Budget desktop PCs used to have a bad reputation: You would have to resign yourself to buying a new one in a year or at most three. Thankfully, today's inexpensive systems will last at least twice that if your needs are as modest as your bottom line. These PCs are certainly able to surf the Web, stream videos to a TV, or work on Office documents and other everyday productivity tasks. Heck, you can even play games on some of them.
As usual, you'll find low-power processors among the low-cost desktops. But systems built on ARM processors running Chrome OS and systems with AMD and Intel processors running Windows 10 aren't the sloth-like performers you may have bought into when nettops were all the rage not that many years ago. All of them will have at least dual-core CPUs (and some have quad-core chips), and most just take a few seconds to boot up. Web browsing and viewing online videos are a snap, though you'll still want a more powerful (and more expensive) chip if you're planning on editing video or holding Web conferences for business with multiple participants.
You'll still find systems with 2GB of memory at the lowest end ($200 to $250), though today's entry-level desktops will come with 4GB or more. Storage will either be a 16GB to 64GB solid-state drive (SSD) or a standard hard drive with capacity up to about 1TB. Look for higher-capacity storage if you're a serial downloader, but note that even 16GB is sufficient for a Chromebox that is on the Internet 24/7. SSDs trade capacity for speed, especially in day-to-day tasks. If you ever need more storage space, USB 3.0 ports will let you attach a speedy external hard drive or SSD.
Gaming used to be a pipe dream at these prices, but desktops with lower-end processors from AMD and Intel, combined with relatively beefy discrete AMD and Nvidia GPUs, will give you a decent gaming experience.
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One caveat: You'll need to budget a hundred bucks or more for a monitor, unless your desktop of choice is an all-in-one or you're planning on using a display you already own from a previous system. Using a TV as a monitor is an option for system with an HDMI-out port, something that just about all PCs have today (and something current stick PC designs capitalize on). Most budget PCs include a keyboard and mouse; they'll work fine, though they are likely to be a little cheap feeling compared with third-party keyboards and mice. (We have you covered if you want to shop for a keyboard or mouse, too, by the way.)
The good news, though, is that even your modest investment may be compounded in the long run. Just because these computers are small and inexpensive doesn't mean that most of them aren't also upgradable. So if it turns out the storage, RAM, or other components aren't what you need, you may be able to perform the key tweaks yourself with a minimum of fuss. And if you want something even cheaper—just $35!—the Raspberry Pi gives you a bare circuit-board canvas to create one of the simplest but most extensible computers you can imagine.
If you're replacing a dual-core or middle-of-the-road quad-core system that has gotten to be a bit too slow or worn out, then a budget desktop may be in your future. Check out our roundup below for some of our favorites. Also check out our overall top desktop picks and, if you're so inclined, our favorite cheap laptops.