🖥️ How to Build a Budget Gaming PC in 2025 (Step-by-Step Guide)

Introduction

Picture By: Maverick Timotius

Gaming PCs have a reputation for being expensive, flashy machines with glowing RGB lights and four-digit price tags. But here’s the truth: you don’t need to spend a small fortune to enjoy modern games smoothly. In fact, thanks to recent hardware competition and falling prices, building a budget gaming PC in 2025 is easier and more affordable than ever.

In this guide, I’ll walk you through why building your own PC makes sense, the exact parts you need to prioritize, how to save money, and even provide example builds at different price points. Whether you’re a complete beginner or someone upgrading from an old laptop, by the end you’ll know how to put together a powerful yet affordable gaming rig.

Contents:

1. Why Build a Budget Gaming PC in 2025?

2. Key Factors to Consider before buying a Gaming PC

3. Essential Components for a Budget Gaming PC

   1. CPU

   2. Motherboard

   3. RAM

   4. Storage

   5. GPU/Graphics Card

   6. Power Supply/PSU

   7. Case

   8. Peripherals

4. Step-by-Step Building Guide

5. Tips to Save Money

6. Example Builds (With PC Part Picker List)

7. Common Mistakes to Avoid

8. Conclusion

Why Build a Budget Gaming PC in 2025 instead of Buying a Pre-Built?

You might be wondering: “Why not just grab a pre-built gaming desktop from a big retailer?” While that’s the easy option, here are a few reasons why building your own budget PC is better:

• Cost Savings – Pre-builts often include hidden markups for assembly and branding. By sourcing parts yourself, you usually get better performance for the same money.

• Customization – You control everything. Want better graphics but don’t care about RGB lights? Easy. Need lots of storage for Steam games? Just add a bigger SSD.

• Learning Experience – The first time you slot in a CPU or install RAM feels intimidating, but you’ll come away knowing exactly how your PC works. That knowledge pays off when upgrading later.

Key Factors to Consider Before Buying Parts

Let me stop you right there before you start browsing Amazon or Newegg or Microcenter and getting lost in the mind numbingly long listings of PC Parts. Well, this is part of the reason many beginner PC builder hesitate to build their own one. Trust me, I went through the same.

Take a few minutes to clarify the following:

1. Budget Range: Most crucial part of PC building. You have to know how much you can chew before you take a bite after all. Here some of my recommended ranges (I'll be sticking to these budgets throughout the blog):

   1. Entry Level: $600-$700 - Gets the job done, and good for 1080p gaming at medium to high settings.

   2. Mid Range: $800-$1000 - Smooth performance at 1080p ultra and 1440p Gaming.

2. Games You Play: Another important part, and crucial for setting budget aside for different parts of the build, as AAA titles like Cyberpunk 2077 or Elden Ring demand more GPU Power than Competitive FPS titles like CS2, Valorant, Fortnite and many more which require modest combination of both CPU & GPU.

3. Upgrade Potential: Let's be honest, we all like to stay up to date with the latest and greatest technology and want to have them in our Arsenal for both Playing new titles at their best settings and Flexing. Picking a good motherboard and/or Power Supply are two of the most important things to look out for to Future Proof a PC. Also, if on a tight budget, having more room to upgrade down the line treats your Wallet more gently.

Essential Components for a Budget Gaming PC (2025 Picks)

1. CPU aka Processor: The heart and brain of your Gaming PC, doing all the calculations needed for the PC to work.

   

   AMD Ryzen CPU

   • In the current market the best budget options for a CPU will be:

     • AMD Ryzen 7600X: ~$150-$200

     • Intel Core i5-14400F & 12400F: ~$120-$140 (for 12400F) to $180(for 14400F)

   • These are some of the best CPUs to pair up with your build on a modern platform.

   • Personally, I would suggest to get the 7600X as AMD is known for their Long Term Supports on their Zen architecture platforms. But Intel will do just fine in terms of performance.

   • You'll also need an after market cooler if your processor doesn't come with one. It'll cost another $30-$40.

2. Motherboard: Depending on your choice of CPU, you'll need either a AM5 motherboard for the AMD CPU or a LGA1700 for the Intel CPU.

   • My recommendations:

     • Gigabyte B650 AM5: Around ~$150

     • Gigabyte Z790 LGA1700: Around ~$150-$180

   • Other brands like ASRock(Budget), MSI & Asus (Mid to High Tier) super good too. I just find Gigabyte motherboards to be the best Bang for Buck out of the bunch.

3. RAM aka Primary Memory: Of course, for our brain to process large data, we need to have equally fast and good Memory too

   • Modern Platforms currently all have DDR5 RAMs, but DDR4 is still relevant, though compatibility matters. From the above CPUs, only i5 12400F supports DDR4.

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     Choosing proper RAM

     RAMs from Corsair (like Corsair Vengeance), Crucial (like Crucial Pro) etc. are some good competitors in the market.

   • Remember to check their clock speeds before buying, as they might cause instability if not chosen properly.

   • For DDR5 sticks, it is recommended to get around 6000 MHZ for clock speed, and as of how much memory you should need, get a 32 GB kit (2x16 GB) modules. To save some buck, get a single 16GB stick to upgrade down later (PS: The performance would be noticeably bad). This should cost you around $100 for the 32GB kits.

   • For DDR4 sticks, get 16 GB kit (2x8 GB) of 3200-3600 MHZ. This could cost you anywhere from around $40-$70.

   • For more details, you can always check your CPU's specifications.

4. Storage: For modern day games, it is a must to get at least 1 TB NVME SSD. 500 GB SSD will not be sufficient for modern usage.

   • Important point: Know what games you'll play, How much space it'll require, and How many games you'll be playing simultaneously, to have a rough calculation of how much storage you'll need.

   • One more important point: Get yourself a PCIe Gen 4 SSD, as it is twice as fast and will significantly reduce game load times.

   • My Personal choice of SSD is Crucial P3 PCIe Gen 4 SSD. But you can get almost any Gen4 SSD from almost any brand, just check the reviews. This model has a sweet price tag of $60-$70. In general they should be set you back about $50-$90 for 1 TB of storage.

   • Don't buy the cheapest SSDs, always check the reviews before buying.

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2. GPU aka Core components for Gamers: Here's the thing, this is the must component for your PC, the soul of your gaming PC.

   

   Choosing a GPU

   • On today, the best budget card for a Budget Gaming PC is hands down the NVIDIA RTX 5060. For a really good price of $300, it has all the latest components and tech from NVIDIA, the leader of Gaming GPUs of current date.

   • Another really good option for around $350-$380, Radeon RX 9060 XT 16 GB is another good pick, specially if you need the extra video memory, which is slowly but surely is becoming a norm for modern AAA gaming.

   • Again, if you don't have the budget just wait out for the prices to drop to get yourself a good pick.

3. Power Supply (PSU): This is where a lot of beginners make mistake.

   • Don't cheap out on this, or your expensive components will be fried up to a burnt crisp.

   • A solid 750W to 850W is perfect for the build and future proofing it too.

   • MSI MAG A750GL(~$100), Corsair CX750(~$70-$90) are great picks.

   • Look for the 80Plus tag on your power supply. Simply, it's like a quality assurance check of the PSU, Technically, it just denotes how good the PSU will work over higher and lower loads.

4. Case: Two things to note for picking a good case.

   • Good Airflow

   • Sufficient Internal Space

   • Get a good case with 2-3 pre-installed fans.

   • NZXT H5 Flow, Corsair 3500X ARGB (both around $70-$100) are really good picks.

5. Peripherals:

   • Monitor: Pick a size first. If 24" or below, get a 1080p monitor. 27"-32" get a 1440p monitor. As of refresh rates, 100-144Hz is good for both AAA and competitive game(240Hz will be really good options if you want to play FPS games professionally).

   • Keyboard, Mouse, Headphones: Mechanical Keyboard, 5 button Mouse are good picks for any gaming PC.

Step-by-Step Building Guide

Building a PC sounds intimidating, but once you’ve unboxed the parts, it’s like assembling LEGO for adults. Here’s the simple order to follow:

1. Install the CPU on the motherboard.

2. Insert RAM sticks into their slots.

3. Attach your SSD or HDD.

4. Place the motherboard inside the case.

5. Install the power supply.

6. Insert the GPU into the PCIe slot.

7. Connect power and data cables.

8. Turn it on and install Windows or Linux.

   

   Completed Gaming Setup

Tips to Save Money

• Buy During Sales – Black Friday, Cyber Monday, or Amazon Prime Day are perfect.

• Consider Refurbished Parts – From trusted sellers, refurbished GPUs or SSDs can save you 20–30%.

• Prioritize GPU Over CPU – For gaming, the GPU matters most. Don’t overspend on the processor.

• Start Small – Buy 1 SSD now, add a second later. Same with RAM (start with 8GB if extremely tight on budget, upgrade to 16GB later).

Example Build(with PCPartPicker List):

Entry Level Build (~$600-$700): Older parts, limited upgrade paths.

• CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 5600X ~ $120-$140

• Cooler: Stock Cooler, CPU comes with one

• Motherboard: ASRock B550M ~ $80-$90

• RAM: 16 GB DDR4 ~ $60-$70

• Storage: 500 GB ~ $40

• GPU: RTX 5060 ~ $300 (If you can find like a RX7600 or RTX 3060 or RTX 4060 on a budget or discount, you can get that, but don't spend more than $250 on old cards)

• PSU: Any 80+ Bronze 550-600W Power Supply ~ $50

• Case: Any Mid-tower case, whatever your budget suffices.

  Performance Level: 1080p-1440p gaming

  Recommendation: I would not recommend this spec, as it would not be good with newer games.

Mid-Range Build (~$800-$1000): Newer parts, with good upgrade paths.

• CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 7600X ~ $160-$180

• Cooler: Any after market coolers from any reputed brand, Recommendation: Cooler Master Hyper 212 ~ $25-$30

• Motherboard: ASRock B650 ~ $150

•  RAM: 32 GB DDR4 ~ $100

• Storage: 1 TB ~ $60-$70

• GPU: RTX 5060 ~ $300

• PSU: Any 80+ Bronze/Gold 750-850W Power Supply, Recommendation: MSI MAG A850GL ~ $100-$120

• Case: Any Mid-tower case, whatever your budget suffices.

  Performance Level: Solid 1440p Gaming

  Recommendation: I would recommend this spec, as it would be solid with newer games.

  PCPartPicker List: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/kRws2x

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Mismatched Components – Always double-check CPU and motherboard compatibility.

• Underpowered PSU – Don’t buy a cheap 400W no-name supply for a modern GPU.

• Skipping Cooling – Even budget builds need airflow. Two fans minimum.

• Buying for Brand Hype – Don’t pay extra for RGB lighting if you’re on a budget—it adds nothing to performance.

Conclusion

Building a budget gaming PC in 2025 isn’t just possible—it’s the smartest way to get into PC gaming without overspending. With smart part choices, a bit of research, and patience during sales, you can put together a machine that runs today’s hottest titles at smooth frame rates without emptying your wallet.

If you’ve been gaming on an old laptop or dreaming of switching from console to PC, now is the perfect time to build your first rig. Not only will you save money, but you’ll also gain the confidence to upgrade and customize in the future.

Happy building, and may your FPS be high and your temps stay low! 🎮