Graphics card prices have been insane for most of this year making it hard to find anything in stock, let alone at a fair price. In Europe though, we’re starting to see prices fall to more affordable levels, and it’s not just because Nvidia and AMD are launching more entry-level cards. The Trump tariffs and poor economic management are tanking the value of the dollar, making GPUs much cheaper for everyone outside the US.
We all want a strong dollar, but…
As a Brit working for mostly American publishers, I’m normally a big fan of dollar appreciation. While I voted against Brexit, the fact that it sent the pound tumbling was a silver lining for those of us earning in USD. But while my overall earnings might be falling under Trump’s economy crashing measures, the fact that it’s helping to bring down GPU prices is an alternative bright side.
Over the past couple of months, the GBP to USD rate has risen from $1.22-ish, to around $1.34 per. That means I lose about 10% of my monthly money on the conversion, and a similar rate change can be felt in the EU. There the Euro is now around 10-15% more valuable against the dollar than it was at the start of the year where the currencies were almost at parity.
That’s helping to bring down prices in France at least, where the RTX 5070 has now reached 569 euros, or around $650, according to VideoCardz. That’s down from 589 euros, which was the cheapest price just a few days ago, and further still from the 629 euro price that was the best we could find a couple of weeks ago.
When the card launched in Europe though, its MSRP was around 650 euros and now most RTX 5070s on sale across the continent are much more affordable than that.
This follows price cuts for a range of RTX 50 graphics cards in the EU just a few weeks ago, and continues a trend that’s been ongoing since mid-March. As the dollar has tumbled in the wake of the Trump administration’s handling of the economy, the Euro has strengthened, and GPU prices have fallen in Europe ever since.
The original prices were too high anyway
As much as it’s nice to see prices coming down, and sad to see it happen in such a way, this does also feel like more of a return to normality (although we’re not there yet). The RTX 5070 is supposed to be a mid-range card, and at the lower end of that mid-range, too. If it actually did sit at the $550 price it was suggested for, that’d be a fair $50 increase over the RTX 3070 (considering inflation), and $50 cheaper than the 4070. But it’s not ended up anything close to that in reality, and tariffs are only going to drive that up even more in the months to come.
However, competition will squeeze the margins on these cards. AMD’s RX 9070 XT has already pushed forward plans for the Super refresh of this generation, and the aggressive pricing on the AMD alternatives may help bring down pricing for some of these cards as stock levels start to return to normal.
We also have the upcoming entry-level GPUs from Nvidia and AMD to look forward to. The RTX 5060 Ti just dropped, and though also swiftly out of stock in the US, its stock is much stronger overseas. Here in the UK you can easily buy a 5060 Ti 16GB or 8GB (although you shouldn’t buy that latter option). Stock levels of the RTX 5060 8GB are likely to remain strong too once it launches (and you really shouldn’t buy that one), and the RX 9060 XT and 9060 from AMD will drive even greater competition for this more affordable GPUs.
Under this admin, there are no guarantees
While there does seem to be a trend appearing of slowly normalizing prices and less of a frantic pace of tariff changes and trade disruptions, there is no guarantee of anything under the new administration. If there’s one thing that has been consistent over the past few months of madness, it’s that it can change dramatically day to day and even hour to hour at times.
Even if currency shifts and added competition should continue to drive prices down in Europe, there’s no sign of GPU prices improving in the US. Indeed, GamersNexus has heralded the end of affordable computing in general — and they’re not alone. While tariff exemptions might help some industries in certain instances, the broad application of them means there will be untold consequences, and graphics cards seem as vulnerable to those as anything else.
Still, in Europe and the UK there is cautious optimism to be found. Not for those of us earning in dollars. Pour one out for us. But for EU gamers, there might be a light at the end of this GPU pricing tunnel. If you’ve been waiting on an upgrade, keep an eye on things for a bit longer to see if prices stabilize. You might be on the cusp of getting a deal that’s not too terrible.
