Welcome to our list of the best workstations of 2020. 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!
- There are even a few amazing options that come in laptop form. Check out our best mobile workstations guide.
Best workstations of 2020 at a glance:
- Corsair One Pro i180
- Apple Mac Pro (2019)
- Apple iMac Pro
- Lenovo Yoga A940
- Microsoft Surface Studio 2
- Mac Mini 2018
- HP Z240 SFF
- Fujitsu Celsius J550
The Corsair One Pro i180 is currently our pick for the best workstation in 2020. Not only is it one of the most powerful desktop PCs we've ever used, but it's also one of the most nicely designed. The dimensions of the Corsair One Pro i180 are 200 x 172.5 x 380mm, which is incredibly compact considering the amount of power it offers. This is a workstation that can easily fit on – or under – a desk, and it looks simply amazing. It manages to keep cool, and most of the components can be upgraded as well, though it's not as straightforward as in a traditional PC tower. Power-wise it comes with an Intel Core i9-9920X, Nvidia RTX 2080 Ti, 32GB of DDR4 RAM, 920GB NVMe M.2 SSD and 2TB hard drive. That’s some seriously impressive and cutting-edge hardware. But this all comes at a cost. A very, very high cost.
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 2020 has to 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.
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, but it is very expensive, which turn some people off.
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.
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.
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. 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.
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 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.
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. 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.