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The best GPUs for cryptocurrency mining

Jul 12, 2020

Criteria to choose GPU

When you choose a video card for mining, you should take into account the following parameters:

Computing power (performance). The higher computing power you have, the more profitable a mining farm is. The performance of a video card is dependent on such parameters as the amount of video memory and the core frequency of the GPU chip (graphics processor).
Hashrate. This is the speed of calculations for a given mining algorithm. It is designated as MH / s (megahash per second). This parameter is closely related to computing power, but the hashrate of video cards with equal performance differs depending on the architecture.
Overclocking potential. Initially, video cards operate in “nominal” mode, but each chip has a margin in frequencies. The more modern the graphics card, the higher the potential. Using specialized software, you can increase the productivity of your mining rig.
Cooling. During mining, the video card heats up (especially if you overclock it above the standard values). When the card is overheated, the core frequency of the GPU chip decreases and at the same time cryptocurrency mining slows down. Two or three powerful fans will prevent overheating. There are also turbo-cooled graphics cards on the market, but their fans are very noisy.

Miners usually assemble a mining rig with 4 identical video cards. These are the most stable systems that bring a minimum of problems during operation and configuration, and motherboards with 4 PCI slots are cheaper and more often appear on sale. Rigs for 6 or 8 video cards are more profitable. In this case, you will need a specific motherboard, a more powerful power supply and cooling system.

The best GPUs for mining

GeForce GTX 1060

This card is considered to be one of the best among the cheaper options. The amount of memory varies from 3 to 6 GB, and prices start at $299.
However, the 3 GB card version is not suitable for mining, so your choice should be the 6 GB version.

Coins to mine: RavenCoin, Ethereum, GRIN-CR29, Ethereum Classic, Swap (XWP), ZANO.
Power consumption: 90 W
Video memory: 6 GB GDDR5
Ethash Hashrate: 20.50 MH/s
Cuckaroom29 Hashrate: 2.30 H/s
ProgPow Hashrate: 9.00 Mh/s

GeForce GTX 1070 Ti

This graphics card surpasses the GTX 1060 in terms of parameters. The card comes with 8 GB of memory and has really high mining efficiency.

What to mine: Nimiq, Ravencoin, Zano, Sero, Zel, Anon, GRIN-CT32, Ethereum.
Power Consumption: 180 W
Video Memory: 8 GB GDDR5
Argon2d-NIM Hashrate: 270.00 kh/s
ProgPow Hashrate: 15.00 Mh/s
Cuckatoo32 Hashrate: 320.26 h/s
Ethash Hasrate: 30.50 Mh/s

GeForce GTX 1080 Ti

This is one of the most powerful graphics cards at the moment. This is not surprising, because even the payback period is almost twice as short as the 1070 series video cards. Many experts recommend buying such a card, but at $800 the price is pretty steep.

For a mining graphics card at this price, the GeForce GTX 1080 Ti has tremendous power. It offers a hash rate of 35 MH/s for Ethash. However, the GTX 1080 Ti requires 250 watts of power, making it one of the most demanding Nvidia cards.

What to mine: GRIN-CT32, Nimiq, Ravencoin, Zano, Zcoin, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic.
Power consumption: 250 W
Video memory: 11 GB GDDR5
Ethash Hashrate: 35 MH/s
Argon2d-NIM Hashrate: 400.00 kh/s
Cuckatoo32 Hashrate: 0.46 h/s
MTP Hashrate: 3.60 Mh/s

RTX 2080 Ti

Flagship card of Nvidia. According to the creators of this video card, it is six times ahead of its predecessors and has 11 GB of memory. The GPU mines better Ethash and Equihash algorithms. Despite the improved features and a price exceeding $1200, it has many advantages.

What to mine: GRIN-CT32, Ravencoin, Zcoin, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, Aion, Aeternity.
Power consumption: 220 W
Video memory: 11 GB GDDR6
Cuckatoo32 Hashrate: 0.68 h/s
Ethash Hashrate: 52.50 Mh/s
Equihash Hashrate: 375.00 h/s
MTP Hashrate: 4.60 Mh/s

Radeon RX 570 and Radeon RX 580

If users want to build a rig that is relatively energy-efficient, they should pay attention to the Radeon RX 570 graphics card. Using the latest Claymore software for two miners, it can overclock to 30 MH/s using the BIOS. This card costs only $120.

In terms of mining, the Radeon RX 580 is not much different from the RX 570. Nevertheless, it is more popular among gamers, which can increase your chances of selling it after. It has good overclocking potential and high-speed GDDR5 memory. Prices for this card start at $170.

What to mine: Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, QuarkChain / Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, GRIN-CR29.
Power consumption: 120/125 W
Video memory: 8 GB GDDR5
Ethash Hashrate: 27.90 Mh/s / 30.20 Mh/s
Cuckaroom29 Hashrate: 2.60 h/s

RX Vega 56

For a long time, Radeon Vega was AMD’s flagship card. Back in the days, the card was the most profitable for the Cryptonight algorithm. It has 8 GB of video memory, and prices start at $280. Optimal overclocking settings are 100 MHz for the core and 600 MHz for memory.

What to mine: GRIN, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, RavenCoin
Power consumption: 230 W
Video memory: 8 GB HBM2
Cuckatoo32 Hashrate: 0.27–0.35 h/s
Cuckaroom Hashrate: 294.35 h/s
Ethash Hashrate: 36.50 Mh/s

RX Vega 64

RX Vega 64 maximizes profits when mining coins on Ethash algorithms. This GPU is a good choice for mining Ethereum too.

The card can be overclocked gradually to 30 MHz. It is important not to overclock the video card too much, because it is very sensitive to overheating.

Unlike other AMD video cards running on the Polaris architecture, the hash rate of which is gradually decreasing, the RX Vega 64 is quite stable during mining. The card has 8 GB of memory and costs about 380 dollars.

RX Radeon VII

Radeon VII is pretty hard to find in stores and the pay-off period is quite long. The Radeon VII video card shows good results during mining.

What to mine: GRIN-CT32, GRIN-CR29, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, RavenCoin, Zano, Sero.
Power consumption: 200 W
Video memory: 16 GB HBM2
Ethash Hashrate: 78 MH/s
Cuckaroom29 Hashrate: 7.10 h/s
Cuckatoo32 Hashrate: 0.60–0.70 h/s