$600 Budget Build

Create an awesome rig on a shoestring budget

- By Sam Lewis

BUILDING A MONSTER PC and blowing the budget sure is fun, but for most of us, the more realistic challenge right now is constructing something to a lower price. Whether that’s because you’ve got other purchases to worry about, or you can’t source all of the components right now, you might be holding off building something for work, school or pleasure when you really don’t need to.

So we decided to set ourselves a challenge: could we build something we’d be proud to have on our desk to a $600 budget? Something that would not only offer bang-for-buck performance, but also use quality components that will stand the test of time? Something that can handle everyday tasks, while also looking sleek doing it?

In starting our build, we first looked at where we could make obvious savings. We figured that one of the best components to start with would be a CPU that includes an integrated cooler and graphics— in effect, we’re getting three components for the price of one. So, we chose the Intel Core i5-10400 with Intel UHD 630 graphics and a stock cooler. Avoiding the need to pay for an AIO will inevitably save money, leaving a decent chunk of the budget to be allocated to the remaining parts of the build. That’s what we’re aiming for anyway.