The best gaming PCs are at the best prices of the year, thanks to Black Friday. This tends to be the best time of the year to go shopping for PCs, and it's when we see the best value throughout the year. We've been testing and monitoring prebuilt gaming PCs for years, and we're very excited to see what kind of power you can get for less cash in the next month or so.
Whether you're looking for the latest and greatest Alienware gaming PC, or you're a seasoned pro looking for something to modify as you go, we'd just recommend that you think about futureproofing if you invest a large sum in a gaming PC. There are loads of viable GPUs and CPUs out there just now, and there's never been so many options for DDR5-compatible parts. More than that, PCIe Gen 5 SSDs are emerging, and while you might not need their lighting-quick speeds just yet, it might be worth thinking about compatibility if you don't want to buy again further down the line.
Just keep in mind that the latest graphics cards still aren't the cheapest to buy separately, so getting them in a prebuilt gaming PC can actually be surprisingly good value. Of course, there is the option to assemble newer components and build your own gaming PC from scratch. While there are definitely benefits to doing this, we'd recommend a prebuilt rig for folks who don't have the time and know-how to build. If you're looking for your first rig, a prebuild can definitely save you a lot of bother.
With Black Friday gaming PC deals already arriving, there are loads of ways to get the options we recommend below for less cash. Even if you're looking for an idea of specs-per-pound, you can always take note of what our recommendations below do well, and look to our deals coverage for the build that's right for you.
The Quick List
Best overall
The Maingear Zero Ruby is the best gaming PC we've tested because it manages to blend powerful specs, price, and a great customer experience.
Best budget
iBUYPOWER's Slate range is affordable for the specs you get inside them, but they're even easier to recommend since they're frequently discounted.
Best mid-range
The HP Omen 25L is a great way to get into PC gaming. It's a slightly smaller ATX build that houses affordable but strong components. It doesn't look bad either!
The best small form factor
The Origin Chronos V3 is a new-gen behemoth stuffed inside a mini-ITX case. If you want a gaming PC with a smaller footprint, this is what you should choose.
Best Alienware
The Alienware Aurora R16 is the best machine from Alienware that we've tested. It takes a more conventional path than the brand's usual PCs, which is a nice change.
Best 13th Gen
The refreshed Acer Predator Orion 7000 for 2023 is the beefiest gaming PC we've had our hands on. It isn't without flaws, but it's a total powerhouse in 4K.
Best handheld
Asus' debut handheld PC is a portable powerhouse that trumps the Steam Deck, but it's pretty pricey. If you want something to take with you, this is our recommendation.
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I've been interested in gaming PCs since around 2019, and since I arrived here at GamesRadar+ as hardware editor, I've become the team's resident computer nerd. I won't lie, I found it tricky getting into this subset of technology because everything uses confusing naming conventions and it all costs way too much money. That's why I try to make my recommendations and explanations as easy to understand as possible, and my mission statement is to find you the best value for money in an expensive world.
Recent updates
Friday, November 15: We're gotten this page all spruced up for Black Friday, giving you the latest and greatest PC recommendations we can for this year's biggest sale. Most notably in this update, we've replaced the Alienware Aurora R15 for its newer R16 model.
The best gaming PC overall
- Our favorite configuration:
Prebuilt gaming PCs don't often appeal to veteran players, and that's mainly because they make upgrading difficult, and because they traditionally used to come with loads of bloatware and pre-installed nonsense. Maingear has been around for a while now, and it bucks those grating trends of the PC world. The Maingear Zero range is a collection of beautifully assembled configurations that are worth every penny of their asking prices thanks to great cooling, solid customer service, and a lot of gaming power.
✅ You want a great all-rounder. This isn't the most powerful PC we've tested, but it's still our favorite when you take specs, price, and the overall experience of buying a PC into account.
✅ You want a great configuration. The parts this PC is powered by are perfectly balanced for great gaming performance across all the resolutions.
✅ You want something quiet. Maingear is known for its liquid cooling, which stays quiet even when the PC is working overtime.
❌ You want the most power available. If you want the be-all end-all of 4K gaming, check out rigs with an RTX 4080 Super or RTX 4090.
❌ You are on a budget. Maingear does charge a fair amount for its PCs, but that might not fit for all budgets
❌ You want a smaller PC. The chassis for this PC is beautiful, but it's not the smallest.
Design & Features: The "Zero" in this PC's name comes from its motherboard, which was one of the first to features motherboard connecting pins on the back instead of the front. The result is an incredibly clean build that shows very view cables protruding where pristine components should be. There's a wide range of Zero PCs on offer from Maingear, but the version we tested, the Ruby, takes some beefy mid-range specs and prices them pretty affordably. The RTX 4070 Super powers things here, with a Ryzen 7 7800X3D thrown in for good measure. The liquid cooling is a standout and something this brand is known for.
Performance: If you want the absolute last word in 4K power, you'll probably be better off climbing up the price scale in the Zero range, but the 4070 Super is capable of great things at 1440p and 4K, so much so that I was able to play all of our benchmarking games at the highest resolution, achieving at least 60fps after playing around with a few settings.
In content creation, this PC also proved its worth, with the X3D cache tech from AMD proving very efficient in video editing. I also loved that Maingear didn't try to cut corners like a lot of PC brands by throwing in a less-than-ideal SSD in order to cut costs. The T-Force drive in this machine was as good as any of the top gen 4 drives I've benchmarked, and that's a real show of quality from this brand's builders.
Finally, the lack of any bloat or preinstalled nonsense was such a delight. This is a near perfect-prebuilt PC that will last you well into the future.
The best budget gaming PC
- Our favorite configuration:
iBUYPOWER is a name you'll come across quickly if you start shopping for a gaming PC in the US. This is a brand that makes itself widely available at a slew of retailers and offers genuine value for money. Its PCs are well-built, and priced fairly, but its frequent supply of discounts is what makes us keen to tell you about them.
✅ You want something discounted. No matter the occasion, you can almost always find discounts on iBUYPOWER's gaming PCs. If you're looking for a deal, this is the brand for you.
✅ You want something easy to use. Despite some packaging woes with our review unit, and the fact we had to install the GPU ourselves, this was an easy PC to set up and use, with minimal bloatware out of the box.
✅ You want good parts for your money. Despite being discounted often, the iBUYPOWER Slate range has up-to-date parts in it.
❌ You want liquid cooling. For an air-cooled gaming PC, this stays surprisingly quiet, but if you want something truly stylish that keeps the noise down, look elsewhere.
❌ You hate RGB. One look at this rig in the images above will show you how much RGB there is in this rig. If you aren't a fan, this isn't the PC for you.
❌ You want a quick SSD. The SSDs used in these PCs are disappointingly slow, so if you want snappy loading times, look at upgrading or look for another gaming PC.
Design & Features: The iBUYPOWER Slate 8MP 003 we tested is just one model from a wider range, but it comes with an RTX 4060 Ti GPU and a 14th Gen Intel Core i7 processor. With that combination, you've got plenty of road to run on regardless of the resolution you like to play at. 4K results won't be spectacular, but they'll be playable, and boostable with DLSS.
The case you get in the most recent Slate models is part mesh, and part transparent paneling, and this helps with airflow. There's no liquid cooling for your money here, but the case and homemade CPU cooler do a good job of keeping the motherboard's components calm under pressure. If you like RGB, there's loads to enjoy with the design of this case, which also supplies a healthy amount of connectivity for USB devices. Upgrading parts will be easy thanks to a toolless design that provides easy access to the PC's innards.
Performance: I was pleasantly surprised by the consistent power the 14700F and 4060 Ti gave me when testing this PC. The Slate managed to score 60fps in all but one of our benchmarking games when playing in 4K with maxed-out settings. Of course, when you turn ray tracing on, these scores start to dip, but this configuration laughs in the face of anyone who says the 4060 Ti graphics card is for 1080p only.
The one major disappointment of this PC is the slow sequential speeds of its SSD, which failed to match the PS5's minimal speed requirements. Luckily, there's an additional M.2 port on the motherboard if you feel the need to upgrade.
The best mid-range gaming PC
- Our favorite configuration:
The HP Omen 25L has been a staple of the prebuilt gaming PC market for a few years now, and in a recent reshuffle of HP Omen's PC range, it's had a glow-up. It's the smallest (and thus most affordable rig in the Omen family, and although it can now be found with some serious mid-range components, you can often find it lower down the price bracket with very affordable parts inside.
✅ You want an entry-level option. Although these builds can go up to an RTX 4070 Ti, we see it much more often in the lower-end category for reasonable prices.
✅ You want something from a big brand. HP Omen is a popular, and well-respected brand in the prebuilt PC world, so you're going to have good opportunities for repairs and warranties if you need to make use of them.
✅ You want to be able to upgrade later. An 800W PSU means you have so much room for growth through the years should you want to upgrade your PC's parts later on.
❌ You want good temperature control. Sometimes this rig comes with a liquid cooler, sometimes it doesn't. Either way, temperature control could be better.
❌ You want visible front fans. There is some really nice lighting with this chassis, but it doesn't have that traditional look about it other gaming PCs have.
❌ You're aiming for the highest components. Only going up to an RTX 4070 Ti and i7 processor means you won't hit the heights of 4K gaming you might want to.
Design & Features: the "25L" part of this computer's name is derived from its 25L chassis, which, as you can imagine, is slightly smaller than the now disappearing 30L, and the new 35L. We tested the 30L version of the HP Omen a while back, and although it backed some serious power, its biggest downside was that its case wasn't the best at handling temperatures.
Perhaps the best thing about the Omen chassis is its versatile lighting, which seems very classy and plain in product render imagery, but is capable of lighting up your gaming space with a lot of colour.
An 800W PSU means you have plenty of room to upgrade this machine later on, if you go for a more affordable, entry-level configuration. You'll of course get access to Wi-Fi and Windows 11. In terms of connectivity, the motherboard will give you allowance for 4x USB 2.0 devices, and 2x USB-C connections of varying speeds. You'll get a further 2x SuperSpeed USB-A ports on the top of the case as well.
Performance: With up to an RTX 4070 Ti, there's a lot of possibility for 1440p performance here. Most frequently, however, we see the 25L sporting an Nvidia RTX 4060 GPU, which is geared at 1080p predominantly, but will be capable of 1440p prowess thanks to its DLSS wizardry. When testing that GPU in other machines, we've often found it can produce triple digit frame rates at 1080p, and even near that in some games in 1440p.
When we tested the older 30L version of this machine, we were very impressed with its potential, despite its slight temperature mismanagement and somewhat messy innards. Either way, if you're on a budget, this is a PC you'll often benefit from considering.
The best small form factor gaming PC
- Our favorite configuration:
The Origin Chronos V3 is undeniably expensive, but it packs an RTX 4080 and Intel Core i9 CPU into a console-sized case. That means it's perfect for keeping in your living room or karting off to LAN events, and its dinky design doesn't compromise gaming PC performance.
✅ You'd like an actual desktop PC. ITX gaming PCs are very inventive, and they allow you to actually keep a gaming PC on top of your desk, which is uncommon in today's market.
✅ You'd like 4K power. Although this PC is customizable, you can squeeze an RTX 4080 inside it, which means an awful lot of punch for a smaller fighter.
✅ Stylish RGB lighting appeals to you. This is a mesh case with no transparent panels, but the RGB fans still shine through, and look quite stylish, if we may say so.
❌ You'd like to show off inner components. No transparent panels can mean less to show off
❌ You're on a budget. Origin makes some excellent PCs, but they don't come cheap. Make sure you're on top of your savings for this one.
❌ You want a conventional case. ITX builds have their quirks, and if small strays from the conventional PC path scare you, you might be better off elsewhere.
Design & Features: The downside to the Chronos V3 is naturally related to its size, as there's not much room inside that Corsair 2000D case. That might be an issue down the line when you decide to upgrade, especially if graphics cards grow larger than they currently are right now. However, it'll probably be a while before you have to swap out the premium components in this PC, as it's also rocking up to 64GB DDR5 RAM and pretty of storage.
You don't have to opt for the build featured in our review, as you can customize your own Chronos V3 rig to suit your specific needs. Just keep in mind that if you are looking for a budget build, there are cheaper options than this out there with roomier cases.
Performance: We put the Chronos V3 through our usual PC benchmark tests, and found that it can rip through demanding games at 4K with max settings enabled. Better still, it can pull off extraordinary frame rates thanks to Nvidia DLSS 3, and we even managed to achieve well over 100fps in Cyberpunk 2077 with everything cranked up high (although we didn't go anywhere near Psycho mode).
The best Alienware gaming PC
- Our favourite configuration:
Alienware Aurora gaming PCs usually look a bit more out-of-this-world than its latest Aurora R16. With its most recent chassis design, the brand has scaled back the weirdness in lieu of a smaller, more recognizable gaming PC. Be warned, Alienware has never been the best brand to pick if you have plans to upgrade your gaming PC later on, and the continuance of its proprietary motherboard and cooling here will continue to put walls up around the configuration you buy. Still, no brand does it quite like Alienware.
✅ You want powerful, modern gaming specs: The Aurora R16 is the latest gaming PC design from the brand, which means you'll be able to choose up to 14th gen Intel parts.
✅ You want an RTX 4090 in a gaming PC: It's not all that common to see the absolute top-dog GPU in prebuilt machines, but Alienware allows you to go all-in.
✅ You have budget to play with: Alienware rigs don't come cheap, so be prepared to pay more than you would for other builds on this page.
❌ You have upgrading ambitions: Alienware's proprietary choices make it difficult to futureproof this PC. If you're happy to buy another machine when the time comes, feel free to jump in here.
❌ You're trying to keep costs down: Again, this brand will often charge more money than others. You do get good deals throughout the year, but if you're scraping pennies together, you can get more for your money elsewhere.
Design & Features: Gone is the positively alien chassis design of the Aurora R12-R15s - this is a much more conventional case to house a modern gaming PC, but it still has that distinct character that Alienware's gear is known for. There are lovely lighting points, clever fan systems that resemble Dyson's handwriting, and solid connectivity. If you're upgrading from a previous Alienware PC, you'll be glad to know this cuts the size of the machine down without losing the potential for beefy parts like the RTX 4090, and it runs so much quieter.
The Alienware Command Centre will help you adjust metrics, which can be useful if you want to play around in settings to get the perfect performance for your needs. This app is what you can use to control the RGB lighting as well, which is a welcome aesthetic option.
Performance: The configuration of the R16 we tested came with an RTX 4090 and a 13th gen Intel Core i9 processor, so as you can imagine, it trounced our benchmarking tests at 4K. Despite the quieter performance, the AIO cooler managed to keep the infamously hot-running Raptor Lake flagship processor down below 90°C.
You can see from the benchmarking scores below how capable a gaming PC this rig can be when you really splash out for the best parts. Phil, our reviewer was testing Esporty monitors with refresh rates in the 500Hz range while testing this PC, and managed to achieve some ridiculous 1080p performance.
Alienware isn't the brand we'd recommend to everyone these days for the value prospect alone, but the R16's more conventional design could point to a brighter direction for the brand which opens up its compatibility and upgrading prospects in the years to come.
