The best UPS battery backup for PC gaming in 2022

The best UPS backup protects your precious gaming PC should a blackout or power surge occur. In parts of the world prone to extreme weather, you're at especially high risk of your invaluable components getting b. Which has become a far greater proportion of the globe in recent times.

These uninterrupted power supply battery backups aren't as common a companion for a high-end gaming PC build as they perhaps should be. The best UPS will also offer protection from the most minute fluctuations in outlet power, which means as long as your PC is built using one of the best PSUs for PC, it will receive cleaner power over the duration of its life. That's a pretty big deal for longevity, as it will essentially run on the electrical equivalent of Premium Unleaded.

A UPS isn't a permanent fix for your PC's loss of power, but an will be there to save the day immediately in the event of sudden power loss. Should you suffer one, the best UPS utilises its internal batteries to deliver a steady flow of power, for a limited time. It gives you a grace period in order to save your work, or get to a save point, before shutting down your PC safely. It also acts as a surge protector, for extra peace of mind.

The time a UPS gives you to save up will vary, and there are other things to consider, too. Like whether it has enough juice for your system, how much space it'll take up on your desk, and how eco-friendly the thing is. Each UPS below we've tested so you can get a better read on which is best for you, and your budget. 

The best UPS for gaming PCs

The CyberPower CP1500PFCLCD 1500VA is one of the best UPS on the market. Several factors contribute to it being our top pick for most gamers. First, it has enough juice to handle most gaming machines on the market, even if you're running dual GPUs. Unless you've got systems with ten hard drives, quad-way GPUs, and other accessories, the CP1500PFCLCD should have enough juice to last 10–20 minutes (longer if you have a more moderate rig) if a power failure occurs.

One of the most critical features of the CP1500PFCLCD is its true sine-wave output. Most UPS backups in their price range only provide sine-wave simulated production, a stepped sine-wave that approximates what you get out of your wall outlet. Some electronics are sensitive to simulated sine waves and will behave abnormally. At $214, having true sine-wave output is unheard of, so kudos to CyberPower for delivering such a quality output.

For smaller accessories and network equipment, the CyberPower EC650LCD is the best pick for most. Coming in at just over $70 for 390W/650VA, the EC650LCD has enough power reserves to keep the average home network alive for well over 15 minutes, which is enough time to exit your game/applications, save all your work through the network, and shut everything off gracefully during a power outage.

The EC650LCD is small enough to hide away, taking up very little desktop room for a 390W unit. One of my favorite features of the EC650LCD is its array of ECO ports. These ports can be managed and timed to turn on or off, depending on your schedule or use case. The ECO ports will also power down accessories like your speakers and display if your PC is asleep or powered down.

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The name APC is synonymous with high-quality UPS products. I use three of the company's Smart-UPS professional level units at home: two 1000VA units for my network and NAS gear and one 1500VA unit for my PC and displays.

APC's BE600M1 is excellent at providing both battery and surge protection for the devices you use most every day. That is your phone and possibly a tablet. However, it has enough power reserves for you to plug in at least a router and a single display. If you only plan to use the BE600M1 to power a Wi-fi router, the unit will have enough juice in it to let you browse the internet in peace for several hours, even if the electricity in the rest of your house is gone. Priorities.

The best part of the BE600M1 is its size. Most UPS are large and belong on the floor, but APC encourages you to put the BE600M1 on a desk. The unit provides a single 1.5A USB port for charging a phone or tablet, so you don't have to use your device's power adapter, which is inevitably a wall wart that potentially overlaps another socket or two, so you free up sockets for other devices.

The best UPS for PC gaming FAQ

When your UPS detects a power surge or cut it will switch to battery power. How it delivers that battery power to your PC or accessories is when sine-wave versus simulated sine-wave matters most. That's because some PSUs will actually recognise a simulated sine-wave frequency and shut down suddenly to protect themselves from the unexpected oddity in power. Thus, your UPS won't actually be saving your PC from a loss of power.