How much does a Gaming PC cost

How much does a gaming PC cost? In this article we are going to analyze the approximate costs of a laptop, so that you can get an idea of ​​what you should expect depending on the use that you are going to have.

Thus, you will be able to save enough amount of money when it comes gaming PC cost. Let’s go there and get an idea!

How much does a Gaming PC Cost

Any computer, whether gaming or not, is made up of the following parts: Processor, RAM memory, motherboard, graphics card, hard drive / SSD, power supply, case and cooling.

Apart from that we would have all the peripherals, at least a monitor, keyboard and mouse. So let’s break down how much they cost individually, then break out the calculator and add them up.

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We are going to focus on a gaming computer, since for basic office use we can already anticipate how much a computer costs, and we could talk about between 200 and 600 Dollars, and if we accept second-hand PCs then we could only reach 100-150 Dollars.

As for gaming PCs, we will distinguish how much”mid-range” computer costs, enough to play comfortably today, focused on value of money, and a high-end or mid-high-end one, which does not have a cost. Crazy but that allows high resolution gaming, streaming, advanced video editing, etc.

1. Processor

The processor is the brain of the computer, and therefore it is one of those components that should not be skimped on. However, it is often oversized for gaming gear, leading to spending even $600 on a CPU quite unnecessarily.

If we look at how much a good processor costs for a gaming computer, we have to look at those with 6 cores and 12 threads and good performance. No more is needed. And we find prices that are between 200 and 250 USD, which would be our recommendation for the mid-range.

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In higher ranges, we can go for an 8-core processor whose cost would amount to between 300 and 450 USD.

2. RAM Memory

RAM is the “short-term memory” of the computer. Therefore, in order to use it normally and take advantage of its full potential, it must be of a reasonable capacity and as agile and fast as possible, but always seeking a balance in this regard.

RAM recommendation is very easy when we talk about DDR4 memories. It will be what we recommend for our mid-range configuration, and the recommended capacity is 16GB in a double kit (2×8, to take advantage of the dual channel) with a speed between 3000 and 3600MHz. The cost will be about 90 USD.

For the upper-mid-range configuration, we can recommend either DDR4 (AMD Ryzen 5000 or Intel option) or DDR5 (12th Gen Intel Core option), where we’ll talk about 32GB capacity. This will cost approximately $150 for DDR4 and $250 for DDR5.

3. Base plate

If the processor was the brain and the RAM the short-term memory, the motherboard would be a whole set of “vital organs” necessary for the operation of the computer.

One of the main parts of the board is the CPU’s VRM (voltage regulation module), which is responsible for providing the processor with all the power it needs to operate at the proper voltage, which must be particularly precise.

Therefore, we cannot look for the cheapest motherboard, but it is not necessary to go to the most expensive either. Since we previously proposed an Intel and an AMD option for both the mid and mid-high configuration, we have to look for 4 motherboards of sufficient quality.

For this we also select the chipset, which will be B550 (AMD) and B660 (Intel) for the medium option, and X570 (AMD) and Z670 (Intel) for the medium-high.

The cost of a good B550 board is $140, and for the B660 it is around the same. And in the case of the mid-high range configuration, an X570 will cost us about $180 and a Z670 about $220:

4. Graphic Card

The graphics card or GPU would be like the “eyes” of the PC, and depending on the combination of CPU and GPU that we have (in addition to the other pieces) we can have more or less FPS in games.

There are processors (among them the AMD Ryzen 5000 ending in G, and the Intel Core not ending in F or X) that include an integrated graphics card, so we don’t have to get a separate one, but its performance is pretty bad for gaming: We are always interested in a dedicated graph.

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Between mid-2020 and mid-2022, the price of graphics cards has been simply outrageous. This has led to exaggerating how much a computer costs.

Due to a situation of excess demand (popularity of crypto currency mining with GPUs) and lack of supply (serious problems in factories and transport), buying a GPU was an odyssey, with prices multiplying by 2, 3 or 4 the usual luckily, they are stabilizing at somewhat more reasonable price levels.

When it comes to cost, we are going to take as reference the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 ($400) and the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT ($430) for the mid-range configuration, and the RTX 3070 Ti ($610) for the mid-high range configuration

5. Hard drive / SSD

Let’s go now with the storage, where we will have the operating system and our games. Here the temptation is to save by buying a mechanical hard drive, where we will get 1TB of capacity for around $40 and 2TB for around $60.

But it’s a serious mistake, and we only recommend buying a solid state drive (SSD), which is considerably more expensive but incredibly faster. It will increase how much a computer costs as a whole and we will have less capacity, but today it is essential.

Well, our recommended SSD capacity will be 500GB for the mid-range and ~1TB for the high-end. This leads us to approximate prices of $60 and $100 respectively:

6. Power Supply

The power supply can be considered as the heart of the computer, as it is responsible for providing all the energy necessary for its operation. If we do not buy a quality source, we will put our entire computer in danger.

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Therefore, for our mid-range option we are going to recommend a basic Bronze source of up to $70, and for the mid-high range we will go up to $110, in order to guarantee that it will perfectly withstand any graphics card that we put on it, while in the mid-range we will focus more on savings:

7. Cash Register

The box is an important component, but it really is a point where we can look for the maximum possible savings.

We should not go too far either, but we can talk about between 50 and 70 USD for the box in the case of the mid-range equipment, and in the mid-high range we can go further with approximately 90 USD.

8. Refrigeration

Let’s continue with the cooling of the processor. This could contribute no less than 0 USD to how much a computer costs, for the simple reason that many CPUs come with a heatsink as standard in their box.

However, we are going to consider this option by buying a separate heatsink, and it will be assuming a cost of 30 USD for the mid-range equipment and 80 for the medium-high one.

In the case of the most sophisticated PC, it is necessary to invest more in cooling equipment, especially with the Intel CPU that we have proposed, due to the higher consumption and over clocking capabilities.

9. Peripherals

And what about peripherals? The main ones are our keyboard, mouse and monitor. Since we are talking about gaming equipment, we will also analyze gaming peripherals.

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If we go to the keyboard, we can find cheap mechanical options for about $30, and for the mid-high range we will go to $60. Also, as for the mouse, we can also talk about similar prices for the basic and the mid-high range.

Finally, for the monitor we will recommend 24” 1080p 144Hz for mid-range gaming ($200) and 27” 1440p 144Hz for mid-high ($300)

Conclusion

With all this selection of components, we would be ready to calculate how much a mid-range and mid-high-range gaming computer costs. Let’s summarize what we have concluded:

• Processor: Between 200 and 250 Dollars for the mid-range, and between 300 and 450 Dollars for the high-end.
• RAM memory: 90 Dollars for the mid-range and between 150 and 250 Dollars for the high-end.
• Motherboard: 140 Dollars for the mid-range and between 180 and 220 Dollars for the high-end.
• Graphics card: Between 400 and 430 Dollars for the mid-range, and 610 Dollars for the high-end.
• SSD: 60 Dollars for the mid-range, 100 Dollars for the high-end.
• Box: Between 50 and 70 Dollars for the mid-range, and 90 Dollars for the high-end.
• Refrigeration: 30 Dollars for the mid-range, and 80 Dollars for the high-end.

And, within the peripherals:

• Keyboard: 30 Dollars for the mid-range, 60 Dollars for the high-end.
• Mouse: 30 Dollars for the mid-range, 60 Dollars for the high-end.
• Monitor: 200 Dollars for the mid-range, 300 Dollars for the high-end.

If we add all this, we have the following results:

• Mid-range equipment: Between $1,040 and $1,140. With peripherals, between $1,300 and $1,400.
• Medium-high range equipment: Between $1,620 and $1,910. With peripherals, between $2,040 and $2,330.

As we can see, to assemble an acceptable mid-range team it is not necessary to spend a lot of money. Especially if the context of the coming months improves even more, allowing a reduction in the price of the most expensive components such as the processor, the motherboard and the graphics card.

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Our objective in this guide has been to provide you with the best possible help in terms of how to know how much each part of your computer costs if you want something balanced and decent, both in the mid-range and in the mid-high range.

We hope that this way you will not make mistakes, such as putting a $30 source on an expensive computer, or a $300 motherboard on a cheap computer. Don’t fall short, don’t go overboard.