PS5 GPU equivalent: why the RTX 2070 Super comparison is imperfect

The closest match to the PS5's graphics hardware

Engadget has revisited a familiar question for gamers deciding between a console and a PC: which NVIDIA graphics card comes closest to the PlayStation 5? According to Engadget, the frame-analysis specialists at Digital Foundry name the RTX 2070 Super as the card that best matches the base PS5's APU, the single chip that handles both processor and graphics duties in the console.

The comparison is awkward from the start. The PS5 uses a custom AMD RDNA 2 graphics design paired with a CPU on one chip, and there is no directly equivalent product in the PC market. The RTX 2070 Super, launched in 2019, is now three generations old and carries 8GB of GDDR6 memory, which is not a direct match for the PS5's 16GB of unified GDDR6 shared across the whole system.

Prices complicate the PC route

Engadget reports that the cheapest RTX 2070 Super currently costs $280 on Amazon, roughly 53 percent of the $600 PS5 Digital Edition price. The site's writer advises against paying close to $300 for a seven-year-old card and suggests the second-hand market instead, arguing that new graphics card prices are currently very high.

The article also cites what it calls RAMaggeddon, a sharp rise in memory and component prices that makes building a custom PC financially punishing at present. This is the writer's assessment rather than a measured market figure, but it shapes the article's advice: if a reader is content with a PS5, there is little reason to switch.

Where the PS5 Pro sits

For Sony's upgraded console, the picture shifts. Engadget notes the PS5 Pro now costs $1,250, up from its $700 launch price in late 2024, amid a shortage that the approach of GTA VI is reportedly making worse. The Pro uses a custom AMD Zen 2 eight-core chip that Engadget says delivers a large graphics boost but only about a 10 percent CPU improvement over the standard model.

On raw horsepower, Engadget points to the 16GB RTX 5060 Ti and AMD's Radeon RX 9060 XT as the closest PC comparisons to the PS5 Pro. With suitable settings and a capable gaming CPU, either card can outperform the console, though the comparison remains imperfect. The RTX 5060, meanwhile, was the second most used card on Steam in September 2026 with 4.40 percent share, supports DLSS 5 and carries 8GB of GDDR7, but typically retails for at least $500.

Why the comparison is not straightforward

Consoles are closed systems with fixed hardware, so developers can optimise heavily for them. Engadget notes that studios have reached 60 frames per second with supersampling and near-4K output on both PS5 models through careful development. A PC with a comparable graphics card also needs a strong CPU and enough suitable memory, otherwise even a high-end GPU would be held back.

Engadget's overall verdict is that a PS5 remains the simplest way to get 4K gaming with smooth frame rates for under $1,000, and that a PS5 or PS5 Pro handles 60 FPS at 4K with reasonable ray tracing. A high-end gaming PC is only worth considering for cutting-edge features such as path tracing at 120 frames per second.