Replace or repair your PC? 6 questions to ask before buying

A slow computer doesn't necessarily need replacing: in most cases, a settings fix, an SSD or more memory costs between €0 and €150, versus €500 to €800 for an equivalent new PC. Replacement is mainly justified when the PC can't run Windows 11, or when the repair would cost more than about a third of a new one.

'At this point, you're better off buying a new one.' It's a line you often hear in a shop or during a repair visit, and it can be perfectly honest. But the person making the diagnosis is often also the one selling the solution. That's not an accusation: it's a reason to check for yourself before spending. Here are the six questions that settle it.

• Software cause identified (programs, browser, update): fix it, €0.
• Mechanical hard drive or not enough memory, Windows 11 compatible PC: upgrade it, roughly €40 to €150.
• Worn battery or noisy fan on an otherwise healthy PC: repair it, roughly €50 to €120.
• PC incompatible with Windows 11, or repair above a third of the price of an equivalent new PC: replacing becomes reasonable.

This is the question that matters most. A serious diagnosis names a precise cause: a program, a component, a part. 'It's old' or 'it's clogged up' aren't diagnoses, they're impressions. Until the cause is named, you can't know whether a new PC would fix the problem, or whether the same problem would follow you to the new machine (an overloaded browser or too many startup programs will slow down a new PC too).

Our 'Slow computer' guide covers the nine most common causes and a method to find yours in ten minutes.

This has become the deciding factor. Windows 10 support ended on October 14, 2025, and the Extended Security Updates (ESU) programme for consumers ends on October 13, 2026. After that date, a Windows 10 PC no longer receives any security fixes.

To check, install Microsoft's free 'PC Health Check' app. The main requirements: a recent enough processor (generally Intel 8th generation or AMD Ryzen 2000 and newer), a TPM 2.0 chip, Secure Boot, 4 GB of memory and 64 GB of storage. A compatible PC is almost always worth upgrading rather than replacing. An incompatible one can still serve under Linux, but for everyday use on Windows, replacing it becomes logical.

Open Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc), 'Performance' tab, then 'Disk': the 'Type' line says SSD or HDD. HDD means a mechanical hard drive, the most common hardware cause of slowness on PCs older than five years. Replacing it with an SSD (about €40 to €70 for 500 GB, plus €40 to €80 of labour if a shop does it) often makes an old PC faster than it was on day one.

Still in 'Performance', look at 'Memory'. If it regularly goes above 85-90% during normal use, adding memory (from 8 to 16 GB) costs about €30 to €60. Note that on some thin laptops, memory is soldered and can't be upgraded. A repair shop or the model's spec sheet will tell you.

On a laptop, collapsing battery life often pushes people to buy a new one, when a new battery generally costs €50 to €120. To check its health, open a command prompt and type powercfg /batteryreport: the report compares the original capacity ('Design capacity') with the current one ('Full charge capacity'). Below about 60%, replacing the battery is justified.

A simple rule: if the repair or upgrade costs less than a third of an equivalent new PC, and the PC is Windows 11 compatible, repair it. Beyond that, or if several faults add up (screen, keyboard, hinges, battery), replacing becomes reasonable. Consider the impact too: keeping a computer two or three years longer is by far the most effective way to reduce its footprint.

• The processor is incompatible with Windows 11 and you want to stay on Windows with security updates.
• Several components fail at once, for a total above a third of the price of a new PC.
• Your needs have changed: video editing, recent games or professional software the machine objectively can't run.
• The motherboard or processor has failed: on a laptop, the repair then often costs almost as much as a new one.

If a professional advises you to replace your computer, ask for the precise cause and how it was measured. A real hardware problem can be verified objectively: a drive's health is read from its SMART data, overheating shows up in the Windows log, a worn battery in its capacity report. A second opinion always costs less than an unnecessary new PC.

Nyctale was built for exactly this moment. In 19 seconds, it analyses your PC at home and explains in plain language what's wrong, how serious it is, and whether the problem can be fixed with a simple setting or needs a hardware repair. It doesn't replace a professional for a physical fault, but it gives you a solid basis to judge what you're being offered, instead of trusting blindly.

Before replacing your computer, check the drive is not the culprit: knowing the signs of a failing hard drive can spare you a needless purchase. A recurring blue screen also often has a repairable cause.