Best desktop computer for 2025: Top picks for Macs and PCs

Price

You will find a good PC tower of brands such as Acer, Asus, Dell or HP for 500 and 600 US dollars that will prove to be useful for general use for years. The specifications that we would suggest for a simple Windows 11 machine:

Intel Core i5 (13th or 14th generation) or AMD Ryzen 5 (6000, 7000 or 8000 series)
Standard -integrated graphics (such as Intel UHD or Iris or Baseline AMD Radeon)
16 GB RAM or more
512 GB or larger NVME -SD drive
Four or more USB 3.1 or 3.2 ports with USB-C and USB A formats (at least one or two front)
Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Wireless
At least one PCI -E (X16) Introduction slot (to add a graphics card)

Would you like to carry out a few PC games or spend time to edit photos or videos? You would like to impose the configuration with more RAM and better graphics options. Expect that the price points between $ 800 and $ 1,200 are (or even higher) if you choose a better graphics card for bleeding.

NVIDIA RTX or AMD Radeon RX Graphics Card (GPU)
16 GB RAM or more
450 watt (or more) power supply

Operating system

Microsoft Windows and Apple’s MacOS basically do the same things, but they do them differently. If you have no OS-specific application you need, go with the one you feel most comfortable. Most desktops carry out Microsoft Windows, while the iMac, Mac Mini, Mac Studio and Mac Pro Desktop from Apple from Apple from Apple from Apple. There is also the ODD Chromebox offering based on Google’s Chromeos. A chromebox is easier to use and usually cheaper than a Windows PC or a Mac, but cannot do Windows or Mac software.

processor

The processor, also known as the CPU, is the brain of a desktop. Intel and AMD are the main CPU manufacturers for Windows desktops. Both offer an amazing selection of processors. You can set off Intel or AMDS Websites for explanations so that you can get the desired service. The current line -up of Intel is the 13th generation of core chips, whereby the 14th generation processors are expected in early 2024. The current AMD desktop processor is the Ryzen 7000 series. In general, however, the faster the processor speed and the more kernels it has, the better the performance.

Apple makes its own chips for Macs, which makes things a little easier. The iMac and Mac Mini offers Apple’s latest M4 processor. The Mac Studio has an M2 Max or M2 Ultra, while the Mac Pro is based on the M2 Ultra. In general, the more kernels it has, the better the performance.

graphic

The graphics processor (GPU) does the entire work to drive the screen and to create what is displayed and accelerate many graphics (and increasingly AI-related) processes. For Macs, the M -Series processors from Apple integrate the GPU. There are two types of GPUS for Windows desktops: integrated (IGPU) or discrete (DGPU). As the names imply, an IGPU is part of the CPU package, while a DGPU is a separate chip with a dedicated memory (VRAM), with which it communicates directly and makes it faster than sharing memory with the CPU.

Since the IGPU divides space, storage and strength with the CPU, it is restricted by the limits of it. It enables smaller desktops such as an all-in-one or SFF-PC, but does not work almost as well as a DGPU. In fact, there are some games and creative software that are not executed if you recognize a DGPU or a sufficient VRAM. Most productivity software, video streaming, webbrowsing and other non -specified apps are well executed on an IGPU.

You need a DGPU for power-hungry graphic requirements such as video editing, games and streaming, design, etc. They only make two real companies: Nvidia and AMD, although Intel offers some based on the IGPU technology of the XE-Branded (or the older UHD graphics branding) in its CPUs.

Memory

We recommend at least 16 GB RAM for the memory. In RAM, the operating system stores all data for currently executed applications and can fill out quickly. Then it begins to exchange between RAM and SSD, which is slower. Some lower models only deliver 8 GB, which, in connection with a slower hard drive, can provide a frustrating slow window experience.

Tower PCs usually have free internal slots to add more RAM sticks, but all-in-one and SFF PCs may not be. Even if this is the case, these Dimm -slots could be difficult to access.

storage

You may still find a cheaper hard drive in a budget desktop and larger hard drives in gaming PCs, but faster Solid-State-State drives (SSDS) have as well replaced the hard drives. You can make a big difference in performance. Not all SSDs are equally fast and cheaper desktop usually have slower drives. If your PC only has 8 GB RAM, this may be able to switch to this drive, and the system can slow down quickly during work.

Get what you can afford, but we recommend at least 512 GB for a desktop for most users. We recommend 1 TB or more to store large media or play libraries. If you have to drive with a smaller drive, you can usually add a second internal drive to a tower PC. With all-in-one and SFF PCs, an external drive or a cloud memory is usually the easier choice to strengthen a small internal drive.

An all-in-one integrates the display into the components of the computer, which are not placed in a tower or in a small form factor housing, but behind the display or in its base. The compromise for this space -saving, optimized design is fewer options for upgrades. For the display you want a large screen with a good resolution. The sweet spots we would suggest are: