The Best $1,500 Stock Trading PC Build – February 2023
Turbocharge Your Trading!
If you’re looking for the ultimate Stock Trading PC Build, this is the one! It’s informed by three guiding principles: it must be fast, quiet, and classy. You’ll have all of this and more for around $1500, and indeed this system will instantly start paying for itself as it maximizes your trading potential.
Now, to be realistic, we know that given the current market, today may not the best time to pick up trading (although hindsight might prove that stocks are a value at the moment!). Even so, if you’re already trading, or you have other professional endeavors that demand a seriously-powerful PC at a great price, this is the one! With that said, if you want something with nearly the same capabilities at a lower pricepoint, check out our $1000 Content Creation PC, which will work great for trading as well!
This Month’s Build, Powered by AMD and Nvidia!
The February 2023 edition of the Stock Trading PC Build starts with AMD’s insanely-powerful Ryzen 9 7900X 12-core, 24-thread CPU. It will make quick work of anything you throw at it. Do you have a dozen windows open, full of charts, graphs, and news feeds? No problem, the 7900X can handle it, while running very efficiently to save you money on your electricity bill! Backing it up is the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 video card, which will allow you to run up to four ultra-high-definition monitors. That’s something a lot of our readers have asked for in the Stock Trading PC, so we’re giving it to you!
This system also features 32GB of DDR5-6000 memory, giving you an amazing combination of speed and capacity. Also in this system is an ultra-fast 1TB PCIe Gen 4 solid-state drive. For a Stock Trading PC Build, serious speed is important, because when you’re in the groove, you’ll be getting multiple streams of data hitting your drive constantly, and this one can take it! To make your Stock Trading PC Build look great without using a ton of desk space, we recommend the compact glass- and aluminum-clad Phanteks Evolv mATX chassis. Finally, to keep it running quietly and efficiently, we spec a 650W Gold-rated power supply and a fantastic tower cooler from Scythe.
A Few Other Notes
If you’re looking to complete your system, feel free to browse our Monitor Buyer’s Guide and Peripherals Buyer’s Guide, although you’ll also find our favorite picks for a trading PC listed later on this page. Throughout our guides, we provide direct product links to Amazon in the US, and these links will auto-convert for our readers in Canada, the UK, and several countries in the EU, with regional substitutions made based on availability. To support this site, please use these links if you purchase any of the products we list.
Required Components
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CPU –AMD Ryzen 9 7900X
$420The Guru’s TipAMD has done it again with Zen 4, simply smashing through performance barrier in all respects. The 12-core, 24-thread Ryzen 9 7900X is up to 15% faster in games and 30% faster in content creation than its predecessor, while offering the latest connectivity standards thanks to the AM5 platform.This is a powerful CPU, and thus requires a capable cooler, which we recommend later in this guide.
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Motherboard –Gigabyte B650M AORUS Elite AX
$200The Guru’s TipThis micro-ATX motherboard is a great backbone for any compact system, offering a lot of value. It supports the latest AMD processors using the AM5 socket, while offering two PCIe M.2 slots (one Gen 5, one Gen 4), an incredible 12 USB ports (including a Type-C port), and built-in WiFi 6E wireless networking.While this board has video outputs, you'll be using the ones on the video card, so make sure to connect your monitor(s) to that.
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Video Card –Zotac GeForce GTX 1660 6GB
$230The Guru’s TipThe GTX 1660 is the card that unleashed true high-end gaming potential at a mainstream pricepoint. With 6GB of VRAM on board, it’s a great match for running the latest games at 1080p, and it’s massively efficient, making this model cool and quiet.While this is technically a gaming card, we're selecting it for another reason: it has four ultra-high-definition video ports, allowing you to run as many huge monitors as you could fit on a desk!
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Memory –G.Skill 2x16GB Flare X5 DDR5-6000 CL36 EXPO
$137The Guru’s TipTo get the most out of AMD’s latest CPUs, you want fast RAM, and DDR5-6000 is the sweetspot not only in terms of price, but in terms of the AM5 platform. It allows for the optimum settings and highest overall performance. This Flare X5 kit from G.Skill is specially designed for AM5, thanks to the enhanced 36-36-36-96 EXPO timings that can be loaded easily by the motherboard.We're recommending DDD5 RAM, which is the right match for the motherboard we recommend.
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Solid-State Drive –WD_BLACK SN770 1TB NVMe
$90The Guru’s TipWD knocked it out of the park with its ultra-high-performance, bargain-priced SN770 PCIe Gen 4 drive. Optimized for excellent real-world performance thanks to WD’s years of SSD development, it easily keeps up with much more expensive drives. This 1TB model can provide sequential read speeds of 5150MB/s and write speeds of 4900MB/s.Install this in the top M.2 slot of the motherboard.
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Case –Phanteks EVOLV mATX Black
$140The Guru’s TipThis compact, ultra-stylish case from Phanteks truly stands out from the crowd. The case is wrapped in gorgeous 3mm-thick aluminum panels, which give it a truly premium feel. It also features dual hinged glass doors, which look great and provide easy access to the interior. It doesn’t skimp in the cooling department either, with factory-installed 140mm fans in both the front and rear of the chassis!Keep in mind that this is a micro-ATX case, which means it requires a micro-ATX motherboard, such as the one we recommend.
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Power Supply –Thermaltake Toughpower GF1 650W
$90The Guru’s TipThermaltake offers a ton of value in its GF1 line, and this model is no exception. You get 650W of Gold-rated power, fully-modular cables, and a fan that doesn’t even spin at low loads for total silence. The best part: a full 10-year warranty.This powerful PSU will be put to good use, given the potent CPU and video card in this system!
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CPU Cooler –Scythe Mugen 5 Rev. C
$57The Guru’s TipOffering amazing cooling along with very low noise levels thanks to its big heatsink and powerful but quiet Kaze Flex II 1500RPM fan, the Mugen 5 Rev. C is the perfect pick for any high-performance PC.This cooler includes the adapter required for use with the AMD CPU.
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Operating System –Windows 11 Home USB
$139The Guru’s TipWindows 11 take everything people loved about Windows 10, and then takes it to 11! It adds significant under-the-hood changes to make it faster and more secure, and of course, the interface is sleek too!Windows 11 is definitely the OS you want to take full advantage of a modern PC.
Optional Products
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The 34-inch Widescreen Monitor –LG 34WQ73A-B
$468 The Guru’s TipYou can run up to four of these on the Stock Trading PC, so feel free to grab a couple to start if you have the space for them!
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The Ultimate Business Keyboard –Logitech MX Keys Wireless Illuminated Keyboard
$120 The Guru’s TipThis is the perfect complement to the MX Master 3 mouse recommended below!
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The Deluxe Wireless Mouse –Logitech MX Master 3S
$100 The Guru’s TipThis mouse can even be used with multiple systems at once, like a laptop and this desktop PC!
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The Deluxe PC Speakers –Logitech Z207 Multi Device Speakers
$52 The Guru’s TipYou'll want a set of speakers for Zoom calls or market news!
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Webcam –Logitech C920x Pro HD Webcam
$64 The Guru’s TipAvoid no-name webcams at all costs. They've flooded the market as more people work from home, and they are almost always of dubious quality!
Total Cost: $1503
Required Components
- CPU – AMD Ryzen 9 7900X ($420)
- Motherboard – Gigabyte B650M AORUS Elite AX ($200)
- Video Card – Zotac GeForce GTX 1660 6GB ($230)
- Memory – G.Skill 2x16GB Flare X5 DDR5-6000 CL36 EXPO ($137)
- Solid-State Drive – WD_BLACK SN770 1TB NVMe ($90)
- Case – Phanteks EVOLV mATX Black ($140)
- Power Supply – Thermaltake Toughpower GF1 650W ($90)
- CPU Cooler – Scythe Mugen 5 Rev. C ($57)
- Operating System – Windows 11 Home USB ($139)
Optional Products
- The 34-inch Widescreen Monitor – LG 34WQ73A-B ($468)
- The Ultimate Business Keyboard – Logitech MX Keys Wireless Illuminated Keyboard ($120)
- The Deluxe Wireless Mouse – Logitech MX Master 3S ($100)
- The Deluxe PC Speakers – Logitech Z207 Multi Device Speakers ($52)
- Webcam – Logitech C920x Pro HD Webcam ($64)
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