Introduction
Choosing the correct cooler for cooling your processor might look complicated to choose but in fact, it’s one of the easiest to choose and with this guide, we will be helping you on how to choose the best cooler you can get at different price tiers that are effective at cooling low-end CPU’s to higher end CPU’s
What to Look for
- Priorities – What you want to prioritize looks, performance, or a balance of both
- Identify the budget – Figure out how much you want to pay for the cooler
- Easy Mounting – Always check if the mounting system is easy to install
- Clearances – Always check if the cooler clears your RAM.
- Acoustics – See if the Aircooler provides good acoustics to maintain low noise operations
Things to Avoid
- Ancient Mounting systems – A lot of Aircoolers still use annoying to install brackets
- Flashy RGB – a lot of CPU Aircoolers with RGB sacrifices performance for aesthetics
If you want to get help choosing an Aircooler you can always ask in our discord server.
Disclaimer – Max airflow and Noise information come from the manufacturer’s site
Budget (25-35 USD)
Vetroo V5 RGB
Specifications
Fans: 120MM RGB Fan
Bearings: HDB
Heatpipes: 5
Type: 120mm Single Tower
Max. Air Flow: 21-52 CFM
Noise Level: 30.8 dBA (max)
Supported Sockets:
Intel: LGA 1200/1366/1156/1155/1151/1150/775
AMD: AM4/AM3+/AM2+/AM2/FM2+/FM2
Reasons to buy
Great Price
Good Performer in the price bracket
RGB
Simple and Sleek design
Syncs with most RGB Software
Reasons to avoid
cannot be controlled on it’s own
Annoying to mount
ID-Cooling SE224-XT/XT White
Specifications
Fans: 120MM White LED Fan (on white model) 120MM black fan (on black model)
Bearings: HDB
Heatpipes: 4
Type: 120mm Single Tower
Max. Air Flow: 76.16CFM
Noise Level: 15.2-32.5dBA
Supported Sockets
Intel: LGA2066/2011/1200/1150/1151/1155/1156
AMD:AM4
Reasons to buy
Simple mounting system
Great Design
Decent Performance for the Price
Easy to install
Reasons to avoid
LED’s for the white model seem more blue (on the white model)
Finnicky to install
Arctic Freezer 34 eSports
Specifications
Fan: BioniX P120 fan
Bearings: Rifle Bearing
Type: 120mm Single Tower
Heatpipes: 4
Type: 120mm Single Tower
Max. Air Flow: 67.56 CFM
Noise Level: 23.5 dBA
Supported Sockets
Intel: 2066, 2011(-3),1200, 1155, 1151, 1150, 1200
AMD: AM4
Reasons to buy
Clean and Minimalist design
One of the best fans on in this price bracket.
Reasons to avoid
Usually more expensive than the previous coolers
Performance doesn’t justify the cost
Mid-Tier (36-65 USD)
Gelid Solutions Phantom/Phantom Black
Specifications
Fans: 2x120mm Fans (Black Frame on normal model)(White frame on black model)
Bearings: HDB
Heatpipes: 7
Type: 120mm Dual Tower
Max. Air Flow: 111.35CFM
Noise Level: 12-26.7 dBA
Supported Sockets
Intel: LGA 775, 1366, 2011, 2066, 1155, 1156, 1150, 1151 & 1200
AMD: AM2, AM2+, AM3, AM3+, AM4, FM1, FM2 & FM2+
Reasons to buy
Can be found for an amazing price.
Best performer for sub 40 dollar prices
Trades blows with Higher End CPU Coolers
Twin heatsink tower design
Reasons to avoid
A bit louder compared to the other coolers in this price bracket
Can interfere with High Profile RAM Sticks
Buy now (Phantom) Buy now (Phantom Black)
Scythe Fuma 2
Specifications
Fans: Kaze Flex 120 Slim(FAN1) PWM and Kaze Flex 120 PWM(FAN2)
Bearings: FDB
Heatpipes: 6
Type: 120mm Dual Tower
Max. Air Flow:(FAN1) 8.28 ~ 33.86 (FAN2) 16.6 ~ 51.17 CFM
Noise Level:(FAN1) 2.7 ~ 23.9 dBA (FAN2) 4.9 ~ 24.9 dBA
Supported Sockets
Intel: LGA2066 / LGA 2011-3 / 2011 / 1366 / 1200 / 1156 / 1155 / 1151 / 1150 / 775 / 1200 socket
AMD: AM4 / AM3+ / AM3 / AM2+ / FM2+ / FM2 / FM1 socket
Reasons to buy
Twin heatsink tower design
Packaged with great fans out of the box
Comes with a free screwdriver
design gives space for full access to the Memory slots
Reasons to avoid
Cooler interferes with RAM high profile RAM.
High-End Aircoolers (66-99USD)
BeQuiet! Dark Rock Pro 4/TR
Specifications
Fans: (FAN1) Silent Wings 3 120MM PWM, (FAN2) Silent wings 135MM PWM
Bearings: (FAN1) FDB (FAN2) N/A
Heatpipes: 7
Type: 140mm Dual Tower
Max. Air Flow: (FAN1) 50.5 CFM (FAN2) N/A
Noise Level: 12.8-24.3 dBA (overall)
Supported Sockets:
Intel: LGA2066 / 2011-3 / 2011 / 1366 / 1200 / 1156 / 1155 / 1151 / 1150 / 775 / 1200
AMD: AM4 / AM3(+) / AM2(+) / FM2(+) / FM1 socket
Reasons to buy
Comes with great fans out of the box
Includes a great looking top plate
Bundled screwdriver
Usually on sale
Most quiet cooler in this price bracket
Reasons to avoid
Price
Due to its size alot of RAM sticks won’t clear the cooler
Annoying to Install
Noctua NH-D15
Specifications
Fans: NF-A15
Bearings: SSO2
Heatpipes: 6
Type: 140mm Dual Tower
Max. Air Flow: 82.51 CFM
Noise Level: 24.6 dBA
Supported Sockets
Intel: LGA2066 / LGA 2011-3 / 2011 / 1366 / 1200 / 1156 / 1155 / 1151 / 1150 / 775 / 1200
AMD: AM4 (included since 2019) / AM3(+) / AM2(+) / FM2(+) / FM1 socket (AM3 – FM1 backplate required)
Reasons to buy
Amazing and easy to install SecuFirm2 mounting kit
Comes packaged with amazing fans
Comes with a whole tube of NT-H1
The most popular air cooler
second quietest air coolers in this price bracket
Reasons to avoid
Very Pricey (Chromax model are more expensive)
hard to color match with hardware
Due to its size a lot of RAM sticks won’t clear the cooler
Deepcool Assassin 3
Specifications
Fans: 2x140MM Fan
Bearings: FDB
Heatpipes: 7
Type: 140mm Dual Tower
Max. Air Flow: 90.37 CFM
Noise Level: ≤29.5 dBA
Supported Sockets
Intel: LGA2066/2011-v3/2011/1200/1151/1150/1155/1366
AMD:AM4/AM3+/AM3/AM2+/AM2/FM2+/FM2/FM1
Reasons to buy
Usually on sale and found for cheaper
great contender to other coolers in this price bracket
Neat Design
Easy to Install
Cools better than the NHD-15
Reasons to avoid
Questionable marketing
Loudest amongst the coolers in this price bracket
Thick design interfere with high profile ram
ThermalRight Le Grand Macho RT
Specifications
Fan: TY-147B 140mm Fan
Bearings: FDB
Heatpipes: 7
Type: 140mm Dual Tower
Max Air Flow: 73.6 CFM
Noise Level: 20 dBA (Max)|
Supported Sockets:
Intel-LGA 1200/1366/1156/1155/1151/1150/775
AMD- AM4/AM3+/AM2+/AM2/FM2+/FM2
Reasons to buy
Ultra silent operations
Easy mounting with included screwdriver
Great compatibility. Doesn’t overhang the Dimm slot
Reasons to avoid
Overhangs the 1st M.2 slot
The massive size of the heatsink makes it hard to access headers around the CPU socket
Don’t see a cooler that should be here? Write it down in the comments and we will do some look into it.
Disclaimer: This guide contains Amazon affiliate links, we may receive small commission from purchases made through them, all images are directly from the Amazon listings
