I switched to an AIO cooler on my personal rig only after using air coolers for over two decades. I was excited to see the improvements in CPU temps, system noise, and esthetics, but things didn't pan out exactly as I thought. The idle temps on my Ryzen 7 5700X remained much the same, and the supposed visual enhancement wasn't as drastic as I had hoped. Plus, removing and reinstalling the cooler a bunch of times (I thought the installation was at fault) was more frustrating than I'd like to admit.

I've now decided not to default to liquid coolers in my personal builds, as well as those I put together for customers. As much as possible, I'm trying to eliminate AIO coolers from my PCs, since air coolers can accomplish almost everything liquid coolers can. Besides, the cost savings don't hurt either. Air cooling is a simpler way of cooling CPUs, and one that'll be my go-to moving forward.

4 Every dollar counts

Especially for my PC business

AIO liquid coolers naturally cost more than air coolers. They have multiple components that involve more complex engineering compared to air coolers, but I think I don't have to absorb those costs anymore. After experiencing liquid cooling on my gaming rig, I believe decent air coolers are more than capable of tackling any CPU I'll ever put in my system. It's not like I'll suddenly need a Core Ultra 9 or Ryzen 9 processor for gaming or writing.

There's another consideration here; I build PCs for customers as part of my business, and the higher cost of liquid coolers makes a difference. By switching to air coolers for almost all the pre-built gaming rigs we offer, we can reduce the prices for customers without sacrificing performance. By using exclusively mid-range air coolers to cool all the Ryzen 5 or Ryzen 7 CPUs (we're staying away from Intel right now) on our builds, we'll convince our customers that they don't need to overspend on CPU cooling.

3 I like to avoid needless hassle

Why put myself through it?

AIO coolers might have come a long way from their early days in terms of reliability, but they still have multiple points of failure. A radiator, pump, and pipes pushing liquid through your PC over years create more opportunities for something to fail. In contrast, an air cooler has fewer moving parts and a simpler design that experiences less wear and tear. A CPU block, metal pipes, and some fans will always be the safer solution in the long term.

Even if you argue that AIO coolers rarely fail within their warranty period, air coolers are just easier to install and maintain. If a fan on an air cooler needs a replacement, it's a fairly easy and cheap process. I will welcome the simpler installation of air coolers, and even if something is wrong with the CPU temps, removing and reinstalling the cooler feels like such a relief compared to doing the same thing with an AIO cooler.

2 Even the esthetics aren't a huge sticking point

Air coolers can look just as classy

I know I've written about liquid coolers looking better than air coolers, primarily due to the smaller CPU block. However, we have no lack of great-looking air coolers on the market, many with equally arresting RGB designs as those on liquid coolers. Beefy air coolers might hide parts of your motherboard from view, but you simply need to decide your PC's visual theme around it to make things work.

Since I'm never wasting money on high-end AIO coolers with LCDs anyway, striking the right esthetics is easily manageable with a quality air cooler. Something like the Scythe Mugen 6 or even the Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 with that digital screen top cover will look great on any PC with a no-RGB esthetic. And there are far too many RGB coolers for those who love a little more flair in their rigs.

1 Air coolers have all the performance I need

Busting the myth

Liquid coolers aren't really better in performance compared to air coolers, at least not in any situation I'll find myself in. As I said, I'll never use a high-end chip on my personal rig or most of my client builds, so decent air coolers are all I need. The performance of air coolers like the Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 or the be quiet! Dark Rock 5 is phenomenal for the price, and enough to cool any mainstream CPU.

Of course, you need liquid cooling once you're dealing with the flagship CPUs, but very few people need that kind of CPU power, even for high-end gaming. Many air coolers are capable of handling around 250W of CPU load, which includes anything your 8-core CPU can cook up. It's high time you reconsidered AIO coolers for your next build. Save yourself some money, hassle, and stop giving in to FOMO.

I've left AIO coolers in the rearview mirror

AIO coolers serve a necessary purpose, which is cooling the most power-hungry CPUs on the market. However, most users aren't running these CPUs on their gaming PCs, and can manage just fine with decent air coolers. After using a liquid cooler on my personal rig, I've decided that it's not worth the extra money or headache. I'll use air coolers on all my future builds, including those I build for clients. Some customers will need to be educated about the fantastic price-to-performance ratio of air coolers,