The Intel i5 3470 is a 22 nm desktop processor based upon Intel’s IVY bridge architecture. It was launched in the 2nd quarter of 2012 with an MRP of $195.
Even though it is a 12-13-year-old CPU, it still provides excellent performance and assists you in solving your everyday tasks. It features four cores and four threads, with a base clock frequency of 3.30 GHz and a maximum turbo frequency of 3.60 GHz.
At a Glance:
- Suitable for 1440p and 4K gaming.
- Best Performance in this price range.
- Ray tracing support.
- Good cooling system.
Moreover, it has 6 MB intel L3 smart cache memory with a Bus speed of 5 GT/s. Talking about its power consumption, it consumes 77 watts of power under load, and the typical idle power averages roundabout 20–25 watts.
Further, it has Intel® HD Graphics 2500 integrated into it. The Intel® HD Graphics 2500 has a 650MHz base frequency with a max dynamic frequency of 1.10 GHz. It supports a maximum of 3 displays simultaneously. This CPU requires an LGA 1155 socket to be installed on it.
All in all, it is a very efficient CPU if combined with the powerful graphics cards mentioned below.
How To Choose The Right GPU For Intel Core I5 3470
Following are the 5 critical factors we described that probably will assist you in choosing the best graphics card for your Intel Core i5 3470.
Compatibility
The first and most important element you should take into account when selecting a graphics card is compatibility between your GPU and the CPU. Without a compatible graphics card, you wouldn’t even be able to get the display.
Performance
Secondly, you should know that the performance of your PC in games and rendering applications mainly depends upon your GPU, so you should install a suitable graphics card that is compatible with the i5 3470.
Bottleneck
One of the most critical factor is checking the bottleneck. If your CPU or GPU bottlenecks, you are going to face a performance drop, which will depend upon the extent of bottleneck percentage. Therefore, before making a purchase, search on web to see if your CPU-GPU will be a perfect combo or not.
Brand and Reputation
The manufacturer of your GPU matters a lot. There are dozens of reliable brands in the market, and choosing one might be confusing for you. For that reason, we have compiled a list of the most efficient graphics cards from trustworthy vendors that would work best with your i5 3470. So, read this blog thoroughly.
Warranty
Last and most important, the warranty provided by the manufacturer would be of a great help if, by any chance, damage occurs to your graphics card. Do not forget to select a vendor which covers the Dead and Burn warranty.
Our Recommendations For The Best Graphics Cards For I5 3470
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Budget Pick  | Check Price |
MSI GTX 1050 Ti Gaming X 4GB
The MSI GTX 1050 Ti Gaming X 4GB is a 128-Bits graphics card introduced by MSI in 2016. It is an old card built upon Nvidia’s Pascal architecture but still provides optimum gaming and rendering performance.
This card offers 4GB GDDR5 memory and 768 CUDA core units. Further, it does not feature RT and Tensor Cores as it belongs to the “GTX” series of Nvidia. It has a 1752 MHz memory clock, with 7Gb/s being the effective clock. Discussing its cores, they have a base and boost clock of 1354 and 1468 MHz, respectively.
This graphics card consumes very little power and hence sits on the power-efficient side of the spectrum. It has a TDP of 75 Watts and requires a 1x 6-pin power connector.
Further, it is a very lightweight graphics card weighing around 500g and has a sleek design with 229 x 131 x 39 mm dimensions. This graphics card can easily fit in smaller chassis. It comes equipped with a 1x HDMI port, 1x DisplayPort and 1x DVI-D port; this implies it can provide three displays at once.
Additionally, it supports 8k Digital resolution, but in gaming, it offers optimum performance at 1080p. The power-supplying unit recommended by MSI to be used with GPU should have an output of 250 Watts at least.
OUR VERDICT
The MSI GTX 1050 Ti GAMING X 4GB is a decent graphics card that can easily handle your 1080p gaming and content-creating tasks. The plus point is that this graphics card typically runs cooler when doing graphics-intensive tasks like rendering because of its lower TDP and superb design. Remember, this graphics card does not bottleneck your CPU, making it a great pair.
Pros
- Powerful graphics card.
- Low power consumption.
- Easy to install.
Cons
- Not suitable for 4K gaming.
- No support for ray tracing.
MSI RX 580 ARMOR 8G OC
The MSI RX 580 ARMOR 8GB OC was released in 2nd quarter of 2017, but this graphics card still provides great performance to date.
This graphics card comes with 8GB GDDR5 VRAM with a memory bus and band width of 256 Bits and 256 GB/s, respectively. Further, it features 2000MHz memory boost clock speed with an 8Gb/s effective frequency.
It has 2304 CUDA core units having 1257MHz and 1340MHz being the base and boost clock correspondingly. Due to its high CUDA core units, this graphics card is able to perform rendering and other related content creating tasks easily.
Furthermore, this graphics card has 5 output ports mentioned below:
- 1x DVI-D
- 2x HDMI 2.0b
- 2x DisplayPort 1.4a
Due to the presence of 5 output ports, it can support 5 displays simultaneously. It also features CrossFire and 2-Way Multi-GPU technologies.
Further, it has a TDP of 185 watts and may get hotter during heavy workloads. This graphics card requires a 1x 8-pin power adapter to fulfill the power requirements.
Design wise, This graphics card has a slim design with 2 fans and dual slot width. It has dimensions and weight of 269 x 125 x 38 mm & 653g, respectively.
OUR VERDICT
The MSI RX 580 ARMOR 8G OC is a powerful graphics card that provides good money value. When paired with i5 3470, the rig provided us 60-80 FPS on ultra presets in modern AAA games such as Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, Shadow Of The Tomb Raider, Farcry 5, etc. Also, this card’s higher CUDA core units allow you to perform your content-creating tasks easily. Discussing the bottleneck, the i5 3470 bottlenecks this card with a percentage of roundabout 40% in heavy games.
Pros
- Powerful graphics card.
- Good value for money.
- Best for 1080p gaming.
- Overclocking potential.
Cons
- May consume more power.
- No support for ray tracing.
PowerColor AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT
Best PickThe PowerColor AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT is one of this blog’s most powerful graphics cards and provides great performance if paired with the i5 3470. This modern technology was released in 2022 and is based on AMD’s RDNA 2.0 architecture. It is currently labeled with a price tag of 169 USD on Amazon.
This graphics card features the latest gen 4GB GDDR6 VRAM and 1024 CUDA core units. Further, its clock configurations are mentioned below:
- Base Clock: 2310 MHz
- Game Clock: 2610 MHz
- Boost Clock: 2815 MHz
- Memory Clock: 2248 MHz (18 Gbps effective)
The PowerColor AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT features 1x HDMI port and 1x DisplayPort; hence, it might not be a suitable choice for people who need more than 2 displays at a time.
It has a TDP of 107 watts and requires a 1x 6-pin power connector. This card might get hotter under heavy workloads due to its single fan. Its 90mm single fan has 2 ball bearings and has a long lifetime.
Moreover, this graphics card has a very compact ITX design and is specifically made for users who like simple and small GPUs. This graphics card can fit in any PC chassis easily.
OUR VERDICT
PowerColor is an underrated and not-so-known vendor, but it provides top-notch products. The PowerColor AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT is a very powerful graphics card from our point of view. In this price range, it provides intense performance in games at 1080p and impressive performance at 1440p and 4k.
Pairing this graphics card with the Intel i5 3470 will be a win-win situation for you as this GPU will take your CPU’s performance to its extent.
Pros
- Suitable for 1440p and 4K gaming.
- Best Performance in this price range.
- Ray tracing support.
- Good cooling system.
Cons
- Limited availability.
- May consume more power.
MSI GTX 1650 Ventus XS OC
Staff PickThe MSI GTX 1650 Ventus XS OC is a budget-friendly graphics card that would be the best pair for your i5 3470, as this graphics card would not bottleneck your CPU even a bit.
It was released in the 2nd quarter of 2021 and is available on Amazon at 30% sale. It is a 128-Bits graphics card with 4GB GDDR5 memory. Further, its VRAM has an effective speed of 8Gb/s. This card features 896 CUDA core units with a boost core clock of 1740MHz.
Moreover, It comes equipped with 3 output ports: HDMI port, DisplayPort, and DL-DVI port. The HDMI port supports a maximum 4k resolution at 60Hz. Also, you can enjoy 3 displays simultaneously with this graphics card. It also features G-Sync technology.
Talking about the power consumption, this GPU has a TDP of 75 watts, and if you pair it with the i5 3470, then it is recommended to use a PSU of at least 300 watts to be on the safe side. Further, this graphics card does not require any power connector, which is a plus point.
Discussing its looks, this card has a beautiful modern design and weighs 443 grams. The body of this graphics card has a dimension of 177 x 111 x 38 mm and can fit your computer chassis easily.
OUR VERDICT
The MSI GTX 1650 Ventus XS OC is an advanced graphics card offering impressive performance in all tasks. Pairing it with the i5 3470 would provide negligible bottleneck and great performance in all GPU-intensive games and applications.
Pros
- Good value for money.
- Low power consumption.
- Suitable for 1080p gaming.
Cons
- Limited overclocking potential.
- Limited availability.
Gigabyte GeForce GT 1030 2GB
Budget PickThe Gigabyte GeForce GT 1030 2GB is a low-profile graphics card released in May 2017. It is an entry-level auto-overclocked graphics card built for budget-conscious purchasers. During its launch, its MSRP was $125, but the price keeps fluctuating.
This pocket-friendly graphics card is integrated with 2GB GDDR5 memory with a bus width of 64 Bits. It has 384 CUDA cores which will assist in resolving the graphics in rendering and gaming to the end user.
This card comes with 2 configurations, one is OC mode, and the other one is Gaming mode.
In OC mode, the GPU has a base and boost clock of 1290 and 1544 MHz, respectively, while in the Gaming mode, it has a base & boosts clock of 1265 and 1518 MHz, respectively.
Furthermore, it has 1x HDMI 2.0b port and 1x DVI-D port. One of the most amazing features of this GPU at this price point is that its HDMI port features 4K@60 Hz resolution, which means you can enjoy smooth 4K video playbacks.
Additionally, it is small and will easily fit smaller PC chassis. This graphics card also features one-click overclocking via AORUS Graphics Engine.
OUR VERDICT
Although it is an old card, it still provides the best performance in this budget. Pairing this graphics card with the Intel i5 3470 will give you the best computing experience on a low budget.
This graphics card provides good FPS and smooth gameplay in AAA titles and esports games on 1080p low presets. Users would be able to perform their daily tasks easily. Its support for 4k resolution allows users to experience crystal clear display at 60Hz.
We recommend buying this graphics card if you want the best performance on a low budget.
Pros
- Easily Affordable.
- Low Power Consumption.
- Low Profile & Silent Operations.
Cons
- Limited Performance.
- Limited VRAM.
- Limited Connectivity due to less ports.
Summary For The Best GPU For Core I5 3470
| Design | Buying Guides | Retailer |
|---|---|---|
| Check Price | |
| Check Price | |
Best Pick | Check Price | |
Staff Pick | Check Price | |
Budget Pick | Check Price |
Conclusion
We hope you have read the blog thoroughly and can now choose the graphics card that best suits your daily needs and your Intel Core i5 3470 processor.
In Summary, if you are a budget-conscious user looking for an inexpensive graphics card that consumes little power and gives acceptable performance for your daily gaming and productive work, we recommend the Gigabyte GeForce GT 1030 2GB.
On the other hand, if spending is not an issue for you and you want a rig that can perform all your hectic and intensive tasks with ease, we would recommend you to grab the PowerColor AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT as this graphics card provides top-notch performance in every application, be it Blender or any latest AAA game.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which graphics card is best for i5 3rd gen?
Both the PowerColor AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT & MSI RX 580 ARMOR 8G OC are best for your i5 3470 due to their significantly appreciable similar performance.
Will i5 3470 bottlenecks GTX 1050 Ti?
There would be a negligible bottleneck. You would be able to enjoy games without any FPS loss as both the i5 3470 and the GTX 1050 Ti are a perfect combo for each other.
What RAM speed does i5 3470 support?
The i5 3470 supports maximum 32 Gigs of DDR3 RAM with a frequency of 1333/1600 MHz. And it has maximum 2 memory channels.
