Best budget gaming PC 2024: great cheap builds

While we once recommended the Acer Predator Orion 3000 in this spot, the Acer Predator Orion 5000 essentially does everything it did, and more while remaining in the same price range. Where its predecessor had the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070, the 5000 has the more powerful Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Super. Meanwhile, the Intel Core i7-13700F has been replaced with the Intel Core i7 4700F, better equipping it to handle large, processing-intensive games (and other software).

On the outside, it’s a pretty stylish piece of hardware, with a nice glass panel and an illuminated Predator logo. We wish that it had incorporated dust filters into its design, as you’re going to need to use a bit of compressed air to take care of dust build up every now and then. Airflow isn’t ideal either – with the upper intake fan blowing straight into the edge of the graphics card, and the bottom intake fan blowing straight into the empty drive bay.

The design and airflow issues don’t make too much of a dent in our overall appreciation of this PC though. With support for Nvidia DLSS, this gaming PC can consistently hit 60fps at 1080p, and performs decently at even 1440p. DLSS also enables you to access ray-tracing effects in games that support it, though we did notice that it struggled when we used the Ultra RT mode while playing Cyberpunk at 1440p, so it might be best to stick to 1080p if you like to have raytracing on.

Admittedly, this is probably about the most expensive gaming PC that you could still describe as a budget PC. There are definitely more affordable options out there, but this is still fantastic value for money considering everything it has under the hood.

Read our full Acer Predator Orion 5000 review.

Admittedly, if you’re looking for a budget gaming PC, this is the most expensive choice on this list, so for some readers, the price alone will be a solid reason to choose another. Having said that, it is frequently the subject of special deals and discounts, so there’s a good chance you can avoid paying the somewhat inflated RRP. It’s also still a lot cheaper than some of the most powerful options on the market.

If you do decide to opt for a cheap, low-spec HP Omen 40L, we don’t think you’ll be disappointed. Not only does it have a fantastic, vaguely demonic shell, but the addition of two rings of RGB light give it that extra layer of flourish that could help it to look fantastic in your gaming space. We’re also happy to report that it’s just as good inside as out.

We tested the GT21-134 model, which includes both an eight-core AMD Ryzen 7 7700 CPU and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 Ti GPU under the hood. We found it to be a fantastic piece of hardware, capable of providing an incredibly smooth gaming experience at 1080p. Specifically, we had Cyberpunk 2077 running at 70fps, even with ray-tracing on. Speaking of which, the use of AI frame generation allows it to consistently hit those higher FPS rates. To save a little more money, you could probably go down to even the GT21-1304 model without a major drop in performance.

Unfortunately, the 8GB of VRAM on its graphics card may not be especially futureproofed, as a lot of recent games require more VRAM than that if you want to play them at their highest settings. This might not be a problem if you’re not immediately interested in playing next-gen hits, and to be honest, you can’t really expect more from a cheaper gaming PC like this anyway.

Read our full HP Omen 40L review.

Available off-the-shelf in four spec set-ups, I’ve opted for the most expensive option, featuring NVIDIA’s GeForce RTX 4060 graphics card, with ultra-efficient NVIDIA Ada Lovelace architecture, to give you AI-accelerated action all the way.

This comes with an Intel Core i5 processor featuring 10 Cores and 16 Threads, a base frequency of 1.80GHz, and a turbo frequency of up to 4.60GHz. If this is destined for your desktop, you’re going to be rewarded with blistering fast gameplay and image quality that blurs the line between graphics and real life.

On the memory side, you get 16GB, 1TB sorts out your storage, and no fewer than nine USB ports give a plethora of connections. Meanwhile, on the wireless front, Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.3 keep you constantly connected.

With understated aesthetics, especially in comparison with the Acer Predator Orion 3000, the unassuming Mica silver metal finish certainly helps it blend in better as a component of a larger home entertainment system, which will certainly hold an appeal with those who want the greatest gaming experience but none of the fuss. A remarkable machine that gives great gaming, to the Victus goes the spoils.

A pre-build gaming PC from a company that offers you almost infinite possibilities when it comes to spec. Pick a processor, get a GPU, select your storage, and make your choice on memory – all is possible. But for the sake of this piece, I’ve settled on the cheapest option, comprised of an AMD Ryzen 5 5600G 3.9GHz Hexa-Core CPU, an AMD Radeon RX Vega 7 integrated graphics, 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage.

What this gives you is a low-price machine that’s great for the more casual gamer. Okay, admittedly, the latest AAA games are not going to play ball particularly, but considering the price, that’s understandable. It is still capable of playing games at 1080p with little problem with this configuration.

Design-wise this is the basic black SET SPEAR Micro Tower, but even that looks slick with its RGB LEDs and logo plus tempered glass window, so it’s a reasonably premium look for not that many pennies.

But, as I’ve said, all components can be self-specified, so even the chassis comes with 18 different options at varying additional prices, making the world your option-oyster. However, keeping focus on the model here, an entry-level gaming PC with this spec and this price is nothing if not an absolute bargain.