PC Tiers A Certified Mike Project

Updated: November 11th, 2024

Computer Builds That Make Sense

Gaming PC Builds

Tier 1 - Budget Entry Graphics: 1080p, Mid-High ~$600 CPU AMD RYZEN 5 5500 6 Core Ryzen 4th Gen (Zen 3) 6 cores 12 Threads 4.2 GHz Boost 65w TDP AM4 $84 GPU Arc A580 8GB ASRock Challenger OC Arc A580 8GB Alchemist 384 EUs 175w TDP AV1 Encode $165 MOBO AM4 B550 Micro ATX MSI PRO B550M-VC WIFI AM4 B550 Micro ATX WiFi 6E + Bluetooth 5.2 $116 RAM 32GB DDR4 3600 TEAM GROUP VULCAN Z 32GB 3600 DDR4 2x8GB 3600 MHz CL18 $49 SSD 1TB NVMe SSD Silicon Power UD90 1TB M.2 2280 NVMe PCI-E 4.0 $53 PSU 650 Watt Power Supply EVGA 650BP 650 Watts ATX 80+ Bronze $55 COOLER Air Cooler - Basic AMD WRAITH STEALTH Included in CPU Box $0 CASE ATX Mid Tower FRACTAL DESIGN POP AIR ATX Fans Included $80 Intel Arc I chose to put the Intel Arc A580 due to it's value and the drivers now being pretty good. However you can expect it to still perform poorly than it should in SOME titles like Stardfield and GTA V. Most games should run just fine and it should prove to be better value than Radeon and especially Nvidia here.

Notes

I'd recommend this setup for those looking for decent PC gaming on a tight budget or those looking to get into PC Gaming. Graphics wise, you should be able to play any game at 1080p high, or even 1440p medium in most games. However in Next Gen games like Starfield or any Unreal Engine 5 game, expect to play on 1080p Low/Medium settings.

 View Build Tier 2 - Performance Entry Graphics: 1440p - Mid, 1080p - High ~$857 CPU AMD RYZEN 5 8500G 6 Core Ryzen 5th Gen (Zen 4) 6 cores 12 Threads 5 GHz Boost 65w TDP AM5 $150 GPU Radeon RX 7600 XT 8GB XFX Speedster SWFT 210 Core Radeon RX 7600 8GB RDNA 3 32 CUs 165w TDP $250 MOBO AM5 B650 ATX MSI PRO B650-S WIFI AM5 B650 ATX WiFi 6E + Bluetooth 5.3 $130 RAM 32GB DDR5 6000 G.SKILL FLARE X5 32GB 6000 DDR5 2x16GB 6000 MHz CL36 $80 SSD 2TB NVMe SSD Silicon Power US75 2TB M.2 2280 NVMe PCI-E 4.0 $100 PSU 650 Watt Power Supply MSI MAG A650BN 650 Watts ATX 80+ Bronze $68 COOLER Air Cooler - Basic AMD WRAITH STEALTH Included in CPU Box $0 CASE ATX Mid Tower FRACTAL DESIGN POP AIR ATX Fans Included $80

Notes

This would be the recommended build for the majority of people for PC Gaming on a budget. Graphics settings on this build are expected to be 1440p medium on any game. This also provides a platform with future CPU upgrades, and enough PSU wattage for future GPU upgrades. The CPU cooler may need to be upgraded for better CPUs later.

 View Build Tier 3 - Best Bang for your Buck Graphics: 1440 High/Ultra ~$1260 CPU AMD RYZEN 5 7600X 6 Core Ryzen 5th Gen (Zen 4) 6 cores 12 Threads 5.3 GHz Boost 105w TDP AM5 $212 GPU Radeon RX 7800 XT 16GB ASRock Challenger OC Radeon RX 7800 XT 16GB RDNA 3 60 CUs 250w TDP AV1 Encode $470 MOBO AM5 B650 ATX GIGABYTE B650 AORUS ELITE AX AM5 B650 ATX WiFi 6E + Bluetooth 5.2 $200 RAM 32GB DDR5 6000 G.SKILL FLARE X5 32GB 6000 DDR5 2x16GB 6000 MHz CL30 $97 SSD 2TB NVMe SSD Silicon Power US75 2TB M.2 2280 NVMe PCI-E 4.0 $100 PSU 650 Watt Power Supply Corsair CX650M (2021) 650 Watts ATX 80+ Bronze $80 COOLER Air Cooler - High Tier Thermalright Assassin Spirit 120 EVO DARK 250w Max TDP 1x120mm Fans $23 CASE ATX Mid Tower FRACTAL DESIGN POP AIR ATX Fans Included $80

Notes

This build is the best cost to performance value currently. Ray Tracing is usable at this level. 4K in many titles is possible. Future upgrades on GPU may require a 850w or higher PSU.

 View Build Tier 4 - High End Graphics: 4K, High ~$1630 CPU AMD RYZEN 7 9700X 8 Core Ryzen 6th Gen (Zen 5) 8 cores 16 Threads 5.5 GHz Boost 65w TDP AM5 $320 GPU Radeon RX 7900 XT 20GB XFX Speedster MERC 310 BE Radeon RX 7900 XT 20GB RDNA 3 84 CUs 315w TDP AV1 Encode $690 MOBO AM5 B650 ATX GIGABYTE B650 AORUS ELITE AX AM5 B650 ATX WiFi 6E + Bluetooth 5.2 $200 RAM 32GB DDR5 6000 G.SKILL Trident Z5 Neo 32GB 6000 DDR5 2x16GB 6000 MHz CL30 $107 SSD 2TB NVMe SSD Silicon Power US75 2TB M.2 2280 NVMe PCI-E 4.0 $100 PSU 750 Watt Power Supply MSI MAG A750GL PCIE5 750 Watts ATX 80+ Gold Modular ATX 3.0 - 12VHPWR $90 COOLER Air Cooler - High Tier Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 Black 275w Max TDP 2x120mm Fans $43 CASE ATX Mid Tower FRACTAL DESIGN POP AIR ATX Fans Included $80

Notes

This build is for those that want 4K gaming, but want to stay under $2000. Ray Tracing is usable at this level. You are only a bit off from a more top end system. You can swap in a RX 7900 XTX into this build and achieve top end performance.

 View Build Tier 5 - Top Tier Graphics: 4K, High, Ray Tracing ~$2560 CPU AMD RYZEN 7 9800X3D 8 Core Ryzen 6th Gen (Zen 5) 8 cores 16 Threads 5.2 GHz Boost 120w TDP 3D V-Cache AM5 $480 GPU Radeon RX 7900 XTX 24GB XFX Speedster MERC 310 Black Edition Radeon RX 7900 XTX 24GB RDNA 3 96 CUs 355w TDP AV1 Encode $900 MOBO AM5 X870 ATX GIGABYTE X870 AORUS ELITE WIFI7 AM5 B650 ATX WiFi 7 + Bluetooth 5.4 $290 RAM 32GB DDR5 6400 G.SKILL Trident Z5 Neo 32GB 6400 DDR5 2x16GB 6400 MHz CL30 $125 SSD 2TB NVMe SSD Corsair MP700 PRO 2TB M.2 2280 NVMe PCI-E 5.0 $280 PSU 1000 Watt Power Supply MSI A1000G PCIE5 1000 Watts ATX 80+ Gold Modular ATX 3.0 - 12VHPWR $142 COOLER Air Cooler - High Tier Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 Black 275w Max TDP 2x120mm Fans $43 CASE ATX Mid Tower FRACTAL DESIGN POP AIR ATX Fans Included $80

Notes

This is one of the best gaming experience you're going to get for your money. Expect to be able to play any game you'd like at 4K high settings and Ray Tracing where available. While the GEFORCE RTX 4090 is a faster GPU, the cost to performance difference doesn't make it a recommended buy until the last tier.

 View Build Tier 6 - I Hate Money Graphics: 4K, Max, Ray Tracing ~$4660 CPU AMD RYZEN 7 9800X3D 8 Core Ryzen 6th Gen (Zen 5) 8 cores 16 Threads 5.2 GHz Boost 120w TDP 3D V-Cache AM5 $480 GPU GeForce RTX 4090 24GB MSI SUPRIM LIQUID X GeForce RTX 4090 24GB Ada Lovelace 16384 CUDA Cores 450w TDP AV1 Encode 240mm AiO Water Cooler $2600 MOBO AM5 X870E ATX Gigabyte X870E AORUS ELITE WIFI7 AM5 X870E ATX WiFi 7 + Bluetooth 5.4 $320 RAM 48GB DDR5 6400 G.SKILL TRIDENT Z5 NEO 48GB 6400 DDR5 2x24GB 6400 MHz CL32 $175 SSD 2TB NVMe SSD Corsair MP700 PRO 2TB M.2 2280 NVMe PCI-E 5.0 $280 PSU 1300 Watt Power Supply MSI MEG Ai1300P PCIE5 1300 Watts ATX 80+ Platinum Modular ATX 3.0 - 12VHPWR $270 COOLER AiO Water Cooler - 360mm Corsair iCUE LINK H150i LCD 360mm Radiator $175 CASE ATX Mid Tower FRACTAL DESIGN NORTH ATX Fans Included Wood Accent $140

Notes

If you want the absolute best and you have no budget, this is it.

 View Build

Market Retail Prices for PC Parts

Gaming GPUs Sorted By Avg FPS @ 1440p - Recommended Highlighted Low Tier Arc A580 8GB vRAM $165 175w TDP Alchemist 384 EUs AV1 Encode + Decode Low Tier Radeon RX 6600 8GB vRAM $190 130w TDP RDNA 2 28 CUs AV1 Decode Low Tier GeForce RTX 3060 8GB/12GB vRAM $290 170w TDP Ampere 3584 CUDA Cores AV1 Decode Low Tier Arc A750 8GB vRAM $210 225w TDP Alchemist 448 EUs AV1 Encode + Decode Low Tier Radeon RX 6650 XT 8GB vRAM $230 176w TDP RDNA 2 32 CUs AV1 Decode Entry Tier Radeon RX 7600 8GB vRAM $260 165w TDP RDNA 3 32 CUs AV1 Encode + Decode Entry Tier GeForce RTX 4060 8GB vRAM $290 115w TDP Ada Lovelace 3072 CUDA Cores AV1 Encode + Decode Top Intel Arc A770 16GB vRAM $290 225w TDP Alchemist 512 EUs AV1 Encode + Decode Low Tier GeForce RTX 3060 Ti 8GB vRAM $345 200w TDP Ampere 4864 CUDA Cores AV1 Decode Entry Tier GeForce RTX 4060 Ti 8GB vRAM $380 160w TDP Ada Lovelace 4352 CUDA Cores AV1 Encode + Decode Entry Tier Radeon RX 6700 XT 12GB vRAM $310 230w TDP RDNA 2 40 CUs AV1 Decode Entry Tier GeForce RTX 3070 Ti 8GB vRAM $410 290w TDP Ampere 6144 CUDA Cores AV1 Decode Mid Tier Radeon RX 7700 XT 16GB vRAM $420 245w TDP RDNA 3 54 CUs AV1 Encode + Decode Mid Tier GeForce RTX 4070 12GB vRAM $530 200w TDP Ada Lovelace 5888 CUDA Cores AV1 Encode + Decode Mid Tier GeForce RTX 3080 10GB vRAM $760 320w TDP Ampere 8704 CUDA Cores AV1 Decode Mid Tier Radeon RX 6800 XT 16GB vRAM $500 300w TDP RDNA 2 72 CUs AV1 Decode Mid Tier Radeon RX 7800 XT 16GB vRAM $490 250w TDP RDNA 3 60 CUs AV1 Encode + Decode Mid Tier GeForce RTX 4070 Super 12GB vRAM $600 220w TDP Ada Lovelace 7168 CUDA Cores AV1 Encode + Decode High Tier Radeon RX 6950 XT 16GB vRAM $600 335w TDP RDNA 2 80 CUs AV1 Decode High Tier GeForce RTX 3090 24GB vRAM $1200 350w TDP Ampere 10496 CUDA Cores AV1 Decode High Tier GeForce RTX 4070 Ti 12GB vRAM $730 285w TDP Ada Lovelace 7680 CUDA Cores AV1 Encode + Decode High Tier GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super 16GB vRAM $800 285w TDP Ada Lovelace 8448 CUDA Cores AV1 Encode + Decode High Tier GeForce RTX 3090 Ti 24GB vRAM $1700 450w TDP Ampere 10752 CUDA Cores AV1 Decode High Tier Radeon RX 7900 XT 20GB vRAM $710 315w TDP RDNA 3 84 CUs AV1 Encode + Decode High Tier GeForce RTX 4080 16GB vRAM $1185 285w TDP Ada Lovelace 9728 CUDA Cores AV1 Encode + Decode High Tier GeForce RTX 4080 Super 16GB vRAM $1200 320w TDP Ada Lovelace 10240 CUDA Cores AV1 Encode + Decode Top AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX 24GB vRAM $920 355w TDP RDNA 3 96 CUs AV1 Encode + Decode Top NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 24GB vRAM $1900 450w TDP Ada Lovelace 16384 CUDA Cores AV1 Encode + Decode

Notes

These are only currently available new GPUs from retailers. This is only showing typical rasterization performance, not ray tracing performance. Per game performance varies. Some games perfer Radeon or GeForce.

 View GPUs What is Low, Mid, and High Tier Defined as here? While the model name typically indicates whether something is mid tier, for example an NVIDIA GEFORCE xx60 (1060, 2060, 3060, 4060) model card is typically mid tier, I classify a card based on it's actual relative performance in modern games. While a 3060 and 2060 Ti would have been mid tier before, they are now low tier. The new 4060 is so close in performance to a 3060 Ti, and considering it's using xx50 (1050, 2050, 3050) model tier specs, it is now considered a low tier card technically. AMD RADEON cards tend to have a model number skew in their tier performance. the x600 (5600, 6600, 7600) cards tend to be low tier always, and the mid tier doesn't start until the x700 (5700, 6700, 7700).

Do now that all GPUs on this list will play modern games well at at least 1080p high, so even if the card is labeled low tier, don't be fooled into thinking it is a bad card.

Disclaimers

Prices change EVERYDAY I have approximated or rounded prices here. Things could be cheaper or more expensive. Sometimes it's just the specific model part that is out of stock, or now more expensive, or a different manufacturer with the same specs is cheaper now. You should double check part prices if you can. I try to keep up to date on market prices but I'm not a machine. You can add more storage Most if not all boards have two M.2 NVMe slots, and the ability to add SATA drives. Most cases have support for at least two 2.5" SATA SSDs and/or two 3.5" HDDs. You are not obligated to follow these builds 100% You can swap in and out compatible parts, especially cases, which are as aesthetic preference you have to live with daily. These prices do not include Taxes and Shipping costs Those vary by location, by item, and by retailer. Windows license key prices are not included in these builds Some users may be using Linux or their own Windows key they already have.

Workstation Builds

Needs Updating These Workstation builds are very out of date. I need to update them. Tier 1 - Amateur $1240 CPU AMD RYZEN 7 7700X 8 Core Ryzen 5th Gen (Zen 4) 8 cores 16 Threads 5.4 GHz Boost 105w TDP AM5 $315 GPU GEFORCE RTX 3060 12GB MSI Ventus GeForce RTX 3060 12GB Ampere 3584 CUDA Cores 170w TDP $285 MOBO AM5 B650 MicroATX Gigabyte B650 AORUS ELITE AX AM5 B650 ATX WiFi 6E + Bluetooth 5.2 2.5Gb Ethernet $200 RAM 32GB DDR5 6000 G.Skill Flare X5 32GB 6000 DDR5 2x16GB 6000 MHz CL30 $97 SSD 2TB NVMe SSD TEAM GROUP T-Force Cardea A440 Pro 2TB M.2 2280 NVMe PCI-E 4.0 $93 PSU 750w Power Supply Corsair RM750e 750 Watts ATX 80+ Gold Modular $99 COOLER Air Cooler - High End Deepcool AK620 ZERO DARK 2 x 120mm Fans 2 x Heatsinks 260w Max TDP $71 CASE ATX Mid Tower FRACTAL DESIGN POP AIR ATX Fans Included $80

Notes

Good entry workstation for professional workloads like compiling, photo editing and graphic design, occasional video editing, occasional 3D rendering.

 Buy Prebuilt View Build Tier 2 - Prosumer $3350 CPU AMD RYZEN 9 7950X 16 Core Ryzen 5th Gen (Zen 4) 16 cores 32 Threads 5.7 GHz Boost 170w TDP AM5 $537 GPU GeForce RTX 4090 24GB GALAX SG OC GeForce RTX 4090 24GB Ada Lovelace 16384 CUDA Cores 450w TDP AV1 Encode $1610 MOBO AM5 B650 ATX Asus PROART B650 CREATOR AM5 B650 ATX 2.5Gb Ethernet $240 RAM 64GB DDR5 6000 G.SKILL TRIDENT Z5 NEO 64GB 6000 DDR5 2x32GB 6000 MHz CL30 $205 SSD 2TB NVMe SSD CRUCIAL T700 2TB M.2 2280 NVMe PCI-E 5.0 $300 PSU 1600w Power Supply SeaSonic PRIME PX 1600e 1600 Watts ATX 80+ Platinum Modular 12VHPWR $400 COOLER Air Cooler - High End Deepcool AK620 ZERO DARK 2 x 120mm Fans 2 x Heatsinks 260w Max TDP $70 CASE ATX Mid Tower FRACTAL DESIGN TORRENT EATX Fans Included $190

Notes

This is the best tier for price to performance for workstations, before you start getting into much more expensive Threadripper based systems. You can also game on this and use this for AI generation like Stable Diffusion.

 Buy Prebuilt View Build Tier 3 - Professional $9500 CPU AMD RYZEN THREADRIPPER PRO 5975WX 32 Core Ryzen 4th Gen (Zen 3) 32 cores 64 Threads 4.5 GHz Boost 280w TDP sWRX8 $2900 GPU 2 x NVIDIA RTX A5000 24GB 2 x PNY RTX A5000 24GB Ampere 8192 CUDA Cores 230w TDP $3400 MOBO sWRX8 EATX ASROCK WRX80 CREATOR R2.0 sWRX8 WRX80 EATX WiFi 6E + Bluetooth 5.2 2 x 10Gb Ethernet 2 x Thunderbolt 4 IPMI $900 RAM 256GB DDR4 3200 ECC 8 x MICRON 32GB DDR4 3200 Registered ECC DDR4 8x32GB 3200 MHz CL22 ECC $705 SSD 2 x 4TB NVMe SSD 2 x KINGSTON KC3000 4TB NVMe SSD M.2 2280 NVMe PCI-E 4.0 $732 PSU 1600w Power Supply SEASONIC PRIME TX 1600 1600 Watts ATX 80+ Titanium Modular $530 COOLER Air Cooler - High Tier NOCTUA NH-U14S TR4-SP3 $107 CASE ATX Mid Tower FRACTAL DESIGN TORRENT EATX Fans Included Solid Side Panel $207

Notes

This is where we get into a more crazy high end workstation performance and pricing. I chose 32-cores instead of 24 cores as newer 16-core Ryzens are hitting similar performance as these older Threadripper 24 cores can do in multi-threaded applications. You can also choose to do 3 or 4 of these workstation GPUs or get a better GPU in this setup. The PSU setup allows it and the motherboard has plenty of PCI-E slots. The RTX A5000 is not as powerful as the RTX 4090, but this is a workstation card with ECC memory and can easily be mixed with multiple GPUs. The precision and stability will be wanted for serious production work.

 Buy Prebuilt View Build Tier 4 - Godspeed $18,500 CPU AMD RYZEN THREADRIPPER PRO 5995WX 64 Core Ryzen 4th Gen (Zen 3) 64 cores 128 Threads 4.5 GHz Boost 280w TDP sWRX8 $5800 GPU 2 x NVIDIA RTX A6000 48GB 2 x PNY RTX A6000 48GB Ampere 10752 CUDA Cores 300w TDP $8900 MOBO sWRX8 EATX ASROCK WRX80 CREATOR R2.0 sWRX8 WRX80 EATX WiFi 6E + Bluetooth 5.2 2 x 10Gb Ethernet 2 x Thunderbolt 4 IPMI $900 RAM 512GB DDR4 3200 ECC 8 x MICRON 64GB DDR4 3200 Registered ECC DDR4 8x64GB 3200 MHz CL22 ECC $1305 SSD 2 x 4TB NVMe SSD 2 x KINGSTON KC3000 4TB NVMe SSD M.2 2280 NVMe PCI-E 4.0 $732 PSU 1600w Power Supply SEASONIC PRIME TX 1600 1600 Watts ATX 80+ Titanium Modular $530 COOLER Air Cooler - High Tier NOCTUA NH-U14S TR4-SP3 $107 CASE ATX Mid Tower FRACTAL DESIGN TORRENT EATX Fans Included Solid Side Panel $207

Notes

This is probably the best workstation build you can do for now until a nw generation of Threadripper comes along. You could technically do a dual socket EPYC setup, but it is much more complex to setup since it's not designed for workstation use.

 Buy Prebuilt View Build

Disclaimers

Prices change EVERYDAY I have approximated or rounded prices here. Things could be cheaper or more expensive. Stock availability varies. My Confidence in these Workstation Builds is not high Workstations and workstation needs are finnicky and vary a lot. It's not as simple as a Gaming PC to just notch things up a tier. Every workload is unique. That said, I believe these builds to be pretty decent in universal usages I can think of. Additionally, when it comes to serious work, you may want to consider just going with an OEM or professional builder that will provide support for your mission critical needs. NVIDIA GPUs were selected for their universal support This will depend on your applications and needs. Some applications may be better with RADEON PRO GPUs. Linux works a lot better with AMD RADEON GPUs these days. If you plan to use RADEON, do not get consumer RADEON GPUs, get the RADEON PRO W series GPUs. Threadrippers are hard to cool Threadrippers have a unique socket and size so compatible coolers that can also keep up with their heat generation are hard to come by. The NOCTUA coolers are for Threadrippers but they may not be able to fully keep up with a Threadripper 5000 series CPU under full load continously.

Monitors

These listings need to be updated I haven't updated monitors in a while, so options and pricing are out dated. GIGABYTE G24F 2 1080p - 24" $140 Resolution 1080p 1920 x 1080 Size 24" Flat Panel Refresh Rate 165Hz FreeSync Premium Panel IPS 125% sRGB - 95% DCI-P3 Connections 1x DP 1.2, 2x HDMI 2.0 USB and Audio View Monitor GIGABYTE G27Q 1440p - 27" $220 Resolution 1440p 2560 x 1440 Size 27" Flat Panel Refresh Rate 144Hz FreeSync Premium Panel IPS 120% sRGB - 92% DCI-P3 Connections 1x DP 1.2, 2x HDMI 2.0 USB and Audio View Monitor GIGABYTE M32UC 4K - 32" $560 Resolution 4K 3840 x 2160 Size 32" Curved Panel Refresh Rate 144Hz FreeSync Premium Pro Panel SS VA 123% sRGB - 93% DCI-P3 Connections 1x DP 1.4, 2x HDMI 2.1 USB-C, USB, and Audio View Monitor GIGABYTE G34WQC A-SA 2K - 34" - Ultrawide $370 Resolution 2K UltraWide 3440 x 1440 Size 34" Ultrawide Curved Panel Refresh Rate 144Hz FreeSync Premium Pro Panel SS VA 120% sRGB - 90% DCI-P3 Connections 2x DP 1.4, 2x HDMI 2.1 Audio Output View Monitor SAMSUNG ODYSSEY NEO G9 2K - 49" - Ultrawide $1350 Resolution 2K MegaWide 5120 x 1440 Size 49" Ultrawide Curved Panel Refresh Rate 240Hz FreeSync Premium Pro Panel Mini QLED VA 125% sRGB - 95% DCI-P3 - HDR2000 Connections 1x DP 1.4, 2x HDMI 2.1 USB and Audio Output View Monitor

Disclaimers

Prices change EVERYDAY I have approximated or rounded prices here. Things could be cheaper or more expensive. Stock availability varies. IPS is better than VA Some of these monitors are VA or SS VA. IPS is generally a superior panel type as it has less motion smearing, but these should be the best VA panels. If this concerns you, look for an IPS alternative. These monitors may not also be the top tier in their resolution. The selection here is the best VALUE for Performance in their category. There's sometimes better monitors, but more expensive.

About & FAQ

FAQ

Why was this made? People always ask me for recommendations for PC Builds. While PC Build recommendation sites like Logical Increments exist, I have never liked their recomendations and to this day I am still very confused on why their builds are trash. Their budgets don't make sense, their recommendations and layout are confusing for people. They won't even recommend more than 8GB until you're spending $1200. Absolute madness. How could I send friends there for them to piss away their money on garbage. They also have too many steps and each step has a ton of options. Death By Choice. I wanted something simpler to understand, that makes the most out of someone's budget and doesn't waste money on parts that don't matter as much. Are these builds bias? These builds are opinonated but still based on objectivity. I have a bias for AMD but where I recommend them, they are the price to performance king in that category anyway. I also have bias towards specific motherboard and GPU manufacturers (Gigabyte and ASRock for Motherboards for Ryzen for example) based on experiences with them as a long time PC builder and seller with 100 builds to date. Are you making money from this? Nope. There is no ads, no affiliate links, no referrals, no sponsorships. I do provide a link to prebuilt versions of these tiers on my BlueGem Shop where PC purchases have build fees for profit. PCPartPicker makes money on the affiliate buy links on the build links if you use those. Why is the minimum memory 16GB? Won't 8GB do? 8GB might suffice in low to mid tier gaming, but you won't have anything else open in the background. 8GB is not enough and I wouldn't damn anyone to suffer with it when 16GB is only a few bucks more. With so many electron apps these days, going over 16GB of memory usage is easy. Why are water coolers only on high end builds? Good water coolers are quite a bit more expensive than great air coolers. I use water coolers when I build and ship PCs to avoid damage in shipping. But if you're building your own PC iat home, this is not a concern. Water coolers are also a bit more complex to install so this helps less experienced people. If I get more expensive specs, will I be good for X years? Future proofing is not really a thing. New software technologies come out sometimes and older GPUs or CPUs can't support that tech, and they get left behind. New games become more demanding. Don't expect even the best gaming PC to play well in 10 years. The expected optimal performance lifespan of a Gaming PC can range from 4-7 years. I don't know if I can build this myself. Is there a guide? Here's a video from a trusted tech youtuber on how to build a PC: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5jFXl0GZJo Do you have builds for my currency or country? No, I'm just one man. That's too much for me to compile. But the specs should translate well just about anywhere. What US Retailers are used for these prices? I have my PcPartPicker set to show from these retailers: Newegg - Amazon - BestBuy - B&H.