The Best Windows Mini PCs for 2023

Our guide here will explore the nuances of today’s smallest PCs. First, we’ve broken out the best mini PCs for 2023 that we’ve tested below, according to the usage case. Following that is a detailed breakdown of how to buy the right model for you. We wrap up below that with a chart-style spec breakout of all our top picks.

A big reason why? Graphics acceleration and other essential features, handled in the past by separate chips or bulky cards, have been subsumed under the CPU . Nowadays, miniaturization is getting to the point where you can’t go all that much smaller. You need to leave some space for ports to plug in a thing or two.

Most of the acceleration toward super-small desktop PCs has happened over the last decade or so. Of course, it’s still easy enough to find ordinary business boxes and hulking power towers packed with big video cards and multiple platter-based hard drives. But starting with the “small-form-factor” (SFF) PC revolution of the ’00s, many desktops have gone from half-size towers to compact cubes to, in their most extreme reduction, sticks not much bigger than a USB flash drive.

The term “microcomputer” has its origins in the 1970s—the “micro” of the personal computers emerging then lay in stark contrast to the room-size mainframe beasts of the day. But fast-forward half a century or so, and oh, micro, how you’ve changed!

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Deeper Dive: Our Top Tested Picks

Asus ExpertCenter PN52

Best General-Use Mini PC

4.0 Excellent

Why We Picked It

A fraction larger than the class-dominating Intel NUCs at 2.3 by 4.7 by 5.1 inches (HWD), Asus’ ExpertCenter PN52 has something they’ll never have—an AMD Ryzen 7 mobile processor. The chip gives the PN52 lively performance, though not up to the Apple Mac mini’s, while the chassis offers easy access and ample upgradability for the class, accommodating up to 32GB of RAM and two M.2 solid-state drives plus a 2.5-inch SSD or hard drive. Our $968 review unit was even boxed up with a keyboard and mouse.

Who It’s For

Anyone intrigued by the idea of a mini PC should check out the ExpertCenter PN52. Equipped with plenty of ports—ours could drive four 4K monitors or one 8K display—it’s overkill for digital signage but a fine choice for Microsoft 365 or other office apps, whether stashed on a corner of a desktop or VESA-mounted behind a monitor. It’s even suitable for light creative work with programs like Adobe Photoshop. It lacks a microSD memory card slot, but otherwise it’s hard to find fault with this Asus.

PROS

• Compact, port-packed design
• Robust mobile H-series Ryzen CPU
• Easy access to storage slots and bays
• Reasonable pricing
• Keyboard and mouse included

CONS

• No SD card slot

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$869.00 Asus

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Asus ExpertCenter PN52 Review

Intel NUC 12 Pro (‘Wall Street Canyon’)

Best Configurable Mini PC

4.0 Excellent

Why We Picked It

A brand-new example of Intel’s Next Unit of Computing initiative, the NUC 12 Pro crams a lot of power into its 4.6-by-4.4-inch footprint, accommodating up to 8TB of storage and 64GB of RAM. Our Core i7-1260P test unit cost $1,064 with a 512GB solid-state drive and 16GB of memory. Both ready-made and bare-bones kit NUCs come without an operating system, so you’ll have to budget for a copy of Windows unless you want to dive into Linux or Chromium.

Who It’s For

The Core i7 chip and Iris Xe integrated graphics give the NUC 12 Pro solid productivity performance, while three USB 3.0 ports, two Thunderbolt 4/USB-C ports, two HDMI ports, 2.5Gbps Ethernet, and Wi-Fi 6E give it a ton of connectivity. It’s the current flagship from the mini-PC leader, with particular appeal to picky configuration choosers. Ready for a dual-monitor desk setup, the little Intel is a great choice for any office job shy of a professional workstation’s.

PROS

• Ultra-compact design
• Great performance from Intel Core i7 CPU and Intel Iris Xe graphics
• Classic NUC design is both simple and upgradable
• Ample connectivity with dual display support

CONS

• Bare-bones kit means no included RAM, SSD, and OS
• No discrete GPU option

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$899.99 Amazon

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Intel NUC 12 Pro (‘Wall Street Canyon’) Review

Intel NUC 13 Extreme Kit (‘Raptor Canyon’)

Best Power User and Gaming Mini PC

4.0 Excellent

Why We Picked It

Intel’s NUC 13 Extreme is expensive for a mini PC (our flagship configuration with a blazing 13th Generation Core i9 CPU was $1,549). It’s also downright huge for a mini PC—or rather, a small-form-factor (SFF) tower measuring 13.3 by 5.1 by 12.5 inches (HWD), actually larger than SFF gaming desktops like the Falcon Northwest Tiki and Corsair One i300. But that relatively jumbo case makes room for not only a heavyweight processor but something no mini PC can fit—one of the latest 12-inch, triple-slot graphics cards for frame rates that reach hardcore gaming heaven.

Who It’s For

Sold as a bare-bones kit (you’ll need to supply your own GPU, memory, and solid-state storage as well as a copy of Windows), the NUC 13 Extreme challenges you with a complex disassembly and installation process but rewards you with console-beating gaming in a package barely bigger than a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X. It’s a nifty DIY alternative to boutique SFF gaming rigs.

PROS

• New small-form-factor design
• Room for a full-length, three-slot graphics card
• Intel 13th Gen desktop CPU delivers impressive performance

CONS

• Sold as a bare-bones kit
• External Wi-Fi antennas
• Uses mobile DDR5 memory

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$1,359.99 Newegg

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$1,939.95 B&H Photo Video

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Intel NUC 13 Extreme Kit (‘Raptor Canyon’) Review

MSI Pro DP21

Best Cheap, Light-Duty Mini PC

4.5 Outstanding

Why We Picked It

It’s bulkier than an Intel NUC Pro (2.2 by 8 by 8.2 inches), but only one-tenth the size of the midtowers that dominate the budget desktop market. Yet MSI’s Pro DP21 delivers surprisingly perky performance in a petite package that can rest on your desk horizontally, perch on edge in the included stand, or hide behind a monitor or cling to the underside of your desk thanks to a VESA mount. It also starts at just $329, with our review unit ringing up at $471 with a quad-core Intel Core i3 processor, 8GB of memory, a 256GB solid-state drive, Windows 11 Home, and a basic USB keyboard and mouse.

Who It’s For

If you’re on a budget and not into the hobbyist aspect of bare-bones kits, the DP21 is a great way to get into mini PCs. The four antique USB 2.0 ports on the front panel aren’t too useful, but you get four USB 3.2 ports (three Type-A, one Type-C), 4K HDMI and DisplayPort monitor connectors, Gigabit Ethernet, and audio jacks around back. Inside, Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth share the space for up to 64GB of RAM, two 2.5-inch drives plus an M.2 SSD, and even an Intel 12th Gen CPU upgrade instead of the usual fixed mobile processor. What’s not to like?

PROS

• Compact, VESA-mountable design
• Well-priced
• Peppy Core i3 processor
• Ample connectivity including Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth
• Easily upgradable

CONS

• Not the smallest mini PC

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$349.99 Amazon

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MSI Pro DP21 Review

Geekom IT8 Mini PC

A Solid Alternative to the MSI Pro DP21

4.0 Excellent

Why We Picked It

You won’t get a cutting-edge CPU with the Geekom IT8 Mini PC—its 8th Generation Intel Core i5 dates back to the spring of 2018—but you’ll get a capable little system that comes ready to use instead of obliging you to put together a bare-bones kit and that’ll only set you back $549.99 as tested. Ready for VESA mounting behind a monitor, or for driving as many as four monitors, it offers five USB 3.2 ports (three Type-A, two Type-C), HDMI and DisplayPort video outputs, and Gigabit Ethernet as well as Wi-Fi (5, not 6 or 6E).

Who It’s For

Short on desk space and in the market for a low-cost, light-duty desktop? You’ll need to spring for a keyboard, mouse, and monitor, but not the RAM, storage, and operating system required by an Intel NUC, making the Geekom an appealing option. The diminutive chassis can hold a 2.5-inch SATA drive as well as an M.2 SSD and up to 32GB of memory.

PROS

• Full system that includes RAM and storage
• Quiet operation
• Multi-monitor support
• Plenty of ports, and even some room for internal expansion

CONS

• Outdated CPU
• Peripherals not included

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$399.99 Amazon

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Geekom IT8 Mini PC Review

Intel NUC 12 Enthusiast Kit (‘Serpent Canyon’)

Best Graphics Power in a Low-Profile Mini PC

4.0 Excellent

Why We Picked It

Intel’s NUC 12 Enthusiast Kit doesn’t have room for a flagship desktop graphics card as its NUC 13 Extreme does (it’s 9.4 by 2.1 by 7.4 inches), but it features an Intel Arc A770M GPU with 16GB of display memory in addition to the up to 64GB of system memory backing its Core i7-12700H processor, making it unique among game-worthy mini PCs—although some older games may not run on its Arc graphics.

Who It’s For

Gamers who want something compact (albeit too big for VESA mounting behind a monitor) will find the NUC 12 Enthusiast fills a nifty niche between Intel’s miniature NUCs and the all-out Extreme models. The system also has plenty of ports, room for up to three storage drives, and requires less assembly than most bare-bones kits—you must install your own RAM and solid-state drive, but a Windows 11 Home license is included.

PROS

• Powerful for its size
• Quiet operation
• Plentiful connectivity
• Stand included
• Three-year warranty

CONS

• Older games may not play nice with Intel Arc GPU
• Power supply is external

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$1,349.99 Newegg

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Intel NUC 12 Enthusiast Kit (‘Serpent Canyon’) Review

HP Z2 Mini G9

Best Mini Workstation

4.0 Excellent

Why We Picked It

Most desktop workstation buyers want tons of expandability and upgradeability. HP’s Z2 Mini G9 doesn’t have those, but it has awesome performance, impressive connectivity, and surprising serviceability for a PC only 2.7 by 8.3 by 8.6 inches big. Though it can hide under a desk or behind a monitor with an optional VESA mount, the Z2 Mini accommodates the 125-watt processors you’ll find in full-size towers, such as our test unit’s flagship Intel Core i9-12900K, and an industry-standard graphics card. The latter must be a half-length, half-height GPU powered by the PCI Express slot, but the 12GB Nvidia RTX A2000 in our review system is certainly no slouch.

Who It’s For

The Z2 Mini G9 carries the independent software vendor (ISV) certifications of its bigger desktop brothers and HP’s ZBook mobile workstations, making it a great choice for 2D and light 3D design and CGI rendering as well as video editing, dataset analysis, and scientific and engineering apps. Up to 64GB of memory and 8TB of storage give you plenty of headroom, while two “flex banks” can be configured with a dizzying array of ports. Apparently nobody told it it wasn’t a tower.

PROS

• Compact VESA-compatible design
• Impressive performance
• Easily serviceable, even the graphics card
• Ample connectivity
• Modular I/O ports

CONS

• Can get louder than expected
• External power brick

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$1,022.22 HP

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HP Z2 Mini G9 Review

Lenovo ThinkStation P360 Ultra

Best Mini PC for Business Power Users

4.0 Excellent

Why We Picked It

You’re welcome to use the Lenovo ThinkStation P360 Ultra for Microsoft Word and Excel, but it’s really overkill for office apps—in fact, it stands close to HP’s Z2 Mini G9 as a potent mini workstation. Measuring 8.7 by 3.4 by 7.9 inches (HWD), it weighs less than four pounds but its slide-out internal frame holds up to a Core i9-12900 CPU, 64GB of RAM, two M.2 solid-state drives plus a 2.5-inch SATA hard drive, and an Nvidia RTX A5000 graphics card.

Who It’s For

With ISV certifications and enterprise-class security, the P360 Ultra is a worthy alternative to the Z2 Mini or Apple’s Mac Studio. Two Thunderbolt 4 ports join a USB-A 3.2 port and audio jack up front, with Gigabit and 2.5Gbps Ethernet ports, four more USB 3.2 ports, and three DisplayPorts (plus the GPU’s four mini DisplayPorts) around back.

PROS

• Workstation performance in a small form factor design
• Easy internal access with clever slide-out design
• Generous port selection

CONS

• Limited upgrade options
• External power brick

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$2,729.00 Lenovo

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Lenovo ThinkStation P360 Ultra Review

Lenovo ThinkCentre M90n Nano IoT

Best Quiet Mini PC

4.0 Excellent

Why We Picked It

Lenovo’s smallest desktop, the ThinkCentre Nano, comes in two flavors. One boasts up to a Core i7 CPU and other high-end components, but its constantly spinning cooling fan may annoy you. Available with Intel Celeron or Core i3 power, the fanless Nano IoT is as silent as the grave, making it an ideal living-room streaming device or public kiosk PC.

Who It’s For

Besides those apps, the Nano IoT is especially suited for use in a medical or industrial environment (it lives up to its internet-of-things name with two front-mounted RS-232 serial ports for connection to specialized equipment). Designed like a 1.5-by-7.1-by-3.5-inch heatsink, the little Lenovo can be VESA-mounted behind a monitor. Its 4GB memory ceiling cramps its style as an office PC, but it’s a compact, quiet way to get a lot of jobs done.

PROS

• Silent operation.
• Compact and rugged chassis with no moving parts.
• Core i3 CPU can handle basic office tasks and HD video streaming.
• Plenty of ports despite tiny chassis.

CONS

• Memory tops out at 4GB.
• Only possible internal expansion is storage, via an M.2 slot.

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$1,011.03 Amazon

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Lenovo ThinkCentre M90n Nano IoT Review

Beelink GK Mini

Best Digital Signage Mini PC

3.5 Good

Why We Picked It

Desktop PCs with user-interchangeable components just don’t come smaller than the Beelink GK Mini, an Intel Celeron system that measures only 4.6 by 4.1 by 1.75 inches and has room for a relatively generous 8GB of RAM plus M.2 and 2.5-inch storage drives. Four USB 3.0 ports, two HDMI ports, an Ethernet jack, and Wi-Fi 5 provide connectivity. It’s only $319 as tested.

Who It’s For

The Beelink is tailor-made for use as a kiosk PC or digital signage station. The company’s claims for the GK Mini as a general-purpose PC for office or schoolwork are undercut by its extremely weak processor—it can’t muster half of the 4,000 points in our PCMark 10 benchmark that we consider the sign of acceptable productivity. But it’s fine for streaming video or a static or animated display.

PROS

• Highly compact
• Low price for a full Windows PC with 8GB of RAM
• Two HDMI ports
• Wi-Fi support included

CONS

• Even with RAM boost, slow for anything but simple display tasks
• Costs more than competing laptops for office or school work

GET IT NOW

$179.00 Beelink

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$199.00 Amazon

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Beelink GK Mini Review

Buying Guide: The Best Windows Mini PCs for 2023

We’re seeing some clear stratification in the market for tiny desktop PCs. The very smallest PCs might be termed the “stick class,” vanguarded by the Atom CPU-powered Intel Compute Stick we first reviewed in early 2015 (and again in its refreshed Cherry Trail Atom and Core m3 forms in 2016), followed by similar sticks from Asus, Azulle, Lenovo, and others.

These are really only suitable for display/signage use or extremely basic applications, and after a promising debut those years back, have not seen all that much evolution or momentum. You can still find them on the market, but they have failed to have a major impact. A few vendors (notably, Azulle) still make them, though.

(Credit: Zlata Ivleva)

The models next up in size are a bit more dynamic, a bunch we might term the “NUC class.” NUC stands for “Next Unit of Computing,” a longtime initiative by Intel to spur the development of very small Windows-based desktop PCs using its mobile-centric processors. The chip giant has released a series of NUC-branded mini PC kits in its own line, and several of the traditional PC-component makers have followed suit with similar models (Asus with its VivoMini line, and Gigabyte with its Brix models, for example).

(Credit: Zlata Ivleva)

The NUC PCs and their ilk tend to be around 5 or 6 inches square, though Intel’s 2020 NUC 9 Extreme (followed by NUC 11, 12, and 13 Extreme versions) changes this somewhat. The NUC 9 Extreme was a new mini PC platform that Intel is encouraging partner manufacturers to utilize for many different types of PCs, based on a core-computing module called the Compute Element. While it’s technically a mini PC, full retail models from partners, such as the Razer Tomahawk, can be much larger than the small square boxes we’re used to associating with NUCs.

(Credit: Molly Flores)

Separate from those is a host of PCs that are undeniably small but follow their own shape and size rules. Zotac, a major player in small PCs (and one of the category’s unsung innovators), offers a huge range of Zbox PCs that range in size from a fat smartphone to a bulky Discman. Shuttle, too, is another small-PC pioneer, offering machines in a host of shapes. On the macOS side of things, the venerable Apple Mac mini is a sleek, square silver box with rounded edges that saw a big update in in January 2023. Like the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro, it received Apple’s homegrown M1 and M2 processors, greatly increasing its performance.

Should You Buy a Bare-Bones or Fully Configured Mini PC?

Not all mini PCs ship as complete systems; more so than any other class of PC, they tend not to.

Especially in the case of Intel’s NUC kits, Shuttle’s small PCs, and many of Zotac’s Zboxes, you get what amounts to a PC kit: a tiny chassis with a motherboard pre-installed. (In some cases, a soldered-on processor is in place, as opposed to a socketed one.) Plus, in most cases, wireless connectivity is built in. To complete the kit, you have to shop for and install a storage drive (a hard drive and/or a solid-state drive, depending on the model) and RAM modules, and install your own operating system.

This arrangement is what’s called in reseller lingo a “bare-bones PC.” You’ll want to make sure you know what you are getting. In some cases, a given mini system is sold in bare-bones form, as well as in pre-configured versions with storage, RAM, and Windows present.

You need to factor those parts and a Windows license (unless you plan to use Linux) into the total cost. The parts you will need, mind you, will be small: the kind that you’d typically find in a laptop, not a desktop. Many small PCs like these make use of DDR4 SO-DIMMs—laptop-style RAM modules—for their main memory instead of full-size desktop DDR4 DIMMs.

(Credit: Zlata Ivleva)

The form factor of the storage varies more. Depending on the mini PC you are looking at, you may need a 2.5-inch drive (a solid-state or hard drive, the size that goes into most full-size laptops), or a slimmer variety of SSD that’s known as an M.2 SSD. Such drives are the size and shape of a stick of chewing gum. Check out our guide to these complicated drives at the link; if you need to install an M.2 SSD in a bare-bones desktop, you need to know about some interface/bus and sizing subtleties before you shop. (It’s too easy, otherwise, to buy an incompatible drive.)

If a given system is a bare-bones kit, you’ll need to get more than a little hands-on with it to get it up and running. But a kit gives you maximum flexibility in terms of component selection. That said, one advantage of a pre-configured system, apart from the easier setup, is the fact that Windows or macOS comes installed; you won’t need to install and update the OS and its drivers.

Should You Get Dedicated or Integrated Graphics in Your Mini PC?

Most mini PCs are as “mini” as they are because they rely on the basic-grade graphics acceleration built into the CPU to power their video outputs—no separate graphics card is involved. This integrated graphics silicon will suffice for productivity work and video playback. A few outlying models, though, do incorporate the same kind of separate, dedicated mobile graphics chips that appear in gaming laptops. A few compact workstation desktops even make use of Nvidia’s professional-grade graphics and up to Intel Xeon processors for high-power, ISV-certified tasks.

(Credit: Zlata Ivleva)

In particular, some of the larger, newer Intel NUC models have begun including, or at least offering the option, for GPU support. The 2018 “Kaby Lake-G” Intel NUC Kit NUC8i7HVK “Hades Canyon” (since out of support) included AMD’s peppy Radeon RX Vega M graphics acceleration on the same die as processor. (Earlier Intel NUCs relied solely on Intel’s own integrated HD Graphics or Iris solutions.) That means well-above-average graphics performance in a system this size.

Since then, larger NUC models have even offered support for full-size GPUs, but in a notably larger form factor. Some of the Extreme Kit NUCs make room for a dual-slot graphics card up to 12 inches long. That opens up some serious productivity and gaming power, but the NUC Extremes really take you out of the true “mini” size category. It’s all relative.

The thing is, if you’re sticking with a truly small PC, a dedicated graphics chip is seldom an option, simply because of space and thermal-design reasons. The peppier Iris Xe integrated graphics introduced with Intel’s 11th Generation “Tiger Lake” CPUs is one helpful solution for those unable to use a discrete GPU. Designed for mobile systems, it would also seem a perfect fit for mini PCs, and Iris Xe has shown solid improvement over the built-in graphics on older Intel chips.

Mini PC Connections: What Do You Need?

Some mini PCs include mounting kits that let you attach them to the back of an LCD monitor. Check for that feature if space savings of that kind is important to you. And check the back of your monitor for mounting holes, which, if present, normally comply with the VESA mounting standard.

Also check for 802.11 Wi-Fi (wireless networking) of some flavor. Most micro PCs include at least that as a standard feature (and a bunch more also incorporate Bluetooth), but double-check that the system or kit doesn’t require the purchase of a separate Wi-Fi card in the Mini-PCI Express or M.2 form factor. Some do.

USB and video outputs may seem like obvious things to look for, but with smaller PCs like these, the number provided can be less than you may be used to. Check for enough of each for the peripherals you need to connect.

Also check for multi-monitor support if that is a factor for you. Some small PCs are designed explicitly for digital signage and may support more concurrent displays than you might expect from a compact system. Note, though, that these models may emphasize video outputs in place of other connections, or indeed, even much in the way of CPU power.

Which CPUs Should You Look for in a Mini PC?

You’ll see a variety of mobile-grade CPUs in the small PCs out there, ranging from Intel Celeron and Pentium chips (very basic, and good at best for simple productivity work, e-mailing, and web browsing) up to Core i5 and i7 (and in a few cases, i9) processors that can do some modest media-crunching and rendering work. It’s crucial that you know, however, if you are looking at a mobile-grade CPU (the kind used in laptops) or a desktop-strength chip. The size of the PC isn’t always a good predictor of that. (That said, the very smallest PCs will always use mobile chips.)

How to tell? Most of the mini PCs on the market make use of Intel silicon, and the dead giveaway whether you’re looking at a mobile CPU or a desktop one is usually the letter at the end of the processor’s number. Look for a “T” or a “K,” or no letter at all, as a dead giveaway for a desktop chip (for example, Core i5-9400T), or a “U” or “Y” (or possibly a “G3,” “G5,” or “G7”) for a mobile one. The chip family and generation being equal, you can generally expect more muscle (usually a consequence of more cores and higher base clocks) from the desktop version of, say, a Core i5 than from a mobile Core i5.

In addition, Intel chips ending in “H” are a higher-powered grade of mobile processor, occupying the middle ground between the mainstream mobile chips and all-out socketed desktop chips. They are uncommon in mini desktops, though. There are now some occasional AMD flavors as well, such as the AMD Ryzen V1605B in the ECS Liva Q3 Plus.

(Credit: Zlata Ivleva)

What to glean from that mobile-versus-desktop insight? Our benchmark testing will quantify the trends, but none of the mobile-grade chips in these small PCs is a proper substitute for a desktop chip if you’re a heavy multitasker, or a media pro who needs real processing muscle, say, to convert lots of video or photo files from one format to another. In most cases, the CPU is the single biggest factor in the cost of a mini PC, so keep an eye on the performance numbers in our reviews for a relative idea of what you are getting.

(Credit: Kyle Cobian)

Rule of thumb? For light office work, you can get by with a mobile or desktop Core i3- or Pentium-based mini PC, but you’ll want to err on the side of a higher-end, desktop-strength Core chip if you’ll need extra pep for serious multitasking, file conversions, heavy calculations, or multimedia content manipulation. Celeron chips, meanwhile, are okay for only the very lightest of tasks, or undemanding digital display/signage use.

So, What’s the Best Mini PC to Buy?

Check out the spec breakout below for our latest mini PC recommendations, which parallel the models we outlined above. If you’re shopping for a small desktop to save money, you’ll also want to check out our picks for the top cheap desktops.

If you’d like to go a bit bigger, head on over to our top choices for standard-size desktops, which include some small-form-factor PCs, or see our guide to the top all-in-one desktops, which tend to be trim and feature built-in displays.