact motherboard configuration that's been around for 20 years. Although we're talking about it in the context of small form-factor PCs, it's also used in cars, set-top boxes, routers, and many more devices.
A mini-ITX board is square, measuring 170 mm × 170 mm (6.7 in × 6.7 in), and tends to consume less power than larger boards. Building a mini-ITX PC can be difficult due to the extreme size limitations, but the result can be a tiny PC that's perfect for a living room or even just to create an aesthetically pleasing, clean desk.
