Hi, I’m Kayla. I fly at home a lot. Like… a lot. I test PCs, I tweak settings, and I chase smooth skies. I’ve bought parts, tried prebuilts, and even flew with a VR headset while my cat napped on the warm case. You know what? A good flight sim PC feels like a sturdy cockpit. Quiet, steady, ready. If you want every gritty detail of that build journey, I laid it all out in I built my best flight sim PC—real flights, real frames. Need a more step-by-step parts list? This PC build guide for Microsoft Flight Simulator is a great cross-check.
But “best” isn’t just one thing. It’s what fits your space, your budget, and your kind of flying. So I’ll share the three rigs I used most this year: a budget bird, a sweet spot build, and my dream rig. I’ll give real flights and real frame rates. No fluff.
What I Used To Test (So You Know I’m Not Guessing)
- Sims: Microsoft Flight Simulator (SU15), X-Plane 12, DCS World 2.9
- Add-ons I flew: PMDG 737-800, Fenix A320, iniBuilds JFK + LAX, FSLTL traffic, Ortho4XP tiles, DCS F-16 over Syria
- Controls: Honeycomb Alpha yoke + Bravo throttle, Thrustmaster TCA Airbus pack, Logitech rudder pedals
- Screens: 27" 1440p at 165 Hz, 34" ultrawide (3440×1440), and a 4K TV at 120 Hz
- VR: Meta Quest 3 (Link cable) and HP Reverb G2
- Tools: In-game frame counter, Nvidia overlay, and, yes, my eyeballs
If you're hunting for even more aircraft or utilities to stretch your new build, check out Abacus for a classic catalog of flight-sim add-ons that still plugs neatly into today's sims.
Little thing: I keep Windows Game Mode on, Hardware-Accelerated GPU Scheduling on, Nvidia V-Sync off, G-Sync on. I set rolling cache in MSFS to 20–32 GB. It helps.
The Budget Bird — It Surprised Me
I built this one on a rainy weekend. Cheap, clean, and not too loud.
- CPU: Ryzen 5 5600
- GPU: RTX 3060 12 GB
- RAM: 32 GB DDR4-3200
- Storage: 1 TB NVMe (WD Blue SN570)
- Board/PSU/Cooler: B550 board, 650 W Bronze PSU, Noctua air cooler
How it flew for me:
- MSFS at 1080p, High settings, DX12, DLSS Quality, FSLTL on at JFK: 42–55 fps on approach in the PMDG 737. A few stutters near terminals, but it held.
- X-Plane 12 at 1080p, High, Zibo 737 at KSEA: 50–60 fps in clear skies; heavy clouds dropped to low 40s.
- DCS F-16 over Syria at 1080p, High: 70–90 fps in air, 55–65 over big cities.
VR check:
- Quest 3, 72 Hz, upscaling on, dialed-down clouds: “okay.” Not pretty, but flyable for bush runs. I flew LOWI to LOIJ in a Cessna and smiled the whole time. My headset fogged before the frames failed.
Noise and feel:
- This rig ran warm but steady. Fans were a low whoosh. I sipped coffee while IAPs loaded. I spilled once. It survived.
Who should get this?
- If you fly 1080p, like GA or medium jets, and don’t mind Medium/High mix, it’s solid. Cheap doesn’t mean bad. It means you tweak a bit.
The Sweet Spot Captain — My Pick For Most Pilots
This one is my daily flier. It balances power with price, and it just feels right. I swear the 7800X3D was tuned for MSFS, and if you want to see how it stacks up against other contenders, the best CPU picks for Microsoft Flight Simulator list breaks it down benchmark by benchmark.
- CPU: Ryzen 7 7800X3D
- GPU: RTX 4070 Ti Super 16 GB
- RAM: 32 GB DDR5-6000 (EXPO on)
- Storage: 2 TB NVMe (SN850X)
- Board/PSU/Case/Cooler: B650 board, 850 W Gold PSU, Fractal North case, 240 mm AIO
Real flights I did:
- MSFS at 1440p, Ultra, DX12, DLSS Quality, Frame Generation on. Fenix A320 into KLAX with iniBuilds scenery and FSLTL traffic: 65–85 fps on final, 55–65 at heavy gates. Smooth panning. Much less pop-in.
- Heathrow storm test (A320, live weather): 60–75 fps at 1440p. When the rain hit the glass, I grinned.
- X-Plane 12, Zibo at KPDX, 3440×1440: 60–80 fps, pretty clouds, stable at cruise.
- DCS F-16 Syria at 1440p, High+, MSAA x2: 100–130 fps up high; 80–95 near city.
VR notes:
- Quest 3 at 80–90 Hz with Frame Generation in MSFS: smooth enough to fly ILS without getting queasy. I keep OpenXR Toolkit sharpening mild.
- Reverb G2: 45 fps with motion repro on, Ultra clouds down to High. It looked crisp. I could read the MCDU without leaning.
Any quirks?
- I had one audio crackle with USB hubs when I slammed the view left-right fast. Moved my yoke to a rear USB port. Fixed.
- Also, set Terrain LOD to 200–250 for cities. Above 300 looks nice but hits the CPU.
Who should get this?
- If you want 1440p Ultra, busy hubs, and some VR fun, this is the sweet spot. It made me forget I was “testing” and just fly.
The Dream Rig — Overkill? Maybe. I Still Loved It.
I built this for a month-long home “sim camp.” My friend called it the “wind tunnel.” It did get loud, but wow.
- CPU: Ryzen 9 7950X3D
- GPU: RTX 4090 24 GB
- RAM: 64 GB DDR5-6000
- Storage: 2×2 TB NVMe (one just for MSFS and add-ons)
- Board/PSU/Case/Cooling: X670E board, 1000 W Platinum PSU, Lian Li O11, 360 mm AIO
How it flew:
- MSFS at 4K, Ultra, DX12, DLSS Quality, Frame Gen on. EGLL with heavy traffic and rain: 70–95 fps taxiing by Terminal 5; 90–110 fps in the air. It looked like a promo video.
- LAX sunset, PMDG 737, photogrammetry on: 80–100 fps. Minimal hitches when panning fast.
- X-Plane 12 at 4K High+: 70–90 fps with pretty water and big clouds.
- DCS at 4K High: 110–150 fps in air; VR was wild.
VR bliss:
- Reverb G2: Motion repro at 45/90 locked, mostly no wobble. I did a full VATSIM flight EGLL–EDDM, gate to gate in the Fenix, smooth the whole way.
- Quest 3 with Link: stable at 80–90 Hz, TAA looks cleaner than DLSS in the headset for me.
Cons:
- Coil whine on the 4090 when the menu sat at 1000 fps. Capping menu fps to 120 fixed it.
- It’s big. It eats desk space and power. Also, it made my room warm. My cat loved that part.
Who should get this?
- 4K pilots, heavy VR fans, and folks who want the cleanest glass cockpit and the thickest clouds. It’s a treat.
A Prebuilt I Also Tried (Quick Note)
I borrowed an Alienware Aurora R15 with an i9-13900KF and an RTX 4080. At 1440p Ultra with Frame Gen, KLAX in the Fenix sat around 70–80 fps, dropping to high 50s at the gate. Fans got loud under load, but it was plug-and-fly. If you don’t want to build, it works. For travelers eyeing something lighter, I even tested a flight-sim laptop—here’s what actually works if mobility is your priority.