This AMD Ryzen 5 gaming CPU costs just $61 on Prime Day, even includes cooler

If you're looking to build a gaming PC for the cheapest price possible, then you need to see this current Prime Day deal. Right now, you can grab yourself a six-core AMD Ryzen 5 CPU for just $61. Not only that, but you won't even need to buy a cooler for it, as you get one in the box. That's outstanding value, as long as you don't mind not having the latest tech.

The CPU in question is an AMD Ryzen 5 5500, a cut-down CPU based on the ageing Zen 3 architecture, and it originally launched at a price of $159 in 2022. There are a few points to note before you take the plunge, though. The first is that the Ryzen 5 5500 is an AMD Cezanne chip, rather than a Vermeer CPU, such as the Ryzen 5 5600X. It still has six Zen 3 cores, but it only has 16MB of L3 cache, rather than the 32MB you get on the 5600X. It's not going to take the top spot on our best gaming CPU guide any time soon, but that hardly matters when it costs just $61.

The other main limit of this CPU is that it only supports PCIe 3.0, so you'll want to avoid installing it in a PC with any of the latest PCIe 5.0 GPUs that use fewer than 16 lanes, as you'll get seriously limited bandwidth. However, as a foundation for a basic PC, it has enough CPU power to get on with the job. You'll need a Socket AM4 motherboard for this CPU, as it won't work with any of the latest AM5 boards, but you can readily find AM4 boards going for around $70 on Amazon now.

You'll also need some DDR4 memory for it, as there's no DDR5 support, so check out our guide to buying the best gaming RAM. My top tip here is to buy a simple dual-channel Corsair Vengeance non-RGB kit, as these do the job fine and don't cost the earth.

Aside from building a whole new PC, this CPU is also worth a look if you already own an AM4 system, perhaps based on an old quad-core Ryzen 3 CPU, and you're looking for a cheap and easy upgrade that won't require you to buy a new motherboard and memory.

Yes, this CPU has limited PCIe support and only 16MB of L3 cache, but at a cost of $61, it's an absolute bargain for a six-core Zen 3 CPU. If you want to buy one, you just need to click on this link here before this Prime Day deal ends in the US, or you can grab it for £58.92 in the UK even if you're not a Prime member.

If you have a bit more money to spend, check out our new AMD Ryzen 5 9600X review, as this six-core CPU is our current favorite six-core CPU.

Would you buy a CPU with this spec for $61, or would you rather save your pennies for something stronger? Let us know your thoughts in our community Discord server.