Looking for a superior PC on a budget? You’ve come to the right place. Check out 10 of the very best cheap gaming PCs you buy in 2021.
We all know that gaming PCs can get pretty pricey. All that RAM, fancy SSDs and GPUs don’t come cheap. Or do they? In fact, there is quite a selection of cheap gaming PCs out there. They can be hard to find, so we’ve assembled the best of the best for you.
So if you’re looking for maximum bang-for-buck from your PC so you can splurge on other peripherals, or need a match-ready laptop to bust out while you’re on the move, you’re in luck. Read on for a list of premium PCs without the premium price tag.
HP Pavilion Gaming Desktop
HP is one of the mainstays in the PC world, so it’s little wonder that they should emerge on a list like this. And while they’re better known in the office, their gaming desktops are no slouches.
The Pavilion range is an extensive one, so you do have a little wiggle room to max out the specs, depending on your budget. With an AMD Ryzen octo-core CPU in a PC that’s just over grand, that’s plenty of processing power for your dollar.
Skytech Archangel 3.0
Here’s a budget gaming machine that wouldn’t look out of place in any professional gaming arena. With a ‘Snow’ Thermaltake case with RGB trims, it certainly looks the part. It only gets better when you look inside though.
With an AMD Ryzen hexa-core CPU, 8 GB of DDR4 RAM and a 500GB SSD, this thing is stacked. Pleasantly, it won’t cost an arm and a leg for this beast of a gaming PC.
Acer Nitro 50
This one is for all the intel fans out there. Utilising an i7-10700 CPU, the Nitro 50 is worth a look while hunting for cheap gaming PCs. If you prefer a little more storage, you definitely get it with this model.
With a 1TB SSD, plus an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 GPU, your games will run smooth and look amazing. If you’re looking to step up your game, while keeping the budget under control, it would be hard to go past the Nitro.
Razer Blade 15
We couldn’t zoom through this list without acknowledging the presence of laptops and with the Blade 15, Razer has knocked it out of the park. Gaming on the go has never been so fun and we have this stealthy machine to thank.
A brand spankin’ new 10th-generation Intel i7 hexa-core CPU is on board, and the 15.6-inch display will look crisp, powered by the NVIDIA GeForce 1660 Ti GPU. If you need to take your gaming everywhere you go, this is the machine for you.
ABS Challenger
Looking to dip your toes into the PC gaming world for the first time? You could do a lot worse than going for the no-nonsense Challenger from ABS. No, it doesn’t have some of the pro-level specs that some of the others on this list do, but it’s still nothing to sneeze at.
Its price, however, makes it a winner. If you’re looking for that versatile PC that can happily tick most boxes, while still allowing you to make the rent, this is a real ‘Challenger’ for the crown of best cheap gaming PCs.
MSI MPG Trident
MSI is one of the most trusted names in PCs and peripherals. With MPG Trident, they’ve built a solid, but aesthetically PC that’s worthy of the name. Aside from its impressive performance, it boasts an unlikely advantage.
Coming in a case that has a capacity of just 4.72 litres, it’s an extremely portable unit. So small, in fact, that you can take it to your next tournament in your backpack without breaking a sweat. Genius.
Lenovo Legion Tower
The PC giant, Lenovo, has emerged as a major presence in gaming in recent years. With the Legion Tower, they bring the company’s considerable expertise to the budget gaming arena.
Coming with highly flexible configurations, you can max it out with some tournament-grade specs. But if you’re pinching those pennies, never fear, even with lower-spec configurations, you’re going to get a serious gaming PC.
Dell G5 Gaming Desktop
Dell is ubiquitous in the PC realm, across desktops and laptops for just about any purpose. And even if you are on a budget, the company’s G5 desktop is definitely one for the gaming purists.
Though it looks intimidating, the G5 is surprisingly compact. But with configurable specs — up to 10th-generation i9 Intel CPU and 64GB of memory — this budget-friendly beast can be souped-up to meet the demands of the most processor-hungry games out there.
Asus Mini PC PN50
A few entries back, we showed you the MSI MPG Trident, a console-sized PC that you can take anywhere. But if that’s too much bulk for your backpack, let’s take a closer look at the Asus Mini PC PN50.
This pint-sized PC would happily fit underneath your monitor and is roughly the size of an external desktop hard drive. But does that mean it compromises on performance? Nope! With an AMD Ryzen 5 CPU and ample connectivity, it can go toe-to-toe with most models on this list.
HP Omen 25L Gaming Desktop
For our lucky last PC, we bring you perhaps the most customisable powerhouse on this list: the Omen 25L from HP. Starting at a very competitive price, you can jack up the specs to your heart’s content.
With a massive selection of processors, graphics cards, and memory configurations, you can keep your budget in check, then invest more later on. It sets a new standard for flexibility.
