You don’t have to spend a huge amount on a PC that can play Fortnite or PUBG. In fact, you can even play new games on a budget. Here are your options if you’re looking for the best gaming PC under $500. Can you actually get a good gaming PC for $500? Yes, but it depends on your definition of what a good gaming PC is.
If you want to play the latest Call of Duty game at its optimal graphics settings, then no, $500 probably isn’t enough. But if you’re okay with reducing the graphics settings, or optimizing Windows 10 for gaming, it’s possible. For new games like Fortnite and PUBG, or older games, these $500 gaming PCs will let you play with ease.
The Best AMD Ryzen and Radeon Gaming Desktop
HP Pavilion Gaming 690
Gaming Computer Desktop PC AMD FX-4300 3.80GHz Quad Core, 8GB DDR3 RAM, 1TB, GTX 750 TI GPU, CD/DVD Drive, Windows 10 PRO
Gaming Computer Desktop PC AMD FX-4300 3.80GHz Quad Core, 8GB DDR3 RAM, 1TB, GTX 750 TI GPU, CD/DVD Drive, Windows 10 PRO
Buy Now At Amazon $499.99
- Processor: 3.5 GHz Quad-Core AMD Ryzen 3 2200G
- Memory: 8GB DDR4 (2666 MHz)
- GPU: AMD Radeon RX550 with 4GB DDR5 Memory
- Storage: 1TB HDD
- Optical Drive: 8x DVD Writer
- OS: Windows 10
- Notable Features: Keyboard and mouse included. Good-looking case.
The HP Pavilion Gaming 690 should be the first choice for most people who need a gaming desktop PC at this price. It comes with the popular AMD Ryzen 3 series processor and AMD’s own Radeon RX550 graphics card.
This PC doesn’t boast a particularly impressive list of hardware, but at this price, it’s the best you will find online. Surprisingly, HP’s configuration is even better than some of the lesser-known brands like CyberpowerPC, Skytech, or Panther.
What You Can Expect: Most older games (like GTA V, Battlefield 1) will run well at Medium graphics settings. Fortnite and PUBG will also run fine. However, this system won’t smoothly run newer games like Shadow of the Tomb Raider and Assassin’s Creed Odyssey.
The Best Cheap Lenovo Gaming Desktop
Lenovo IdeaCentre 720
Lenovo Ideacentre 720 18L Desktop (AMD Ryzen 5-1400, 8GB DDR4, 1TB HDD, Windows 10 Home), 90H10005US
Lenovo Ideacentre 720 18L Desktop (AMD Ryzen 5-1400, 8GB DDR4, 1TB HDD, Windows 10 Home), 90H10005US
Buy Now At Amazon $460.00
- Processor: 3.2 GHz Quad-Core AMD Ryzen 5 1400
- Memory: 8GB DDR4 (2666 MHz)
- GPU: AMD Radeon R5 340
- Storage: 1TB HDD
- Optical Drive: 8x DVD Writer
- OS: Windows 10
- Notable Features: The most powerful processor among gaming PCs in this budget range. Keyboard and mouse included.
The Lenovo IdeaCentre 720 has a Ryzen 5 series processor that comes with hyper-threading technology for better gaming. Hyper-threading basically creates virtual cores, so the four-core CPU can act like an eight-core CPU, which boosts performance for things like playing games.
Overall, the performance of this Lenovo unit for games will not be as good as the HP Pavilion 690. But it will be faster for other things like multitasking, browsing the web, and so on.
Please note that the model listed here does not have the Radeon R560 graphics card that many think it comes with. It has the inferior Radeon R5 340 card.
What You Can Expect: Most customer reviews say you can run PUBG, Fortnite, and Overwatch at 720p on Low or Medium graphics settings. However, this system won’t smoothly run new games like Shadow of the Tomb Raider and Assassin’s Creed Odyssey.
The Best Cheap Gaming Desktop With Intel Graphics
Acer Aspire TC-780-ACKI5
Acer Aspire Desktop, 7th Gen Intel Core i5-7400, 12GB DDR4, 2TB HDD, Windows 10 Home, TC-780-ACKI5
Acer Aspire Desktop, 7th Gen Intel Core i5-7400, 12GB DDR4, 2TB HDD, Windows 10 Home, TC-780-ACKI5
Buy Now At Amazon $469.99
Over the last few years, Intel’s onboard graphics have become much better, and can actually handle some basic games without needing a dedicated DPU. The Acer Aspire TC-780-ACKI5 has a good combination of a processor and extra RAM to show what’s possible with this.
It has a 7th-generation Intel Core i5 processor, which gives you hyper-threading for additional virtual cores. Acer has also included extra RAM, boosting it to 12GB instead of the standard 8GB you usually get at this budget.
What You Can Expect: The Acer Aspire can run Fortnite and PUBG at 720p on Low graphics settings. However, this system won’t smoothly run new games like Shadow of the Tomb Raider and Assassin’s Creed Odyssey.
The Best Cheap Gaming Desktop With a Screen
Lenovo IdeaCentre 610s
2018 Newest Lenovo Ideacentre 610s Mini Desktop PC with Detachable Wireless Projector Intel Core i5-6400T Quad-Core 2.2GHz 8GB DDR4 1TB HDD NVIDIA GeForce GT 750 WiFi HDMI Bluetooth, Windows 10
2018 Newest Lenovo Ideacentre 610s Mini Desktop PC with Detachable Wireless Projector Intel Core i5-6400T Quad-Core 2.2GHz 8GB DDR4 1TB HDD NVIDIA GeForce GT 750 WiFi HDMI Bluetooth, Windows 10
Buy Now At Amazon $499.00
- Processor: 2.2 GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i5-6400T
- Memory: 8GB DDR4 (2133 MHz)
- GPU: Nvidia GeForce GT 750
- Storage: 1TB HDD
- Optical Drive: Not Available
- OS: Windows 10
- Notable Features: A free mini projector that fits on top of the case.
Every time we talk about a gaming desktop PC, we don’t include the monitor or the screen. That’s because the best gaming monitors are a different topic altogether. But you can’t really use your PC without a screen, can you? You can either go for a cheap monitor within your budget or try an option like the Lenovo IdeaCentre 610s, which comes with a free projector.
It’s not a great projector and you should only think of it as a stop-gap arrangement until you buy a good monitor. It only projects HD resolution (1280×720 pixels) and has a maximum brightness of 220 lumens. But hey, until you buy a monitor, at least you’ll have a screen.
Even with its dated hardware, the IdeaCentre 610s packs a punch. The Core i5-6400 is still a good processor. The Nvidia GTX 750 is old, but you can’t be too choosy at this price.
Buy this model only if your $500 budget also includes a screen. It’s not even among the best mini PCs, but it serves a specific need for light gaming with a screen at this budget.
What You Can Expect: This PC is only for playing old games. Fortnite and PUBG will run on Low graphics settings. If you’re playing for a long time, the IdeaCentre 610s heats up and you will see the game stutter and lag, so you’ll need to stop playing for a while so that the computer can cool down.
Bonus: Consider Building Your Own Cheap Gaming PC
Intel 8th Gen Core i3-8100 Processor
Intel 8th Gen Core i3-8100 Processor
Buy Now At Amazon $117.00
- Processor: 3.6GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i3-8100
- Memory: 8GB DDR4 (2800 MHz)
- GPU: EVGA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti with 4GB Dedicated Memory
- Storage: 1TB HDD
- Optical Drive: Not Available
- OS: Not Available
- Notable Features: The best setup you can get at this price, but without Windows.
Assuming you already have a Windows 10 license, all you need now is to build a good gaming PC in your budget. So we put together a shopping list for you.
The two important components for a gaming build are the processor and the graphics card. We’ve gone with the Intel Core i3 8100 since we don’t need integrated graphics here. Intel has edged ahead of AMD here in the Coffee Lake vs. Ryzen battle.
For the GPU, there was only one option that makes sense today: the GTX 1050 Ti, which will provide decent performance for most games.
We’ve put together a full list of parts on PC Part Picker, so you can easily order the components and build your own PC from scratch.
What You Can Expect: All games will run on this, but newer games like Shadow of the Tomb Raider and Assassin’s Creed Odyssey will have to be at Medium settings. Older or less-intensive games like Fortnite and Counter-Strike will be smooth.
Note: The Cost of Windows 10
Something to consider when building your own gaming PC is the cost of Windows 10. It’s the operating system that supports the widest variety of games, but it will cost you.
No matter which way you get a legal and cheap Windows license, you will have to pay about $80 minimum.
This is why it can actually work out cheaper to get a pre-assembled PC. Microsoft gives mass Windows license deals to companies, which cuts their costs. The end result is that your self-build might actually cost more than a pre-built model from HP or Lenovo.
In other words, when it comes to budget builds, it’s not always cheaper to build your own PC.
There Are Also Games Consoles…
As you can see from the list above if you’re looking to play PC games on the cheap you have a few choices. But the gaming performance you’ll get on a gaming PC costing under $500 is nowhere near what the current-generation consoles can offer.
For $250, you can get a PlayStation 4 Slim or Xbox One S. And both of those consoles offer a better gaming experience than any of the computers in this guide. Unless you specifically want to play games with a keyboard and mouse, consider buying a dedicated games console instead.
Read the full article: The 4 Best Gaming PCs Under $500