# GPU prices rose 8% in September and no drop is near
_Hardware Unboxed finds GPU prices up 8% in September to 34% over MSRP, with Nvidia far above AMD and the RTX 5090 near $6,000._
**Published:** 2026-09-25
**Source:** https://www.startuphub.ai/hardware/gpu-prices-rose-8-in-september-and-no-drop-is-near
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[Hardware Unboxed](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8tMVS2O9fc) checked the lowest in-stock listing for every current GPU in 10 countries and found prices rose 8% in the past month, leaving the market 34% above MSRP when you exclude the RTX 5090.

No tier was spared this time.

That run rate is slower than August, when Hardware Unboxed measured a 15% jump from July, but it lifts total inflation since February to 26%. The data is not an average basket. It is the single cheapest available base model per region, validated at checkout, converted to a true local MSRP with taxes. By that method, entry-level cards that once held flat are climbing too, with the [Nvidia](https://www.startuphub.ai/ai-news/artificial-intelligence/2026/nvidia-earnings-preview-apple-s-ai-macs-openai-s-chip-ambitions) GeForce RTX 5050 up 9% to 31% over its $250 MSRP and the RTX 5060 up 11% to 34% over MSRP on average, and 50% over in the United States.

The skew is sharper at the top. The RTX 5060 Ti 16GB is up 8% to nearly $800 and 60% over MSRP on average, the most overpriced gaming GeForce card in the survey, while the RTX 5070 is up 10% to 39% over MSRP and 53% over in the US, the RTX 5070 Ti up 7% to 50% over, and the RTX 5080 up 8% to 48% over, 58% over in the US and Canada. The RTX 5090 stands apart at 177% over MSRP, about $6,000 worldwide, after a 41% spike in the US alone and 22% on average. Hardware Unboxed frames that as workstation pricing, noting the same GB202 die sells in RTX Pro 6000 cards with 96GB for $16,000.

Radeon looks cheaper but not cheap. The RX 9060 XT 8GB rose 9% to 34% over MSRP, the 16GB rose 8% to 36% over, which leaves the GeForce 5060 Ti 16GB about 45% more expensive than its AMD peer versus 23% at launch. The RX 9070 and 9070 XT rose only 4% to 15% and 23% over MSRP, stretching the gap to the 5070 Ti to 52% from 49% in August. Intel Arc B570 rose 10% to 31% over MSRP where available and B580 rose 4% to 25% over.

The skeptic case is in the method and what it cannot prove. A lowest-price snapshot favors one retailer and a base cooler, so street averages are higher, and Hardware Unboxed flags that directly. It also shows broad inflation, 29% to 45% over MSRP across India, North America, the UK, [Brazil](https://www.startuphub.ai/ai-news/artificial-intelligence/2026/openai-expands-to-brazil) and Europe, with Australia and the Philippines still above 25%, but it does not publish supply, sell-through or memory procurement costs to tie the move cleanly to AI demand. As of September 2026 [Nvidia](https://www.startuphub.ai/ai-news/artificial-intelligence/2026/nvidia-earnings-preview-apple-s-ai-macs-openai-s-chip-ambitions) has not officially confirmed an additional hike, while AMD has pointed to roughly 10% increases on select Radeon cards and GDDR6 kits in August tied to memory costs. The cloud side hints at the same pressure, with neocloud provider [Nebius](https://www.startuphub.ai/ai-news/public-companies/2026/nvidia-nebius-softbank-ai-stock-movers) notifying customers September 17 it will raise pay-as-you-go GPU instances 21% and memory 41% from October 1.

Hardware Unboxed says retailers expect more upward pressure and no new generation until 2028 at the earliest, which leaves buyers choosing between paying a tier penalty now, the $750 that used to buy a 5070 Ti now buys a 5070, or waiting with no guarantee of a correction.
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Original analysis from [startuphub.ai](https://www.startuphub.ai), the #1 AI startup directory.