Finding a great, cheap gaming desktop under $500 is, admittedly, a chore. If you were to take $500, and buy your own parts and build your own PC, it used to be the case that you’d get more bang for your buck than you would if you were to buy a gaming desktop.
However, that’s no longer the case, and because of inflated GPU prices caused by bitcoin mining, you can actually fare better by buying a pre-built gaming rig. Plus, not everyone knows how to build their own gaming PC, and not everyone wants to take the time to learn how to do so.
But there are quite a few good cheap gaming computers under $500 that can run most of the newest games without any problem. Sure, at a $500 price point, you shouldn’t expect to run all of the new games on ultra settings. However, these cheap gaming computers below will at least run the games on their lowest settings, and some of them can power through games with some of the highest settings turned on.
So whether you’re looking to hop into the new Hearthstone expansion, finally get around to playing The Witcher 3, or you want to work your way up to becoming a Fortnite pro, check out our list of the best cheap gaming desktops under $500 (note: with prices fluctuating rapidly, keep in mind that some may be slightly over $500):