The Core i7-13700K is a phenomenally high-end processor. As highlighted in our review, it benefits substantially from its architectural overhaul, demonstrating a significant leap in performance compared to the last-generation SKUs. Nevertheless, you’ll need to pair the processor with an equally capable graphics card in order to utilize it to its maximum potential. Well, finding the right GPU for your brand-new processor can be challenging, especially for anyone who has not kept their eyes peeled at every new graphics card launch. To help you out, my team and I have finally finished our in-depth GPU testing to round up the top options for the i7-13700K.
What We Picked And Comparison
Take a look at my selections for the Best GPU For Core i7-13700K:
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Best GPU For i7-13700K
Here are my picks for the Best GPU For Core i7-13700K.
- Best Overall GPU For Core i7-13700K: MSI GAMING X Trio GeForce RTX 4080
- Best 1440p 240Hz GPU For Core i7-13700K: PowerColor Red Devil AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX
- Best 1440p GPU For Core i7-13700K: ASUS ProArt GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super
- Best 4K GPU For Core i7-13700K: Gigabyte RTX 4090 Gaming OC
- Best Budget 4K GPU For Core i7-13700K: XFX Speedster MERC 319 Radeon RX 6950 XT
MSI GAMING X TRIO GeForce RTX 4080
Best Overall GPU For Core i7-13700K
Architecture: Ada Lovelace | CUDA Cores/SPs: 9728 | Base Clock: 2205 MHz | Boost Clock: 2595 MHz | Memory: 16GB GDDR6X | Bus Width: 256-bit | Recommended PSU: 850W | Power Connectors: 1x 16-pin PCIe
Cons
Design: As I expected, the MSI Gaming X Trio RTX 4080 follows MSI’s traditional design outlook of their Gaming X Trio series of GPUs, including a sleek grey finish on the front aluminum shroud along with multiple sharp edges. Three diagonal RGB stripes can be seen flowing into the center fan, which adds to its aesthetic elements.
Cooling: The GPU has been paired with MSI’s TRI FROZR 3 thermal design, which includes an eight-heatpipe configuration, a copper baseplate as well as a triple-fan setup that utilizes the TOXR FAN 5.0 design. All these cooling attributes allow the card’s temperature to remain well within acceptable limits.
Performance: MSI has configured its boost clock speeds to be 90 MHz higher than the founder’s edition, sitting at a whopping 2595 MHz. Unsurprisingly, VRAM isn’t a limiting factor either, with the card coming with 16GB of GDDR6X memory on a 256-bit wide bus. VRM configuration is equally as impressive, utilizing a 16+3 phase design.
Buy It If
✅You need a well-rounded GPU: The GeForce RTX 4080 is a well-rounded card, satisfying most users with its performance, build quality, and cooling.
Don’t Buy It If
❌You are on a limited budget: The higher overall price tag means the MSI GAMING X TRIO GeForce RTX 4080 will be out of the question for anyone on a limited budget.
What Makes It The Best Overall GPU For i7-13700K
The MSI GAMING X TRIO GeForce RTX 4080 is bundled with phenomenal performance and an equally impressive feature set. I have titled it the Best Overall GPU For i7-13700K for its remarkable performance and sleek modern appearance.
Performance: 9/10 | Value: 9/10 |
Features: 9/10 | Design: 9/10 |
PowerColor Red Devil AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX
Best 1440p 240Hz GPU For Core i7-13700K
Architecture: RDNA 3 | CUDA Cores/SPs: 6144 | Base Clock: 1855 MHz | Boost Clock: 2563 MHz | Memory: 24GB GDDR6 | Bus Width: 384-bit | Recommended PSU: 900W | Power Connectors: 3 x 8-pin PCIe
Pros
Cons
Design: The PowerColor Red Devil RX 7900 XTX is predominantly black, and the backplate follows the simple theme, only including a few more cut-outs for ventilation. An abundance of RGB lighting has been integrated, with the most prominent one being the large bar on top. I appreciate the addition of a 14-layer PCB for increased durability.
Cooling: For cooling, you get three 100mm fans, built on a 9-blade design, a copper base plate, and a vertical fin heatsink comprising eight heat pipes. I found that the PowerColor Red Devil Radeon RX 7900 XTX faces no cooling issues thanks to its well-equipped arrangement of fans and heatsinks.
Performance: AMD has left no stone unturned with the RX 7900 XTX, equipping it with 24GB of GDDR6 memory, 6144 stream processors, and a boost clock speed of 2525 MHz. Topping all of that off is its impressive arrangement of VRMs, comprising a 12+3+2+2+2 phase design.
Buy It If
✅You need 1440p 240Hz Gaming: The PowerColor Red Devil Radeon RX 7900 XT utilizes its outstanding performance to deliver a flawless 1440p 240Hz gaming experience while also maintaining lower temperatures.
Don’t Buy It If
❌You are looking for a cheaper card: Its higher price tag means anyone with a tight budget will not be accounted for.
What Makes It The Best 1440p 240Hz GPU For i7-13700K
With 24GB of GDDR6 memory and extremely high clock speeds under its belt, the RX 7900 XTX is undoubtedly the Best 1440p 240Hz GPU For i7-13700K.
Performance: 10/10 | Value: 8/10 |
Features: 9/10 | Design: 9/10 |
ASUS ProArt GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super
Best 1440p GPU For Core i7-13700K
Architecture: Ada Lovelace | CUDA Cores/SPs: 8448 | Base Clock: 2340 MHz | Boost Clock: 2670 MHz | Memory: 16GB GDDR6X | Bus Width: 256-bit | Recommended PSU: 750W | Power Connectors: 1x 16-pin PCIe
Pros
Cons
Design: The ASUS ProArt GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super is surprisingly distinctive in its entirety, courtesy of ProArt’s unique gold accents. It has a minimalistic design with a monochromatic smoky black color scheme that is accompanied by a gold outline traversing through the edges. However, RGB is entirely absent on the card.
Cooling: ASUS has armed the Pro Art variant of the 4070 Ti Super with three axial tech fans that come with increased size for increased airflow. Furthermore, the fans come with Dual Ball Fan Bearings, increasing their life spans. 0dB and Reverse Rotation technologies have not been glanced over either, reducing noise levels and turbulence.
Performance: I’m happy to report that the RTX 4070 Ti Super offers noticeable upgrades over its non-super counterpart by including 8448 Cuda cores, 16GB of GDDR6X memory, as well as a boost clock speed of 2570 MHz. In my tests, I found the 4070 Ti Super’s performance to be more than adequate for 1440p gaming.
Buy It If
✅You are looking for a 1440p card: The ASUS ProArt GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super’s 12GB of GDDR6X memory, high core count, and great cooling render it suitable for playing games at native 1440p resolution.
✅You need a slightly compact card: In a market plagued with large cards, the ASUS ProArt GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super stands out for its slightly more compact 2.5-slot design.
Don’t Buy It If
❌You want RGB: The ASUS ProArt GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super does not include RGB lighting, which might not be everyone’s cup of tea.
❌You want Display Port 2.1 connectivity: While newer cards have already adapted to Display Port 2.1, the ASUS ProArt GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super lags behind in this department, offering no such connectivity option.
What Makes It The Best 1440p GPU For i7-13700K
The ASUS ProArt GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super excels at providing a flawless 1440p gaming experience. That, combined with its sleek design, modern feature set, and solid value makes it the Best 1440p GPU For i7-13700K.
Performance: 9/10 | Value: 9/10 |
Features: 8/10 | Design: 8/10 |
Gigabyte RTX 4090 Gaming OC
Best 4K GPU For Core i7-13700K
Architecture: Ada Lovelace | CUDA Cores/SPs: 16384 | Base Clock: 2235 MHz | Boost Clock: 2535 MHz | Memory: 24GB GDDR6X | Bus Width: 384-bit | Recommended PSU: 1000W | Power Connectors: 1 x 16-pin PCIe
Pros
Cons
Design: The Gigabyte RTX 4090 Gaming OC has an elegant appearance that does not come with any aggressive elements whatsoever. The card’s sleek design and RGB lighting highlights offer a touch of sophistication, with its fantastic blend of grey accents further accentuating the structure.
Cooling: In terms of cooling, you get the Windforce Cooling System, which consists of 10 heat pipes, a vapor chamber in direct contact with the GPU, and three 110mm fans. While the cooling solution is undoubtedly huge, it effectively distributes heat, resulting in reduced chip temperatures during long gaming and video editing sessions.
Performance: In our tests, the Gigabyte RTX 4090 Gaming OC provided chart-topping performance even at 4K. This graphics card is a beast, sporting a total of 16384 Cuda cores and 24GB of high-speed GDDR6X VRAM. Moreover, Gigabyte has configured the card with a 20+4 phase VRM design, with each phase coming with a 50A rating.
Our senior hardware tester, Nauman Siddique, was blown away by the performance the card offered:
“The GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 4090 Gaming OC 24G offers silent operations, excellent cooling, feature-rich solution, and a powerful punch in every aspect of GPU performance.”
Buy It If
✅You want the best performance: Thanks to its high 2535 MHz clock speeds and 16384 CUDA Cores, the Gigabyte RTX 4090 Gaming OC nails every single GPU-intensive task with phenomenal performance.
✅You are building a 4K PC: As such, you should definitely go for the RTX 4090 if you are building a 4K PC with an i7-13700K.
Don’t Buy It If
❌You are looking for a chapter alternative: Coming in as Nvidia’s fastest consumer graphics card, the GeForce RTX 4090 is extremely expensive.
What Makes It The Best 4K GPU For i7-13700K
We have titled The Gigabyte Gaming GeForce RTX 4090 OC the Best 4K GPU For i7-13700K for its ability to deliver a smooth gaming experience at 4K on the highest-possible graphical preset.
- Read Our RTX 4090 Gaming OC Review
- Best RTX 4090 Graphics Cards
- Best CPU For RTX 4090
- Best PSU For RTX 4090
Performance: 10/10 | Value: 7/10 |
Features: 9/10 | Design: 9/10 |
XFX Speedster MERC 319 Radeon RX 6950 XT
Best Budget 4K GPU For Core i7-13700K
Architecture: RDNA 2 | CUDA Cores/SPs: 5120 | Base Clock: 2009 MHz | Boost Clock: 2368 MHz | Memory: 16GB GDDR6 | Bus Width: 256-bit | Recommended PSU: 850W | Power Connectors: 2 x 8-pin PCIe
Pros
Cons
Design: The XFX Speedster MERC 319 Radeon RX 6950 XT uses a traditional triple-fan design that is paired with a black-and-white color scheme. While the lack of RGB makes the card’s design relatively simple, the simple black design works in conjunction with the white outlines surrounding the fans, giving it a decent overall look.
Cooling: XFX has employed the Speedster MERC 319 Radeon RX 6950 XT with a powerful triple-fan cooling system which is one of its notable characteristics. The thermal solution also includes a triple-slot heatsink and 7 composite heat pipes, which ensure effective heat dissipation.
Performance: A genuine powerhouse, the XFX Speedster MERC 319 Radeon RX 6950 XT performed well in a lot of our tests at 4K. The GPU’s powerful 5120 stream processors and boost speed of up to 2368MHz enable it to easily handle even the most resource-intensive tasks. The 16GB of GDDR6 VRAM is also sufficient for 4K gaming.
Buy It If
✅You are looking for a value 4K GPU: Given the higher price of 4K-ready GPUs, the Speedster MERC 319 Radeon RX 6950 XT serves as the best value 4K GPU.
Don’t Buy It If
❌You need Ray Tracing: While ray tracing is completely possible on the Speedster MERC 319 Radeon RX 6950 XT, it falls behind the competition.
What Makes It The Best Budget 4K GPU For i7-13700K
The XFX Speedster MERC 319 Radeon RX 6950XT takes the spot of the Best Budget 4K GPU For i7 13700K thanks to its fantastic gaming performance at a slightly lower price point.
Performance: 8/10 | Value: 10/10 |
Features: 8/10 | Design: 9/10 |
Gaming Benchmarks Of The Best Graphics Cards For Core i7-13700K
We’ve tested our recommendations for the Best GPU For Core i7-13700K over a series of games, take a look at their 1440p performance:
Important GPU Key Terms
Here are a few important GPU key terms you should look out for when searching for the Best GPU For Core i7-13700K:
- Cores: GPU cores act as separate processing units responsible for performing calculations and rendering graphics in conjunction with each other for better overall performance.
- Clock Speed: Measured in MHz, the clock speed of your GPU measures the number of cycles your card can process in a single second.
- VRAM: VRAM or Video memory refers to dedicated memory installed in a graphics card, designed to store graphical data, including images, videos, and textures.
- TDP: TDP measures the maximum amount of heat your graphics card produces under load.
- Overclocking: Overclocking refers to the act of increasing your GPU clock speeds for marginal performance gains. The overclocking capabilities of your GPU mostly depend on VRM and cooling.
- VRM: The Voltage Regulator Module, or VRM is responsible for maintaining a stable supply of voltage to your graphics card.
How We Picked The Best GPU For Core i7-13700K
Here are a few factors I considered when picking the Best GPU For Core i7-13700K.
- Gaming Performance: The performance of your card can depend on various other factors, including core count, clock speeds, and memory configuration, just to name a few. In my list, I made sure to list several GPUs, with each excelling at different scenarios.
- VRM and Overclocking: Responsible for ensuring a stable supply of voltage to the GPU, a VRM’s capabilities can be of paramount importance to a card. Additionally, it also directly impacts the overclocking potential of your card.
- Power Draw: While high-performance GPUs are bound to consume more power, it is important to ensure that the graphics card makes efficient use of its power. Of course, you’ll also have to take the rest of the components into account.
- Feature Set: Modern features such as upscaling technologies and rendering methods are worth taking into account before finalizing your decision on a graphics card. The feature set of a card can depend on the manufacturer, the card’s generation, and price tag.
- Aesthetics: While aesthetics might not be the most important factor one considers before purchasing a GPU, it undoubtedly can play a huge role in influencing your decision. Matching the visual style of your GPU with the rest of the setup can improve the aesthetics of your setup by a huge degree.
- Value For Money: The value of your GPU mainly comes down to performance, design, and features. Generally, striking a balance between these factors might be the way to go; however, going for a performance-heavy option should not be a problem as long as your budget allows you to do so.
The MSI GAMING X TRIO GeForce RTX 4080 takes the title of the best overall GPU for i7 13700K. Yes, the i7-13700K ranks among the best processors for gaming. Yes, the i7-13700K is a good processor to pair with the GeForce RTX 4080. Yes, the i7 13700K is an excellent choice for streaming.Frequently Asked Questions
Recent Updates
- March 4, 2024: Few text changes to improve readability.
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[CPU Coolers & RAM Expert]
Hayyan Serwer is a tech enthusiast, with a love for PC building and article writing. Hayyan specializes in writing about CPU coolers and RAM kits. Hayyan has been familiar with the tech industry for over half a decade now, and has now stepped into providing quality reviews for the latest and greatest tech.
Get In Touch: hayyan@tech4gamers.com