Rank #5 in Best CPU Air Cooler 2026: 10 Ranked, One Sold Twice at Two Prices
Noctua NH-U12S redux Single Tower CPU Cooler
Price and rating as shown on Amazon when we collected them. Both change.
The Noctua NH-U12S redux is a single-tower air cooler built around one 120 mm fan, listed at £49.95 with 4.7 stars from 4,263 ratings. It comes in at number 5 in this guide, and it is the dearest of the coolers whose prices are quoted here — more than the £41.98 pair, the £35.90 listing and the £29.99 listing. What you get for that is a slim tower, a 1700 RPM PWM fan, NT-H1 paste and Noctua's SecuFirm2 mounting kit.
The reason it stands out in this particular round-up is that its numbers hold together. The Wattage field reads 1.08 watts, sitting next to a 12-volt, 4-pin fan rated at 1700 RPM — which is about what a 120 mm PWM fan of this kind draws, and not a thermal figure doing a fan's job. The 158 mm height quoted in the bullet is the same measurement as the 15.8 cm in the dimensions field. The only number on the page that does not line up with another is the price: £49.95 in the listing, £44 in a review written by someone who bought it.
Everything on this page is taken from the Amazon listing and the customer reviews attached to it. We have not tested the cooler ourselves.
How those 4,263 ratings break down
An average hides its own shape. This is the spread behind the 4.7 stars.
Specification
Exactly as published on the Amazon listing, field for field.
| Price | £49.95 |
|---|---|
| Rating | 4.7 out of 5, from 4,263 ratings |
| Fan power | 1.08 watts, 12 volts, 4-pin PWM |
| Max rotational speed | 1700 RPM |
| Noise level | 25.1 decibels |
| Height | 158 mm, quoted in the bullet and matching the 15.8 cm below |
| Item dimensions (as listed) | 15.8L x 12.5W x 7.1H centimetres |
| Item weight | 710 g |
What buyers actually say
Quoted from customer reviews on Amazon
Verified purchase“It's an excellent CPU cooler for £44, it keeps my i5 12500 nice and cool whilst remaining quiet (much quieter than a stock intel cooler), it could probably handle a bit more too! Mounting it was also fairly straightforward, so no complaints here!”
Verified purchase“I could wax lyrical about how great Noctua are when it comes to cooling tech and the NF-P12 is no exception. Needed for a "couch gaming" PC running a 5800x3d (which runs a toasty 105w), despite being in a small PC case this keeps the cpu well within acceptable thermal ranges under gaming loads (around 55-60c) and even after heat soaking. This keeps boost clocks active for longer and subsequently frame times smooth and consistent. It's also insanely silent compared to say my Peerless Assassin or Sharkoons I use on older gaming rigs.Came with all bracket for AM4 and was a simple "bracket and screws" job. Tower fins were pristine (which is impressive). Also comes with the usual 15xx/17xx/20xx Intel mounting hardware. More than happy to recommend this, though as a warning: this is a bit of a champagne purchase so only buy it if you want the excess or really must have "the best" for your rig. I'd really like to see what Noctua do with liquid setups if they ever got into that space.”
What it is up against
The rivals it was ranked against in Best CPU Air Cooler 2026: 10 Ranked, One Sold Twice at Two Prices.
Questions people ask
How much does the Noctua NH-U12S redux cost?
The listing shows £49.95, while a customer review on the same page says they bought it for £44.
What does the 1.08 watts figure refer to?
It sits alongside a 12-volt, 4-pin fan rated at 1700 RPM, so it reads as the fan's power draw rather than a thermal rating.
Will it fit over my RAM and graphics card?
Noctua states the slim 120 mm size does not overhang the RAM slots and does not block the PCIe slot on most ATX and Micro-ATX motherboards.
Which sockets does the Noctua NH-U12S redux support?
The listing names Intel LGA1851, LGA1700, LGA1200 and LGA115x, plus AMD AM5 and AM4, using the included SecuFirm2 mounting system.
How tall is the cooler?
158 mm according to the bullet, which is the 15.8 cm given in the dimensions field; Noctua says this fits most tower cases.
What is included with the cooler?
The listing names the heatsink with an NF-P12 redux-1700 120 mm fan, NT-H1 thermal paste and the SecuFirm2 mounting kit.
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