There are messages on forums and Facebook groups all the time asking for recommended computers to play Farming Simulator 19.  How much money do you have to spend? Most people don’t know where to start with building a PC. However, there are three phases to building a computer and you are starting out right now with phase 1, which is research.  Phase 2 comes shortly thereafter, which is actually choosing and purchasing the parts. Phase 3 is the glorious day when they arrive and you put it together. The feeling of turning on (or “posting”) your first home made computer is great.  It must be like what it feels to fire up an old tractor you restored in your garage with your bare hands. Anyways, let’s look at the recommended specs from the FS website:

Farming Simulator 19 System Requirements Windows Version (*)
Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10
2.0 GHz Intel or equivalent AMD dual-core processor
Nvidia Geforce GTS 450, AMD Radeon HD 6770 graphics card or better (min 1GB VRAM)
2 GB RAM
6 GB free hard drive space
Soundcard
DVD-ROM Drive (only for retail version)

Let’s put together a system one part at a time.  Our factors here are going to be 1) power and 2) affordability.  If it’s not enough to run the game we won’t consider it.

  1. CPU – Your processor only needs to be an Intel 2.0 GHz.  This is a laughably low requirement in the CPU world these days.  Expect to spend in the $100-200 range for a starter or mid range CPU.  Something like this i3 6100 processor would be plenty and fits nicely in a budget.
  2. GPU – Graphics Card – For the majority of decent processors, FS19 will probably run off of the discrete graphics on the processor.  However, buying a separate graphics card will help especially if you intend to run mods. The requirement is pretty low, so if you’re looking for something that will run this game and probably a few others, I recommend something like this MSI GeForce GT 730 would be plenty.  Right now it’s only $90.
  3. The requirement for 6 GB of hard drive space should not be difficult in most modern computers.  You can build your PC with a 500 GB SSD drive to improve load times. I recommend something like this ADATA 512 GB SSD for just over $50.  That’s a good deal with plenty of space for operating system and a few beefy programs or games.

If you are using the Steam version you will download it, so you don’t need a DVD drive.  There’s some quick savings. You don’t need a separate sound card as most run through the motherboard these days.  Here are my final recommendations for other parts that are not listed as necessary on the FS19 recommendations:

Motherboard – If you go with the CPU and GPU I mention above, I would go with something from the LGA1151 chipset.  Something like this from Gigabyte would be more than enough for an entry-level gaming system and it’s only $90 right now.

Memory – To keep our theme going here, I’ll go ahead and recommend a 16 Gig set, even though you’d be fine running the game with 8 gigs.  I found this Patriot 16 Gig set with the timing for the motherboard I chose.  Make sure if you get a different motherboard than the one I selected that you get the right timing for your system.  

You will still need a case, power supply, and peripherals.  For those, check out the rest of my list on this link at PCpartpicker.  

As you will see my GRAND TOTAL, including everything you would need (assuming you don’t have anything at all on hand like a monitor or keyboard and mouse from an old PC), will run you $775.  When you consider how much a console and an HD TV costs you these days, it’s really not that much of a jump. You can also use this PC for work and a wide variety of activities. It would also be enough to stream.

If you are looking for a guide video on how to actually build the system, I recommend Paul’s Hardware on YouTube.  That’s where I learned how to build my system.

If you found this guide helpful in your own understanding of how to build a PC that will run this game, kindly stop on by my YouTube page and throw a subscribe.  I put up a new FS video every week and have a lot of fun with this addictive game.

***Disclaimer: I am not a professional tech support person.  I do not work for Giants Software. I do have affiliate links for Amazon products but do not work for any of the companies represented here.  I’m just trying to help virtual farmers get a good rig set up to have some fun.