
When you’re building a gaming computer compatibility is mostly simple because PC case manufacturers follow ATX standards. That being said there’s a couple grey areas that have always bugged me. Lack of information on manufacturer technical detail pages can leave you searching forums for an answer for a particular case and VGA or CPU cooler combo. For that reason I decided I take the 50 most popular PC gaming cases and list these specifications. For several of these I used personal experience, trial and error, and detailed searches to find the details I was looking for. Unfortunately, less than half of manufacturers list the GPU and CPU Cooler clearance on their pages or even in their product’s manual.
Additional Clearance is Still a Good Idea:
While there are exceptions, I recommend at least a 10mm allowance for error. In other words, don’t buy a CPU Cooler / Heatsink with 160mm clearance to go with a case on here that has 160mm listed under its specification. The better practice, for that cooler, would be to go with one that’s 170mm.
If you have a case you’d like to add to this list, use the comment section below and please include any numbers from this table.
List of PC Cases and CPU Cooler / GPU Clearance by Popularity
Sentey Stealth Gs 6008 | 150mm | 340mm | Fr 1 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 80mm | ATX, M-ATX | Mid-Tower |
Corsair Carbide Spec 02 | 157mm | 420mm | Fr 1 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | ATX, M-ATX, Mini-ITX | Mid-Tower |
CM Haf 912 | 175mm | 270mm / 390mm w/o cage | Fr 1 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | ATX, M-ATX | Mid-Tower |
Rosewill FBM-01 | Limited Support | Fr 1 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 80mm | Micro-ATX | Micro-ATX | |
Corsair Carbide 200R | 165mm | 420mm | Fr 1 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | ATX, M-ATX, Mini-ITX | Mid-Tower |
Corsair 750D | 170mm | 450mm | Fr 2 x 140mm, Rear 1 x 140mm | Mini-ITX, MicroATX, ATX, E-ATX, XL-ATX | Full-Tower |
NZXT Guardian 921 | 144.44mm w/ fan 169.4mm wo | 265mm | Fr 1 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm, Side 1 x 120mm | Micro ATX / ATX / Baby AT | Mid-Tower |
Corsair Carbide Air 540 | 170mm | 320mm | Fr 2 x 140mm, Rear 1 x 140mm | Mini-ITX, MicroATX, ATX, E-ATX | Mid-Tower |
NZXT Phantom 410 | 170mm Total (no more than 160mm cooler) | 305mm wo fan 280 w removable cage | Fr 1 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm, Top 1 x 140mm | ATX, MICRO-ATX, MINI-ITX | Mid-Tower |
Phanteks Enthoo Pro | 193mm | 347mm (472 wo cage) | Fr 1 x 200mm, Rear 1 x 140mm | ATX, EATX, mATX, SSI EEB | Full-Tower |
NZXT S340 | 161mm | 334mm to 364 wo Radiator | Top 1 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | Mini-ITX, MicroATX, ATX | Mid-Tower |
Cooler Master N200 | 160mm | 320mm | Fr 1 x 120mm Rear 1 x 120mm | MicroATX, ATX | Mid-Tower |
Corsair Carbide 300R | 170mm | 450mm | Fr 1 x 140mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | Mini-ITX, MicroATX, ATX, E-ATX | Mid-Tower |
Corsair 450D | 165mm | 430mm | Fr 2 x 140mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | Mini-ITX, MicroATX, ATX, E-ATX | Mid-Tower |
Corsair Carbide 400R | 175mm | 318mm | Fr 2 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | Mini-ITX, MicroATX, ATX, E-ATX | Mid-Tower |
CM Elite 110 | 76mm | 210mm | Fr 1 x 140mm | Mini-ITX | Mini-ITX |
Antec P280 | 170mm (total no more than 160mm Cooler) | 330mm | Top 2 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | XL-ATX, Standard ATX, microATX, Mini-ITX | Super Mid-Tower |
Sentey Bx1-4237 | 135mm | 270mm | Fr 1 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm, Side 220mm | Micro ATX / ATX | Mid-Tower |
Rosewill Challenger / U3 | Est 160mm | Est. 270mm | Fr 1 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm, Top 1 x 140mm | Micro ATX, ATX | Mid-Tower |
CM Elite 130 | 65mm | 343mm | Fr 1 x 120mm, Side 80x 15mm | Mini-ITX | Mini-ITX |
Rosewill Blackhawk | 177mm | 300mm to 420mm wo cage | 2 x Front 120mm, 1 x Rear 120mm Fan, 1 x Top 140mm, 1 x Side 120mm Fan | Micro ATX, ATX | Mid-Tower |
NZXT Source 210 | 160mm | 230mm to 330mm wo cage | Rear 1 x 120mm | ATX, Micro-ATX | Mid-Tower |
CM Storm Scout 2 | 162mm | 287mm / 399 wo cage | Fr 2 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | Micro-ATX, ATX | Mid-Tower |
Corsair Graphite 230T | 165mm | 360mm | Fr 2 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | Mini-ITX, MicroATX, ATX | Mid-Tower |
Corsair Carbide 500R | 180mm | 452mm | Fr 2 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm, Side 1 x 200mm | Mini-ITX, MicroATX, ATX, E-ATX | Mid-Tower |
Apevia X-Sniper 2 | 330mm | Fr 1 x 120mm, | ATX, Micro-ATX | Mid-Tower | |
Corsair Vengeance C70 | 170mm | 320mm | Rear 1 x 120mm, Mid 2 x 120mm | Mini-ITX, MicroATX, ATX, E-ATX | Mid-Tower |
NZXT H440 | 180mm | 294 to 406.2 wo cage | Front 3 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 140mm | Mini-ITX, MicroATX, ATX | Mid-Tower |
Rosewill Thor V2 | 180mm | 330mm | Front 1x 230mm, Rear 1x 140mm, Top 1x 230mm, Side 1x 230mm | Micro ATX, ATX, SSI-CEB(E-ATX), XL-ATX | Full-Tower |
Antec Three Hundred | 170mm | 304mm | Top 1 x 140mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | Standard ATX, microATX, Mini-ITX | Mid-Tower |
CM N400 | 164mm | 320mm | Fr 1 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | Micro-ATX, ATX | Mid-Tower |
Corsair 350D | 160mm | 380mm | Fr 1 x 140mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | Mini-ITX, MicroATX | Micro-ATX |
Corsair Graphite 780T | 200mm | 355mm | Fr 2 x 140mm, Rear 1 x 140mm | Mini-ITX, MicroATX, ATX, E-ATX, XL-ATX | Full-Tower |
Corsair Graphite 760T | 170mm | 450mm | Fr 2 x 140mm, Rear 1 x 140mm | Mini-ITX, MicroATX, ATX, E-ATX, XL-ATX | Full-Tower |
Fractal Define R5 | 180mm | 310mm to 440mm wo cage | ATX, Micro ATX, Mini ITX | Mid-Tower | |
Corsair Carbide Air 240 | 120mm | 290mm | Fr 2 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | Mini-ITX, MicroATX | Micro-ATX |
Antec One | 155mm | 266mm | Top x 120mm, Rear1 x 120mm | Standard ATX, microATX, Mini-ITX | Mid-Tower |
CM Cosmos II Ultra | 190mm | 385mm | Front: 1x 200 mm, Top: 1x 120 mm Rear: 1x 140 mm, Bottom: 2x 120 mm | microATX, ATX, E-ATX, XL-ATX, SSI CEB, SSI EEB | Full-Tower |
CM Storm Striker | 186mm | 322mm | Front: 120mm x2, Top: 200mm, Rear: 140mmx1 | Micro ATX / ATX / Extended ATX | Full-Tower |
CM HAF X | 190mm | 342mm | Fr 1 x 230mm, Rear 1 x 140mm, 1 x 200mm Top, 1 x 200mm side | microATX, ATX, E-ATX, GIGABYTE XL-ATX | Full-Tower |
Fractal Design 804 | 160mm | 320mm | 3 x 120mm Silent R2 fans included | Micro-ATX, Mini-ITX | Mid-Tower |
Corsair Obsidian 250D | 95mm | 290mm | Fr 1 x 140mm, Side 1 x 120mm | Mini-ITX | Mini-ITX |
Sentey GS-6010 Cobra Plus | 135mm | 330mm | Fr 1 x 120mm, 120mm Rear | Micro-ATX, ATX | Mid-Tower |
Sentey Gs-6000 | 150mm | 340mm | Fr 1 x 120mm, 1 x 180mm Side, 1 x 120mm Rear | Micro-ATX, ATX | Mid-Tower |
Cooler Master Elite 431 Plus | 315mm | 1 x 120mm Fan | Micro-ATX, ATX | Mid-Tower | |
Rosewill Gaming Galaxy 02 | Est 300mm | 1 x Front 120mm, 1 x Rear 120mm, 1 x Top 120mm Fan | Micro ATX, ATX | Mid-Tower | |
Sentey Ss6-2441 | 135mm | 270mm | Fr 1 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | Micro-ATX | Micro-ATX |
Corsair Obsidian 550D | 180mm | 318mm | Fr 2 x 120mm, Rear 1 x 120mm | Mini-ITX, MicroATX, ATX | Mid-Tower |
Cooler Master Trooper | 186mm | 322mm | Fr 2 x 120mm, 1 x 120mm Rear, 1 x 200mm Top | Micro-ATX, ATX, XL-ATX | Full-Tower |
How do I Know if My Computer Case is Compatible with my Graphics Card?
While this list is helpful for many cases, it certainly doesn’t have all of them. In order to find out whether or not you have the proper clearance or not for a graphics card you’ll want to visit the manufacturer page for that particular case. Pay attention to any particular details that they’ve given including whether or not hard drive cages can be removed. If that fails, you might be better off doing a Google search to find a forum where the case has been discussed in conjunction with a graphics card concerning length. Look at the length of that graphics card and compare it with the one you’re trying to fit. Customer reviews on popular retail sites like Amazon and Newegg are also a helpful source. If that doesn’t work, you’re probably better off with a different case.
How do I know if My PC Case has the height clearance for my CPU Cooler or Heatsink?
If the list above doesn’t work, your best bet is to search the manufacturer technical details page. From there the CPU Cooler clearance numbers might be listed. While, in general, this works less than half the time it is a good place to start. From there your best options are to search forums and customer reviews. You’ll want to use popular CPU coolers in your search like Cooler Master’s Hyper 212 EVO as many people are trying to install a similar cooler in their computer case. If you find someone listing a particular cooler, take a look at that cooler’s dimensions on the manufacturer’s technical specifications page to get an idea of what size heatsink you can install.
PSU and Case Compatibility
For the most part any case listed as a mid or full-sized tower will take a power supply that follows ATX guidelines. This is also true for most micro-atx cases. For any mini-itx or custom cases I highly recommend you check the manufacturer’s specification page to make sure your power supply will fit. If not, you’ll want to either choose a new case or go with a power supply that has smaller dimensions.
Water Cooling and Radiator Computer Case Compatibility
For now I’m leaving off water cooling and Radiator size compatibility off of this chart. If there’s enough interest I’ll add it along with other cooling options.