Nvidia RTX 5080 and 5090 May Be in Extremely Short Supply at Launch

PC gamers may have a hard time getting their hands on Nvidia‘s 50 series of GPUs when they launch later this month, according to a new rumor. Top-of-the-line graphics cards are always in high demand, but the 5090 and company may be in particularly short supply in the weeks following their upcoming release dates. If the latest leaks are true, Nvidia fans will need to watch retailers closely for the chance to buy one once they become available.

Nvidia officially unveiled the RTX 50 series at CES 2025, less than a month before its release. As everyone who had read the rumors beforehand expected, the new line of GPUs offers some truly remarkable specs. The 5090, in particular, will set the new standard in PC performance, offering double the power of the RTX 4090 and achieving a mind-boggling 240FPS in 4K with full ray tracing. However, rumors suggest relatively few people may be able to enjoy the upgrade at launch.

A leaker who goes by Pockerclock posted the news on German forum PC Games Hardware, claiming stock of the RTX 50 series will be extremely limited (link is in German) at launch, especially for the 5090. Pockerclock, who says their information comes from “well-informed dealer circles,” says Nvidia will limit which stores get to sell the new GPU line on release day. While the post doesn’t specify any specific numbers, it implies that it may take a while for the cards to become widely available. It also mentions scalpers and resellers will likely get involved and post GPUs at a significant markup, which is unsurprising but unfortunate considering how the RTX 5090 has an eye-watering MSRP of $1,999 already.

Nvidia’s RTX 50 Series May Launch in Waves

The leak also suggests Nvidia will follow a tiered release schedule for the 50 series, with different retailers receiving shipments with each wave. It’s unclear what criteria a store has to meet to fall into an earlier tier, but Pockerclock claims Amazon likely won’t get any in stock until the second, third, or fourth wave, which will come several weeks after the first. Several RTX 50 series SKUs have already shown up on Newegg, but this doesn’t necessarily mean the site will get any at launch, as the product listings themselves don’t contain any specific date info.

As with all rumors, fans will have to wait and see if this leak holds true, although it wouldn’t be surprising. Nvidia’s GPUs have seen limited releases in the past, and a tiered launch is not unusual for high-demand products. Regardless of the specifics, nabbing a 5090 at launch will likely be difficult. It could be a good opportunity to get a 40 series GPU, though, as at least one gamer found an RTX 4070 at a steep discount ahead of the 50 series’ announcement.

• NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 Founders Edition
  

  NVIDIA’s top-of-the-line GPU, the GeForce RTX 4090 Founders Edition, contains 16,384 CUDA Cores. It can support up to 8K gaming and allows for actual, smooth ray-tracing gameplay. The Founders Edition card is also an excellent GPU variant in terms of cooling, VRMs, and value.

• ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4080 SUPER OC
  

  The ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4080 SUPER OC is an excellent aftermarket take on the RTX 4080 SUPER, offering a higher boost clock than the stock option even as it clocks in an additional $100 on MSRP. It offers excellent reliability, power delivery, and one of the best aftermarket coolers one can get for Nvidia’s higher-end RTX 4000 series GPUs.

• Gigabyte RTX 4080 SUPER Gaming OC
  

  The Gigabyte RTX 4080 SUPER Gaming OC is a powerful, budget-tier take on the RTX 4080 SUPER, costing only an additional $50 for decent value addition in tow.

  It also offers a small amount of controllable RGB in the shape of an illuminated logo and fan-lighting as well as more customizable power limits than some premium overclocked models as it aims to cater to consumers looking for the best value-added RTX 4080 SUPER in the market currently.