Best Cpu Cooler For i7 9700k [Buying Guide]

If you recently built a new rig for yourself and it contains the I7 9700K, chances are that you are looking for the best CPU cooler for i7 9700k to improve your performance.

Back in October of 2018, Intel introduced their top of the line 9th gen products. At this moment, these processors are a good budget flagship option mainly because there isn’t a lot of improvements in the 10th generation, but the price difference is surely there. The i7-9700K and the i9-9900K are one of their top of the line processors in this line-up. Going with the i7 series instead of the i9 series will surely save you some serious buck. In fact, it will save you around $150.

But, today’s article is not about the performance and the price of these two CPUs. If you’re looking for a cooler for the i7-9700K, you’ve probably done your fair share of research and have already decided on what you want to buy.

Today we will show you how to get the most out of your new i7-9700K. All you need to do for starters is swap out the stock cooling solution that you got in the box with some aftermarket. You’ve got a couple of options to go with, air cooler AIO cooler, or some water block if you decide to go with water cooling. CPU coolers play a significant role in the performance of the CPU. Frankly, some coolers perform much better than others. And, today, after some time spent testing, reading user reviews, we decided to show you which are the best Air, AIO, and Water Coolers on the market for the i7-9700K!

The Best CPU Cooler for 9th Gen i7

First on our list is the Noctua NH-D15, if you do some research on CPU coolers, you will find out that Noctua makes the best air coolers and CPU coolers in the whole PC parts market. And, the Noctua NH-D15 is nothing short than perfect. Namely, this cooler can run your rig as cool as some 24mm AIOs, and that’s a fantastic performance. You will be able to overclock your system without any problems, and the cooler will keep the temps cool. If you’re trying to overclock your CPU, the i7-9700K goes up to 5GHz, and you’re trying to achieve this with an air cooler, the D15 is one of the few that can accomplish this. But, CPU cooler alone can’t do anything if your thermals, airflow, and case build are not up to for the task.

If you don’t want to overclock your CPU, on the other hand, you can get away with much cheaper options such as the Noctua NH-D14, or you can also go with the Dark Rock Pro 4. This will surely save you a couple of bucks, while not sacrificing any performance.

1. Cryorig H5 Ultimate – Best Budget CPU Cooler for 9700K

 

For the ones of you that don’t really want to spend a lot of money, and still get some cooling performance the Cryorig H5 Ultimate is one of the best budget options out there. It comes at $50, and for that price, it delivers a significant performance boost. One user on Reddit reported amazingly low temperatures using the H5 ultimate with his i7-9700K. He stated that he experienced incredibly low temps. At the same time, his pc was idle, and when he was gaming on a 5GHz overclock with 1.3V, he reported temps at mid-fifties and low sixties. Despite the fact that this CPU has a relatively low price, it seems to be able to tame the beast that the i7 9700K is, both at idle and under load.

It’s pretty easy to install this CPU air cooler. In fact, it’s one of the easiest air coolers for installation. You get 160mm of height and 35mm of RAM tolerance. It should fit perfectly in most ATX and mid-tower builds.

2. Best CPU Cooler for i7 9700k – AIO Cooler

 

When we’re talking AIO coolers for 9700K, the best thing to do is to go with any well-known brand. All of them are using Asetek components. But you still get some AIO coolers that perform marginally better than others. And, other things also play a big role in your choice. Aesthetics, price range, and reliability are just some of the more important traits when it comes to AIOs. The size of the radiator is another thing to consider and if it fits inside your PC case. Mainly, there are 3 mainstream sizes 120mm, 240mm, and 360mm.

So, if you’re in the market for the best CPU cooler for i7 9700k and want to go with an AIO, we would recommend the Corsair H150i Pro. According to the reviews and tests we did, this is one of the best performing AIOs for the price. For this price, you get the best build quality, a large radiator, and amazing thermal performance as well. The H150i Pro offers up a performance similar to the Kraken X72, which is $40 more expensive than the Corsair H150i Pro. And, in my opinion, the software that Corsair offers is much better than the one that comes from NZXT.

Compared to an air cooler, the H150i Pro is not cheap at all, but when you compare it to other AIO coolers, it is one of the cheaper options out there.

3. Best Low Profile Cooler for i7-9700K (SFFPC builds)

 

If you happen to be building an ITX build, then you should know that your internal space is pretty limited. This means that you won’t be able to cram bigger components into your case. So, you have to be careful with the components you put inside your system and their size as well. This is the case with CPU coolers as well. This means that you are extremely limited with options that you can put inside your ITX build. The most important thing to do when you’re building an ITX build with the 9700K inside is to choose wisely when it comes to cooling performance.

Because of the limited space, the CPU cooler plays a much bigger role in thermals and performance. The top performer in this category that we would recommend you is the Noctua NH-L9i. This amazing low profile cooler sets the bar for the competition. It offers amazing thermal performance, which is surprising with its small size. You get amazing 37mm (including the fan) high CPU cooler, which performs amazingly. It’s the best CPU cooler for i7 9700k according to me in the low profile range.

Anyways, that was all that we had prepared for you today. The best takeaway from this article for you is to first choose how you want to cool your new rig. After that, set the price that you are willing to spend and, in the end, decide which CPU cooler you will get! Leave your choice in the comment section below, contact us with any other choice that you might have and think that we should’ve included in the post!