Are you ready for your next build but aren’t sure what type of case you need?

Trust me, you’re not alone.

Before you go buying your GPU, CPU, and all the other good stuff, it helps to know what type of build you're going for.

Two of the most common PC cases you’ll find is the mid-tower and full-tower cases, but what exactly are the differences between the two? We break it down for you here.

	Mid Tower Cases	Full Tower Cases
Motherboards	mATX, ATX	E-ATX, EEB, HPTX
PCI-E Slots	7 - 8	7 - 10
Fan Support	6 - 7	10 - 12
Better for Watercooling	-	Yes
Better Active Airflow	Yes	-
Better for Silence	-	Yes
Better for More Hardware	-	Yes
Better Cable Management	Yes	-
Most Commonly Used For	Workstation, Gaming PC	Homer Servers, DAW, Video Editing

Generally speaking, mid tower cases are shorter/smaller than full tower cases which means they’ll have smaller motherboards, lesser fans, and expansion slots. Most mid-towers measure 18 inches or more in height, while most full tower cases measure 22 inches or more.

Full tower cases are best for those that want flexible upgrade paths so that you practically never have to replace your case. However, note that although bigger cases have better airflow, you can also risk having hot spots in certain areas of the case where the case fans do not reach.

When to buy a mid-tower case:

• You only need standard ATX motherboards with 1-2 GPU configurations
• Are conscious of price/space
• Better active airflow

When to buy a full tower case:

• Large motherboards for use with 3/4 way GPU configurations 
• Large amounts of disk drives
• Advanced/custom water loops
• Special case mods or custom designs
• Want more ease and comfort with building in a case

Looking for your next quiet PC case? Check out our selection of award-winning Deep Silence series computer cases.

Have a question? Tell us what is missing on our blog, talk to our team, and share your thoughts below.