Amazon now requires customers to be Prime members to purchase certain RTX 50-series GPUs. This new rule also includes AMD’s latest RX 9070 and RX 9070 XT GPUs.

The move aims to streamline the purchasing process for Prime members, amidst challenges faced by consumers trying to acquire the new graphics cards from both NVIDIA and AMD. Recently launched, the RTX 50 and RX 9000 series have proven difficult to find at their Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP).

Resellers have overwhelmed the market, using bots to quickly purchase stock and then reselling these GPUs at inflated prices. In response to these challenges, Amazon is implementing Prime-exclusive access to help customers find their desired graphics cards more easily.

If you are an Amazon Prime member, you may notice that some GPUs are available at MSRP or close to it, locked behind the Prime membership requirement. Interestingly, when searching for the ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 5070 while logged out of my account, it displayed as a Prime-exclusive item.

However, when logged in, there were no obvious indicators of its exclusive status. In contrast, Club386’s research revealed that the Sapphire Pulse version of the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT listed clear labels indicating its Prime membership requirement when logged in.

It is important to note that not all GPUs from these series require a Prime membership for purchase, nor does this restriction apply to prebuilt PCs containing these graphics cards. Nevertheless, the Prime-only requirement helps mitigate the impact of scalpers by limiting bulk purchases.

While Amazon has not announced how long this arrangement will last, it is conceivable that some GPUs will remain Prime-exclusive for an extended period. So far, the selection is limited, but this development could offer consumers more chances to secure these in-demand products.