Resurrected RTX 3060 12GB price jumps 45% in the two months since it was revived — 2021-era GPU now costs nearly $500 across most retailers

Nvidia revived the RTX 3060 12GB last June in an attempt to assist gamers navigating the ongoing component shortage. However, the 12GB VRAM pool on this five-year-old GPU has seen its price skyrocket to nearly $500 worldwide, matching the cost of the newer RTX 5060. MSI's Ventus 2X OC variant, originally priced at $300, is now listed for $480 across two retailers, marking a 60% price increase in just two months.

Asus's Dual V2 OC variant, initially launched at $330, has also witnessed a 52% price hike, reaching $500. The cheapest RTX 3060 12GB currently available, the Gigabyte Windforce OC Rev 2.0, costs $460, a 35% increase from its $340 launch price. In Europe, the cheapest variant, the Asus Dual V2 OC, is priced at 386 EUR on Amazon Germany, equivalent to around $450, a price increase from $330 a month ago.

The RTX 5060, a newer generation GPU, can be purchased for about $450 from multiple vendors and offers better performance, efficiency, and features like DLSS multi-frame gen support. The only advantage the 3060 12GB holds is its 12GB VRAM capacity, which doesn't justify its current price. Additionally, better deals can often be found on the used market or through renewed offers from major retailers.

Despite its still-decent 1080p performance, the revived RTX 3060 12GB doesn't make sense as a purchase option, even considering its lower production costs for Nvidia due to its slower GDDR6 memory and older 8nm fabrication process. Even the RTX 5050, which can be bought for $300, outperforms the revived RTX 3060 12GB.