Best GPU Coolers: Aftermarket Cooling Solutions
So you have completed your PC build and have driven yourself into the world of intense gaming. You are having fun as you play offline campaign games or as you dwell into the more competitive MOBAs or FPS games. Suddenly your PC starts acting up, It turns out you have a GPU heating problem on your hands. All of a sudden your stock GPU cooling solution is not enough. All of the above might seem like it is from a bad dream or something, but in case this happens to you or you start seeing over-the-top temperatures for your GPU, we have your back covered with the best GPU cooler options.
There is a product in this world known as a GPU cooler. These essentially work like CPU coolers in how they cool down hardware to a workable temperature. GPU coolers come in various forms like Air Coolers, All in one (AIO) coolers, or blowers. Air coolers are similar to CPU air coolers in that they have their own heatsinks, pipes, and fans. Blowers act in a way to suck out the hot air and push it out; they are used in very basic situations and will work like the fans already on a GPU. AIO coolers are those which have liquid cooling and a radiator, these are top-of-the-line products to be used carefully and in more extreme cases.
This is a surprising topic and many of us won’t even need aftermarket GPU coolers. But if your GPU is overheating and you don’t want to spend too much on upgrading to a new GPU. You’re in luck because today we’ll be reviewing some of the best GPU cooler options you can buy right now.
Best GPU Cooler: Our Recommendations
| # | Preview | Product Name | Award | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | ARCTIC Accelero Xtreme IV Graphics Card Cooler | Best Overall GPU Coole | Check Price |
| 2 |  | NZXT Kraken G12 | Best AIO Mount for GPU Cooler | Check Price |
| 3 |  | ID-Cooling Frostflow 120 VGA | Best Compact GPU Cooler | Check Price |
| 4 |  | Raijintek Morpheus II VGA Cooler | Best Heavy GPU Cooler | Check Price |
| 5 |  | ARCTIC Accelero Twin Turbo III | Best Budget GPU Cooler | Check Price |
| # | 1 |
| Preview | |
| Product Name | ARCTIC Accelero Xtreme IV Graphics Card Cooler |
| Award | Best Overall GPU Coole |
| Details | Check Price |
| # | 2 |
| Preview | |
| Product Name | NZXT Kraken G12 |
| Award | Best AIO Mount for GPU Cooler |
| Details | Check Price |
| # | 3 |
| Preview | |
| Product Name | ID-Cooling Frostflow 120 VGA |
| Award | Best Compact GPU Cooler |
| Details | Check Price |
| # | 4 |
| Preview | |
| Product Name | Raijintek Morpheus II VGA Cooler |
| Award | Best Heavy GPU Cooler |
| Details | Check Price |
| # | 5 |
| Preview | |
| Product Name | ARCTIC Accelero Twin Turbo III |
| Award | Best Budget GPU Cooler |
| Details | Check Price |
Last Update on 2024-05-08 at 14:43 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Before we being, we’ll like to offer suitable alternatives to replacing your OEM GPU cooler with an aftermarket solution. try changing your thermal paste and see if that helps. Maybe try setting custom fan profiles. If you’re still dissatisfied, you may also want to try water cooling your GPU as some GPUs such as the RTX 3080 are compatible with custom water blocks should you believe it’s insufficient. Even if that’s not enough, then I don’t know what is. Liquid nitrogen? Today, we will make sure to help you get the Graphics Card overheating solution, aka GPU Cooler for you. Let’s begin our roundups, shall we?
1. ARCTIC Accelero Xtreme IV Graphics Card Cooler
Best Overall GPU Cooler
Dimensions: 288 x 104 x 54 mm | Compatibility: Nvidia GeForce, AMD Radeon | Noise Level: 23.5 – 25 dBA | Fan Size: 3 x 92 mm | Fan Speed: Up to 2000 rpm
Check PriceThe first product on our list is another cooling-related product from the Arctic. The company has made some of the most iconic cooling solutions in the PC industry over the past few years. Arctic’s thermal pastes are legendary. Rest is assured there are valid reasons for the Arctic Accelero Xtreme 4 to be on top of the pile of our best GPU Coolers. This is essentially an Air cooler which does wonder and comes in at an affordable price as well.
Helpful Roundup: Best Waterblocks for RTX 3080
The Arctic Accelero IV is one of the highest thermal performing GPU coolers in the marker. With the triple-fan cooling system, the Arctic Accelero IV makes sure your GPU is not over-heating. It keeps the heat level of the GPU in check irrespective of the stress you are putting on it. One of the key features that make this a truly groundbreaking product is its near-silent performance. With tri fan cooling one would think this would be rather noisy with the level of cooling it gives. However, this is one of the most silent coolers of this time.
The six-year warranty is a testament to the sturdiness and long life of the Accelero IV. For a product that is as modestly priced as it is the six-year warranty is also a massive plus. Many low-priced products tend to sacrifice on quality to keep the price low, that is not the case with the Arctic, as the six-year warranty shows.
The Arctic is a very trustworthy name in the cooler market. Their products have always been of the highest order and the Accelero IV is no exception to this. This is a high-performance air cooler that is recognized as one of the best overall GPU cooler options for GPUs of this time with its affordable price giving it the edge over other coolers that can match it in performance.
2. NZXT Kraken G12
Best AIO Mount for GPU Cooler
Pros
- Quite compatible
- High-end cooler when completed
- Mounting kit itself is cheap
Cons
- Requires Kraken X-Series AIO
- Expensive to complete
Dimensions: 201 x 113 x 32 mm | Compatibility: Nvidia GeForce, AMD Radeon | Noise Level: 23.5 – 25 dBA | Fan Size: 1x 92 mm | Fan Speed: Up to 1500 rpm
NZXT is one of the world’s most renowned PC part makers right now. They make some of the best and most high-end products out there. The PC casings of NZXT are some of the world’s finest and sought-after ones. NZXT has invested its powers towards the issues of cooling as well and they have some great products out there. Their RGB fans are some of the best and now we get their very popular NZXT Kraken G12, this is a liquid cooler with great aesthetics (which is to be expected).
The NZXT Kraken G12 is a mounting kit with a very low price tag. Turning it into an AIO liquid cooler is however expensive. You need to buy a separate AIO cooler from one of the many Kraken X series coolers. About 30 different coolers can be attached with the G12. This gives customers a wide array of options when choosing the AIO cooler you want to attach to your GPU.
NZXT Cases: Best Budget Cases Under $70
The biggest con by far is the high price that you need to complete your AIO GPU cooler when you buy the Kraken G12 mounting kit. As far as performance goes it will not be wrong to say that this is the best thermally performing GPU cooler out there. NZXT has lived up to its reputation and produced another high-level cooler though the premium price may make people hesitant about the product. For the NZXT loyalist, this is the best AIO Mount for GPU Cooler.
3. ID-Cooling Frostflow 120 VGA
Best Compact GPU Cooler
Pros
- Sleek and simple looking design
- Wide support for CPUs and GPUs
- Reasonable cooling performance
Cons
- Not ideal for overclocking
- Availibility issues
Dimensions: 154×120×27mm | Compatibility: RTX 20 Series, 10 series, AMD 5000 series | Noise Level: 25 dBA | Fan Size: 120mm | Fan Speed: 800-2000RPM
In the list where big names like NZXT and Arctic are mentioned, ID-Cooling’s name may not hold that much weight. You’re not alone if you think that you haven’t heard their name before. But you surely will remember their name after looking into the ID-Cooling Frostflow 120 VGA cooler for your GPU.
The ID-Cooling Frostflow 120 GPU coolers sport a rather minimalist and conventional look compared to some coolers. You’ll find no RGB flairs and effects here and these coolers come in an all-black color which gives it a very sleek look. Apart from the logo lighting up and red LED fan, there aren’t any other color effects on this cooler. We’ve come to appreciate RGB fans where they get them right but non-RGB have a special place in many people’s hearts. It also has support for just about all the major Intel and AMD chipsets so you’re well secured on that front as well.
Related Read: Air cooler vs Water Cooler Comparison
The fan is a 120mm one with varying speeds of 800 RPM to 2000 RPM. As for the performance, the ID-Cooling Frostflow 120 managed to perform relatively well and hold its ground. In normal modes of operation, the GPU and CPU temperatures remained at acceptable levels but they did get higher than they should have when overclocked. Increasing the speed of the fans didn’t do much to aid in that department either.
The ID-Cooling Frostflow 120 is the best compact GPU cooler that gives off a refreshing new taste. Even without the RGB, the design does not feel disappointing. It comes with a rather reasonable price so it is affordable as well. The performance and cooling capabilities could have been better but if you’re into overclocking, you shouldn’t be looking at budget GPU coolers anyway. A disadvantage of looking into a cooler by a rather unknown brand is that they tend to have availability issues at times, such is the case for the ID-Cooling Frostflow 120.
4. Raijintek Morpheus II VGA Cooler
Best Heavy GPU Cooler
Pros
- Extremely effective
- Inexpensive price
- Some area for customization
Cons
- Requires pro level understanding
- Very complicated installation
Dimensions: 254 × 98 × 44 mm | Compatibility: Any GPU | Noise Level: None, but needs fans | Fan Size: 2x 120mm | Fan Speed: Dependent on the installed fans
We never really thought that we would ever see a product like this one or include this on a list. The RaijintekMorpheous II VGA Cooler is one of the weirdest and unique products that we have ever seen for any category of hardware for pc gaming. This is a product that will require comprehensive tampering of your GPU, will probably run into some sort of warranty issues as well. We normally don’t recommend such products but the efficiency and success the product has seen are impressive.
So basically the RaijintekMorpheous II VGA Cooler is not a cooler as per se, this is a heatsink only. This product aims to be added to your GPU manually by altering it. Think of it as your new heatsink to replace the old one of your GPU. The heatsink is incredibly heavy, takes up quite a bit of space; this makes it extremely effective in its cooling. The heatsink is almost soundless as well. One issue that you will run into with this product is its difficulty to set it up. There is some uncertainty about what GPUs this card officially supports but from what we gather, most GPUs can use it.
Related Read: Best Airflow cases for your gaming PC
The RaijintekMorpheous II VGA Cooler is a product that will probably require you to hire outside help from a professional. You should not install this product on your own, even if you have decent knowledge about the workings of your GPU. The process itself is extremely hard to do, installation is quite complicated. The choice of fans to add to the heatsink rests completely with you though, this can be a huge bonus as now you can invest in the top-of-the-line Noctua NF-F12 fans to add. These are probably the best fans for PCs in the world right now. Add 2 of these fans on top of the heatsink to forge the perfect, most incredible GPU air cooler in the world. So, the choice of fans leaves an area for customization, as long as they are 120mm.
Overall, this would be the perfect product for those who like to be in charge of their GPU. People with good knowledge and access to professionals can go for this product. The overall costs won’t be as high and will leave some areas for choice. Therefore, we conclude the RaijintekMorpheous II VGA Cooler as the best heavy GPU cooler for PC gamers.
5. ARCTIC Accelero Twin Turbo III
Best Budget GPU Cooler
Pros
- Great price
- Effective and good cooling
- Relatively quiet
Cons
- Takes up quite a lot of space
- Vague installation instructions
Dimensions: 122 x 218 x 53 mm | Compatibility: Nvidia GeForce, AMD Radeon | Noise Level: 22.5-24.5 max | Fan Size: 2x 92mm | Fan Speed: 900-2000 RPM
We conclude the list with another product from the vastly accepted Arctic. The company continues to make top standard cooling solutions and at this point, it might even be surprising not seeing a list with more than 1 of their products. This is the perfect budget option; it is more than fairly priced for an Air cooler for GPUs.
Arctic Accelero Twin Turbo III is an air cooling solution for budget-oriented people. The product has its own heatsink, pipes, and fans, so basically has its own setup to work with. There were two fans on this one as compared to the three on the other product. Both the fans are 92 mm and can achieve a max speed of 2000 RPM each. The Twin Turbo III works relatively quietly at only 0.3 stone or a maximum of 24.5 dBA. You can achieve a maximum of 250 watts TDP cooling capacity which is very good considering the price of the product. The installation process is sort of tricky as not enough instructions were given, even on the product’s website, the process has been described very vaguely.
Related Read: Benefits of Underclocking your GPU
The Arctic Accelero Twin Turbo III has proven to be a very useful product and will do you just fine for most GPUs and their heating issues. The effectiveness of the product has taken not just us, but many other users by great surprise. The only real issue with the product is that this is one that takes up a lot of space and weighs a bit on the heavy side. The issues are similar to the ones found in the Accelero Xtreme IV. Since air coolers being bulky cannot be avoided, perhaps you were not looking for additional GPUs as with this the space on your motherboard is going to run out.
All in all, this is the perfect product to end the list with. This is a product for those who need cooling solutions but cannot afford some of the more top-end products. The Arctic Accelero Twin Turbo III is a great product, but for those who will not need the space it takes up. Hence we declare this cooler as the best budget GPU cooler on our roundup.
