I am excited to show you guys how to make the best budget gaming PC build under $500. I also know how it is when you are on a tight budget so we will be looking into some cheap parts making sure to stay on target. If you are just into buying good pre-built gaming computers I will show you some of my top picks within our price point for that as well.

However, I highly recommend you build your own console killer PC because it is a blast! This machine is going to smash through high settings with great FPS and you are going to absolutely love it.

Either way we are going to have fun today because computer building and gaming are both awesome activities. I always love talking about computer hardware as well so follow along and learn how to build your own gaming PC 🙂

P.S. Keep in mind computer prices fluctuate. Check the links below to see prices.

Updated: 4/2/2020

Gaming PC Under $500 – Best Budget AMD Ryzen Build

Case – Cooler Master MCB-Q300L-KANN-S00 MasterBox Matx Tower

CPU / Processor – AMD Ryzen 5 2600 6-Core, 12-Threads

Motherboard – ASRock B450M-HDV R4.0 AM4 AMD Promontory B450 SATA 6Gb/s Micro ATX AMD Motherboard

RAM – Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 DRAM 2666MHz C16

Graphics Card – XFX RX 570 4GB GDDR5 RS XXX Edition

Solid State Drive – Kingston 480GB A400 Sata3 2.5″ Internal SSD

Power Supply – EVGA 600 BR, 80+ Bronze 600W, 3 Year Warranty, 100- BR-0600-K1

Total Cost: $450-$550

Current Price: $546.28

Optionally tighten up build cost with these less expensive parts:

Solid State Drive: ADATA SU635 240GB 3D-NAND SATA 2.5 Inch Internal SSD

Power Supply: EVGA 500 W1, 80+ WHITE 500W

PC Case: Click here to see different options

Build Explanation

The above AMD Ryzen build is my top pick right now for the $500 budget range. It is based on min / maxing every single piece of hardware to completely optimize the machine for gaming specifically. Sure it will be awesome for other functions but gaming is our #1 priority here. A couple other builds to check out if you have the budget would be my $600 gaming PC and $700 gaming PC options.

The heart of the build is a powerful XFX RX 570 4GB GDDR5 card that is pretty much the best right now for its price point. Paired with it is an AMD Ryzen 5 2600. It is an inexpensive chip that runs cool and is overclockable with factory cooling.

The Ryzen 5 2600 is actually very powerful for the money and as you may know a graphics card is WAY more important to a GAMING build then the CPU. We want one that holds great bang for buck value.

Another important thing to note, as we mentioned above is that you may overlock this CPU and gain a lot of performance per core with the Ryzen 5 2600 certainly does. If you leave it at factory settings you will have less maintenance and worry. It also has a great upgrade path in that down the road you can throw in a more beefy Ryzen 5 or 7. In short its a stinkin’ awesome chip for ~120 bucks.

This build allows us to include most everything you would want for the price point. However if you want to shave off a few pennies see our recommended alternative parts.

I feel at this point most people will install their OS off a USB drive and download everything else. If you are really hardcore about sticking to the $500 budget just go with the smaller case and no optical drive. WE NEED THE POWER!!! 🙂

Updated: 4/2/2020

Best Intel Budget Gaming PC Build Under $500

Case – Cooler Master MCB-Q300L-KANN-S00 MasterBox Matx Tower

CPU / Processor – Intel Core i3-8100 Desktop Processor 4 Cores

Motherboard – MSI ProSeries Intel Coffee Lake H310 LGA 1151 DDR4 D-Sub DVI HDMI Onboard Graphics Micro ATX Motherboard (H310M PRO-VDH Plus)

RAM – HyperX Fury 16GB 2666MHz DDR4 CL16 DIMM Black

Graphics Card – XFX RX 570 4GB GDDR5 RS XXX Edition

Solid State Drive – Kingston 480GB A400 Sata3 2.5″ Internal SSD

Power Supply – EVGA 600 BR, 80+ Bronze 600W, 3 Year Warranty, 100- BR-0600-K1

Total Cost: $450-$550 Current Price: $537.14

Build Explanation

This Intel build features the XFX RX 570 4GB GDDR5 once again but this time with an Intel i3 8100 Quad-Core processor. Other then the motherboard and CPU it is virtually identical to our first both build and concept. We save money for the best graphics card possible while still building an awesome overall gaming rig.

As I said earlier in the article you may want to squeeze a little bit more power out of this chip by overlocking. It is fairly overclockable with the stock cooler. However, you shouldn’t push it very far without upgrading the cooler.

To sum this one up: This is still a great build out of the gate for playing PC games. Build this one if you are #1 an Intel fan and #2 looking for a more set it and leave it experience.

Computer Case

When I am looking into a case for a gaming computer at this price range I am just looking for something that looks decent, is functional and compatible with the rest of our parts. As with everything else it must be inexpensive to fit the running theme. I know everyone’s taste in style is different so feel free to pick out whatever case you wish or use the one I recommend. No wrong answers here.

What Processor to Use?

I decide next whether I am using an AMD or Intel processor for the system and usually for a tighter budget AMD has great bang for buck options. Because of this AMD is what I will typically use up until that higher price bracket comes into play. Lately Intel has been doing pretty awesome in the budget CPU scene as well hence the build option above.

The Rest of the Machine

For the rest of the parts we are looking mainly for great performance and compatibility at a reasonable price. I like to get the most memory/storage per dollar. As far as the power supply goes you really don’t want to completely skimp here because PSU’s are known to die from time to time and as you know there is no gaming if there is nothing to power your gaming machine. It needs to be of high enough quality and watts for the other parts we are using.

Graphics Card – Most Important Piece Of Hardware

LASTLY we save the lions share of the budget to spend on our graphics card. Since our focus here is on a gaming rig we need to make sure we have a capable graphics processor behind it. After all we won’t be only using this for TikTok, Instagram and Facebook.

Don’t get me wrong ALL of the other parts inside the PC are important too.

It is just that trying to save money on this portion of the build is not the place to look for it. You can really bottle neck your gaming performance. I recommend spending roughly 20-25% on the GPU alone out of our $500 allowance.

Additional Items of Interest

Operating System – Microsoft Windows 10 Home 64 Bit

WiFi – Wireless USB Adapter

Storage Drive – Seagate BarraCuda 4TB Internal Hard Drive

Optical Drive – Asus 24x DVD-RW Serial-ATA OEM DRW-24B1ST

Monitor – Acer G226HQL Bbd 21.5-inch Full HD (1920 x 1080) Widescreen Display

Keyboard & Mouse Combo – Redragon S101 VAJRA USB Gaming Keyboard + Mouse

Headset – Sentey Gs-4730 Gaming Headset

Speakers – Creative A250 2.1 Multimedia Speaker System

Extras Explanation Extravaganza

Above are some completely awesome yet inexpensive computer peripherals. These would make great options for you if you don’t have all the equipment needed for gaming.

Your monitor size will be up to your preference but typically the larger you go the more expensive. You really just want a decent 1080p monitor with a good response time.

A gaming keyboard and mouse are usually of higher performance and precision then standard counterparts.

Headsets, or speakers with a mic, is needed when playing online multiplayer games. It is also good for social reasons whether you use it to talk to team mates or online dating (hey I don’t know you!) 🙂 haha.

This site has a lot of gaming gear reviews so even if you are looking into a mid range monitor, keyboard, mouse, headset or speakers you will want to check those out as well. Take a look at those and if you are ever looking for them again you can access it from the header bar of the website.

The Operating System Dilemma

Yes. You can utilize a version of Linux for your gaming PC and you will have a perfectly functional rig. Linux is a pretty cool open source platform with many versions. One of the popular ones being Ubuntu.

Linux OS is free to use, which is totally awesome, but there is one major flaw for the average gamer.

Well besides the fact that the “average gamer” is already familiar with Microsoft’s Windows. There is also the glaring dilemma that many of your favorite titles will not support being used on a Linux OS.

So let me be completely honest here. Unless you are a complete Windows hater and a Linux hipster (which is totally cool I can accept that)… Then you will be using Windows. A fun thing to do is to have both of them installed so you can play around with Linux as well.

Listen. I know a lot of you guys will be using various methods of obtaining the most current Windows operating system because you do not want to spend the extra +/- $100 on software but listen to my advice please.

It is best to just straight up buy your OS. In the long run it is worth it to just bite the bullet so that you can easily get your updates and play by the rules. If you are one of those rebels without a cause well then so be it. I won’t ask you ’bout your business so you won’t have to tell me no lies. 🙂

How to Build a Budget Gaming PC

If you are all excited to build a gaming PC but need a bit of help doing it you can check out that link. It goes to my page where there are some good resources and extra information on the topic.

For your first time building a PC I suggest you learn as much as possible about it but don’t let all the information scare you one bit. Anyone can do it really and this can end up developing into one of your favorite hobbies.

This video shows you how to build a PC. Check out my “build a gaming PC page” to see other videos as well as more specific advice on this sort of project.



Building a Gaming PC vs Buying a Pre-Built

Ahh the age old question. Should I build or buy my cheap gaming PC? You will find the internet flooded with opinions but lets try and think of this more objectively. One of the things you will hear from a lot of old school builders like myself is, you HAVE to build your own! Another smaller group of people will flame that mentality saying it is a waste of time and a newbie should just buy a pre-built machine and progress slowly into building their own.

That 2nd thought process is right in some aspects so let me tell you why you should buy a pre-built and after that I will go into why you should build your own.

Buying a gaming PC that is already made and ready to go out of the box can certainly be a viable option. Nothing wrong with it at all actually. The pro’s are you can get going immediately after you receive your machine. Another being that if you aren’t ready to jump strait into building a PC you can buy one and later on, by upgrading / replacing parts you will get your feet wet before jumping strait into it.

Most importantly I want to make sure you know that no, you DON’T have to build your own computer. There is a reason people are saying that you do but it is not always exactly why you think they are. You see PC building becomes an awesome hobby and many people get as much enjoyment out of it as they do gaming. Well maybe almost as much.

So here is what I think. If it seems fun and interesting to you then I would urge you to give it a shot. I am one of those people who love putting gaming PC’s together and other then it being a fun side hobby you also tend to get more value for your dollar spent. Along with this comes more time commitment on the flip side.

Whatever you decide to do is completely cool and I will back you 100%. I mean the main thing is, we are doing all of this because we love it. Not because it is a chore. Next I will show you my top picks for pre-made cheap gaming PC’s under $500 (and close to) if this is the route you choose to go.

My Top Picks for the best Pre-Built Gaming Desktop

Right now there aren’t a ton of great options available in the realm of cheap gaming computers. For under $500 I have found 3 options that I will list below but bear in mind these are just my top picks for now and not set in stone forever. Like with hardware, prices vary so expect that to happen.

#3 Under $500 Pre-Built Gaming PC – CUK AsRock DeskMini A300W

Processor: AMD Ryzen 3 3200G, Quad-Core, 3.6GHz

AMD Ryzen 3 3200G, Quad-Core, 3.6GHz RAM: 16GB DDR4 2666MHz

16GB DDR4 2666MHz Hard Drive: 256GB NVMe Solid State Drive

256GB NVMe Solid State Drive Onboard Graphics: AMD Radeon RX Vega 8

AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 Disc Drive: None

None Operating System: Not included. Windows 10 Separate Purchase

Not included. Windows 10 Separate Purchase Extras: Compact Size, WiFi Built in

Click below to see current.

This CUK AsRock DeskMini A300W is fairly inexpensive and at times can be seen as low as $400 or so on Amazon. One of the highlights of this $500 budget PC is the small form factor, which may work for dorm situations or if you don’t like the bigger cases.

As-is, the machine would be fine for playing games that are less demanding on graphics out of the box. Stuff such as League of Legends and some of your steam games would be alright.

Main features are the 16GB RAM and 256GB NVMe SDD. That is awesome for this price point.

Everything else is pretty much on par with what you would be looking for in a budget machine except for the lack of dedicated graphics. With this form factor it can be tough finding a GPU that will fit. You will see my later picks come with dedicated GPU’s, but this comes with a cost.

At the end of the day this option could be a great option for some of you depending on what you will use it for.

#2 Pre-built Gaming PC For $500 – iBUYPOWER Enthusiast Gaming Desktop ARCB 108A

Processor: AMD Ryzen 3 3200G, Quad-Core, 3.6GHz

AMD Ryzen 3 3200G, Quad-Core, 3.6GHz RAM: 8GB DDR4-2666

8GB DDR4-2666 Hard Drive: 1TB 7200RPM SATA

1TB 7200RPM SATA Graphics Card: NVIDIA Geforce GT 710 1GB Dedicated

NVIDIA Geforce GT 710 1GB Dedicated Operating System: Windows 10 included

Windows 10 included Extras: Keyboard & Mouse Combo, WiFi Built in

Click below to see current.

The iBUYPOWER ARCB 108A is an interesting pre-built machine. It checks off most of the boxes we are looking for in a budget gaming PC. There are some upgrades that we recommend doing in the future once the old pocket book is ready.

A couple of the upgrades you can do fairly reasonably is to increase the amount of RAM to 16GB and add a solid state drive. These two things will help add longevity to the life of the machine and up performance a bit.

#1 $500 Pre-built Gaming PC – HP Pavilion Gaming PC Desktop Computer, 690-0020, Black

Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 2400G Processor, Quad-Core, 3.60GHz

AMD Ryzen 5 2400G Processor, Quad-Core, 3.60GHz RAM: 8GB SDRAM DDR3

8GB SDRAM DDR3 Hard Drive: 1TB 7200RPM SATA

1TB 7200RPM SATA Graphics Card: AMD Radeon RX 580 4GB GDDR5 dedicated

AMD Radeon RX 580 4GB GDDR5 dedicated Disc Drive: DVD-RW

DVD-RW Operating System: Windows 10

Windows 10 Extras: Keyboard and Mouse Included, WiFi Built in

Click below to see current.

HP Pavilion has brought us once again another cheap gaming computer. Out of the comparable machines here this one comes equipped with the higher performing hardware. This should be expected because we are slightly over budget.

This PC comes equipped with nice Ryzen 5 2400G Processor, 8GB of RAM, 1 TB HDD, a AMD Radeon RX 580 4GB GDDR5 dedicated graphics card and keyboard/mouse included. This Ryzen 5 is a step up from the Ryzen 3 3200G and the RX 580 GPU is also much better than the graphics options in our other two picks.

The only thing you may feel the need to upgrade a ways down the road will be possibly adding in another 8GB RAM and a solid state drive.

This is my top pick for $500 pre-built gaming PC’s. I believe you will have to do the least work getting it up and going (like zero) and will have the most time before you feel the need to upgrade. It should definitely suit your gaming needs.

Epic Conclusion Time

It is indeed a rockin’ quest to find the best budget gaming PC build under $500. Whether creating a gaming PC build or buying a pre-made, it is hard to work with a small budget, but I think I provided some awesome options here for you!

I am not going to try and bash you for whatever decision you make because dude (or dudette) your getting a dell… I mean custom gamer-centric PC! When that happens it is a great day for sure. The choir sings and the clouds open up to the sunny sky.

My last thought will be this. If you DO want to put the time in, because building your own computer seems like an awesome idea, then go ahead and go for it! It will be amazing gaming on a PC that you built yourself. Definitely a sense of pride there.

Also know you will end up with a better overall product with higher performance right out of the gate. The choice is yours and if you need anything just let me know and I’ll be here for you!

Are you completely stoked to build or buy a new gaming rig? You gotta tell me your upcoming plans :). Was I able to help you in some way with my article? I’d love to share in your experiences so let me know! If you are interested in another build of mine please check out my gaming PC under $400 or even $1000 if you’re feelin’ frisky. If you have any questions or comments please feel free to drop me one anytime at the bottom of this page. Likes, shares, tweets and +1’s are greatly appreciated as well.

Thank you,

Anthony

Founder of Level Up Your Gear