Black Friday CPU deals 2024: The early discounts worth buying already

Black Friday CPU deals on a purple background
(Image credit: Future)

We're seeing early Black Friday CPU deals landing at a number of retailers right now, with prices dropping particularly low since Amazon, Best Buy, Newegg, and Walmart all kicked off their doorbuster sales in the last few weeks. That means anyone looking to upgrade is well served by discounts ahead of the big day, and we're rounding up all the biggest offers on the shelves right here.

The next couple of weeks are going to be critical. According to the Adobe shopping report, the weeks surrounding Black Friday are when we typically see the biggest drop across the board on the prices of PCs and their components. That means the best CPUs for gaming are an absolute steal around Thanksgiving week.

The last week has seen early Black Friday CPU deals kick up a gear, particularly in the previous generation. Amazon's selection of 13th generation Intel processors have all taken their own additional price cuts in the last few days, putting them between $5 and $20 cheaper than they were earlier in the month. Not only that, but AMD is sneaking in a few of its own bargain discounts as well.

Today's best CPU deals ahead of Black Friday

UK

AMD Ryzen 5 5500$159$83.58 at AmazonSave $75

AMD Ryzen 5 5500 | $159 $83.58 at Amazon
Save $75 - If you're looking to build a budget gaming PC, this is one of the go-to CPU options to choose from. It won't give you much in the way of futureproofing since it isn't DDR5 compatible, but it will offer you solid gaming performance for the money.

Buy it if:

✅ You're building on a budget
✅ You don't care about DDR5
✅ Futureproofing doesn't matter

Don't buy it if:

❌ You want to build on the latest motherboards

Price check: $140 at Walmart

UK: £74.99 at Amazon

Intel Core i5-12600K$342.50$167 at AmazonSave $178

Intel Core i5-12600K | $342.50 $167 at Amazon
Save $178 - Here's a great option for anyone building on an Intel LGA1700 socket and a DDR5-compatible motherboard. One of our hardware editors used to pair this CPU with an RX 4090, which just goes to show how much power there is in it. For this price, you get it $10 off its lowest-ever price.

Buy it if:

✅ You're building on a budget
✅ You want a solid entry into the DDR5 world
✅ You aren't targetting 4K Max in RTS games

Don't buy it if:

❌ You can afford the 13600K

Price check: $140 at Walmart

UK: £152.62 at Amazon

AMD Ryzen 5 7600X$299$203.59 at AmazonSave $95

AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | $299 $203.59 at Amazon
Save $95 - The 7600X has 4K potential and is a nice middle-man if you want something that won't cost an arm and a leg, but still gives you good futureproofing and compatibility. It could get lower in price as we approach November, but this is still under its average Amazon price.

Buy it if:

✅ You want a solid mid-range processor
✅ You're interested in content creation as well
✅ want to play games in 4K

Don't buy it if:

❌ You want more cores and threads for your money

Price check: $249 at Walmart

UK: £179 at Amazon

Intel Core i5-13600K $329$210 at AmazonSave $119

Intel Core i5-13600K | $329 $210 at Amazon
Save $119 - The 13th Gen i5 is still our favorite CPU to recommend to most gamers. The previous lowest-ever price was around $225 back in August, but it didn't stay there for long. If you want to make the most of this discount, we wouldn't wait around.

Buy it if:

✅ You want a DDR5-compatible processor
✅ You want excellent value for money
✅ You want to game in 4K

Don't buy it if:

❌ You want the most up-to-date version
❌ You're still working with a last-gen motherboard

Price check: $225 at Best Buy

UK: £219 at Amazon

AMD Ryzen 7 7700X$399$269 at AmazonSave $130

AMD Ryzen 7 7700X | $399 $269 at Amazon
Save $130 - If you want something a bit higher-end, this is touted by many to be one of the very best gaming CPUs ever made. It isn't as close to its lowest-ever price ($210) as we'd like, but it's still a decent mid-level between that and its MSRP.

Buy it if:

✅ You want a very capable processor
✅ 4K gaming appeals to you
✅ You play RTS games and city builders.

Don't buy it if:

❌ You want the most up-to-date version of this chip

Price check: $279 at Walmart

UK: £248 at Amazon

Intel i7-14700K | $464.99 $347.12 at NeweggSave $117 -

Intel i7-14700K | $464.99 $347.12 at Newegg
Save $117 - Those numbers have tiptoed down to $329 as recently as August, but this is still a fantastic price on the newer Intel i7-14700K. It's still one to watch if you're going for a record-breaking discount, though.

Buy it if:

✅ You want to future-proof
✅ You want to run at 4K

Don't buy it if:

❌ You don't need the latest generation

Price check: Amazon: $347.14 | Walmart: $347.49

UK: £329 at Amazon

Intel Core i9-13900K$629$401 at AmazonSave $228

Intel Core i9-13900K | $629 $401 at Amazon
Save $228 - The 13th gen Intel Core i9 has just dropped its price by another $40, making this a particularly strong deal if you're looking for a flagship model on the cheap.

Buy it if:

✅ You want a flagship processor
✅ You demand a lot of your CPU
✅ You're building an enthusiast rig

Don't buy it if:

❌ You think i9 processors are the best for everyone

Price check: $494 at Best Buy

UK: £386 at Amazon

AMD Ryzen 5 8600G's face and branding

(Image credit: Future / Duncan Robertson)

Black Friday CPU deals: What to expect

Black Friday CPU deals in 2024 are sure to be tempting for anyone who hasn't upgraded to a DDR5-compatible system yet. AMD and Intel have multiple generations available that will give your system bona fide performance boosts. The best part? They're all going to be very affordable when November hits, especially since throughout this year, we've already seen CPU prices drop through the floor.

For starters, there's Intel, which has had to navigate a bit of a PR crisis this year due to its Raptor Lake processors facing widespread instability issues. Warranties and refunds have had to be involved, and motherboard patches have had to be rolled out - it really hasn't been a good look. That's all been happening as the 13th generation of Intel's CPUs has been getting cheaper, so with a poor reputation now in place, it's going to take some hefty deals to get gamers to build with their chips again come Black Friday.

That stands for team Blue's 13th and 14th generations, but the 12th gen group is still very viable, has DDR5 compatibility, and will be so, so cheap come November. Of course, you could wait for Intel's next generation, but since that'll be the first wave to adopt a new motherboard socket, you're going to be asking a lot of your wallet.

Then, there's AMD. Team Red's MO is to undercut Intel and Nvidia, and its Ryzen 7000 and 8000G processors are going to be extremely tempting for builders this Black Friday and Cyber Monday. It'll be interesting to see how desperate Intel will be, and how AMD responds, especially since its Ryzen 9000 Series only launched this year, and could face its first batch of deals.

No matter which team you go for, it's going to be an amazing time to buy gaming CPUs this November. Ready your wallets, check out our reviews, and expect some great deals. If you want an idea of prices from last year, scroll down and check out some of our favorite offers we've saved from 2023.

Black Friday CPU deals: FAQs

When will Black Friday CPU deals start?

Black Friday officially begins on Friday, November 29 this year. As we've seen in previous years, Black Friday CPU deals will likely start in the weeks leading up to that day. We do see the odd deal pop up from the end of October onwards, but the best deals do start to emerge at the beginning of Thanksgiving week. Cyber Monday will happen again this year, but Black Friday usually brings around more deals, and is the safer bet.

Hand holding 13th-gen intel core i9-13900K in fingers in front of plant

(Image credit: Future / Phil Hayton)

Where will the best Black Friday CPU deals be?

In all honesty, it's fairly even in regards to where you'll be able to find the best Black Friday CPU deals. Taking past years into consideration, we saw some of the deepest discounts come from Amazon and Newegg above the majority of other retailers, so we recommend keeping a close watch on these two online storefronts in particular. Also keep an eye on Best Buy and other big-box stores, as they've been keeping up recently as well.

US:

Amazon:
The biggest selection of current and previous generation chipsets
Best Buy: Regular discounts on AMD Ryzen 5000 series and Intel CPUs
Newegg: Deep discounts on must-have Ryzen models and 10th gen Intel
Walmart: Average prices with few discounts available right now

UK:

Amazon:
Low prices on well-reviewed Intel and AMD Ryzen CPUs
eBuyer: Massive savings available on high AMD Ryzen chipsets
Currys: Good offers on the latest Ryzen processors
Laptops Direct: Minor but consistent deals on 9th, 10th, and 11th gen Intel


Complete your battle station for less with everything you need to know to get the best Black Friday gaming laptop deals and Black Friday gaming monitor deals.

You can also take a look at our Black Friday RAM deals and Black Friday SSD deals so you have all the bits and pieces you need to build a PC.

Hardware Editor

One of my earliest memories is playing SuperMario64 and wondering why the controller I held had three grips, but I only had two hands. Ever since I've been in love with video games and their technology. After graduating from Edinburgh Napier University with a degree in Journalism, I contributed to the Scottish Games Network and completed an Editorial Internship at Expert Reviews. Over the last decade, I’ve been managing my own YouTube channel about my love of games too. These days, I'm one of the resident hardware nerds at GamesRadar+, and I take the lead on our coverage of gaming PCs, VR, controllers, gaming chairs, and content creation gear. Now, I better stop myself here before I get talking about my favourite games like HUNT: Showdown, Dishonored, and Towerfall Ascension. Location: UK Remote

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