![](https://pcbrim.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Different-Types-of-PC-Cases.jpeg)
A PC case is one of the most underrated yet important PC components when building a computer. However, choosing the wrong one that doesn’t support your motherboard’s form factor or match your use cases can cause performance issues. In this article, I’ll explain to you what a case is and the different types of it.
Beginners often select a case with subpar cooling, unattractive aesthetics, and questionable protection. While the process isn’t hard, you need to understand different types of PC cases as, like every other part, there is no one-size-fits-all case that you can go with.
Contents
What Are PC Cases?
PC cases are the standard enclosures, inside which components like the processor, RAM modules, GPU, and more reside. And they are important because the form factor determines which components you can fit inside the case or how future-proof your PC can be regarding that extra available space, if any.
Types of PC Cases: Explained
There are 8 PC case types you would come across on the market, which are:
- Full Tower
- Mid-Tower
- Mini Tower
- Small Form Factor
- USFF
- Cubes
- Open Bench
- HTPC
Let’s get to know about each in detail!
1. Full Tower Case
![Full Tower](https://pcbrim.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Full-Tower-1024x624.png)
These are the largest PC cases, focusing on improved airflow and component space. Sadly, they aren’t the most aesthetic ones around.
The design allows you to pair in multiple GPUs, massive power supply units, and even additional HDDs/SSDs, as required. In case your focus is on building massive crypto mining, gaming, or professional rigs, full tower cases make sense. They are also useful if future-proofing the PC is a concern.
Most full tower cases can accommodate different motherboard types and can also be termed E-ATX cases by many. This means they can fit in extended ATX or the largest variants of motherboards.
However, they can also fit in all the motherboard variants apart from EATX — including ATX, Mini-ITX, and even Micro-ITX. They make more sense if you plan to work with EATX cases.
These cases can go as high as 22 inches and as wide as 9 inches. As for the weight, they can be as heavy as 40 pounds. Interestingly, they can also accommodate multiple motherboard form factors (not at once, obviously).
In case you wish to get into the specifics, full tower cases can easily fit in 3 to even six 5.25-inch external bays, 6 to 12 3.5” internal bays, or over 10 SSDs and HDDs or 2.5-inch bays, 10+ expansion slots, 4 GPUs, and even 5 to 10 small case fans.
Full tower cases are even useful for server boards or server PCs, which are common at high-tech IT facilities. Coming to the variants, you can pick the Thermaltake Core W100 or the Phateks Enthoo Elite.
2. Mid-Tower Case
![Mid Tower](https://pcbrim.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Mid-Tower-1024x673.png)
These cases are the most popular ones around. What separates them from the other size-specific picks is the perfect balance between functionality and size.
They can accommodate most components and make sense if you want to build a gaming machine or even a video editing/sound editing/photo editing workstation.
You can use mid-tower cases for pairing ATX motherboards. And While other dimensions can also fit in, you have other cases for the same. These cases make the most sense for gamers and even workstation enthusiasts.
As mentioned already, they can accommodate almost every MOBO form factor apart from the EATX. They are almost 18 inches tall at times and can even weigh as high as 30 pounds. Plus, these cases offer ample space for nifty cable management.
As for specifics, you can still pair close to 10 2.5-inch HDDs, courtesy of the featured bays. As for the expansion slots, there can be eight at max. You can even use these cases to include 3 to 8 case fans and 2 GPUs.
Some of the more obvious picks include the Fractal Design Meshify and NZXT H510.
3. Mini Tower Case
![Mini Tower](https://pcbrim.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Mini-Tower-1024x689.png)
If you want to pick the smallest PC case in terms of size, mini-ITX variants steal the show. Per the name, they are meant to accommodate mini-ITX cases where there is only space for one to two hard drive bays and a couple of expansion slots.
These cases are often used interchangeably with Mini tower or even Small Form Factor cases.
These towers can easily handle the smaller form factors. When it comes to the measurements, they can be 14 inches tall. Plus, mini towers can even weigh 20 pounds or less, but you can always skim the market for lighter options.
Getting a mini tower case makes sense to the budget and standard office users. Plus, they allow you to fit the PC almost anywhere, courtesy of that perfect balance between size and aesthetics.
As for the storage options, you can pair one GPU, a maximum of 2 case fans, and one or even two 5.25” (external) drive bays. There can also be space for a maximum of 4 expansion slots, but that depends on what your motherboard offers.
As for the choices, the Thermaltake Core V21 and the Silverstone Fortress FT03-MINI are some of the best cases in this category.
4. Small Form Factor Case
![Small Form Factor](https://pcbrim.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Small-Form-Factor-1024x843.png)
These are the smallest variants of PC cases, capable of working with two expansion slots, one graphics card, four 2.5-inch drive bays, and one to two case fans.
The ultra-compact structure makes them desirable, making the SFF cases useful for home theater computers and other devices heavily reliant on media consumption.
They are usually 10-inch tall, 4-inch wide, and weigh close to 10 pounds, at max. They are meant for smaller mini-ITCX motherboards. However, cable management can be an issue as there isn’t much breathing room.
Some of the more popular variants include the Silverstone ML08 and NCase M1.
5. USFF Case
![USFF](https://pcbrim.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/USFF-1024x636.png)
These are Ultra Small Form Factor cases, meant for ultraportable builds. Coming to the dimensions and structure, they are capable of making space for Mini-ITX motherboards.
These cases are typically 8 inches tall and weigh close to 5 pounds. Some of the more popular variants include Lenovo ThinkCentre M90n Nano and the HP Elite Slice.
6. Cubes Case
![Cubes](https://pcbrim.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Cubes-1024x664.png)
You cannot look beyond the Cubes if you are looking for aesthetically appealing PC cases. These PC cases can go as tall as 14 inches — capable of accommodating mini-ITX and MicroATX motherboards.
They also offer ample space for HDDs, SSDs, external drives, expansion slots, and more. As for the weight, they are still lighter than their Mid tower counterparts at 20 to 25 pounds.
If you want to get one, the Fractal Design Node 804 and the Silverstone Fortress FT05 can be pretty good picks.
7. Open Bench Case
![Open Bench](https://pcbrim.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Open-Bench-896x1024.png)
These PC cases are new and innovative. You hardly see them often as they do not have the standard enclosures.
These PC cases are like open enclosures, allowing you to add, tweak, or remove any component anytime. If you are an expert builder, you can try fiddling with them. I have been personally using the Lian Li PC-T70 for testing my builds.
And despite the aesthetic flexibility, they do not usually have room for expansion slots and even drive bays, making them somewhat restrictive to use as a commercial PC case.
8. HTPC Case
![HTPC](https://pcbrim.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/HTPC-1024x433.png)
Home theater PC or HTPC cases are unique enclosures that are usually 7 inches tall and weigh close to 15 pounds. Still, they aren’t quite generous when it comes to the presence of expansion slots and drive bays.
These are best suited to content consumption needs specific to multimedia. Some of the tried and tested variants for the same include InWin A1 and Silverstone Grandia GD09B.
And that sums up almost everything that you need to know about PC cases.
Relationship Between Form Factors and PC Case Sizes
If you ever hear the term form factor in relation to PC cases, here is what you need to know. While the PC case size might vary, depending on the tower shape they assume — like full, mid, mini, and micro, they are also related to the motherboard form factor.
By now, you should know that there are primarily four motherboard variants in terms of form factor: ATX, E-ATX, Mini-ITX, and Micro-ATX. But they share a strange relation with the PC cases in terms of size.
For instance, a full tower case can accommodate all of the above form factors. Similarly, if you choose a mid-tower case, you can pair in anything but the EATX form factors. Mini Tower cases are meant for mini-ITX, and micro-ATX cases, whereas SFF cases are most suitable for mini-ITX motherboards.
However, there are a few more things that you might want to know about. For instance, other form factors exist like FlexATX, mini-DTX, Pico-ITX, and Naano-ITX.
While mini-DTX motherboards can typically fit into Mini Tower and SFF cases, the cases that can accommodate the Flex ATX variant is limited. The likes of Silverstone SG05-450 sound like good options.
The Flex ATX might look a lot like Micro-ATX motherboards in terms of size, but they come with a very different placement of ports.
But there are smaller variants of the motherboard available. These include the Nano-ITX form factor that can fit into proprietary cases like Travla C137 and even Morex 557. These are smaller than mini-ITX cases and quite hard to get.
And for Pico-ITX motherboards that go well into embedded systems, you can pick something like the Morex 2699.
It needs to be mentioned that the Flex, mini-DTX, Pico-ITX, and Nano-ITX form factors and the compatible PC cases aren’t commonly seen in the retail sector. You should primarily focus on the more popular ones all the Tower cases, and more.
Frequently Asked Questions
There are many PC cases that offer excellent airflow. However, if you are looking for specifics, it is necessary to look at cooling preferences and aesthetic preferences. Some of my personal favorites include MasterCase H500M from Cooler Master and the Meshify C from Fractal Design.
The PC case size you need depends on several factors: the size of the motherboard, number of GPUs, number of storage drives, RAM modules, need for an expansion slot, and more. Depending on the components, you can choose between ATX full-tower, mini-ITX, mid-tower, SFF, and other cases.
Form factor meaning can differ according to the context. For instance, if you are looking at PC cases, the form factor depends on the size of the motherboard you are planning to fit into the same. In simple words, the form factor refers to the layout, shape, and even size of the concerned PC component.
While every PC case is popular in its own way and even has a user base, nothing beats the popularity of mid-tower PC cases. They offer the best balance between features, size, and even aesthetics. Plus, they often have space for ATX motherboards, making them spacious as well.
In regards to PC building, ATX stands for Advanced Technology Extended. This technology came to be for the unversed in the 1990s when Intel simply created a specification related to the motherboard form factor. ATX considers layout, dimensions, and even electrical or circuit-specific requirements.
While several cool PC cases are in play, offering excellent airflow and space-specific features, the Thermaltake Level 20 GT case, capable of fitting in a 200mm front-facing fan, is the most popular. Do note that it is also an RGB case. Another cooling-minded PC case is the Lian Li PC-O11 Dynamic, which even supports liquid cooling.
Conclusion
Even though you can pick any case depending on your preferences, you should also take precautions to improve longevity.
For instance, if your mid or mini PC case is made of steel, you should make it a point to keep the working environment dry to prevent rusting.
If you have opted for an aluminum case, you should take additional care of the surface, keeping scratches and bending at bay.
Some budget PC cases can also be made of plastic. In that case, you should avoid dropping or mishandling the same. With plastic cases in play, you should try and avoid exposure to sunlight to prevent color warping.
And finally, if you have a tempered glass PC case as your choice of enclosure, the best longevity-enhancing strategy would be to prevent drops and impacts.
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