How much money can you save by building your own computer?

Not much, because all the decisions you make on hardware are your own, prices for parts are very comparable to MFG price when you consider the whole computer, especially the moment you start paying for software...

So though I could build a cheap $250 computer, the moment I buy the basic Windows operating system, that computer just shot up to $360+, if you go to the store and look for that same $360 computer, you will find that it is close to what you paid for something similar.

You will NOT get cheaper prices than a manufacturer on parts because of one reason, they buy in huge bulk, thousands upon thousands, therefore they get huge discounts "usually", for this reason they can beat you, and turn over a small profit because of the labor they use is cheap.

The only time this really isn't true is when, you install a Linux (free) operating system, or you are building a high performance system and look for stellar deals on parts, and when building the high performance system you settle for good enough parts instead of ultra performance parts, where possible.

At best someone may be able to save $200-$300, but that would be stretching it some..

The one thing people will not consider is, they are NOT being paid to build that computer, that means you are losing time, and time is money in the world of Tech. If you count how much money you are not making while building that computer then that $200-$300 could easily be offset by your loss of time.

In a high end system you can save quite a bit of money & get what you want, but trying to save money on a cheap system is not going to benefit you wads of cash, hardly.

The biggest benefit there is in building your own system is, you KNOW it's done correctly, you get to select the parts you want based upon quality, not accepting the cheap parts the MFG will choose.

Avoiding a $20-$50 power supply = Priceless! (They are known to fail right out the box & can even ruin your motherboard, which is even more time loss!) When building a computer system yourself make sure you don't skimp on the power supply, this one thing that matters more than any other factor in the computer!

Just my 2 cents..

$200-350 based on how legal the software u use is. If you can assemble a working computer with no help then the loss of support is probably not needed. Labor is mostly 1-3 hours after all the updates etc. If your that good,there is no risk just a lot of decisions regarding what parts you want or can afford & just how fast do you really want it to be. I've built 100's of clones. The simplest way for a beginner is to go to http://www.tigerdirect.com and find a barebones kit you want/afford,grab anything that may be missing in your selection but if you really read & select carefully this step can and usually is avoided.AMD kits are usually the cheapest with the biggest bang for your $. [Then You could go to http://www.win7vista.com Join & pay the Sm membership fee. dwld a copy of win 7 ult.ISO latest version from MS it's free but it's not legit. Then buy a key. that's the other illegit part.] Other than that part, Presto! (U can always go online and buy a legal copy.) You'll have a clone that you can upgrade@anytime without all the time,money,gas,limitations that compatibles always have that make the big manufactures money,money,money!

In most cases, it costs more to build your own system. It's like buying all the parts to build a car -vs- buying a mass produced production car.

http://www.sharkyextreme.com/

• A good Motherboard alone will run around $275
  
• Fast CPUs will add around $175+
  
• Add memory, hard drives, monitors ... etc.

typically it cost more, the big name computer manufacturers can buy millions at a time of each part thus saving money. the advantage is that you can get exactly what you want, i have built a few of my own computers, but i find its not worth it, i would just buy them outright online.

If you build a computer out of used parts, you can build one fairly cheap, but it won't perform the same as if you made a really powerful one with brand new hardware.

If you need the cheapest system possible then go with a cheap store bought, but if you need a performance system then go with a home build system.

For example if you head to a site like alienware or other gaming PC places, then build your own system with the same specs, you can usually do it for up to $500-1000 less

The amount of money that you save is entirely up to you; be careful! While it's easy to save a couple hundred dollars, it's also easy to go off the other end of the scale and purchase upgrades that you don't need. This has been my experience, anyway, in that I bought more computer than I actually needed.

It's not about money saved. It's about what you want in the computer. The only way I could get the components I wanted was to build it. I have yet to find a build to order computer that will give me exactly what I want

It totally depends of what kind of a computer you're building. A lot of people build their own PC to get exactly what they want in their system. If your building an average user PC then you would save a decent amount of money. If your building a gaming rig you would probably spend more than a purchased one. I think that the warranty wouldn't be an issue as you would probably get a warranty on every product you buy so if something fries you could just replace it. I would always prefer a custom built computer that I put together.

Kyle, I have been building Systems for many (too many) years and one thing I have learned---anyone who asks the question that you asked is destined to build their first Computer. It seems to be in the Blood! My main reason for building my own is that, when it is complete, I have exactly what I want--hardware, software etc.. Even though I get great discounts from several vendors because I spend so much money with them, I could bever touch the STEEP discounts that major Companies such as Dell, HP and others demand. And they DO demand steep discounts, however in my opinion this is similar to buying a John Deere tractor from Home Depot rather than directly from John Deere. There is a difference in the two products although they appear the same. Same thing with Wallmart HDTV's. Don't be mislead and think they are exactly the same as you could purchase directly from the Manufacturer. It USED to be that it was "worth it" to build your own System, but keep in mind that the "worth" of something is only what someone is willing to pay for it. To start with, you need to determine what you are going to do with a new system. Do you want to do gaming with the most "eye candy" you can get, or are you just going to be using the Internet and maybe a little Photoshop work. For me, one of the biggest reasons for building is the "future-proofing" aspect, which starts with Motherboard selection. Every time a newer Technology arrives, can you simply do some upgrades or would you have to start completely fresh with a new build? AMD seems to be the winner when it comes to that. Anyway, building a System yourself means that YOU are in control. Each component you purchase comes with a warranty so I wouldn't sweat NOT having a System Manufacturer's warranty. There is a ton of help and advice on various Forums. Online suppliers such as newegg.com offer great prices and even better service. To be very honest with you, I think that in todays world, you may end up spending a little more to build your own, but what you gain in the process has a wealth of value that only you can measure. YOU built it. It has exactly what YOU want without all the rest of the unnecessary junk. You will have invested in an experience that will last a Lifetime and be very proud of it. It might also pound your Neighbor's PC into the sand! Good luck with whatever decision you make!