Tom’s Hardware was founded in 1996 by Thomas Pabst in Canada under the name Tom’s Hardware Guide. It started using the domain tomshardware.com in September 1997 and focused on providing technology enthusiasts with detailed reviews, buying guides, and analysis related to computer hardware and components. Tom’s Hardware grew to become one of the most popular and trusted online resources for PC building advice and information. At its peak, it had a reputation for in-depth benchmarking and knowledgeable recommendations that could make or break a product’s success (https://www.zippia.com/tom-s-hardware-careers-2151568/history/).
Acquisition by Best Buy
In 2007, technology retailer Best Buy acquired a majority stake in Tom’s Hardware’s parent company, Purch. The terms of the deal were not disclosed publicly, but it gave Best Buy 70% ownership of Purch and its media brands, including Tom’s Hardware. For Tom’s Hardware, this acquisition provided backing from a large retailer but also marked a shift towards more commercialized content.
Shift in Content
After the acquisition by Best Buy in 2007, Tom’s Hardware began shifting away from highly technical, enthusiast-focused content to more mainstream consumer advice and reviews. The in-depth articles analyzing PC components and benchmarks were replaced by simpler “buyers guides” and roundups comparing pre-built systems and peripherals. According to one Reddit user, this represented a major change, as “Tom’s went from being one of the best sources of deeply technical info to superficial reviews and aggregate hardware news.”
Reviews became less technical and rigorous. As pointed out in a YouTube response video by Gamers Nexus, Tom’s Hardware published an article titled “Just Buy It: Why Building Your Own Gaming PC Isn’t Worth It Anymore” that recommended prebuilt systems without thorough testing or analysis. This represented a significant departure from the site’s original mission of empowering users with detailed technical knowledge.
While the acquisition brought more resources and traffic, it was criticized by many longtime fans for watering down content to appeal to a mainstream audience. Tom’s Hardware was no longer focused on its original core audience of PC enthusiast builders and overclockers.
Loss of Founders
A major development occurred in 2007 when Tom’s Hardware’s original founders left the company. This included key figures like Dr. Thomas Pabst, who had founded the site in 1996 and served as chief editor. According to a 2011 forum post, Dr. Pabst had departed in 2007, a few years after the Best Buy acquisition (1).
Other founding members and editors also eventually left Tom’s Hardware, including creators like Patrick “Mac” Schur and Achim Roos. This brain drain of the site’s original talent and leadership was seen by many as a huge loss. The founders were what gave Tom’s Hardware its initial reputation for quality, so their departure signaled a major shift.
Decline in Popularity
In the years following the acquisition by Best Buy, Tom’s Hardware saw a significant decline in popularity and community engagement. According to SimilarWeb, traffic to the Tom’s Hardware website dropped substantially starting around 2018. By 2021, the site’s global traffic ranking had fallen to around 15,000, down from a peak of around 3,000 in 2015.
This traffic decline indicates that Tom’s Hardware was losing its audience and reputation as a top destination for PC hardware enthusiasts. The site’s once-thriving community of users declined as well. Tom’s Hardware had built a reputation not just for its editorial content, but also for its vibrant forums where users discussed and helped each other with PC builds and technical issues. As veteran users left and new users failed to replace them, the forums become far less active.
Multiple factors likely contributed to this decline, including the aforementioned departure of key staff and loss of focus under Best Buy. But the rise of alternatives like Reddit and YouTube for PC hardware discussion also drew users away from traditional forum sites like Tom’s Hardware. While still maintaining a solid audience, Tom’s Hardware was clearly a fading force by the late 2010s.
Failed Relaunch
In 2018, Best Buy made an attempt to revive Tom’s Hardware with a new branding and website redesign under the name Tom’s Guide. This rebrand focused more on simplified buying advice and “best of” lists catered towards mainstream consumers. However, the relaunch failed to reinvigorate the community or regain the in-depth technical audience that made Tom’s Hardware successful in the past. Many long-time readers felt alienated by the simplified content focusing on consumer purchasing topics rather than detailed technical analysis. Within a year, it was clear the relaunched Tom’s Guide had not succeeded in reviving the Tom’s Hardware legacy.
Acquisition by Future Publishing
In 2019, Future Publishing acquired Tom’s Hardware from Best Buy for $132 million as part of a larger acquisition of Purch’s consumer brands (Source). Tom’s Hardware had previously been acquired by tech retailer Best Buy in 2013, but under Best Buy’s ownership the site had suffered a decline in traffic and reputation. Future Publishing saw the acquisition as an opportunity to revitalize the Tom’s Hardware brand and enhance their own portfolio of technology publications.
The acquisition brought Tom’s Hardware under the umbrella of Future Publishing, a specialty media company based in the UK that publishes a range of technology, gaming, music, creative and photography, sports, and home interest titles. Future Publishing believed their expertise in creating engaging digital content experiences would help restore Tom’s Hardware’s status as an authoritative source for technology news and reviews.
Second Relaunch
In January 2019, Technology publishing company Future plc acquired the remaining assets of Tom’s Hardware from Best Buy. Future announced plans to relaunch Tom’s Hardware to bring it back to its roots as a core technology site for enthusiasts and professionals. The relaunched site debuted in April 2019 with a focus on more in-depth hardware reviews and analysis, breaking tech news coverage, and community forums.
To lead the relaunch, Future brought back original founder Thomas Pabst as Chief Technical Officer along with Editor-in-Chief Avram Piltch. According to Pabst: “We are going back to our roots to provide unmatched technical authority on the latest hardware and technologies…With a focus on technical authority, quality and truth, the relaunched Tom’s Hardware will help tech enthusiasts advance their knowledge.”
Tom’s Hardware also developed the Tom’s Recommends program to highlight the best tech products determined by the site’s editors and product experts. The relaunched site aimed to restore Tom’s Hardware’s stature as an authoritative technology publication.
Current Status
Tom’s Hardware is currently owned by Future Publishing, after being acquired in 2019.1 Under Future Publishing, Tom’s Hardware has undergone a major revamp and relaunch in an attempt to regain its former status as one of the premier computer hardware sites. The site focuses on providing the latest news, in-depth reviews, and buying guides related to CPUs, GPUs, motherboards, SSDs, PSUs, cases and other PC components.
In terms of traffic, Tom’s Hardware has seen some recovery but remains a fraction of its former size. According to Alexa rankings, Tom’s Hardware is currently ranked around 10,000 globally, compared to a high of under 2,000 in its heyday.2 While no longer the dominant force it once was, Tom’s Hardware retains a loyal following in the hardware enthusiast community and continues to be a respected source for PC building advice and analysis.
Legacy and Impact
The original Tom’s Hardware community had a significant impact on PC enthusiasts and the technology journalism industry. Led by founders Tom Pabst and Rick Malambri since 1996, the site became an essential resource for PC hardware news, reviews, and community discussion.[1] The open forums allowed real-world experts and hobbyists to share advice freely, influencing countless custom PC builders.
Tom’s Hardware was particularly known for their regularly updated “Hierarchy Charts” ranking the best graphics cards and CPUs for gaming. These charts, available for free online, gave enthusiasts guidance on partpicking and became an industry standard reference well into the 2000s.[2] The site’s meticulous benchmarking and deeply knowledgeable staff also set a high standard for testing methodology in tech journalism.
Even after its decline, enthusiasts continued to reminisce fondly about the early community and editorial approach of Tom’s Hardware. The site’s founding ethos of open collaboration around technology for its own sake left a lasting mark. For a time, Tom’s Hardware embodied the enthusiasm, expertise, and curiosity at the heart of PC building.