Owning a PC is a fantastic experience. Tracking down every component and buying them piecemeal over several months? Not so much. Wouldn’t it make more sense to get everything in one place and not have to worry? That’s exactly what the best custom PC building websites are all about!
Sites like these streamline your purchase without robbing you of the experience of putting together a killer build on paper. Taking this route is reassuring for newcomers since there’s no risk of using incompatible parts. More experienced buyers who like using their PCs more than assembling them can jump straight in. Everyone benefits from the support and warranty policies such sites offer.
The Best Custom PC Building Websites
- CyberPowerPC – Something for everyone
- BLD by NZXT – A subline building experience
- Maingear – A trusted staple of the industry
- iBuyPower – A worthy alternative to CyberPowerPC
- Xidax – The best warranty around
- eCollegePC – Unbeatable prices & great customization
- Origin PC – For laptop and desktop enthusiasts alike
- Digital Storm – Great for international customers
- Falcon Northwest – A luxurious computing experience
- EK Fluid Gaming – For water cooling aficionados
CyberPowerPC is one of the most comprehensive websites for anything about PC hardware & accessories. It’s the best prebuilt PC company due to the sheer scope of already assembled systems on offer. Need a good laptop for eSports? They’ve got it. Want a desktop PC blinged-out exclusively with Corsair’s iCUE-compatible lighting? No problem!
We wouldn’t recommend CyberPowerPC to someone who’s putting together a custom PC for the first time since the choices can be overwhelming. Everyone else will find their huge assortment and the ability to make changes to almost every build within it a huge plus. There’s also a builder feature similar to NZXT’s. You get PC recommendations based on a selection of games, your budget, and preferences. However, it’s not as intuitive and sometimes returns no results.
The customization aspect is handled competently and is full of welcome extras. You can add routers, capture cards, and even gaming chairs as part of the purchase, just to name a few. CyberPowerPC offers several colors for your cooling loop’s liquid as well as laser engravings fur further personalization.
Accessibility is another of CyberPowerPC’s strengths. The most affordable PC costs a mere $715, while an entry-level laptop will set you back by $15 less. You don’t have to pay everything at once since the site offers financing through Affirm. PCs get a one-year warranty and free lifetime technical support. Paying extra bumps the warranty up to a max of three years.
NZXT is a renowned manufacturer of PC cases & power supplies with a mission – to make your next PC purchase as painless as possible. It’s the best custom PC builder if you want to take all the guesswork out of the process, thanks to an intuitive interface and straightforward instructions anyone can use.
The site features an area with several PCs for use cases ranging from casual through gaming to focused on creativity. They currently start at $999. You may also buy separate components like coolers or RGB lighting strips. That’s all well & good, but it’s the builder itself that elevates BLD above similar sites.
Its first step is as straightforward as can be, prompting you to choose a budget and a processor the system will be based on. A handy chart next to these parameters provides a framerate estimate for popular games like Fortnite and Minecraft at various resolutions.
The next screen already contains a fully outfitted computer with hardware optimized for the platform and your budget. You may then customize any part of it with little limitation. The case is the only exception since it has to be from NZXT. Go figure. The last thing to do is select peripherals, a monitor, and the operating system.
NZXT covers their PCs with a 2-year warranty, which is about average. All of them are expertly built, and you can pay extra to expedite the shipping.
Maingear has been in the PC builder game for 20 years & counting. The site has a proven track record of delivering competently built PCs that usually live up to their somewhat higher prices. They deal in desktop PC, laptops, and workstations. The Vybe line features the most accessible desktop PCs, but you can’t configure those. The same goes for the laptops. If you’re OK with Maingear’s recs, they start at $1,599 & 1,399.
Some buyers will be more interested in deeper customization, which you can access if you choose the Turbo, Rush, or F131 lines. Each has at least two completed PCs you can modify extensively. You do this by scrolling through a rather long page containing choices for everything from the GPU & motherboard to accessories & software.
Maingear goes the extra mile by offering a vivid array of colors for the case and custom single or multicolor graphics you can have made. These add quite a lot to the price, but you’re getting a genuinely unique computer in return. Going prebuilt without tinkering gets you a PC in 1-2 business days. Depending on the extent of your customization, bespoke PCs can take two weeks or more to arrive.
All Maingear PCs start with a 1-year warranty you can upgrade to three. They ship internationally and get a complete treatment that includes installing the OS, getting drivers up to snuff, and running benchmarks. You can set up a payment plan through Bread in the US, while financing isn’t available to international buyers.
The customer support is on point since you can get live-chat guidance while shopping online or reach out to them through various means, including Discord.
All the sites we’ve talked about offer some kind of warranty protection, but only Xidax has one that lasts indefinitely. There’s no question that Xidax is the best PC builder when it comes to peace of mind since they’ll replace or repair your precious i9-12900K even if it suddenly dies in eight years. The policy applies for as long as the replacement parts are manufactured & available, and we think that’s more than fair.
Xidax would have been among the best custom PC building websites even if the warranty wasn’t in place. It has one of the better building tools out there that takes you on a step-by-step tour of putting together the perfect computer. Sometimes there are few choices for a particular part, but the builder is comprehensive.
On the other hand, you can choose among many desktop PCs and laptops ready to ship. Xidax caters to everyone, so expect the cheapest models in both categories to cost less than $1,000. Workstation PCs are on offer as well, as are used desktops that have been recertified for optimum performance. Going for one could be a great way to get a beastly rig cheaper if you don’t mind taking a gamble.
Want to experience a maxed-out Cyberpunk 2077 but don’t have the cash? Xidax has partnered with Affirm to offer an enticing payment plan. Or, you could go the leasing route and pay for only as long as you use the hardware.
Think of iBuyPower as a mix of CyberPowerPC and NZXT’s BLD. It offers a large selection of prebuilt PCs and components while also having one of the better custom PC builder interfaces out there. The landing page is always busy with deals & promotions, so it might take newcomers a while to find their way. Once they do, however, they’re in for quite the journey.
RDY prebuilt PCs are iBuyPower’s backbone. There are a lot of them, designed with different games, processors, and budgets in mind. You’ll want to select all of these and more criteria to narrow the choice down. Price-wise, iBuyPower is almost as affordable as CyberPowerPC, with an asking price of $899 for their cheapest desktop. You may find older and even cheaper iBuyPower PCs on sites like Amazon as well.
We’re fans of the Easy Builder since it streamlines your custom experience. A large selection of games serves as your basis. So many PCs fit inside various budget tiers that you don’t have to lift a finger to make them better. You should, as the Easy Builder makes swapping components and fine-tuning your selection faster.
iBuyPower seeks to give back to the community by sponsoring eSports events and frequent giveaways. A Discord server is there if you want to engage with others or ask for help. Loyal customers get to take advantage of reward points and can apply them towards subsequent purchases.
Two factors keep iBuyPower from rising higher on our list of best custom PC building websites. One is the warranty since it’s limited to three years for labor and just one for parts. Shipping is the other. It doesn’t affect you if you’re from the US or Canada, but there’s no international shipping.
Hardware prices have been bonkers for more than a year now, but stuff breaks and gets outdated regardless. We’ve already seen that the best PC building websites offer models that can reach four digits – eCollegePC is different. You could still buy an excellent gaming PC from them and leave with a weeping wallet, but the fact you don’t have to is already a plus.
Affordability is eCollegePC’s main draw. And we aren’t talking about entry-level gaming computers either. This is the only site on the list where you can get the bare minimum for typing up college essays, managing spreadsheets, or browsing the web. Both Intel and AMD systems start at just $457! Better yet, the Value Series offers slightly enhanced models for around $550 and $700 as well.
Don’t dismiss eCollegePC if you’re in the market for a top-tier rig, either. Gaming & Mini Series models are competitive with computers from other showcased sites. Users who want to build their systems from scratch are in for a treat as the builder tool is great. A sizeable selection awaits for most components, so it’s all too easy to start with a $1,000 PC and end up adding two grand to it.
Parts are covered by a 1-year warranty, while labor and technical support for all eCollegePC models last a lifetime. Shipping could be quicker since it takes 5-7 business days to process and dispatch orders. There are no major flaws with this site, but you’re out of luck if you were hoping to get a laptop from them.
Not to be confused with the eponymous game launcher, Origin PC is an upscale PC builder catering to users with discerning tastes in desktops and laptops alike. They’re one of the few companies on the list that pay particular attention to laptops, offering several gaming-focused and workstation models to boot.
Everything from the interface to the Desktop Advisor building assistant comes with a high polish. The site is responsive, and putting together the type of computer you needs takes little time. Price is the only “drawback” since you can’t get a desktop for less than $1,963, and laptops start at $1,597.
Laptop lovers will come into their own since the Evo series is supremely customizable. It’s possible to deck out the lid with one of several designs, not to mention tinker with the amount of memory and number of storage drives.
PC customization runs even deeper yet can be even easier. The Desktop Advisor takes a page out of NZXT’s book by presenting you with a series of choices and spitting out the most likely candidate to run the games you’re into. The process is a bit stunted, but adding the finishing touches to your custom PC from there is a snap.
Origin PC offers several financing types. Your best bet is to either pay for everything at once or go for a six-month plan, as the APR for more extended purchases can get high. Origin’s PCs have a 1-year warranty extendable to three years. They also only ship to the US & Canada.
A broad inventory is fine & all, but what if you want a cozier approach from your custom PC builder? That’s when you should turn to Digital Storm. This California-based company offers fewer systems but takes great care in designing each one. The site is minimalistic & clean, and selecting a model from each of the three system types on offer leads to a well-designed presentation page.
Digital Storm’s narrow scope might be unappealing for laptop gamers & workstation users since the categories offer only two and three models, respectively. Desktops have more variety, ranging from the accessible $1,399 Lynx to the no holds barred $3,025 Aventum. And those are just the starting prices.
The prebuilts are serviceable, and options abound to increase their attractiveness or utility. Each model comes in several configurations that gradually go up in price. Alternatively, you can use them as a springboard to build your own PC from a sizeable component selection.
Some of the more interesting custom services include colorful cables & attentive management, CPU & GPU overclocking if applicable setting up RAID for your hard drives, and adding a Windows USB to recover a corrupted installation. Some cases have several trim & mod options you can take advantage of too.
Digital Storm has an active forum where prospective & current customers help each other, review their purchases, and can troubleshoot potential problems. Like Maingear, Digital Storm uses Bread for easy financing and offers payment plans that last up to 36 months. That’s also how long their base limited warranty lasts, with possible extensions to five years.
PCs you purchase from this site should arrive within three business days. Adding lots of custom details can extend this to three weeks for US-based customers, more for international ones.
Our penultimate recommendation has been around for longer than the World Wide Web! Falcon Northwest’s personnel have 30 years of experience, which they put to excellent use in creating some of the most high-end systems money can buy. Their clientele is select, but the customer service & depth of customization warrant this.
Falcon Northwest has the most high-end website by far. You’re constantly surrounded by breathtaking imagery of their bespoke designs, and testimonies abound from thrilled Twitter users to Gabe Newell himself. You get to choose from a handful of systems and laptops, so it makes sense to structure the site so appealingly.
That brings us to our main issues with this company – a high price of entry & not enough variety. Falcon Northwest bases its PCs on cases designed in-house. Three of them house high-end desktop PCs, while the fourth is meant for workstations. It’s not possible to get the Fragbox, the smallest case in Falcon Northwest’s lineup, at the time of writing. That leaves you with the versatile Talon and slim Tiki.
Which wouldn’t be a problem for a large segment of buyers if their prices didn’t start at $3,300 & $3,200, respectively. To be fair, the cases themselves are masterfully crafted, and the company uses top-shelf components. However, you can get comparable models for less elsewhere, and upgrade costs aren’t as high either.
Credit where credit is due – Falcon Northwest has a fantastic build tool. It’s reminiscent of configuring a weapons loadout or managing an inventory. More than a dozen categories cover the essentials like CPUs, storage drives, or motherboards while also enabling unique services. Much of these have to do with case customization, allowing you to choose different types of panels & fans or add graphics. Only two laptops are on offer, but the attention you can give to their covers is unmatched.
A comprehensive 3-year warranty protects Falcon Northwest computers. They ship to Canada, while local deliveries usually take 12 days, 15 if the visual customization is extensive. You may pay a hefty fee to expedite the process to last only five days, but that works only for the base design.
We’ll wrap things up with another high-end site, this time in the water cooling niche. EK is synonymous with world-class AIO & custom water cooling components, and now you don’t even have to fiddle with them yourself! Fluid Gaming offers the least amount of customization on the list, but one of the liquid-cooled computers they sell may be just what you need.
Finding your way around the site is easy, thanks to a simple layout and eye-catching visuals. The selection is relatively small, but a detailed chart accompanies each PC. It’s a bummer that actual prices aren’t apparent – you only get payment estimates for using Affirm. Moreover, many of the PCs sold here are only available to US customers.
Still, it’s evident that a lot of forethought went into assembling and presenting the Intel & AMD-based systems on offer. Unsurprisingly, water cooling takes center stage. It ranges from closed-loop AIOs on the cheapest models to the Conqueror, a monster PC that features CPU & GPU blocks from the new Quantum line.
EK Fluid Gaming has one of the best warranties on the market. It lasts for three years and covers everything from parts & labor to returns and technical support. It takes care to assemble and transport a liquid-cooled computer, so expect longer shipping times. These vary wildly from a couple of days for entry-level PCs to more than a month for the Special Edition Conqueror.
