Best Gaming PC Under £800 UK 2026
Lennon Byatt
You don’t need to spend £1,500 to get into PC gaming.
With a budget of around £800, you can already find systems capable of strong 1080p gaming, high frame rates in competitive titles and enough performance to enjoy newer releases without immediately reaching for the lowest settings.
The important part is knowing where your money actually matters.
Here’s what we’d look for in a gaming PC under £800 in 2026.
Recommended 1440p Gaming PC Specifications
For the best balance of performance and value, we recommend:
| Component | Recommendation |
|
CPU
|
AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
|
|
GPU
|
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 or AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT
|
|
RAM
|
32GB DDR5 6000MHz
|
|
Storage
|
2TB PCIe Gen4 NVMe SSD
|
|
Motherboard
|
B650
|
|
PSU
|
750W 80 PLUS Gold
|
This specification is capable of running modern AAA games at high frame rates while providing plenty of headroom for future releases.
Browse AWD-IT's latest AMD Ryzen Processors:
https://www.awd-it.co.uk/components/cpu-processors/amd-cpu.html
What Should You Expect From an £800 Gaming PC?
At this price, 1080p should be the priority.
That doesn’t mean the PC can never play at 1440p. Some games absolutely will. But if you’re buying your first gaming PC and want the best balance of image quality and frame rate, 1080p makes a lot of sense.
A good system around this budget should ideally have:
- A dedicated graphics card
- A modern 6-core processor
- At least 16GB of RAM
- SSD storage
- Enough upgrade potential for later
You don’t need the newest version of every component.
What matters is getting a balanced system rather than spending most of the budget on one impressive-looking specification.
Best Overall Value: Radeon RX 7600
One of the strongest value options currently below £800 is the AWD-IT Mars, pairing an AMD Ryzen 5 5500 with a Radeon RX 7600 8GB.
At the time of writing, AWD-IT lists the system at £719.99.
The RX 7600 makes this particularly interesting for someone focused on 1080p gaming.
AWD-IT’s own testing estimates roughly 160–280+ FPS in competitive titles at 1080p and around 70–110 FPS in demanding AAA games, depending on the title and settings.
That makes it well suited to games such as:
- Fortnite
- Valorant
- Counter-Strike 2
- Call of Duty
- Forza
- GTA V
- Minecraft
- Many modern single-player games
The RX 7600 makes this particularly interesting for someone focused on 1080p gaming
Best NVIDIA Option: RTX 5050
If you’d prefer to stay with NVIDIA, the RTX 5050 8GB is another option currently appearing below the £800 mark.
The AWD-IT Mesh pairs the RTX 5050 with a Ryzen 5 5500 and is currently listed at £779.99.
AWD-IT estimates roughly 120–220+ FPS in competitive 1080p games, with demanding AAA titles around 60–100 FPS at 1080p, depending on graphics settings and the individual game.
You also get access to NVIDIA features such as DLSS and Frame Generation in compatible games.
That can be useful when a newer title starts pushing the GPU harder.
Another RTX 5050 Option: AWD-IT M120R
The AWD-IT M120R offers another Ryzen 5 5500 and RTX 5050 combination, currently listed at £789.99.
AWD-IT estimates around 120–220+ FPS in competitive games at 1080p, while heavier titles can typically sit around 55–90 FPS at 1080p with appropriate settings.
This is a good example of why you shouldn’t only compare PCs by their CPU and GPU names.
Two systems can use similar core hardware but differ in:
- Case design
- Cooling
- Storage
- Motherboard
- Power supply
- Upgrade options
- Overall appearance
Once performance is similar, those details can help decide which system suits you better.
Look at the complete system and the games you actually play
AMD or NVIDIA Under £800?
There isn’t one answer that works for everyone.
AMD Radeon
A Radeon-based system can offer strong traditional gaming performance for the money.
If your priority is simply getting the most out of your budget at 1080p, an option such as the RX 7600 is well worth considering.
NVIDIA GeForce
An NVIDIA system may appeal more if you want access to features such as DLSS and supported Frame Generation.
Neither badge on the graphics card automatically makes the entire PC better.
Look at the complete system and the games you actually play.
That’s more useful than buying based on brand alone.
Average FPS vs 1% Low
Here’s a simple example:
| Gaming PC | Average FPS | 1% Low |
|
PC A
|
160 FPS
|
65 fps
|
|
PC B
|
145 FPS
|
110 FPS
|
At first glance, PC A looks faster because it has the higher average FPS.
But PC B maintains much stronger performance during demanding moments.
For someone actually playing the game, PC B may therefore provide the smoother and more consistent experience.
This is one reason AWD-IT's existing performance guides sometimes refer to maintaining strong 1% lows alongside average FPS.
Bigger Numbers Don’t Always Mean Better for You
This is an important one.
A higher model number can often mean a newer or more powerful product, but that doesn’t automatically mean it is the right choice for your setup.
If you only want to play games at 1080p, you may not need the same hardware as someone gaming at 4K.
Likewise, someone playing competitive games has different priorities from someone mainly playing slower single-player titles.
The best gaming PC is not always the one with the biggest numbers.
It’s the one that matches what you actually want to do.
Is the Ryzen 5 5500 Still Good Enough?
You’ll notice the Ryzen 5 5500 appears in several PCs around this price.
It’s a 6-core processor, and pairing it with GPUs in this performance range keeps the overall system affordable.
Would a newer high-end Ryzen processor be faster?
Of course.
But at an £800 total budget, putting hundreds of pounds more into the CPU could mean sacrificing the graphics card — and for a gaming-focused machine, that may leave you with a worse overall experience.
This is what we mean by a balanced gaming PC.
The most expensive component isn’t always the smartest one.
How Much RAM Should You Look For?
For a budget gaming PC in 2026, we’d want at least 16GB.
That gives you enough memory for Windows, your game and normal background applications without getting too carried away with the budget.
32GB is useful if you’re also:
- Streaming
- Editing
- Running lots of applications
- Using heavier simulation games
- Planning to keep the PC for several years
But if the choice is between spending extra on RAM or getting a noticeably better graphics card, gaming performance should usually be the priority.
RAM is also one of the easier components to upgrade later.
RAM is also one of the easier components to upgrade later
Background Downloads Are Easy to Miss
Modern games receive large updates, and your launcher may continue downloading additional content while you’re playing.
Windows, Steam, Discord, cloud storage and other applications can also be active in the background.
If your performance suddenly feels worse after installing an update, open Task Manager and check whether anything else is heavily using your:
CPU, RAM, storage or network connection.
Sometimes the simplest explanation is the right one.
Best Sim Racing Setup for Beginners: Start With the Essentials
You don’t need a full cockpit immediately. A well‑chosen beginner setup helps you develop skills faster and keeps costs under control.
1. Steering Wheel and Pedals (Top Priority)
Your wheel and pedals are the most important part of any sim racing rig. Force feedback allows you to feel grip changes, kerbs, and steering resistance—crucial for learning car control.
Beginner tip: Focus on force feedback quality rather than raw power.
Your wheel and pedals are the most important part of any sim racing rig. Force feedback allows you to feel grip changes, kerbs, and steering resistance—crucial for learning car control.
Creators in attendance
Stacked lineup
Experience zones
Arcades · Sim rigs · PCs
Tech on display
Latest gen builds
Verdict
Showroom certified
Pick Your Tier
We've named each tier after a tournament stage, because let's be honest, that's exactly the kind of thing we'd do. Find your budget and dive in.
Group Stage
Round of 32
Quarter Final
World Cup Final
Don't Forget Your Monitor
Your PC can produce hundreds of frames every second, but your monitor also needs to be capable of displaying high refresh rates for you to fully benefit from them.
A smoother combination of strong FPS, consistent frame delivery and an appropriate refresh rate can make games feel significantly better.
If you're unsure what Hz means, read AWD-IT's guide to why monitor refresh rate matters, or browse the latest gaming monitors.
A smoother combination of strong FPS, consistent frame delivery and an appropriate refresh rate can make games feel significantly better.
How Much Storage Do You Need?
We’d aim for 1TB of SSD storage where the budget allows.
Modern games are large.
Once Windows, launchers and a few major games are installed, a smaller SSD can fill up faster than you expect.
The good news is that storage is another part of a gaming PC that can usually be expanded later.
So don’t reject an otherwise strong system solely because you may want another SSD in the future.
More demanding games will require a little more thought
What Games Can an £800 Gaming PC Play?
A modern gaming PC in this bracket should be comfortable with a wide range of games.
For example:
Competitive Games
Titles such as Valorant, Fortnite and Counter-Strike 2 are generally much easier to run than the latest cinematic AAA releases.
That means an £800 system can make a lot of sense if your goal is 1080p high-refresh-rate gaming.
AAA Games
More demanding games will require a little more thought.
You may need to use:
- High instead of Ultra settings
- DLSS or FSR
- Frame Generation where supported
- A sensible FPS target
That isn’t a bad thing.
Ultra settings aren't a requirement for enjoying PC games.
Often, High settings look extremely similar while offering noticeably better performance.
Expected Gaming Performance
|
Your Setup
|
1440p High
|
|
1080p Single Monitor
|
Modern 6-core CPU, RTX 5060-class GPU, 16–32GB RAM
|
|
1440p Single Monitor
|
Strong modern CPU, RTX 5070-class GPU, 32GB RAM
|
|
Triple Screens
|
Strong CPU, RTX 5070 Ti / RX 9070 XT-class GPU or above, 32GB RAM
|
|
VR
|
Modern 8-core CPU, powerful current GPU, 32GB RAM
|
These aren't hard requirements.
They're sensible starting points for a new gaming PC, with some headroom rather than simply aiming to scrape past iRacing's minimum specification.
Your required performance will vary with resolution, monitor count, VR headset, grid size, graphics settings, drivers and other software running in the background.
Do You Need to Connect Every Port?
Absolutely not.
This is probably the most useful thing for a beginner to know.
The back of a gaming PC may have lots of connections because it needs to support many different setups.
You don't need to fill them all.
For a basic gaming setup, you may only need:
Power
Monitor
Keyboard
Mouse
Internet
Audio
That's enough to start gaming.
Everything else can be added when you need it.
Should You Spend Slightly More Than £800?
This is worth considering.
At the time of writing, AWD-IT has several RTX 5060 systems sitting just above the £800 mark.
For example, the RTX 5060 Charger is currently listed at £809.99, while the RTX 5060 Forge is £824.99.
That creates an important question:
If your absolute budget is £800, stick to it.
But if you can comfortably stretch another £20–£30, check what that additional money actually gets you before ordering.
Sometimes the next GPU tier is close enough in price that stretching the budget makes sense.
Other times it doesn’t.
That’s why comparing current prices matters.
Don't Forget the Monitor
There’s little point building a PC capable of high frame rates and pairing it with a display that doesn’t suit the system.
For an £800 gaming PC, 1080p at 120Hz, 144Hz, 165Hz or similar can make a very good pairing depending on the games you play.
Competitive gamers will benefit more from higher refresh rates.
Someone mainly playing slower single-player games may care more about screen size and image quality.
Again, balance matters.
A sensible £800 system can be your starting point
Can You Upgrade an £800 Gaming PC Later?
Yes — and that’s one of the biggest advantages of getting into PC gaming.
Over time, you can potentially upgrade things such as:
RAM
Storage
Graphics card
Processor
Cooling
You don’t need to buy your final gaming PC on day one.
A sensible £800 system can be your starting point.
Then upgrade when your needs actually change.
So, What's the Best Gaming PC Under £800?
At current AWD-IT pricing, we’d look closely at three options:
AWD-IT Mars – Ryzen 5 5500 + RX 7600
Great value if straightforward 1080p gaming performance is the priority.
AWD-IT Mesh – Ryzen 5 5500 + RTX 5050
A strong NVIDIA option with support for modern RTX features.
AWD-IT M120R – Ryzen 5 5500 + RTX 5050
Similar core performance with a different overall build and design.
Prices and configurations can change, so always check the current specification before ordering.
The Bottom Line
£800 is enough to buy a proper gaming PC in 2026.
You aren't shopping for 4K Ultra at this budget.
But you don't need to be.
For someone looking for:
Strong 1080p performance
High FPS in esports games
A dedicated modern GPU
Room to upgrade later
there are already some very capable systems available.
Focus on the graphics card first, keep the CPU balanced, get enough RAM and storage for your needs, and don't pay extra for specifications you won't actually use.
That's how you get more gaming PC for your budget.
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