Mat Leszkiewicz

I’m a support engineer with a passion for cybersecurity and mission to help people be safer in the web.

4 minute read

Choosing your first home server starts with understanding your needs, your budget, and how much room you want to leave for future upgrades. Whether you’re leaning toward a compact mini PC, a full-sized tower, or even a rackmount setup, your goal is to find the sweet spot between performance, efficiency, and expandability.

Choosing a Form Factor: What Fits Your Life?

Mini PCs (1L Form Factor)

Great for: First-timers, low-power tasks, quiet home setups

Mini PCs are small, quiet, and energy-efficient—perfect for starting out. Models like the Lenovo ThinkCentre M920q or HP EliteDesk 800 G5 Mini can be found second-hand for around €200-350 and pack surprising power into a tiny footprint.

Pros:

  • Very low power usage (~10-35W idle)
  • Virtually silent
  • Affordable and easy to tuck away
  • Decent performance for most basic homelab tasks

Cons:

  • Limited upgrade options
  • Not ideal for heavy virtualization or GPU tasks
  • Few expansion slots

Read more about Mini PCs for homelab

Tower/Desktop Systems

Great for: Tinkerers, gamers, power users

If you’re planning to build your own or upgrade over time, towers offer the most flexibility. You can choose every component yourself, upgrade as needed, and run just about any workload.

Pros:

  • Full control over parts
  • Room for powerful CPUs, GPUs, and lots of storage
  • Easy to cool and maintain

Cons:

  • Takes up space
  • Uses more power
  • Costs more upfront

Compare tower and rack options

Rack Servers

Great for: Advanced users, enterprise simulations, high-density labs

Used rack servers like the Dell R720 or HP DL380 G9 offer a ton of power and features at a good price—but they’re noisy and power-hungry. They’re best suited for serious lab environments.

Pros:

  • Lots of RAM, CPU cores, and storage capacity
  • Enterprise features like IPMI, hot-swap bays, and redundancy
  • Ideal for large-scale or 24/7 workloads

Cons:

  • Loud
  • Heavy and large
  • Requires a rack and lots of cooling

Deep dive into rack servers

ARM Boards (Raspberry Pi, Orange Pi, etc.)

Great for: Learning, hobby projects, ultra-low-power tasks

If you’re experimenting or just want something super cheap and quiet, ARM boards like Raspberry Pi are fun and functional.

Pros:

  • Extremely energy-efficient (~5-15€/year)
  • Affordable and silent
  • Great learning platform

Cons:

  • Not very powerful
  • Not ideal for media servers or virtualization
  • Some software limitations

ARM board homelab guide

The Real Cost: Thinking Beyond the Sticker Price

Upfront Hardware Costs

  • Entry Level (€200-400): Used mini PCs, ARM boards, basic towers
  • Mid-Range (€400-800): Newer mini PCs, DIY towers, refurbished rack servers
  • High-End (€800+): Fully custom builds, enterprise rack servers, future-proof setups

Annual Power Costs (at €0.25/kWh)

  • ARM (10W): ~€22
  • Mini PC (25W): ~€55
  • Tower (100W): ~€219
  • Rack Server (300W): ~€657

Cost breakdown and calculator

Matching Hardware to Your Goals

Virtualization

Want to run multiple virtual machines? Tower systems and rack servers are your best bet thanks to higher core counts and more RAM. Newer mini PCs (with 8th gen Intel or better) can still run a handful of lightweight VMs well.

Virtualization hardware comparisons

Media Streaming and Transcoding

Transcoding for Jellyfin or Plex? Look for Intel integrated graphics (UHD 770/780) or dedicated GPUs like the Intel Arc A380. Intel still leads in this space, especially for HEVC content.

Guide to media transcoding hardware

Network Services (DNS, VPN, etc.)

These are light tasks, and any modern system can handle them. Just make sure your server has enough Ethernet ports and possibly support for 2.5GbE or 10GbE if you’re thinking ahead.

How Much Can You Grow?

Mini PCs

Upgrade RAM and SSDs, maybe even dual NVMe if you pick the right model like the Lenovo M920q. That said, don’t expect to add GPUs or more storage bays.

Towers

Full upgrade freedom—CPU, GPU, drives, RAM. If you build smart, you won’t need to replace your system for years.

Rack Servers

Maximum expandability: multiple CPUs, lots of RAM, many storage bays. Ideal for big projects or shared setups.

Best Choices by User Type

New to Homelabs?

  • Start With: Used mini PC (Lenovo M920q or HP G5 Mini)
  • Why: Quiet, cheap, simple to set up, low risk
  • Budget: €200-350

Enthusiasts and DIYers

  • Start With: Custom AMD AM5 tower build
  • Why: Control, upgradeability, and performance
  • Budget: €500-800

Simulating Business/Enterprise Setups

  • Start With: Refurbished rack server (Dell R720)
  • Why: Enterprise features, scale, realism
  • Budget: €400-800 (plus space and cooling needs)

Low Power & Tinkerers

  • Start With: Raspberry Pi 5 or Orange Pi 5
  • Why: Super low energy use, great for learning
  • Budget: €100-200

Final Tips

  • Start small. You can always upgrade later.
  • Mind the power bill. A little efficiency goes a long way.
  • Pick something popular. It’s easier to get help from the community.
  • Don’t chase raw power. Stability and reliability matter more.
  • Think 2-3 years ahead. Plan for the long run.

No matter which route you take, 2025 is a great year to dive into home servers. There’s affordable, powerful hardware at every level—just find what fits your goals and go for it.

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