Best workstations of 2023: Powerful PCs for professionals

Welcome to our list of the best workstations. These are the very best, most powerful, workstation machines that can power your business.

These days, the best workstations are around the same size as normal PCs, and offer high quality designs, without sacrificing pure power and performance. Some, such as the iMac Pro and the Surface Studio, are slimline all-in-one PCs that offer brilliant performance whilst not taking up loads of room in your office.

The best workstations can handle any application you throw at it, and they are useful tools for designers, engineers, financial analysts and researchers running more demanding applications, like rendering complex graphics, financial analysis and computations and digital content creation

From small form factor models to powerhouses, from the best all-in-one computers to one for all, there's bound to be one for you if you're in the market. At the bottom of this page, you'll also find our list of the best online shops for buying workstations - so purchasing the perfect workstation for your business has never been easier!

We've compared these workstations across aspects like RAM, CPU, graphics, display, and storage. We analyzed their overall performance, noise levels, cooling systems, connectivity ports, and size, among other things.

• There are even a few amazing options that come in laptop form. Check out our best mobile workstations guide.

The best workstations of 2023 in full:

One of the biggest complaints about the previous Mac Pro model was that it was tricky to upgrade. Thankfully, Apple listened, making the Apple Mac Pro (2019) one of its most modular computers yet – and highly so. 

This workstation – one of the best workstations currently on offer – isn’t just extremely powerful. It’s also future-proof, which is only right since you’re spending good money for it. 

Gone too is that revolutionary cylindrical design, with Apple ushering in that cheese grater look that we’ve come to love since its unveiling, especially since it’s fitted with a unique cooling system to maximize airflow and keep the noise down. 

That’s not all; one look at its specs, and you’ll see that this is a creative professional’s ultimate tool. Just be prepared to feel broke after that trip to the Apple Store.

Read the full Apple Mac Pro review here.

The Apple iMac Pro is the most powerful PC that Apple has ever made, so if you love the design of Apple's devices, while using its software, then the iMac Pro is an excellent workstation. 

Its all-in-one form factor gives you plenty of space on your desk. All the powerful internal components are tucked away behind the 27-inch display, resulting in a sleek machine that's bound to grab eyeballs in any office or studio. It weighs 21.5 pounds (9.7kg), so it won't be too cumbersome to move it around. 

It is very expensive, which turns some people off, but if you’re a game designer, architect, or professional photographer, then the iMac Pro is undeniably a solid purchase. The cost will feel justified if your existing workstation wastes a lot of time rendering videos and 3D images or compiling codes. 

Read the full iMac Pro review here.

Lenovo’s latest all-in-one offering isn’t as powerful as Apple’s premium AIO, the iMac Pro, or even the recently updated iMac, which now offers a 9th-generation Intel Core configuration. After all, at this point, the 8th-generation chips and Radeon RX 560 graphics are beginning to show their age. 

However, it is still plenty powerful to meet the needs of professionals who can't afford Apple's more pricey machines.

Most all-in-one PCs are monitors with a computer behind the screen, but the Lenovo Yoga A940's computer segment is built into the base of the stand.  

The 27-inch screen boasts a 4K resolution with 100% Adobe RGB support and Dolby Vision, all of which make the visuals on the screen bright and vibrant.  Adobe RGB support is vital for digital artists, photographers, and other professionals who require accurate colors.

Read the full Lenovo Yoga A940 review here.

Intel’s NUC has come a long way from its humble beginnings. For example, while the previous Hades Canyon didn’t come with RAM or storage, the newer Ghost Canyon has both. 

In fact, not only does it have more offerings now in terms of specs, but it’s also highly configurable, so you can personalize it to your liking before hitting that buy button. 

With 9th-generation Intel Core chips, up to 64GB of memory, and up to 4TB dual storage, we’re all for it. The only catch is that it's pricier now as well. The lower configurations are still quite affordable and a terrific option for the budget-conscious. The highest configurations are perfect workstations in compact form factors.

This is an incredibly tiny workstation that can fit pretty much anywhere — it even looks smaller and more aesthetic than Microsoft’s bulky Xbox Series X.

Read the full Intel Ghost Canyon NUC review here.

Microsoft has produced a brilliant all-in-one workstation that rival's Apple's iMacs for power and desirability. If you're wedded to the Windows 10 ecosystem, then this is a great alternative to the iMac Pro. Versatile and forward-thinking, Microsoft’s all-in-one puts the iMac to shame by introducing an all-in-one that can not only replace your lingering desktop tower, but your Cintiq as well.

There's hardly any change in the physical design of the workstation, and even the wireless peripherals haven't changed since the first Surface Studio was released. However, the display has been upgraded and is 38% (515 nits) brighter and has 22% (1,200:1) more contrast. 

The base has received an update with a USB-C 3.1 port in addition to its existing USB 3.0 ports, replacing the old model’s mini DisplayPort.

Read the full Microsoft Surface Studio 2 review here.

The Mac mini 2018 has finally been refreshed with modern hardware, bring Apple’s tiniest Mac into the modern age. This thing is filled to the brim with 8th-generation desktop processors, a ton of RAM and some of the fastest SSDs we’ve seen – all while keeping the same beloved form factor. It does weigh slightly heavier than the last Mac Mini at 2.9 pounds (1.3kg), but that's not much of a difference. 

OK, while it's not as powerful as the other workstations on this list, it has a few tricks up its sleeve which makes this worth considering. 

First, you can add an external graphics card to the Mac mini for added graphical prowess. You can also chain several Mac minis together and offload tasks onto each machine, making it an expandable – and incredibly versatile – workstation.

Read the full Mac mini 2018 review here. 

This is HP's entry level workstation and one which is very keenly priced with a very compact form factor (about 11L). It's hard to believe that the Z240 (opens in new tab) has an Intel Core i7-6700 CPU with 8GB of RAM and a 1TB hard disk drive. There's even an optical drive. The company's engineers have managed to deliver a system that weighs less than 6Kg and somehow has 20 (yes, 20) connectors and expansion slots (not all of them empty of course).

It even has four DIMM slots to take full advantage of dual-channel technology. As for the rest of the HP workstation family, this one comes with the Remote Graphics Software as well as a three-year onsite warranty bundled. 

The only major compromise is the fact that it will only take low profile graphics cards. HP also offers the option to buy the workstation for as little as £16 per month excluding VAT.

The small form factor market is attracting more manufacturers as they are vying to shed the bulky and wieldy image of the traditional workstation. Few, if any, however, can pride themselves on designing and manufacturing their products in the same area. Fujitsu can – take the J550 (opens in new tab).

It can take a Xeon E3 CPU, a full-size professional graphics card, 64GB of RAM, offering up to 13.5TB storage and nearly 20 ports and expansion slots including quite a few legacy ones. It can support multiple monitors, and the optimized thermal management and cooling solutions ensure it doesn't get too loud while managing heavy workloads. 

Fujitsu is also the only company to offer a three-year warranty (either onsite or bring-in) across the EMEIA region, which spans across the whole of Europe, into Africa, and stretches as far as India.

The Beelink GTR5 is probably the most powerful workstation PC in this form factor (sub 1L), bettering any Intel NUC we’ve seen in this price range. It comes with a minimum of 32GB of RAM and packs one of AMD’s most powerful mobile CPUs, the Ryzen 9 5900HX, an 8-core beast with 16 threads, onboard Radeon Vega 8 graphics and a total of 20MB cache. 

Despite a relatively affordable price tag, it does come with some unexpected features like Windows 11 Pro, a fingerprint scanner and a plethora of ports (including three graphics ones that support 4K 60Hz). It’s not all perfect though; it lacks the sort of global after sales support that bigger players can offer, it has no card reader and it is noisy. 

In spite of all this, we have no qualms giving it a recommended award, it truly deserves its place on this buying guide as one of the best business PC/workstation PC/mini PC on the market when it comes to sheer specifications. 

Read our full Beelink GTR5 review.

• We've also featured the best standing desk.

What is a workstation? 

• TechRadarPro Q&A with Anu Herranen, Director of New Product Introduction, Advanced Compute and Solutions at HP Inc (opens in new tab).

A workstation is a high-performance computing device that has been purpose built for demanding professional workflows. It is not a single form factor in the same way that a desktop or notebook is – it can take almost any form factor. If mobility and agility are the most important factors for the device you need, you might choose a notebook, but if you need performance tuned to a specific workflow, a workstation will always be the best option.

Workstations are designed for professional workflows and are more powerful than a general PC. For example, a data scientist, visual effects professional, engineer or software developer all have different needs in terms of data processing, performance, operating systems, keyboard shortcuts, storage, display and connectivity. They are built for managing those high intensity but diverse workflows.

The technology that makes that possible is not always immediately obvious when looking at devices. Some vendors use copper and other software in their products to completely redesign the efficiency of the thermals in mobile workstations. That includes giving users complete control over the type of performance and acoustics for specific workflows, with artificial intelligence often called in to intelligently manage behavior based on the type of work being done. 

That means generation on generation, CPU and GPU performance improvements on devices mean they are smaller and run cooler, which is important in terms of comfort and reliability on high performance workstations.

Another important factor is certification. Certified ISV (Independent Software Vendors) application is crucial, as it ensures the hardware and software work better together. Workstations are the only PCs that offer certified professional applications. Having certification is critical, as it isn't enough to just know that your software applications will run on your workstation: you need a hardware solution that has been tested, proven and certified by ISVs to deliver peak performance for your key applications. This ensures a wholly compatible experience between hardware and software that is stable and designed to perform, allowing you to work with confidence.

The best workstations: How we test

We evaluated various aspects of different workstations to arrive at the best ones. Performance is essential, so we looked at how the workstations ran different types of applications — from graphics-heavy programs to large data sets. 

We analyzed numerous specs, like RAM, CPU, display, graphics, and storage, to assess what kinds of users the workstation would be best suited for. 

We looked at the connectivity ports the workstation had, whether the fans were noisy, and how optimized the cooling system was. 

We also examined the size, weight, and design of the workstations and included computers of varying builds in our list.