Baldur’s Gate 3 was the clear fan favorite of 2023. Unlike many of its competitors, Larian’s masterpiece is also well optimized and runs smoothly even on older systems. We’ll guide you through the best budget PC builds for BG3, as well as the most optimized builds for a flawless gaming experience.

This isn’t a game that relies on graphics or high framerates to reel players in, but a smooth performance with high-fidelity visuals can only enhance the great RPG experience that Baldur’s Gate 3 offers. The starting point for achieving this is meeting the official PC requirements, which are fairly moderate for a major modern release.

This PC build currently retails for around $850 and will be perfectly capable of running Baldur's Gate 3 at a consistent 60 FPS at 1440p resolution on Ultra settings. You can even push for 30 FPS at 4K or reach 60 FPS by lowering the settings a bit or using upscaling. It's the best deal on the market today that won't compromise your BG3 experience.

The 7600 and 7600X are currently so close in price that you might as well go for the latter, but if the price difference is more than $20-30 at the time of purchase, go for the non-X version as it will nearly match the performance of the 7600X and offer much more bang for your buck. Whichever CPU you go for, the DeepCool AK400 will keep it from heating up. AM5 processors can reach up to 95 degrees by default, so you can theoretically save even more on the cooler, but we wouldn’t recommend it for longevity reasons. The few extra dollars for the AK400 are more than worth it.