The RTX 5060 Ti 16 GB now lists for more than the RTX 5070 and RX 9070 XT at major retailers, with the cheapest new MSI Shadow model sitting at $780 against $763 for a competitive 5070 and $720 for an RX 9070 XT. Memory pricing has driven the surge, pushing the 16 GB variant to an 81.82% premium over its $429 MSRP while the 8 GB version remains available around $430. The same market forces have lifted GeForce cards far more than Radeon alternatives, where RX 9070 GRE models still trade near or below MSRP.

This reversal turns the 16 GB card into an especially poor proposition for gaming at current street prices, as the VRAM advantage fails to offset the performance gap or the cost of stepping up to a stronger GPU. AMD cards have seen more restrained increases overall, leaving options like the RX 9070 XT as clearer value plays amid the GDDR7 supply crunch tied to AI demand. Retail listings and price-tracking tables confirm the trend has worsened week over week since mid-August 2025.

Buyers chasing capacity over raw performance will find the numbers work against them here. The 5060 Ti 16 GB undercuts its own value proposition so thoroughly that skipping it for either the 5070 or a comparable Radeon appears the less punishing route on paper.