Today we’re covering the ~$800 prebuilt gaming PC market. $800 can get you a decent gaming PC for 1080p gaming. The only major downside is that prebuilts with dedicated GPUs usually only include 8GB of single-channel memory, which is the same amount you’ll get in cheaper PCs. At least you can get much better GPUs compared to lower market segments; think GTX 1660 Super/Ti or GTX 1650 Super.
Scroll down and find the best prebuilt gaming PC under $800. They range from value options, in case your $800 budget has to include the PC and a monitor, to more expensive gaming machines that pack excellent GPUs and CPUs for the price. As we already said, the only major downside is that a great majority of PCs priced at or near $800 come with 8GB of RAM. Of course, you also got cases with low airflow, but that’s an issue affecting prebuilt gaming PCs in every price segment.
If your budget is lower than $800, we recommend checking out our lists of the best gaming PCs under $600 and the best gaming PCs under $500. On the other hand, if you plan on spending more on your next PC, read our guide for the best gaming PCs under $1000. Ok, now let’s kickstart this list with the best bang-for-buck prebuilt gaming PC under $800.
1. HP Victus 15L: Best bang-for-buck prebuilt gaming PC under $800
The best bang for your buck prebuilt gaming PC for less than $800 is the HP Victus 15L, version with 8GB of memory. This is a capable gaming PC powered by a Ryzen 5 5600G + GTX 1660 Super combo. The CPU here is a fast 6-core CPU that you can pair with any current GPU. The 5600G can match the performance of the Core i5-10400F or the Ryzen 7 3700X. Overall, great CPU for the money and one that’s very popular in cheaper prebuilt gaming rigs.
Next is the GTX 1660 Super, which is a welcome change compared to cheaper prebuilt PCs, which usually feature cards on the level of the GTX 1650/RX 5500 or slower. The GTX 1660 Super, on the other hand, is good enough to run new AAA games with high level of detail in 1080p resolution and with 60 frames per second or higher.
You’ll have to lower some visuals in games such as Cyberpunk 2077 to achieve that level of performance but in most games, expect an excellent gaming experience. As for esports titles, this card can run them even in 1440p and high refresh rates.
The rest of the specs is what you’d expect at this price point—8 GB of single-channel memory and a 256GB SSD. The good news is that if you can go a bit over the $800 budget, the linked listing includes a version of this PC with 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD.
If you have already planned to upgrade RAM, we recommend you get the 16GB RAM version instead. Finally, do not forget that you can upgrade the 5600G CPU with any other Ryzen 5000 part in the future.
2. ASUS ROG Strix GL10: Prebuilt gaming PC under $800 with best GPU
The ASUS ROG Strix GL10 is yet another excellent deal that includes a solid CPU and GPU combo at an attractive price. The Ryzen 5 3600X is a bit slower than the 5600G found in the HP Victus 15L, while the GTX 1660 Ti is about five to seven percent faster than the GTX 1660 Super. This technically makes the ROG Strix GL10 the best prebuilt gaming PC under $800 if all you care about is having the best graphics card for the money.
This CPU & GPU combo is perfect for playing the latest and greatest AAA games in 1080p and 60fps with high or even ultra details. Of course, only 8GB of single-channel memory will lead to occasional stutter when playing more demanding games, but overall performance should hover around 60fps.
Of course, older games and esports titles will run flawlessly, way over 60fps. You can also play those in 1440p resolution but with reduced frame rates. Think 40-60fps for older AAA games, while esports titles should keep running at tripper digit frame rates.
Yet again, we have 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD. The catch here is that a 16GB RAM version of this PC, available on the same listing, is way pricier than the 16GB RAM version of Victus 15L.
Our recommendation is that you get a 16GB RAM kit (or an additional 8GB stick of memory) and install it instead of opting for a 16GB RAM version of the ROG Strix GL10. Also, don’t forget that you can upgrade the CPU for any Ryzen 5000 CPU in the future. If you opt for a CPU upgrade in the future, you should aim for at least the Ryzen 5 5600.
3. HP Pavilion TG-01: Best value prebuilt gaming PC under $800
Now, if your $800 budget has to include a PC and a monitor, take a look at the HP Pavilion TG-01. This is the best value prebuilt gaming PC under $800 since you can get this PC and a decent 1080p 144Hz gaming monitor for about $800.
The CPU & GPU combo is the good old Ryzen 5 5600G and an RX 5500. This CPU also powers our best overall pick, so you know this is an excellent choice when found in a PC that’s much cheaper than our best overall pick.
As for the GPU, the RX 5500 has 4GB of video memory, but it can offer [email protected] experience in the latest and greatest games with medium to high details, depending on the game. Just remember to lower the textures since 4GB of video memory is quite limiting these days. Esports games will, of course, work flawlessly and at frame rates way higher than 100.
This PC also includes 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD, which is par for the course at this price point. So yeah, the first thing you should upgrade is definitely memory since 16GB of dual-channel RAM will notably improve your performance. Around 20 percent in most games, while some titles might see an even bigger boost to frame rates.
4. HP Pavilion Gaming Desktop: Best prebuilt gaming PC under $800 with 16GB of RAM
This is the PC to get if you want 16GB of memory for less than $800. This is a rare prebuilt PC with 16GB of memory that isn’t refurbished, and that includes a dedicated graphics card. Regarding the CPU, the Ryzen 5 5600G can offer a great 1080p experience in every current game, as long as it has a capable GPU at its side. And the RX 5500 is a pretty capable graphics card in the ~800 prebuilt PC market.
Of course, older games and most popular multiplayer games will run flawlessly, without any hitches or noticeable stuttering. The GPU here is the aforementioned RX 5500. This is a pretty capable graphics card that can achieve about 60 frames per second in 1080p with medium to high settings in AAA games and triple-digit framerates in esports titles in 1080p and 1440p.
The star of the show here is 16GB of dual-channel memory, which means you don’t have to upgrade RAM in order to experience stutter-free gameplay. Another positive about this PC is that it comes with both a 256GB SSD and a 1TB hard drive. In other words, the storage situation here is much better than with our other picks.
At the end of the day, this is the best prebuilt gaming PC under $800 for users who don’t want to open the case and upgrade memory or storage and who instead just want to turn on the PC and play some games. Aside from 16GB of memory this PC also includes a Razer Mamba wireless gaming mouse, which is a pretty good budget gaming mouse and nice to see in a prebuilt PC.
Other PCs on this list have better graphics cards, but they all pack only 8GB of memory, which means you’ll have to spend extra cash to get the most out of them. Just don’t forget to uninstall the NOD32 Antivirus that comes free with this PC. We recommend using Windows Defender instead.