Buying guide · 280 mm radiators

Best 280mm AIO coolers

3 280 mm AIO liquid coolers, ranked by sustained cooling headroom. The NZXT Kraken Plus 280 ranks first: rated 290 W sustained, it keeps 120 of the 120 processors it can mount in the Excellent band and has 37 W of headroom on the Core i7-13700K (253 W).

How the ranking works: each cooler’s sustained dissipation rating (what it can remove continuously at acceptable noise, not a marketing peak) is set against every CPU’s boost power limit, Intel’s PL2 or AMD’s PPT. Headroom is the difference in watts; 25 W or more is Excellent. Coolers rank by how much of the CPU list they keep Excellent, then by value. The formula and data sources are on the methodology page.

Reviewed by Farrukh Sufyan SarwarHow we estimate temperaturesPrices verified November 2, 2026Model v1.2 · data updated November 2, 2026

Top three overall

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#1 · 280 mm AIO liquid cooler

~$130

NZXTKraken Plus 280

280 mm AIO liquid cooler · 52 mm

Excellent fit

37 W of headroom on the Core i7-13700K (253 W), the hungriest chip on this list. Liquid, so no RAM height limit; needs a radiator mount in the case.

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#2 · 280 mm AIO liquid cooler

$139.99as of Nov 2, 05:59 AM UTC · In Stock

Lian LiGalahad II LCD 280

280 mm AIO liquid cooler · 52 mm

Excellent fit

47 W of headroom on the Core i7-13700K (253 W), the hungriest chip on this list. Liquid, so no RAM height limit, $139.99 on Amazon; needs a radiator mount in the case.

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#3 · 280 mm AIO liquid cooler

$231.99as of Nov 2, 05:59 AM UTC · In Stock

NZXTKraken Elite 280 RGB

280 mm AIO liquid cooler · 52 mm

Excellent fit

47 W of headroom on the Core i7-13700K (253 W), the hungriest chip on this list. Liquid, so no RAM height limit, $231.99 on Amazon; needs a radiator mount in the case.

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Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.

All 3 ranked

Best 280mm AIO coolers ranked by sustained headroom
#	Cooler	Rated	Excellent	Headroomon Core i7-13700K	Handles up to	Price
1	NZXT Kraken Plus 280280 mm AIO liquid cooler · 52 mm	290 W	120 / 120	+37 W	Every CPU it mounts	~$130
2	Lian Li Galahad II LCD 280280 mm AIO liquid cooler · 52 mm	300 W	120 / 120	+47 W	Every CPU it mounts	$139.99
3	NZXT Kraken Elite 280 RGB280 mm AIO liquid cooler · 52 mm	300 W	120 / 120	+47 W	Every CPU it mounts	$231.99

Terms used on this page

AIO liquid cooler: A sealed closed-loop liquid cooler with a pump block and a 120–420 mm radiator. Radiator length determines case compatibility; thickness plus fans determines top-mount clearance above the VRM heatsinks.
Sustained dissipation rating: The continuous heat load, in watts, a cooler can remove at acceptable noise. This site uses realistic sustained figures rather than marketing peak numbers, and models temperature as ambient plus load ÷ rating × a per-load scale.
Thermal headroom: The cooler's sustained dissipation rating minus the CPU's boost power limit, in watts. Positive headroom lets fans run slower and quieter; 25 W or more is rated Excellent here.
TjMax: The maximum junction temperature the maker allows, typically 95–100 °C. AMD lists 90 °C for the Ryzen 7 5800X3D, 89 °C for the 7800X3D and 95 °C for the 9800X3D. At TjMax the CPU throttles clocks to stay in place; it will not overheat, but it will lose performance.