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Our goal is to deliver the most accurate information and the most knowledgeable advice possible in order to help you make smarter buying decisions on tech gear and a wide array of products and services.Our editors thoroughly review and fact-check every article to ensure that our content meets the highest standards.
If we have made an error or published misleading information, we will correct or clarify the article.If you see inaccuracies in our content, please report the mistake via this form Close How to build a gaming PC for under $600 Even in today’s chaotic PC component market, it’s still possible to build a capable, fun rig for under $600 that will let you enjoy some of the biggest games on the planet.
Posted in Hardware 2.0 on December 23, 2021 $13 at Amazon
Gaming remains one of the biggest drivers of PC hardware, pushing forward everything from processor speeds to storage performance and, of course, graphics card technology.
This bleeding edge reputation makes many people think the price for entry is too high to even consider.Let’s debunk that.
Of course, gaming PCs can be extremely expensive.Graphics cards alone can cost around $1,000 MSRP on a normal basis.With the ongoing chip shortages, and the once-again-ascendant battle with crypto miners devastating supply chains, graphics cards are currently selling for twice their MSRP, or more, even on the used market.
With all of this in mind, it probably seems like an impossible task to build a gaming PC right now for anything like a reasonable price.Certain companies like NZXT are out there trying to make the path to building your own gaming PC a little more visible by creating customizable kits .
These are a great option for building your first gaming PC, or building one with your kids, thanks to simplified instructions, easy configuration options, and a guarantee that all of the components selected by the company will work well together.However, the prices for these kits start at $1,499, putting them out of the budget for many shoppers.ZDNet Recommends Read More
Luckily, it is possible to build a gaming PC for not only less than $1,000, but less than $600.All you need to do is select the right parts, prioritize your budget correctly, and shop around for the best deals.
Or, if that sounds like too much work, you can just read the rest of this guide.
That’s probably easier.You should do that…Expectations
It’s important to get some things straight going into this.First, gaming PCs are not like consoles when it comes to being compatible with every game.A PlayStation 5 game will, of course, run on every PlayStation 5 in the world.
The same is true for Switch games.Xbox games can be a little murkier with their various Series, but that’s a story for another day.
The important point here is that PC games all have a set of minimum system requirements that must be met in order for your PC to be able to handle the demands of delivering them.
Minimum system requirements, and the higher “recommended” system requirements that usually come along with them, are designed to ensure that the components of your system are adequate for the statistical needs of the game.Storage capacity requirements will tell you how much hard drive space is required, while memory requirements will tell you the RAM needed, and graphics or GPU requirements will let you know the supported graphics processing platforms.
The budget for this build, as well as the aforementioned impact of the dumpster fire that is the current GPU market, mean that we’ll be selecting a CPU with integrated graphics.This is a cost-effective, attainable option that will run many casual games, and even some of the most popular titles around.
The configuration I’ll be recommending can handily run Minecraft and League of Legends at respectable settings, and even Fortnite with some graphical settings turned down.
Thousands and thousands of retro, indie, 2D, and lighter-weight 3D games will also run perfectly on it.It will not, however, be able to run more demanding games like the latest Call of Duty or Battlefield well, nor will it handle high-end single player games like The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.
If you’re looking to play titles like those for less than $600, a console may be your best option.But, keep in mind, consoles are great at playing games and using streaming apps.They don’t, however, have anywhere near the same versatility a solid gaming PC will offer.
The PC system you game and watch streaming content on can also help you get work or homework done, store your important documents, use social media, communicate with family and friends, and do everything else your laptop, tablet, smartphone, and several other devices can do.It’s a worthwhile consideration when comparing the merits of spending your $600 on this build, or venturing out on the often months-long quest of trying to buy a modern gaming console.How did I choose the components?
I have built every desktop PC I, my family, and many of my friends of have owned since I was in high school.The depressingly long span of time has seen me build, rebuild, upgrade, sidegrade, and repair dozens and dozens of PCs.I’ve built everything from water-cooled systems costing over $3,000, to cobbled together media PCs that can play 4K video using leftover parts from older builds.Every step of that history was a learning experience that’s left me with a deep understanding of what it takes to put together the ideal PC for a given purpose…as well as some heavily banged up knuckles from digging around in PC cases.
Thankfully, technologies like M.2 connectors, modular power supplies, and improved PC case design make things much easier than they used to be.But, you still have to select the right components.For our build here, that meant choosing the most cost-effective options for each part and balancing how much of the budget is being eaten up by each part versus how much performance is being offered by it.
Each component represents the best combination of value and performance that was available within its product category at the time of writing.
Of course, the more adventurous among you are more than welcome to tweak some of our options here.
Relatively cost-effective upgrades are available in a few categories, while optional extras are also a good idea for some.In most cases, these alterations will push your budget beyond our $600 goal, but the choice of whether or not that’s worth it is up to you.At the end of our guide, we’ll also cover a few optional extras that we think might be worth considering for a few dollars more.Buying considerations
Pricing and availability change daily, and while I’ve made sure that everything is correct and available at the time of writing, that can change.This is also why I’ve included average prices for components, based on recent fluctuations.I’ve also not included deals or special offers, as they can skew things.
This complete build will provide you with a fully functional, complete PC.All monitors, peripherals, and software will need to be selected separately.
AMD Ryzen 5 3400G 4-Core 3.7 GHz (4.2 GHz Max Boost) AMD
This chip will serve as both the standard processing core of your system, and its graphics processor.Unlike systems that use a discrete GPU, you’ll be using integrated graphics to save money, and avoid the hassles of the GPU market we’ve already mentioned multiple times.
For this purpose, we’ve selected an entry in AMD’s popular Ryzen 5 line.The Ryzen line has been around a few years, and has been a darling of the PC builder community since day one.Almost the entire line represents a cost-effective alternative to competing models from Intel, while also achieving performance metrics that meet or exceed those competitors.
The AMD Ryzen 5 3400G offers solid processing specs, RX Vega 11 graphics, and unlocked cores that will let the more daring out there dabble with overlocking it to get the most performance from their system.
While we wouldn’t necessarily recommend pushing it too far past its stock speeds using the included fan, the packed-in cooler is more than adequate to handle the most demanding tasks at its factory settings..
