Top 5 Best Desktop Computers Of 2024

Only a small percentage of the hundreds of desktop computers available from companies like HP, Dell, Apple, and Lenovo are included on our list of the best desktops. After reviewing dozens of desktop computers running both Windows and macOS, these 5 stand out.

In 2024, the top desktop computer still on the market is the Dell XPS Desktop 8960. However, we also provide a variety of additional options, such as PCs for gaming, remote work, and more, based on your needs and budget. We’ll give a brief rundown of our review procedure here, but for a more in-depth look, check out our post on how we assess desktops.

For years, we have examined hundreds of desktop computers in an effort to find the best ones for gaming, home office use, editing photos and videos, and a host of other applications. We’ve seen it all, from tiny PCs that fit on a bookshelf to massive desktops with specialized liquid cooling, so we know what works and what doesn’t.

When it comes to desktop computers, performance is crucial, but not all PCs are made equal. While a desktop like the Lenovo Legion Tower 7i goes all out for gaming capability, other computers, like the Mac Mini, offer power in a portable package. We assess what desktops are attempting to do and at what cost before meeting them where they are.

Last update on 2024-08-08 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon.

Top 5 Best Desktop Computers Of 2024

1.Dell XPS 8960

Last update on 2024-08-08 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon.

The Dell XPS 8960 is the most versatile desktop PC available, making it the best overall choice for most users. It is perfectly understated, moderately priced for the amount of power it can hold, and available in a range of configurations for gaming, work, or both. Selecting the best-rated PC is difficult, but the Dell XPS 8960 solves that problem.

You’ll discover something that suits your demands, regardless of the setup you select. That’s because the best thing about the XPS 8960 is that Dell builds them to order. Depending on the parts you select, and the alternatives are almost infinite. Since some of the desktop computers lack a standalone graphics card,They are more appropriate for work than for play. You can, however, purchase one of the priciest models that comes with a standalone graphics card.

For those looking for the ultimate gaming PC, Dell is presenting this new XPS desktop with Intel Raptor Lake and DDR5 RAM. In addition, an RTX 4090 graphics card can be added, which, given the machine’s size, is a significant amount of power. Stronger technology generates more heat, but the XPS 8960 effectively dissipates it thanks to an optional liquid cooling system and an air-flow-friendly chassis.

Dell’s 2023 XPS Desktop is an elegant mid-tower desktop designed for gamers, creatives, and regular users. It comes in a traditional black and understated shell. With a much more affordable starting price of $749.99, the Dell XPS Desktop (8950) is replaced technologically by the variant 8960 under evaluation. (Dell claims that less costly 8960 models will become available until 2023.) This most recent model is really useful and excels in performance, offering configuration possibilities comparable to high-end gaming desktops. Once again, the Dell XPS Desktop (8960) takes home our Editors’ Choice award for high-end desktops.

The most significant internal enhancements to the XPS Desktop are to the latest AMD and Nvidia graphics cards as well as improvements to Intel’s “Raptor Lake” core architecture. With an Intel Core i7-13700K CPU and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 GPU, our review model is powerfully outfitted, making it a serious competitor to Dell’s own, more outrageous Alienware Aurora R15. It also has Windows 11 Home, a 1TB solid-state drive, and 32GB of DDR5 RAM.

2.Apple iMac 24-inch

Last update on 2024-08-08 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon.

Although it’s quite difficult to choose an all-in-one above Apple’s iMac, the Lenovo Yoga AIO 9i is unquestionably a competitor. With excellent performance, a reasonable price, one of the best integrated displays we’ve seen, and a few special features, this 4K desktop impresses.

One of the most potent mobile CPUs available is Intel’s Core i9-13900H, which powers the computer. It can even handle some photo or video editing in addition to handling work applications with more than enough power. Even more amazing, you can outfit the system with a mobile RTX 4050 graphics card to add a little gaming power as needed.

However, the Yoga AIO 9i’s screen and features are what propel it to our list. The 32-inch 4K display is stunning with its glossy finish, and it comes with great color accuracy out of the box. It has some tricks in the base, as well, including a wireless charging pad for your phone.

Every PC company offers a selection of all-in-ones (AIOs), and it can be challenging for a newcomer to distinguish themselves, particularly when competing with the best AIOs available. Lenovo has a strong contender in the Yoga AIO 9i, which boasts one of the most distinctive styles we’ve seen along with strong performance and a few features that set it apart from other desktop PCs.

It’s a fantastic AIO with a few distinct benefits, and it’s coming at a price that pits it squarely against Apple’s iMac M3. However, the overall performance and port choices have certain shortcomings. There are a few odd idiosyncrasies to get used to, but this might be the ultimate iMac killer.

Without a doubt, the Yoga AIO 9i looks fantastic. Although the Yoga AIO 9i’s internal components are crammed into the base in a standard AIO configuration, the stand gives it a distinctive appearance. It’s a metal ring that wraps around a circular Yoga badge on the rear and appears to float impossibly on the base.

The stand has some modification capabilities, enabling you to tilt the screen up or down, but it lacks height adjustment. To be fair, hardly many AIOs do, and it probably wouldn’t have functioned with Lenovo’s stand design. But height adjustment would be a great help for the enormous 32-inch panel.

Lenovo maintains a simple design at the base with a matte gray finish that contrasts sharply with a silver Lenovo emblem. It is straightforward, mostly because the base’s surface doubles as a wireless charging station. While you’re working, simply place your phone on it, and it will maintain its full charge automatically.

Although this is a fantastic feature, be aware of where it is located. The wireless charging won’t work if it is too near the front or the stand. The middle, immediately behind the Lenovo emblem, is the sweet spot. Fortunately, Lenovo indicates where to position your phone for wireless charging by placing an icon there.

Lenovo neatly arranges your cords by placing all of the Yoga AIO 9i’s connectors on the rear of the device. Although I like how tidy everything looks in the end, I constantly had trouble moving things out of the oddly divided USB ports.

Two USB-A 3.2 ports, an HDMI 2.1 output, a 3.5mm headphone/microphone jack, two USB-C 3.2 ports, two USB-C 4.0 connectors, the power button, and a DC adapter port are all located around the back. Although it’s fantastic to see USB 4 on display, I was always wishing there was an additional USB-A port. You’re likely to utilize both a wired or wireless keyboard and mouse, so anything else will need to fit in a USB-C connector.

The placement is a problem, too. Although I appreciate that most of the cables are around the back to keep everything looking tidy, an extra USB-A port at the front would go a long way. As it stands now, the Yoga AIO 9i feels like it’s missing one USB port, and struggling to reach your head around the back to plug something in is a hassle.

3.Corsair One i500

Last update on 2024-08-08 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon.

We were initially drawn to the pillar-shaped Corsair One desktop when it debuted in 2017, and since then, we’ve examined a number of variations. With the One i500 Corsair offers its largest iteration of the One concept, reimagining it as a somewhat conventionally sized, if still incredibly small, gaming tower with a front panel made of natural wood. Even the entry-level edition of this PC is designed to be a high-end purchase for Corsair enthusiasts, but we have to admit that even our more expensive review model offers good value given the components and high-end configuration. In our benchmark testing, the liquid-cooled 14th Gen Intel Core i9 CPU and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 GPU outperformed bigger and more costly systems, and it’s even upgradeable by the user after purchase (barring the GPU). The Corsair One i500 merits an Editors’ Choice award among compact high-end gaming desktops for performance and design, particularly considering its outsize power.

While most of the high-end pre-built gaming PCs we examine dazzle you with their opulent interior lighting and glass side panels, the Corsair One i500 takes a very different approach. Apart from its small size, which I will discuss in more detail, this system has a much more conservative and conventional appearance.

The spec sheet alone tells you that the Corsair One i500 is a monster. RTX 4090 and Core i9-14900K are included, so you’re getting the most powerful hardware available for your money. It’s astonishing how Corsair fits such potent parts—and with plenty of style—into such a small chassis.

How does Corsair manage this? liquid-cooled. Liquid coolers, which Corsair fitted to the One i500’s CPU and GPU, assist the device maintain a cool temperature while also reducing noise levels. Performance is hardly compromised by the Corsair One i500, even given its minuscule size. It is nearly identical to a customized desktop with an elaborate cooling scheme.

As you might suspect, Corsair commands a for such a monstrous PC. Although expensive, the Corsair One i500 isn’t unreasonably priced. It’s only a few hundred dollars more than the cost of building a similar PC yourself, and that’s ignoring the gorgeous wooden finish available on the case Corsair uses.

Whether or not you love the wooden paneling, this case is unique, well-made, and part of the arboreal revolution—the Fractal Design North case, along with its XL variant, has drawn a lot of attention and money in recent years. I like the concept so much that I even constructed my own PC into the white version of that case. I still understand your sadness in not being able to see inside such an expensive system, but if that’s what you prefer, you have lots of other options. This tower aims to be something else than the modern flash.

However, there is a secret maneuver up the tower’s sleeve. It’s not simply a decorative element; the thin black strip along the length of the panel is a touch-enabled input that allows you to change the integrated chassis illumination. This tower’s lighting is rather subdued—you’ll notice some underlighting and an RGB strip on either side of the front panel—and it can only be adjusted in this manner. It is unusual in that it cannot be adjusted using Corsair’s iCUE software; this is a unique and basic characteristic exclusive to this tower.

4.HP Envy Move

Last update on 2024-08-08 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon.

The HP Envy Move is an all-in-one (AIO) desktop with a carrying handle to make it easy to transfer from the living room to the den or kitchen, though it would be nice to see it on an airline tray table. A decade ago, this unconventional concept briefly gained popularity with devices such as the Lenovo IdeaCentre Horizon and Dell XPS 18, which were essentially large tablets. Families looking for a portable home PC with a larger display than a laptop will find The Move to be a compelling alternative to laptop computers.

Among the most distinctive desktops we’ve ever seen is the HP Envy Move. It’s a desktop computer that can also be carried around, making it ideal for the hybrid work style that many of us have adopted.

At its foundation, the Envy Move is a straightforward all-in-one, but what makes it unique is that its legs automatically fold in, making it portable. When the carrying handle on the back is used, the legs will automatically tuck in. Furthermore, you can actually pick up your PC and carry it wherever thanks to the bundled battery. Even the bundled keyboard/trackpad combo has a sleeve in the back for tucking it in.

HP doesn’t impose a big price increase on this design,either. The Envy Move for a mobile Intel 13th-gen CPU, which offers acceptable performance for basic home office tasks.The Envy Move, like other all-in-ones, is powered by a mobile processor with integrated graphics, so rather than being a gaming console, it’s more of a workstation for homework, internet, streaming, and video conferencing. In contrast to them, it is battery-operated, allowing you to work without being near an AC outlet. It also features a handle with a strap and a kangaroo-pouch pocket for storing its wireless keyboard and touchpad, which may be used as a mouse substitute. The 9.04-pound desktop weighs 10.4 pounds with the keyboard, so you can move it around the family room, bedroom, or anyplace else you choose.

When you place the HP on a desk or tabletop, its two feet will automatically pop or pivot, aligning themselves flat with the system unit and then swiveling back when you pick up the PC. The screen can be tilted back from vertical by up to 10 degrees. With a polyester fabric bottom bezel/speaker grille, rear pocket, and what the company refers to as Shadow White plastic, the Envy is a small device that measures 14.4 by 21.7 by 5.9 inches (HWD).

The AIO’s webcam, located above the screen, features a sliding privacy shutter and Windows Hello facial recognition, however it lacks a fingerprint reader. The included Bluetooth wireless keyboard includes a buttonless touchpad to the right of the keys and measures approximately 4.5 by 16.8 inches. Four AAA batteries are stored in a container at the bottom of the keyboard. (The little Caps Lock LED is the only indicator light on the keyboard; otherwise, a battery gauge may be seen under the Bluetooth & Devices tab in Windows Settings.)

Most AIOs, as you may know, have a row of ports running along the back. What you get with the Envy Move is an HDMI 1.4 input on the right side of the display and two 10Gbps USB 3.2 ports (one Type-C and one Type-A) on the left edge of the monitor. The lower-right video-source button (which I initially thought was the power button at the top-right; it took me ten minutes to turn it on) allows you to switch the screen between Windows and an HDMI-connected game console or other device.

The PC has left and right side controls for volume and brightness, and a bottom right connector is where the external AC adapter connector is located. It does not have an Ethernet port, an SD or microSD card slot, or an audio jack. The USB-C DisplayPort adapter is the sole device that can be used to connect a second screen.

5.Lenovo ThinkStation P620

Last update on 2024-08-08 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon.

In every way, the Lenovo ThinkStation P620 is a workstation. This desktop is made to handle the most resource-demanding tasks available. Designed with a focus on engineering, data science, machine learning, 3D modeling, video editing, and other related professions, the ThinkStation is a PC that can be used in a variety of fields to help professionals with their everyday responsibilities.

More significantly, it’s the only workstation featuring AMD’s Threadripper 5000 Pro processors that’s now on the market. Upgrading to a Threadripper Pro 5995WX processor is possible, which boasts an incredible 256MB of L3 cache in addition to 64 cores and 128 threads. Likewise, Nvidia Quadro GV100 GPUs can have up to two added, and they are strong enough to handle even the most taxing jobs.

The additional specifications are equally amazing: six disk bays that can hold up to 24TB of storage and eight RAM slots that can hold up to 512GB of memory. The system is preconfigured to run either Red Hat Enterprise Linux or Ubuntu, but Windows 11 is the default.

There isn’t a place for the Lenovo P620. The ThinkStation P620 is an incredibly costly workstation that when fully customized, but for professionals that require the best performance, nothing compares.

The full-size desktop workstation Lenovo ThinkStation P620 is available. When we originally reviewed it in late 2020 using a 16-core AMD Threadripper Pro 3000 series processor, it impressed us. This time, AMD’s new flagship workstation CPU, the 64-core Threadripper Pro 5995WX, is what we have, and it’s epic—pun intended—: Our initial testing indicates that it can surpass dual-CPU desktops with ease. Featuring an AMD EPYC server-CPU DNA chip, this system can accommodate up to 1TB of RAM, five 3.5-inch storage disks, and two professional graphics cards. (No, “1TB” isn’t a misprint.) Though our unit costs an astounding even when it’s on sale—it’s far from inexpensive.

AMD’s top-tier desktop processor, the Ryzen Threadripper Pro, is the brains behind the ThinkStation P620 and is designed for demanding workstation and server tasks. The Pro variant differs from the non-Pro consumer Threadripper in that it has more PCI Express lanes, security features, and remote management capabilities from Ryzen. (See our report on our first tests for a thorough examination of this special chip.)

The most significant update for the updated ThinkStation P620 is the introduction of the Zen 3-based Threadripper Pro 5000 series; aside from that, not much has changed since the Zen 2-based Threadripper Pro 3000 series debuted. At the time, it fulfilled every requirement we had for a workstation with a single CPU, and I won’t reveal any secrets by stating that the updated version accomplishes the same.

Frequently Asked Questions

What’s the best brand of desktop computer?

How can you decide which desktop PC brand—Dell, HP, Lenovo—is right for you? While brands have their specialty, approaching desktop PCs with brand devotion isn’t the ideal strategy. At a somewhat greater cost, Apple, for instance, focuses on providing rock-solid performance and a clean user experience, whereas Dell makes a number of PCs with enough bandwidth for a home office and a gaming setup.

Looking at individual desktop reviews is a better option than depending on someone’s recommendation for the “best brand.” When it’s time to update, it’s crucial to read reviews because some firms release great PCs in one generation and subpar desktops in the next.

What is the best processor for a desktop computer?

The optimal CPU for your desktop will vary depending on how you use it. The majority of high-end PCs come with an overclockable Intel Core i9-14900K, which is what gamers want for maximum speed. However, creatives who need to manage massive video files will want something with more cores. That refers to AMD, which provides the AMD Ryzen 7900X and 7950X, 12- and 16-core processors.

A good way to save money without sacrificing performance is to downgrade to a CPU such as an AMD Ryzen 7 or Ryzen 5 or an Intel Core i5 or Core i7 if you mainly work with Office files and browse the web on your desktop.

Should my desktop have USB-C or Thunderbolt 3?

Although USB-C is starting to appear in more desktop configurations, laptops still use it more frequently. Although there are many USB-A to USB-C cables available, it’s not strictly necessary, but if it is, keep an eye on the case that your new system arrives in. It may or may not come with USB-C as standard.

Despite using the USB-C form size, Thunderbolt 3 has the highest bandwidth of any wired USB connection currently on the market, providing rates that easily outpace those of traditional USB connections. On desktops, meanwhile, it is even less prevalent than standard USB-C. You must choose between an Apple or Intel system if you want it, however if you choose the former then Thunderbolt 3 is not standard on the chassis or motherboard, you could always get a PCI-Express add-in card that has it.

When is the best time to buy a desktop?

When your present computer isn’t able to run the programs you desire to use, it’s the ideal moment to purchase a desktop. Although the biggest savings on desktop computers are typically found on Black Friday and Amazon Prime Day, you can actually find a good price on a PC practically any time of the year. When the time comes to upgrade, don’t forget to save our compilation of the finest desktop offers close at hand.

How do you know if you need a laptop or desktop?

The key factors in deciding between a desktop and a laptop are comfort and portability. Although laptops are quite portable, they are not as comfortable to use as desktop computers with larger screens. A desktop, on the other hand, is more constrained yet gives you greater flexibility to utilize any keyboard and mouse combination you desire.

Think about the purposes you have for your machine. A desktop is more sensible, for example, if you’re a gamer. A laptop is often a better choice if you are using it for internet browsing and email replies.

How to choose a desktop computer

Don’t worry if your current PC is so slow that it can’t even run video editing software—let alone Windows Solitaire. For those who must upgrade their computers eventually, there is good news: now is the best moment ever to get a new machine.

At the same time as prices are at an all-time low, computers are growing ever more powerful and feature-rich. However, selecting the best computer for your needs and budget may be a daunting undertaking, particularly for those who are not tech-savvy and are put off by jargon and pushy salespeople.

Laptop or desktop

In case you need portability, a laptop, also called a “notebook,” is the right choice for you. However, a desktop PC can be the superior option if you want the freedom to upgrade other parts (such a better video card or larger hard drive) or add a larger monitor.

Unless you get an all-in-one computer, like a Dell All-in-One or an Apple iMac, which has the display built right into the device, you will also need a monitor to plug into a desktop computer in order to see anything. Once you’ve chosen a laptop, you must think about factors that affect portability, such as size and weight. Although a bigger screen is good, are you willing to put up with the extra size?and weight? The bigger the screen (e.g. 17 inches as opposed to 12 inches), the bigger and heavier the laptop will be.

While laptops are becoming more powerful, a desktop is still better suited for graphic-intensive applications such as computer gaming, video editing, or animation rendering. But if portability is a priority, then laptops are the only way to go.

When choosing between a desktop and a laptop, there are a few more considerations to make such as upfront expenses, accessories, noise and cooling, and computer noise. A laptop should cost slightly more than a desktop computer with comparable specs because you have to pay for a battery as well as the display and input methods. That being said, there are excellent low-cost laptops available.

Because laptops are frequently fairly small devices, when the fans kick in to keep the computer cool, they are likely to make more noise. Due to the better ventilation in the desktop, desktops tend to be quieter than laptops under the same load, even if they can also get noisy when gaming or doing video editing.