NVIDIA Reportedly Prepares RTX 5090 Price Hike Amid Rising GDDR7 Costs

According to Chinese Board Channels, a reliable source for graphics card supply chain information, NVIDIA is reportedly preparing to increase the price of its GeForce RTX 5090 and RTX 5090D V2 GPUs. This will result in a $300 (about 2,000 RMB) increase for NVIDIA’s add-in card (AIC) partners, who purchase these GPUs from NVIDIA. The change follows a significant price increase in GDDR7 memory, which NVIDIA has been absorbing but now plans to pass on to its AIC partners. The high demand for memory has depleted the supply of GDDR7 across the supply chain, with everything available being consumed and lead times now extending for weeks.

Interestingly, NVIDIA provides its AIC partners with a “GPU kit,” which includes the GPU die itself, a GB202 in this case, and GDDR7 memory. This arrangement prevents AIC partners from having to source GDDR memory on their own, which would cause significant delays. Additionally, if memory makers sourced these modules themselves, they would have to make deals under unfavorable conditions, whereas NVIDIA can often secure a volume discount. However, due to the global shortage and insufficient memory chips, NVIDIA is forced to accept a higher GDDR7 price and pass it on to its AIC partners.

A likely scenario is that AIC partners will pass these costs on to consumers by increasing the listing price of the GeForce RTX 5090 and RTX 5090D V2, which will become apparent in the coming weeks or even days. For example, the price of the GeForce RTX 5090 listed on Western retailers like Newegg regularly exceeds $4,000. This situation results in the actual sales price being twice as high as the original MSRP, which is still listed at $1,999 on NVIDIA’s website. The only way to purchase these cards at MSRP is to wait for NVIDIA to refresh its Founders Edition stock on the NVIDIA Marketplace and secure an order that way. Otherwise, prices will be more than twice as expensive.