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Best Power Supplies

Depending on its overall performance, your PSU plays a big part in determining reliability, so you have to be careful when it comes to picking the right one for your machine. A good PSU should also have the protection features able to save your components, including the power supply itself, should something go wrong.

The recommendations below are pulled from the top-level awarded products from our PSU reviews. As we continue reviewing units, this list will evolve and grow, continually representing the best of an incredibly important component.

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Best Power Supply Units

April 27th Update: reviewed the Seasonic Prime Ultra Titanium 1000W, Apexgaming AG-850M, and several other models (no awards, not listed). Removed the Silverstone SX500-LG, EVGA SuperNova 550 G2, Corsair CX650M, FSP Hydro G 650.

Corsair SF450
Bitfenix BWG550M
Corsair RM550x
Seasonic SSR-600TL
Corsair RM650x
EVGA SuperNOVA 650 P2
Seasonic Prime SSR-650TD
Corsair RM750x
Seasonic Focus Plus SSR-750FX
Thermaltake Toughpower Grand RGB 750W (TPG-0750F-R)
EVGA SuperNova 750 P2
EVGA SuperNOVA 850 G3
Seasonic SSR-850FX
EVGA SuperNova 850 P2
EVGA SuperNova 850 T2
Seasonic Prime SSR-850TD
Corsair HX1000
Seasonic SSR-1000PD Ultra - Best PSUs
Corsair HX1200
Thermaltake ToughPower RGB TPG-1250D-T
Corsair AX1500i
Corsair AX1600i
Manufacturer (OEM)
Great Wall
Channel Well Technology
CWT
Seasonic
CWT
Super Flower
Seasonic
CWT
Seasonic
Sirfa/Sirtec
Super Flower
Super Flower
Seasonic
Super Flower
Super Flower
Seasonic
CWT
Seasonic
CWT
CWT (CST Platform)
Flextronics
Flextronics
Max. DC Output
450W
550W
550W
600W
650W
650W
650W
750W
750W
750W (900W Peak)
750W
850W
850W
850W
850W
850W
1000W
1000W
1200W
1250W (1500W Peak)
1500W
1600W
Efficiency
80 PLUS Gold
80 PLUS Gold, ETA-A (88-91%)
80 Plus Gold, ETA-A (88-91%)
80 PLUS Titanium, ETA-A+
80 Plus Gold, ETA-A (88-91%)
80 Plus Platinum
80 Plus Titanium, ETA-A+ (91-94%)
80 Plus Gold, ETA-A (88-91%)
80 PLUS Gold, ETA-A (88-91%)
80 Plus Gold, ETA-A (88-91%)
80 Plus Platinum
80 Plus Gold, LAMBDA-A (88-91%)
80 PLUS Gold, ETA-A (88-91%)
80 Plus Platinum
80 Plus Titanium, ETA-A+ (91-94%)
80 Plus Titanium, ETA-A+
80 Plus Platinum, ETA-A (88-91%)
80 PLUS Platinum, ETA-A (88-91%)
80 Plus Platinum, ETA-A (88-91%)
80 Plus Titanium
80 Plus Titanium, ETA-A+ (91-94%)
80 Plus Titanium, ETA-A+ (91-94%)
Noise
N/A
LAMBDA-A (20-25 dB[A])
LAMBDA-A++ (
LAMBDA-A++
LAMBDA-A++ (
N/A
LAMBDA-A+ (15-20 dB[A])
LAMBDA-A+ (15-20 dB[A])
LAMBDA-S++ (30-35 dB[A])
LAMBDA-S+ (35-40 dB[A])
N/A
ETA-S++ (30-35 dB[A])
LAMBDA-S++ (30-35 dB[A])
N/A
LAMBDA-A++ (
LAMBDA-A+
LAMBDA-A- (25-30 dB[A])
LAMBDA-A- (25-30 dB[A])
LAMBDA-A (20-25 dB[A])
N/A
LAMBDA-A- (25-30 dB[A])
LAMBDA-A- (25-30 dB[A])
Modular
✓ (fully)
✓ (fully)
✓ (fully)
✓ (fully)
✓ (fully)
✓ (fully)
✓ (fully)
✓ (fully)
✓ (Fully)
✓ (Fully)
✓ (fully)
✓ (Fully)
✓ (Fully)
✓ (fully)
✓ (fully)
✓ (fully)
✓ (Fully)
✓ (Fully)
✓ (Fully)
✓ (fully)
✓ (fully)
✓ (fully)
Intel C6/C7 Power State Support
Operating Temperature (Continuous Full Load)
0 - 40°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 40°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
0 - 50°C
Over Voltage Protection
Under Voltage Protection
Over Power Protection
Over Current (+12V) Protection
✓ (Selectable)
✓ (Selectable)
Over Temperature Protection
Short Circuit Protection
Surge Protection
Inrush Current Protection
Fan Failure Protection
No Load Operation
Cooling
92mm Rifle Bearing Fan (NR092L)
135mm Hydro Dynamic Bearing Fan (DF1352512SEMN)
135mm Rifle Bearing Fan (NR135L)
Passive
135mm Rifle Bearing Fan (NR135L)
140mm Double Ball-Bearing Fan (RL4Z B1402512M)
135mm Fluid Dynamic Bearing Fan (HA13525M12F-Z)
135mm Rifle Bearing Fan (NR135L)
120mm Fluid Dynamic Bearing Fan (HA1225H12F-Z)
140mm HDB RGB Fan (TT-1425/A1425L12S)
140mm Double Ball-Bearing Fan (RL4Z B1402512HH)
130mm Hydraulic Dynamic Bearing Fan (H1282412H)
120mm Fluid Dynamic Bearing Fan (HA1225H12F-Z)
140mm Double Ball-Bearing Fan (RL4Z B1402512HH)
140mm Double Ball-Bearing Fan (RL4Z B1402512M)
135mm Fluid Dynamic Bearing Fan (HA13525M12F-Z)
135mm Fluid Dynamic Bearing Fan (NR135P)
135mm Fluid Dynamic Bearing Fan (HA13525H12F-Z)
135mm Fluid Dynamic Bearing Fan (NR135P)
140mm Hydraulic Dynamic Bearing RGB Fan (A1425L12S)
140mm Fluid Dynamic Bearing Fan (NR140P)
140mm Fluid Dynamic Bearing Fan (NR140P)
Semi-Passive Operation
✓ (Selectable)
✓ (Selectable)
✓ (Selectable)
✓ (Selectable)
✓ (selectable)
✓ (Selectable)
✓ (Selectable)
✓ (Selectable)
✓ (Selectable)
✓ (Selectable)
✓ (Selectable through software)
✓ (Selectable through software)
✓ (Selectable through software)
Dimensions (WxHxD)
125 x 63.5 x 100mm
150 x 86 x 160mm
150 x 86 x 160mm
150 x 86 x 172mm
150 x 86 x 160mm
150 x 86 x 165mm
150 x 86 x 170mm
150 x 87 x 182mm
150 x 86 x 140mm
150 x 86 x 160mm
150 x 86 x 168mm
150 x 86 x 150mm
150 x 86 x 140mm
150 x 86 x 165mm
150 x 86 x 182mm
150 x 86 x 170mm
150 x 86 x 200mm (W x H x D)
150 x 86 x 172mm
150 x 86 x 200mm (W x H x D)
150 x 86 x 200mm
150 x 86 x 225mm
150 x 86 x 200mm
Weight
0.8kg (1.76lb)
1.5kg (3.31lb)
1.7kg (3.75lb)
1.8kg (3.97lb)
1.7kg (3.75lb)
1.7kg (3.75lb)
1.9kg (4.19lb)
2.0kg (4.41lb)
1.58kg (3.48lb)
1.656kg (3.651lb)
1.8kg (3.97lb)
1.625kg (3.583lb)
1.585kg (3.49lb)
1.8kg (3.97lb)
2.3kg (5.07lb)
2kg (4.41lb)
1.98kg (4.37lb)
2.08kg (4.59lb)
2.3kg (5.07lb)
2.4kg (5.29lb)
2.9kg (6.39lb)
2.6kg (5.73lb)
Form Factor
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.31, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
ATX12V v2.4, EPS 2.92
Warranty
7 Years
7 Years
10 Years
12 Years
10 Years
10 Years
10 Years
10 Years
10 Years
10 Years
10 Years
10 Years
10 Years
10 Years
10 Years
10 Years
10 Years
12 Years
10 Years
10 Years
7 Years
10 Years
Maximum DC Output
Intel C6/C7 Power State Compatibility
Over Current Protection (+12V)
Semi-Passive operation
Dimensions

MORE: Power Supplies 101

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MORE: All Power Supply Content

When it comes to power supplies, the saying that "more is better" doesn't apply. Before deciding on your next PSU purchase, you should calculate how much power your system draws from the wall and look for a capacity point that satisfies your demands. A few years ago, all high-end graphics cards were power-hungry. However, this changed with Nvidia's latest architectures. It's simply not necessary to buy a 1kW PSU for a couple of GeForce GTX 1080s. A 750W model will do just fine, leaving plenty of headroom for an overclocked host processor. Fans of AMD's flagship Radeon cards need to plan for higher power use, pairing them with PSUs featuring greater maximum output.

Relative Performance
Performance Per Dollar

In the relative performance charts provided with each one of our PSU reviews, we create an index of sorts that encapsulates overall performance, including load regulation, ripple suppression, efficiency, hold-up time, and the maximum power each PSU can deliver. Hopefully this makes your life easier, since you don't have to decipher several data-heavy graphs to reach your own conclusions. You only need to take a quick look at our index to see where your PSU of choice stands against its competition. The second most important chart, derived from the relative performance score, is performance per dollar, which we're betting will become your favorite as you shop for an upgrade.

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9 comments
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  • tacgnol06
    I'm surprised you guys skipped the SSR-850PX. At $125, it's an excellent upgrade from Seasonic's 850w Gold PSU yet nowhere near as expensive as the Titanium one.
  • Aris_Mp
    We just haven't reviewed this yet.
  • spadam_2000
    The EVGA SUPERNOVA 650 P2 does not have two EPS connectors. The picture in the article even shows the back of the PSU having only one CPU (CPU1) modular connection.
  • turkey3_scratch
    Anonymous said:
    The EVGA SUPERNOVA 650 P2 does not have two EPS connectors. The picture in the article even shows the back of the PSU having only one CPU (CPU1) modular connection.


    Has two here http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story2&reid=446

    And here https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/evga-supernova-650-p2-power-supply,4364.html
  • BlueCat57
    Why is a $100 plus power supply better than a good quality $50 one?

    How long and in how many systems can you use your $100 plus power supply?

    Is paying $100 for a power supply cost effective "insurance" on a $500 computer? At what point does it become cost effective insurance?

    If I'm paying over $100 for a power supply where do I cut costs to pay for it? The case? The SSD or hard drive? No optical drive? The CPU cooler?

    I'm looking for frugal, cost effective advice. I know that this article is about the "best" and that I can find these answers in the forums. But I still don't understand why manufacturers just don't build a "best" power supply in say 500, 750 and 1000 watts. Wouldn't economies of scale make the cost of the units affordable?
  • spadam_2000
    Anonymous said:
    Anonymous said:
    The EVGA SUPERNOVA 650 P2 does not have two EPS connectors. The picture in the article even shows the back of the PSU having only one CPU (CPU1) modular connection.


    Has two here http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story2&reid=446

    And here https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/evga-supernova-650-p2-power-supply,4364.html


    I stand corrected. I have a 650 P2 and I didn't see two connectors. I must've grabbed a cable from my 850 box, thinking it was the same. So it appears to use just the single connection from CPU1 out of the PSU using a cable that has both the 4+4 and an 8-pin EPS.

    Thanks Turkey!
  • hqxt1964
    Hope to test more than under 400 watts, the truth is that these are the ideal products for modern low-energy PC. very thankful.
  • test_purch1
    Test Automation comment 1526642850717