Are you a PC gamer but still use your old office mouse? You should ditch that hunk of junk and get a gaming mouse.
A good gaming mouse can give you a strategic advantage over the competition by providing better ergonomics, attractive aesthetics, and host of unique features. But how much you should spend on a gaming mouse depends on the types of games you play, your preferred aesthetics, and the price you’re willing to spend.
The topic that we’ll be covering today is the price you should pay for a gaming mouse. We’ll tell you about what kinds of features you can expect in certain price ranges, go over what makes a gaming mouse special, and help you figure out if a gaming mouse is right for you.
How Much Should I Spend on a Gaming Mouse?
The price of a gaming mouse varies wildly, but a good price is between $50 – $75. Gaming mice in this price range offer you loads of extra features such as improved sensors, added buttons for custom mapping, ergonomic designs, and improved aesthetics. However, there is no perfect price really–the determining factor is what kind of mouse suits you, your budget, and the types of games you play.
Gaming Mice that Cost $20 or Less
If you’re on a tight budget, don’t worry. You still have plenty of options. There are a plethora of cheap gaming mice for $20 or less, but typically the features are minimal, and the build quality, as well as the sensors, are substandard.
Gaming mice in this category are mostly budget brands and offer you features such as wired or wireless connectivity, RGB lighting modes, a couple of extra buttons, and adjustable DPI settings. The styles are less flashy, and ergonomic designs are rare.
The most notable drawbacks in this price range will be poor build quality, worse-performing sensors, and overall cheap feeling–low-quality switches, buttons, and/or cable.
While you can get a gaming mouse for less than $10, we certainly do not recommend you do it. Cheap gaming mice are generally a pain to use as you’re basically getting a fragile piece of plastic that’s going to break sooner rather than later.
If you’re on a tight budget, you should at least up it to the $20-$50 range. At this price range, you will be able to find a decent quality mouse–not even close to the top-of-the-line mice; however, there definitely are respectable gaming mice that you’ll be proud to own.
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Gaming Mice that Cost $25-$50
If you’re looking for a mid-tier gaming mouse from brands like Razer, Glorious, or Logitech without spending a whole lot of money, then this is the tier for you.
Here, you’ll find features like aRGB, software for profiles, customizable lighting, as well as button mapping, improved build and sensor qualities, ergonomic designs, and your normal choice of wired or wireless mice.
This is a perfect price range for casual gamers and those who don’t put the highest priority on performance. Because at this price, you basically get the same set of features compared to the premium mice, with the exception of high performance and responsiveness.
That being said, we’d recommend spending a bit more money on a gaming mouse if you want something that’s going to feel like an extension of your hand. Something you can trust to be as fast as you are.
At $50-$75 is where you have a wide range of options and where you will be able to get the highest performance without going overboard on the price.
Gaming Mice that Cost $50-$75 (Our Recommended Price Range)
For higher-tier gaming mice, you should start at this price range. Mice in this budget all have the same feature as we have previously mentioned, but better.
You will see features such as 16 million color aRGB, innovative ergonomic designs, flashy styles, up to 17 programmable buttons, software, and super accurate sensors. Gaming mice in this price range offer nearly everything you could want in a gaming mouse.
Additionally, gaming mice at this price are typically built like a tank and able to last for years. And on top of that, they will offer the same level of performance and responsiveness as the most premium options.
All in all, if you want a quality, well-performing gaming mouse with an ergonomic design while not overpaying for flashy, unimportant features, you should spend no more than $75.
Gaming mice that cost $80 and more typically don’t offer anything that would up your game in any meaningful way.
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Gaming Mice that Cost $80 or more
A premium gaming mouse is a fantastic addition to any top-of-the-line gaming rig, but the price can be hard to justify sometimes. This price range is for those of you who don’t care about price, only performance, aesthetics, and premium experience.
Gaming mice in this price range offer all the best technology anyone could want in a mouse. You’ll find gaming mice that are customizable with hot-swappable side buttons and dials, extensive software for calibration and customization with onboard profiles, crazy and interesting designs, premium sensors, wireless options with bundled wireless charging docks, and more.
Buying a gaming mouse can be expensive, but it doesn’t have to be. A good gaming mouse should cost around $50-$75, but you don’t really need a $125 gaming mouse to see improvements in your gaming abilities.
However, if you’re looking for an all-around premium experience, you should spend anywhere from $80-$150, depending on your style and personal preference.
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How a Gaming Mouse is Different from a Regular Mouse and How it Will Up Your Game
When it comes to PC gaming, having the right equipment can make all the difference in the world. Imagine you’re competing in a race. The car you are going to be driving is an old VW Beetle, while everyone else will be in supercars. This is kind of what it’s like when it comes to gaming with a regular mouse.
Your old mouse has all the things that make a mouse work, but the components are cheap, and there are no special features. Yes, your old mouse can be used for gaming, but it won’t be optimal or anywhere close to being as good as a gaming mouse.
Gaming mice have specially tuned optical sensors that track your movements at over one thousand times per second and are designed to be super accurate and precise. Many gaming mice also have additional buttons which can be mapped using software and even allow you to swap profiles depending on the game you’re playing.
Usually, there are only two or three extra buttons, not counting DPI switches, and just these alone can have a huge impact on any game. If you’re playing a competitive shooter, such as PUBG or CS:GO, you can assign these buttons to perform actions such as melee or anything else you find appropriate (I usually set mine to melee and push-to-talk). Some even have a special sniper button that lowers the DPI (Dots Per Inch) super low for precise aiming.
But that’s not all, some gaming mice can have a dozen or more buttons. These kinds of mice are meant to be used for games like World of Warcraft or Elder Scrolls Online. Having a lot of convenient buttons right under your thumb gives you quick access to spells, attacks, or buffs that are easier to press than if the hotkey was on your keyboard.
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Should You Spend Your Hard-Earned Money on a Gaming Mouse?
If you’re a hardcore gamer, then you should really consider buying a gaming mouse. But, that’s not to say you need to spend a lot of money on one.
You can buy a fantastic gaming mouse for $50-$75, so it’s not like you’re making a huge financial investment. Plus, a proper gaming mouse will give you better performance and respond faster to inputs.
Try to think of the games you like to play and how a gaming mouse might make them easier or more enjoyable. Just keep in mind what your ideal mouse will need and look for one within your price range. Your budget will ultimately decide which mouse you get, so get what’s affordable and practical.
Final thoughts
Getting a gaming mouse is a smart move for anyone looking to take their game to the next level. But, buying a gaming mouse doesn’t need to be a large sum investment.
So, to answer your question of “How much should I spend on a gaming mouse?” we recommend spending no more than $75 for a gaming mouse that fits your style and needs.
For $75 or less, you can get a great mouse that’s sure to give you a competitive advantage over basic mouse users.
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