Are you looking for the best gaming PC build in 2023? Well, you have a lot of hardware options to pick from, and depending on your budget, a decent PC build could be around $500 or even upwards of $5000. Of course, the performance also fluctuates along with the price.

However, worry not, as we’ll be going over a lot of options in this guide. We’ll be covering PC builds for both Intel and AMD platforms. All of these builds vary in price, so you can find the one that is right for you. Every recommendation is based on relatively recent hardware, so you are in safe hands. 

Of course, if your goal is to hit high frame rates at 1440p or 1080p, then expect to spend around $1000. Still, you could go a bit lower and cut corners on specific components to save some money. For more demanding situations, expect to spend more.

Either way, this in-depth guide should give you a decent idea of what to expect when putting together a gaming PC build in 2023. Let’s get started.

Check These:

• Best Intel i7 13700k PC Builds
• Best Intel i5 13600k PC Builds

Best Intel Gaming PC Builds

To start off, we’re taking a look at three Intel builds across different budgets. Let’s start with the budget option.

https://youtu.be/j6MAXKOv1qs

Intel Core i5 12400F Build – Best Budget Intel Gaming PC Build

Specs

CPU: Intel Core i5 12400F | CPU Cooler: N/A (Stock) | Motherboard: Gigabyte B660M DS3H | RAM: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB DDR4-3200 | Storage: Silicon Power A60 1TB SSD | Video Card: ASRock Challenger D OC Radeon RX 6600 XT | Case: Zalman S2 ATX | Power Supply: SeaSonic S12III 650W

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This Intel build is similar in specs to the one we put together for our guide on the best Core i5 12400F Gaming PCs. Expect decent performance with a high refresh rate experience at 1440p, and superb value for money if you are sticking with 1080p gaming.

Intel Core i5 12400F Build – Overview

To stay on the budget side of things, we are sticking with the Intel Core i5 12400F. Alternatively, you could also go with the newer 13th Gen Core i5 13400F. However, that part is a bit hard to find right now with certain retailers. If you can find the 12400F for a decent price, it’s still a good option.

So, this CPU comes with six cores, twelve threads, and a max turbo frequency of 4.4GHz. It performs quite well in games, and even beats the Ryzen 5 5600X in most titles. If you care about performance in production-based workloads, the 12400F handles that quite decently for a budget chip.

Usually, we’d go with an aftermarket cooler for nearly every build. However, the 12400F already comes with a stock cooler out of the box. Granted, it’s not the best-performing cooler in the world, but it does not need to be. The 12400F is not an unlocked chip, and it has a lower power consumption. So, while an aftermarket cooler would certainly look better, the stock cooler is fine.

As for the motherboard, we decided to with the Gigabyte B660M DS3H. Some might wonder about the differences between B660 and Z690, but B660 was an easy choice for a budget build. Of course, this motherboard does not support DDR5, and that would hike up the price of this build significantly anyway.

The board comes with two M.2 slots, supports the fastest DDR4 memory modules on the market, and even features decent memory overclocking. Apart from that, it won’t blow you away from its design, but it gets the job done. For the price, you can’t complain much.

As for RAM, we decided to go with 16 gigs of DDR4 3200MHz. The specific kit is the Corsair Vengeance LPX memory. The kit overclocks well, 3200MHz is more than enough for gaming, and it’s a decent overall value. Unfortunately, the only thing lacking here is RGB.

For storage, we decided to go with a PCIe Gen 3 drive. NVMe SSDs have dropped significantly in price and considering they perform much better than traditional SATA drives, this was a no-brainer. The specific drive we went with is the Silicon Power A60 1TB drive. It is fast, reliable, and affordable. A perfect choice for this build.

Next, let’s get to the star of the show: the graphics card. We decided to go with the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT. Right now, AMD is easily the better choice for budget and mid-range builds, unless you really want ray tracing. However, considering ray tracing performance is not that great on mid-range cards, the RX 6600 XT ultimately wins over the RTX 3060.

This card is a beast for 1080p gaming, and still performs decent enough at 1440p. The latter is especially true if you care about a high refresh rate experience with your favorite Esports titles such as Overwatch, Valorant, or Warzone.

For the PC chassis, we decided to with the Zalman S2 ATX Mid Tower case. It’s a decent-looking case with great airflow, decent cable management, and room for a lot of drives. This is a great option for budget builds and does the job quite well. We don’t see a need for a better case for this build.

Finally, for the power supply, we recommend the SeaSonic S12III 650w 80+ Bronze Unit. It comes from the most reliable PSU brand out there, has good power efficiency, and is also quite affordable. An easy choice for this build.

Summary

To sum it up, you can expect excellent performance in games at both 1080p and 1440p. Whether you care about single-player games, competitive shooters, or even casual indie games, this gaming PC is a good entry point in 2023. It also provides you with a good upgrade path to the newer 13th Gen processors down the line.

Estimated Price for Build: $750 – $800

Intel Core i5 13600K Build – Best Mid-Range Intel Gaming PC Build

Specs

CPU: Intel Core i5 13600K | CPU Cooler: DeepCool AK400 CPU Cooler | Motherboard: MSI MAG B660 Tomahawk Wi-Fi | RAM: Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro 16GB DDR 3600 | Storage: TeamGroup MP333 1TB SSD | Video Card: ASRock Radeon RX 6700 XT | Case: Phanteks Eclipse P3000A Mesh Case | Power Supply: Corsair RM750x 2021 Power Supply

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The Intel Core i5 13600K is an excellent processor, and we recently put together a similar build using the “F” version of this CPU. That one does not have integrated graphics, and that’s the only difference between the two. Right now, this build is arguably the best bang for your buck in terms of performance.

Intel Core i5 13600K Build – Overview

The main highlight of this build is the newly released Intel Core i5 13600K. This is a beast of a processor, as it has 14 cores, 20 threads, and a boost clock of up to 5.1GHz. In terms of performance, it’s on par with last generation’s Core i9 12900K, and easily beats or matches the newer Ryzen 7 7600X in games. A stellar value all around.

When it comes to mid-range processors, this is the value king right now. You would be hard-pressed to find something that performs better at this price. It’s also quite good in terms of productivity performance, thanks to the 14 cores.

Now, the Intel Core i5 13600K, unfortunately, does not come with a stock cooler. To keep this chip cool, we’ve paired it with the DeepCool AK400 CPU Cooler. This is a high-quality air cooler that offers excellent cooling performance and is easy to install. The cooler comes with a 120mm fan that runs quietly and is also quite affordable.

For the motherboard, we’ve gone with the MSI MAG B660 Tomahawk Wi-Fi. This is a solid motherboard that offers a great feature set for the price. It supports DDR4 memory up to 64GB and has two M.2 slots for NVMe SSDs, making it one of the best budget motherboards out there. The board also features Wi-Fi 6, which is a must-have these days.

Now for storage, we’ve gone with the TeamGroup MP333 1TB SSD. This is a high-performance NVMe SSD that offers fast read and write speeds, making it a great option for both gaming and productivity. The SSD also has a large capacity, which makes it a great option for those who want to store all their games on one drive.

Memory-wise, we recommend the Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro 16GB DDR4 3600. This is a high-performance memory kit that offers fast speeds and tight timing. It overclocks well and also features RGB lighting that will add some flair to your rig.

As for the graphics card, we’ve gone with the ASRock Radeon RX 6700 XT. This is a powerful video card that is based on the RDNA 2 architecture and features 12GB of GDDR6 memory. The card is capable of delivering great performance at 1440p, making it a great option for those who want to play the latest games at high settings.

Right now, it’s cheaper than the RTX 3060 Ti, and unless you care much about ray tracing, it is obviously the better option. AMD’s FSR technology is also improving, so expect decent performance for upcoming titles as well. We also used this GPU in a previous build.

For the PC case, we’ve gone with the Phanteks Eclipse P3000A Mesh Case. This is a stylish case that features a mesh front panel that allows for great airflow, making it a great option for our power-hungry components. 

Finally, for the power supply, we’ve gone with the Corsair RM750x 2021 Power Supply. This is a high-quality power supply that offers 80+ Gold certification. It is fully modular, silent, and rated A on the LTT PSU tier list. 

Summary

In summary, this Intel build is a high-performance option that packs a punch. It features a powerful Intel Core i5 13600K processor, a high-quality air cooler, a solid motherboard, fast memory, a high-performance NVMe SSD, a powerful video card, a stylish case, and a high-quality power supply. Expect excellent performance at 1440p for years to come.

Estimated Price for Build: $1300