Want to build the best gaming computer for World of Warcraft (WoW), but you're not too sure where to start? No problem! We've put together 3 of the absolute BEST World of Warcraft computer builds to play WoW in 2020, so you're sure to find the one you're looking for.
On this page you'll find 3 tiers of gaming PC, all put together with WoW in mind. The performance difference between the 3 builds is undeniably noticeable so make sure you pick based on the performance you want (all of which features Windows 10 os).
The first build featured on this list costs less than $400 and will get you into WoW at 30fps on around medium settings (4-5) in 1080p. However, since this build doesn't come with a GPU its performance could be increased substantially (basically doubled) by simply adding a graphics card at some point.
The second build will cost around $650 and is much more balanced for WoW. It'll get right around 60fps with mid-high settings (7-8) in 1080p. Basically, it's the first build with an added graphics card and a better case.
The final build sits at the perfect level to play WoW in 1080p-1440p and won't have any trouble staying above 60fps on max settings (8-10). Its price is a bit steeper than the other 2 builds, but if you're looking for a consistently smooth 60fps experience on max settings then it's undeniably the route you want to take.
Keep in mind that due to WoW's dated engine, all of these builds can experience occasional FPS drops. In big raids, you can expect to see FPS drop quite a bit; but it'll do that even if you're running a NASA supercomputer.
So, now you know how the builds are expected to perform. Which one are you going to pick?
- 1. The Basic Build (30fps)
- 2. The Balanced Build (60fps)
- 3. The Beast Build (60fps+)
Have a question about one of these builds? Ask me in the comment section!
REQUIRED TOOLS
The tools you need:- A small Phillips screwdriver
Size #2 works well as a general rule. - An anti-static wristband
Optional but recommended. - Patience
And lots of it.
That’s really all you need to assemble your new desktop. All of the mounting hardware and cables will come with the parts listed above. The only time you might need something extra is if you’re modifying the build on this page.
HOW TO BUILD YOUR PC...
Super Simplified Build Steps:
- Install the power supply into the case
- Install the processor (CPU)
- Seat RAM in the motherboard
- Mount the CPU cooler (don’t forget thermal paste if you're not using a stock cooler!)
- Insert the motherboard’s rear I/O plate into the case's rear I/O slot
- Mount the motherboard in the case (get your i/o ports through and use the middle standoff as a guide)
- Plug your graphics card into the motherboard
- Install storage drives
- Plug all power and data cables in where they're required (storage, case, motherboard, graphics card, etc)
- Turn your PC on
- Install your OS
- Install and update ALL drivers
- DONE!
In-depth Walkthrough
If you’ve never built a computer before, then you probably want to take some time to learn the basics before getting ahead of yourself. To do that you have a couple of options you can choose from.
The first, and probably the easiest way for most people to learn is finding a walkthrough on YouTube from a reputable tech channel. Here’s one by BitWit as an example.
Alternatively, I’ve put together an in-depth guide on how to build a PC as well as a FAQ to address the most common questions and problems. I've also put together a short post covering 10 of the most common mistakes people make when building.
Best WoW Gaming PCs
Not everybody is into building a PC and people over the past few years have requested me to mention a pre-built option that is great. Well, after 2 years I finally decided to add one in that sits at a similar price range to "the balanced" build and will run the game at about 60 FPS.
SkyTech Blaze VR (RX 580 Version) - Best Prebuilt
The SkyTech Blaze is a great prebuilt PC for Wow due its cost and power that will run Wow and other games with ease.
- CPU: AMD R3 1200
- GPU: 4GB RAM
- RAM: 8GB DDR4 RAM
- Storage: 1TB HDD
- Connectivity: WiFi + Ethernet |1 x Dual-link DVI, 3 x DisplayPort, 1 x HDMI |
- 9 x USB (4 X USB 2.0; 5 X USB3.0)
- Comes with Windows 10 installed
- Comes with a keyboard + mouse
- Includes a 1 year warranty covering parts and labor
1. "The Basic" WoW Gaming PC Build
VIVO V06
Mid tower ATX case with a good layout and okay cable management. Comes with 1x 120mm fan.
Gigabyte B450M DS3H
AM4 socket mATX motherboard, B450 chipset. Loaded with 6x USB and 6x SATA + 1x M.2, built in audio and integrated ethernet.
AMD R3 2200G
A great 3.5GHz 4-core/4-thread processor from AMD with strong integrated Radeon R7 graphics.
EVGA 500 BQ
500W 80+ Bronze rated semi-modular power supply. Up to 85% efficiency and comes with a 3-year warranty.
8GB Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 RAM
2x4GB 2666MHz dual channel DDR4 RAM. More RAM can be added if needed.
Samsung 860 EVO 250GB SSD
Currently the fastest SATA-based SSD available! 550MB/s read, 520MB/s write.
ESTIMATED
$390
AT AMAZON
Build Breakdown - "The Basic"
As the name insinuates, this particular build is about as basic as a gaming computer could possibly be. That said, it's still powerful enough to crank out 30fps on mid settings in WoW, but is still a great PC for League of Legends.
I know, I know... 30fps is not ideal for most people, I get that. But, as a starting point, this is a solid build that could easily have its performance doubled (in WoW) by adding a graphics card like an AMD RX 570 or an Nvidia GEForce GTX 1060 3GB - so about $220. Luckily, that's a part you can easily add whenever you're able to.
With that in mind, let's break this build down and check out the individual components.
Case: The case recommended with this build is a VIVO Case-V06. It's not mindblowing in terms of its features, but it's an all-around good mATX-sized case with an affordable price and it's really easy to build with. Aftermarket CPU cooler support is not very limited as the V06 will support up to 162mm tall coolers. With cooling in mind, the V06 comes with 2x 120mm fans lit by blue LEDs; both will be installed in the front of the case by default, but it's suggested to move one to the rear as an exhaust fan.
If you're not a fan of the Vivo Case-V06, feel free to use basically any other mATX or ATX case that you like more. Cases are easily the most subjective part of any build, so make sure you find one that you like!
Motherboard: The Gigabyte B450M DS3H is a solid mATX motherboard and it's giving you all of the features that you'll need for an AM4 socket build like this one. It gives you integrated audio (including ports and a chipset), a built-in ethernet controller, 6x USB ports, 6x SATA headers, support for up to 4 sticks of DDR4 RAM and lots of room for future expansion.
On top of that, the B450 chipset fully supports overclocking which means you'll have no problem cranking up the power of your R3 2200G.
Processor: AMD's R3 2200G is a powerhouse when it comes to sheer performance for the price. Not only is it able to keep up with comparable Intel processors, but the integrated R7 graphics are quite impressive considering this is a sub-$100 processor.
The R3 2200G comes with a pretty good Wraith Stealth CPU cooler from AMD, but if you're going to be doing a lot of overclocking it wouldn't be a bad idea to upgrade it. If that's you, check out our list of the best CPU coolers of 2020!
Graphics Card: As you might have noticed, this build is devoid of a graphics card - the processor will be handling that for now. However, that doesn't mean you can't add one.
If you find that this build simply does not perform the way you want it to and the FPS is just too low - a compromise made with sub-$500 builds - then you could basically double its performance by adding a dedicated graphics card.
If that's the situation you run into, I would strongly suggest looking at cards like the GTX 1050 Ti, the RX 570, the 4GB RX 580, and the 6GB GTX 1660. All of those cards are all more than powerful enough to handle WoW on somewhere between mid-high settings without a problem as its not a very graphically demanding game (but it eats your processor).
RAM: When it comes to RAM, 8GB is more than enough to handle WoW, especially at this level of build. That is, assuming you're not trying to run Chrome with 500 tabs in the background while streaming your gameplay and rendering video at the same time... Then 8GB will not be enough. Otherwise, it's a perfect amount for games like WoW.
If you find that you need more RAM, you can add more as you see fit. The motherboard will support 2 more sticks (after the 2x4GB in this build) so it could be expanded quite a beyond the default value.
Power Supply: This build does not have a very high power draw, at all. That being said, a 400W power supply would be way more than enough for this build; but instead I went with a semi-modular 500W supply just in case you want to add a graphics card at some point - 500W will ensure you're not limited outside of the most demanding GPUs.
Storage: Since this is a game specific build, I opted for a single 250GB Samsung 860 EVO SSD instead of the typical 1TB HDD you might see in other builds at this level. A 250GB SSD will be more than enough for your OS installation as well as WoW and even a few others games. But, if you play a whole bunch of games then you might want to consider expanding your storage options.
Build Summary - "The Basic"
When it comes down to it, this is a very solid entry-level (basic) gaming computer that can defintely be used to play WoW. Its performance won't blow your mind, and it won't even be that good, but it'll be playable at 30fps and that's undeniably better than nothing!
If you find that 30fps just isn't something you're into after playing for a while, you can basically double this build's current performance by adding a dedicated graphics card like the RX 570 or 3GB GTX 1060... Or, check out the next build!
2. "The Balanced" WoW Gaming PC Build
Corsair Carbide 100R
Mid tower ATX case with a good layout and okay cable management. Comes with 1x 120mm fan.
Gigabyte B450M DS3H
AM4 socket mATX motherboard, B450 chipset. Loaded with 6x USB and 6x SATA + 1x M.2, built in audio and integrated ethernet.
AMD R5 2600
A great 3.9GHz 6-core/12-thread processor from AMD. Can easily handle WoW at 60fps on average. Comes with a CPU cooler.
Sapphire RX 580 8GB
A great 8GB graphics card. No problems with 1080p gaming. More than enough power to easily handle WoW on high settings.
EVGA 550 B3
550W 80+ Bronze rated fully-modular power supply. Up to 85% efficiency and comes with a 5-year warranty.
16GB Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 RAM
2x8GB 3000MHz dual channel DDR4 RAM. More RAM can be added if needed.
Samsung 860 EVO 250GB SSD
The fastest SATA-based SSD on the market right now. 550MB/s read, 520MB/s write!
ESTIMATED
$650
AT AMAZON
Build Breakdown - "The Balanced"
The Balanced Build is just that, balanced. It's not going to blow anyone's mind in any single category, but it'll run WoW at 60fps and that's what we're here for! It'll work great with other games such as LoL, Apex Legends, and more.
With that in mind, this build is packing more than enough power to do just that. It's loaded with a powerful CPU and an equally powerful graphics card and complimented by 16GB of DDR4 RAM. This build won't have any issues running WoW (or basically any other game) on at least high settings in 1080p.
Case: The Corsair Carbide 100R is an all-around good ATX mid-tower case. It features pretty good cable management options and it's ultimately super easy to build with.
The 100R will only support up to 150mm CPU coolers which means you're somewhat limited in terms of which aftermarket coolers you can use. However, it has room for a 140mm radiator which would be large enough to cool the R3 2200G in an AIO liquid cooling loop. Beyond that, it comes with a single 120mm fan that should be setup to exhaust from the rear of the case.
Motherboard: The Gigabyte B450M DS3H is a great mATX motherboard for the price and it's giving you all of the features that you'll need for an AM4 socket build. It gives you integrated audio, a built-in ethernet controller, 6x USB ports, 6x SATA headers, support for up to 4 sticks of DDR4 RAM and lots of room for future expansion. On top of that, the B450 chipset fully supports overclocking which means you'll have no problem cranking up the power of your R3 2200G.
Processor: AMD's R5 2600 is a solid processor when it comes to getting a good amount of performance for hardly any money. Not only is it able to keep up with comparable Intel processors in gaming, but it's currently destroying them in work-based tasks and pretty much anything CPU intensive. The R5 2600 comes with 6-cores and 12-threads clocked to to 3.9GHz by default. When overclocked, the R5 2600 really wakes up and that's when it's real power starts to shine.
The R5 2600 comes with a pretty good Wraith Stealth CPU cooler from AMD by default, but if you're going to be doing a lot of overclocking it would be wise to upgrade. If that's you, check out the best air & liquid CPU coolers!
Graphics Card: The 8GB RX 580 is a great graphics card in terms of both price and performance, it's easily the best option at this level without going too crazy on cost. For this build I chose the Sapphire RX 580 Pulse 8GB for no other reason than it's a good card and one of the best priced options - not the cheapest, but one of the best for a great price.
A GPU like this won't have any problem running WoW on high settings (8-9) without an issue.
RAM: When it comes to WoW, 8GB of DDR4 RAM is more than enough, assuming you're not running a crazy amount of programs in the background... But, RAM is cheap right now so this build is running a respectable 16GB of DDR4 RAM clocked at 3000MHz.
With 16GB of RAM, you'll have no problems playing WoW or any other game in 2019.
Power Supply: Since this build doesn't draw an insane amount of power, a 550W 80+ Bronze-rated supply will work perfectly. So, we've gone with EVGA's 550 B3 which is a great fully-modular PSU that comes with a 5-year warranty. Being a fully-modular supply, it'll make cable management a lot easier AND a lot cleaner than a semi or non-modular PSU would.
Storage: Since this is a game specific build, a 250GB SSD is a perfect fit. The Samsung 860 EVO is currently the fastest SATA-based SSD on the market and it'll make load times a thing of the past. 250GB is more than enough space to fit your OS installation, WoW, and a few other games, but it won't fit much more than that. So, if you play a lot of games, it wouldn't be a bad idea to expand your storage with either another SSD or an HDD.
Build Summary - "The Balanced"
At its core, this is a very balanced gaming PC, especially when it comes to a game like WoW. The R5 2600 has enough power to handle what it needs to, as long as it's paired with an adequate graphics card. Enter the RX 580, it's powerful enough to handle WoW on good settings without a problem. Throw in 16GB of RAM and now you have a really great computer to play WoW on.
So, if you're aiming to play WoW in 1080p on high settings while getting 60fps, this is the build you need.
If that's not enough to quench your thirst for maximum performance, we still have one more build left!
3."The Beast" WoW Gaming PC Build
NZXT H510i
An awesome mid-tower ATX case with a great layout and good cable management options. Comes with 2x 120mm fans and 2 RGB lightstrips + an RGB controller.
Gigabyte Z390 UD
LGA 1151 socket, Z390 chipset motherboard. Supports overclocking. Equipped with 6x SATA headers, 1x M.2 NVMe, and 4 DIMMs for RAM.
Intel i5 9600K
9th generation Intel i5 CPU with 6 cores and 6 threads. Performs very well in all games, especially WoW and even more when overclocked!
— Does not come with a CPU cooler.
MSI GTX 1660 Ti Ventus XC
6GB GDDR6, 5 display outputs, great 1080p & 1440p performance in all games.
Seasonic Focus Gold 550W
550W semi-modular Gold-rated power supply, up to 87% efficiency at 100% load. Comes with a 7-year warranty.
16GB Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 RAM
2x8GB 3000MHz dual channel DDR4 RAM. More RAM can be added if needed.
Samsung 860 EVO 250GB SSD
Currently the fastest SATA-based SSD available. 550MB/s read, 520MB/s write. Say goodbye to load times!
Arctic Freezer 34
Since the i5 9600K does not come with a stock CPU cooler, you’ll need an aftermarket unit. Arctic’s Freezer 34 is an awesome option that comes in 4 colors.
ESTIMATED
$1000
AT AMAZON
Build Breakdown - "The Beast"
Now, this isn't necessarily a beast on the gaming PC scale as a whole, but it is a beast when you're talking a dedicated build for World of Warcraft! It's seriously the best computer for wow that you can get without having to overpay for a machine.
For under $1000, this beast is very impressive in terms of price vs performance - even in games more demanding than WoW. The 6GB GTX 1660 Ti is a complete 1080p/1440p powerhouse and when it's paired with an i5 9600K you have a very capable gaming PC build.
With this build, ultra settings are well within reach in the vast majority of games, WoW included.
Case: The NZXT H510i is one of the best mid-tower ATX cases out there. It has good cable management options, comes with 2x 120mm fans, and has ample airflow to keep your parts breathing fresh air (they need it!).
It'll support up to a 360mm radiator in the front and can easily fit an AIO liquid cooling loop or air CPU coolers up to 160mm in height. It also comes equipped with 2 RGB LED light strips and even an RGB/fan controller.
As an added bonus, the H500i comes with integrated vertical GPU mount support. It's not the absolute best setup option in terms of cooling, but it sure looks good! To vertically mount your GPU, you would need a PCIe x16 riser around 6-8 inches in length.
Motherboard: Gigabyte's Z390 UD ATX motherboard is a good option in terms of basic Z390 boards. It's on the low end of the price spectrum, but it comes with everything you'll need for this build and then some. On top of supporting CPU overclocking, you're getting 6x SATA ports, 1x NVMe M.2 port, 6x USB ports and good integrated audio.
Processor: Intel's i5 9600K is a gaming beast. It has 6 cores and 6 threads of "let me at 'em" that chews through games without hesitation.
When it comes to WoW - a mostly CPU bound game - the i5 9600K won't have any issues pushing performance that nets well above 60fps (most of the time). Due to WoW's nature of relatively poor performance regardless of your system specs, there's a chance you may experience quick spikes near or even potentially below 60fps regardless if you're running the most powerful CPU on the planet or an i5 9600K.
Graphics Card: The 6GB GTX 1660 Ti is a great graphics card in terms of both price and performance, it's easily the best options at this level without going too crazy on cost.
MSI's GTX 1660 Ti Ventus XC OC 6G (quite the name, I know) runs great, overclocks well, and doesn't get too hot when being pushed hard. It offers 6GB of GDDR6 VRAM, 5 display outputs, and a size profile that'll fit inside practically any case out there. Long story short, the GTX 1660 Ti is easily capable of supporting VR headsets like the Vive or Rift as well as playing most AAA games in 1080p or 1440p at 60fps+ without an issue.
RAM: When it comes to RAM, 8GB is more than enough for playing World of Warcraft in 2020, really. But, since this IS the "Beast Build", we're going to run 16GB just to make sure there's never an issue.
Running 16GB of RAM will ensure that you can effectively multitask while running WoW. It'll give you more than enough headroom to run multiple apps in multiple monitors plus WoW itself.
Power Supply: There are a lot of high performance parts in this build, so its fair if you're assuming its going to need a gigantic power supply, but luckily it won't! At most this build will only use a few hundred watts of power, so an 87% efficient 550W supply will do the trick just fine. In fact, 550W gives you plenty of headroom for this build.
I've picked Seasonic's Focus Gold 550W which is an awesome semi-modular Gold-rated PSU offering more than enough connections for everything you need. It also comes with a 7-year warranty just in-case the worst were to happen.
Storage: Since this is a game specific build, a 250GB SSD like the Samsung 860 EVO is perfect. Not only that, but the 860 EVO is currently the fastest SATA-based SSD available and it'll effectively eliminate load times all but entirely!
Build Summary - "The Beast"
When it comes to WoW, this build is a beast and won't have any issues pushing well above 60fps on max settings most of the time. Compared to other $1000 builds, it's still pretty beastly.
Outside of WoW, you can expect this build to run ultra settings in 1080p while getting 60fps+ in all but the most insanely demanding/unoptimized games.
Operating System
Picking an operating system can often feel like you have no options. It's Windows or nothing, right? Wrong! You actually have a few options, they're just (arguably) not as easy to start out with and can cause a bit of confusion.
One example of another option would be a free Linux-based OS; like Mint or Ubuntu. Linux has a fair amount of advantages, but it also has a few disadvantages. One disadvantage is it's lack of compatibility with quite a few programs/games - however there are ways around this. But, on the other hand, it's free and some would say more secure.
The more expensive option is buying a copy of Windows. With DirectX 12 becoming more common and the modern processors basically demanding Windows 10, you might want to consider jumping on that right away, but it's ultimately your call. This will ensure that every Windows game or program you want to run will work out of the box without any extra work involved.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is WoW more CPU or GPU?
Wow is more CPU intensive than GPU.
What is a good FPS for WoW?
A good FPS for Wow is anywhere from 40-50 which is enough to play Wow without any stuttering. Many gamers enjoy closer to 60-80 FPS which can be achieved fairly easily with 8 GB of ram.
Is 8gb RAM enough for WoW?
8GB RAM is enough for WoW. The recommended amount is 4 GB so with 8 GB the game will be able to run really well.
How do I reduce lag in WoW?
You can reduce lag in Wow by taking the following steps:
- Reduce graphic settings
- Reduce resolution
- Improve your internet connection
- Use a leg reducer
- Prioritize game processes over others
- Restart your computer regularly
Conclusion
If you landed here trying to find yourself the absolute best gaming computer for WoW, I hope you found what you were looking for!
Out of the 3 builds on this page, one of them HAD to have met your expectations... That is, unless you're aiming to play WoW in 4K, then you might want to make some minor (but expensive) alterations. Short of that, there's no way you couldn't find your build here!
If you want a great laptop for Wow then check out the HP Omen 17.
Have a question about one of these builds? Wondering how you could customize it? Running into problems during the build process? Let me know in the comment section and I’ll do my best to assist!
if i replace the graphics card to
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 will i need to update anything else on the “Beast Pc” 3rd option?
Will these builds still be able to play at ultra settings in Shadowlands or does the Shadowlands recommended specs change anything? I’m really just looking at the ‘Balanced’ or ‘Beast’ builds. Thanks!
Have the beast build mostly except idk if I will transfer the 1060 3 gb as a stop gap card. The new cards are hitting soon, Amphere and Big Navi but am really just looking to 1080p, m+, and raid lightly at decent fps. 1660 ti and older cards are being discounted due to discontinuation atm.
Hello Brenton, I would like to built “The Beast” pc and I have a question. If I want to change the processor I5-9600 to I7-9700 unlocked should I change anything else?
Thank You
Flagro, don’t need to change anything else, you’ll be good!
Thank you so much!
Thank you so much!
So Im thinking about doing either the 2nd or 3rd option, and I was wondering if these would also help performance on other games, like maybe overwatch or some other games on steam (maybe Albion Online or CS:GO). First time making a pc and was was just wondering. If its not known then its alright.
The 2nd one can definitely handle both Albion and CS:GO. If you really like maximum performance settings though then you’ll want to go for the third (and best build), but you can definitely run those games well with the 2nd build.
Coolio, thank you for the info!
Hey Branton thanks for this. I just got done with the beast build minus the GPU for now… In your opinion is Overclocking with this setup strictly for wow worth it?
Hey David, it’s probably not worth it at this point. Do you feel like it needs some extra capabilities for WoW?
So far I’m happy I have never had anything that I could run the graphics over the minimum so I am in a different world already!!!! This is the nicest PC I have ever owned. lol That being said I have never had a PC with over-clocking capabilities.When looking into setups and tuning I kept seeing overclock, overclock , overclock…. I just thought I would ask if it was even worth the gain. Again, thank you so much. I can’t wait for shadowlands it’s like an entire different world now seeing things I never knew were even there!!!!
Working on the beast. Waiting on the oc board to arrive. Haven’t set mine up but slight OC and recently did ram OC on my i5 skylake 1060 3 gb from nighthold days. Software can OC it also idk how the bios is on the board yet. Main thing on skylake was the ultimate performance and core unlocks idk if this is done on new rig yet. I went with mid-range mobo, still was a bit more than I planned on spending but hopefully it’s worth. Will update the card, not sure when cause Amphere is dropping and well older cards were discontinued, big back is expected too. I am cpu bottlenecked on my old rig though I get nice fps for casual things.
Will see, but thinking of running a light overclock if necessary. Light OC did wonders for skylake i5. Raids and visions seem to be where I could stress test soon. I think that old karazhan would simulate raid mobs and orgrimmar vision would check performance.
Would rtx2060super work better than gtx1660ti on “Beast” config?
I’d just go with the GTX1660ti since it’s going to be more than enough for some awesome performance and it’s a little cheaper. You’re not going to get much if anything out of the 2060