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Build a PC / coding & development

$6,500 PC for programming, part by part

An Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus with the GeForce RTX 5090, and the 6 parts around them that fit it: $6,417 all in.

Builds, containers and a few virtual machines at 1440p. Every part here was checked against every other for fit, and picked for cores for builds and containers, plenty of memory, fast storage, and a card for several screens or a local model. Typical US prices read on 2026-09-09, not a live checkout total: no operating system, shipping, tax, screen, keyboard or mouse.

The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus and the GeForce RTX 5090 are well matched at 1440p.

Change the budget or the job
95Fit for the job

Flagship

$6,417 of $6,500

Fractal Design TorrentRTX 50901200 W

Build order

Eight steps, the way a builder works through the case. $6,417 all in.

  1. ASUS ROG Strix Z890-A Gaming WiFi on the tray
  2. Core Ultra 7 270K Plus in the socket
  3. Arctic Liquid Freezer III Pro 360 on top
  4. 2 sticks of memory
  5. Samsung 9100 Pro 2TB on the board
  6. RTX 5090 in the x16 slot
  7. 1200 W supply in the basement
  8. Panel on, power on
PartScore for the jobTypical priceBuy
ProcessorIntel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus

Highest coding & development score the budget allows next to this card: 24 cores, boosts to 5.5 GHz.

3 swaps that still fit
97
$324
Buy on Amazon
MotherboardASUS ROG Strix Z890-A Gaming WiFi

Z890 board for the LGA1851 socket, DDR5, 5 M.2 slots, Wi-Fi.

2 swaps that still fit
92
$290
Buy on Amazon
MemoryCorsair Vengeance 48GB (2x24GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 White

48 GB DDR5 at 6000 MT/s CL30; 32 GB or more is the floor for coding & development.

84
$139
Buy on Amazon
Graphics cardGeForce RTX 5090

32 GB of video memory, index 100 at 1440p; tuned for cores for builds and containers, plenty of memory, fast storage, and a card for several screens or a local model.

2 swaps that still fit
100
$4,830
Buy on Amazon
CPU coolerArctic Liquid Freezer III Pro 360

Rated 330 W for a chip that turbos to 250 W.

4 swaps that still fit
96
$70
Buy on Amazon
Power supplyThermaltake Toughpower GF3 1200W

1200 W, 80 Plus gold; this build draws about 1100 W at full tilt, native 12V-2x6 cable.

92
$159
Buy on Amazon
CaseFractal Design Torrent

5 fans in the box, 4 is the least 825 W of parts needs behind a mesh front. Takes EATX/ATX/MATX/ITX boards and cards up to 461 mm.

4 swaps that still fit
92
$205
Buy on Amazon
StorageSamsung 9100 Pro 2TB

2 TB PCIe 5.0 NVMe, 14,700 MB/s reads, with cache.

4 swaps that still fit
97
$400
Buy on Amazon
Total, typical prices8 parts$6,417

The same list, more or less money

$6,000 PC for programmingWhat $500 less buys, and which parts change.$7,000 PC for programmingWhat $500 more buys, and where it goes.

$6,500 spent on a different job

The same money buys a different machine when the work changes.