Best CPU cooler 2017: top CPU coolers for your PC

Update: The best budget liquid-cooler you can buy, the Arctic Liquid Freezer 120 has joined the ranks of the best CPU coolers overall. Although its functionality is limited, this version of the Arctic Liquid Freezer is stacked with powerful performance for a low price. Read on to find out more!

You’ll want only the best CPU cooler for your self-built computer. Whether for work or gaming or anything in between, a processor can’t refrigerate itself. So without a proper cooler, your CPU will overheat and lead to the imminent destruction of your PC (or at least a central part of it). That’s why it’s integral to have only the best CPU cooler to mitigate these concerns.

Although some processors do come bundled with stock coolers, these primarily only include low- to mid-range processor from Intel and AMD. Both companies also don’t include coolers with their respective enthusiast-grade Intel Core X and AMD Ryzen Threadripper chips.

Regardless of whether your CPU came with a fan, aftermarket coolers, particularly of the liquid variety, can dramatically reduce both fan noise and running temps. As such, we’ve gone out of our way to find all of the top CPU coolers on the market.spanning all budgets and desktop tower sizes, these are the top 7 best CPU coolers money can buy in 2017:

Although you may not be familiar with Noctua, this CPU cooler kicks off our list of the best CPU coolers with a compelling premise: that while it’s not a liquid cooling system, it works just as well if not better than some all-in-one loops. Noctua focuses solely on designing coolers, and just coolers, so this is one of the quietest concoctions you’ll find, not to mention it comes with a six-year warranty.

For $29 (£30, AU$43), the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo is one of the most affordable CPU coolers you can buy. Given, too, that most online stores offer a rebate on this fan and heatsink combo pack, the Hyper 212 EVO is a prodigious value. Although it only features four heatpipes and aluminum fin structure, this legendary CPU cooler has proven itself to be as efficient as liquid-coolers two-to-three times more expensive than it. These air-coolers are designed to make heat dissipation, quite literally, a breeze, whether you’re playing Destiny 2 at max settings or watching YouTube videos in a web browser.

This CPU cooler is among one of the smallest we’ve ever used for our own Mini ATX builds. It come from an Austrian company as our best CPU cooler that specializes entirely in PC coolers and fans, which means no compromises are made in the way of quality assurance despite its low-profile form-factor.

Even if you have a budget that allows for some of the more serious liquid cooling solutions, even some of the sweetest PC cases don’t permit the sheer mass of a bulkier, dual-fan or even a single 120mm radiator. That’s where the Hydro Series H5 SF proves building small doesn doesn’t mean you have to give up on liquid cooling. NZXT Kraken X62

Known best for its cases, such as those produced in collaboration with Asus and Razer, you may be surprised to learn that NZXT’s CPU coolers are every bit as impressive as the hardware which encloses them. The Kraken X62 is no exception, being one of the few 280mm all-in-one liquid coolers to feature RGB lighting. Given that the radiator comes pre-attached and the thermal paste pre-applied, the NZXT Kraken x62 is awfully easy to set up too. The packed-in CAM software, which lets you tweak settings on the fly, is merely icing on the cake.

For less than 70 big ones in both US dollars and British sterling, the Arctic Liquid Freezer 120 is a deal you can’t pass up if you’re on the prowl for a liquid cooler that won’t break the bank. While it lacks the bells and whistles of pricier, more extravagant liquid coolers, like the NZXT Kraken, the Arctic Liquid cooler is enough to get you by, not to mention it’s still a massive step up from the classic fan and heatsink pairing. So, while you can’t expect RGB lighting or software – or even hardware-based fan control, the 120mm variant of the Arctic Liquid Freezer will keep your system refrigerated at a (mostly) quiet volume.

Unless you’re already neck deep in the rabbit hole that is silent PC assembly, you’ve probably never heard of NoFan, a South Korean component company that specializes in helping enthusiasts reach that 0dBA silent sweet spot. In doing so, of course, you can count on severely limiting yourself in terms of power, with its CR-95C fanless solution being limited in compatibility to processors whose TDP fall below 95W. Still, the NoFan CR-95C is worth a shot for those sporting low-power rigs that prioritize tranquility over raw horsepower.