I'm looking at an MSI Aegis gaming desktop from Costco with a Ryzen 9 9900X, GeForce RTX 5080, 32GB of RAM, and a 2TB SSD. It's on sale until this Sunday and is around the budget I've set for a new PC. I could spend a little more if there's a compelling reason, but I'd prefer to spend less if building myself would offer similar performance—for example, by choosing an RTX 5070 Ti instead.
My main focus is gaming, but I'd also like to do some video and photo editing and occasional streaming. My current computer is a prebuilt, and I originally wanted to build my next system myself. However, component prices and availability have me wondering whether another prebuilt might currently offer better value. I'm financially comfortable right now, so I'm considering buying soon in case prices rise and I'm unable to upgrade for a while.
I'm not very experienced with PC components, so I'd appreciate advice on whether this Costco system is a good deal, what to watch out for with prebuilts, and any comparable custom-build ideas.
4 Answers
Building your own system doesn’t always save much money anymore. The bigger advantage is choosing better-quality parts in areas prebuilts often compromise on, such as the motherboard, power supply, cooling, case, and memory. It’s worth pricing the exact Costco configuration against a parts list before deciding.
You can also look at established custom-PC builders and compare their pricing with the Costco machine. Some may offer a stronger gaming-focused processor for less, though you’ll need to account for shipping, possible taxes, and potentially longer build times. Check whether they charge when you order or when the system ships, and read the warranty terms carefully.
The Costco system is a reasonable option if the price works for you, especially since you get a straightforward return process and warranty support instead of having to troubleshoot every component yourself. Just verify the case size, power supply, motherboard, cooling, and available upgrade options. Some prebuilts use proprietary or cramped designs that can make future upgrades difficult.
Costco’s electronics return period is typically limited to 90 days, but during that window the return process is generally much easier than dealing with individual part manufacturers.
Buying parts over time can help you take advantage of sales, particularly for the graphics card, RAM, and storage. However, there’s a downside: if you wait too long to assemble everything, a defective part might be discovered after its return window has expired. For that reason, buying and testing major components within a short period is safer.
That’s the main risk with spreading purchases out. The savings can be worthwhile, but it’s frustrating to find a dead component months later when the retailer will no longer accept a return.
I’d compare build quality directly rather than assuming a newer builder is equivalent to a larger company. Look for details about the exact motherboard, PSU, cooling solution, assembly process, and how warranty repairs are handled.