While it’s actually pretty tough, it’s always best practice to put your Raspberry Pi into a case. This helps protect it from many hazards and accidents, and can help it blend into its surroundings as well. Plus, a lot of cases available just look rather cool.
Here are ten of our favourite cases for Raspberry Pi.
Raspberry Pi Official Case: best for function
The lovely Raspberry Pi Case sets a basic standard for all Raspberry Pi cases. It snaps together around the Raspberry Pi, allowing you to fully encase it if desired. However, it’s also incredibly easy to take the top layer off to access a HAT, or the GPIO side bit to access those pins. It’s also sleek and looks great.
£6 / $8
FLIRC: best for a stylish heatsink
FLIRC is well known for the customisable IR receivers it makes for Raspberry Pi media centres, but it also makes this gorgeous case. Not only is it designed to look good and fit seamlessly into a high-tech TV setup, it also functions exceptionally well as a heatsink for the Raspberry Pi.
£15 / $19
Pi Zero Breadboard Case: best case for easier prototyping
While not all Raspberry Pi boards are used for prototyping circuits or learning about electronics, when you are actually doing that it can be a bit tricky to then move your project elsewhere. Not only does the Pi Zero Breadboard Case help you transport your breadboard project a bit more easily, it looks smart and actually makes wiring up electronics a touch easier.
£10 / $13
Pibow: best case for fun assembly
The original Raspberry Pi case that you didn’t have to make out of LEGO, The Pibow case has changed a lot over the years, but they’re still made up of precisely cut acrylic slices that you slide over the Raspberry Pi one at a time to build up into a full case. There are many colours to choose from as well.
£13 / $17
Flick! HAT: best for gesture control
The Flick! HAT is a gesture control input for the Raspberry Pi. It’s quite simple but can be extremely useful, and this case is designed specifically to work well with the HAT. There’s even a Pi Zero version. While the Flick! HAT will work through the top of the acrylic, you can open up the top of the case, and even punch holes in it to have better access to GPIO pins and such.
£10 / $13
Super Kintaro: The best retro cooled case
At first glance the Super Kintaro retro-inspired case is pretty cool, even if it’s based on the SNES from the wrong side of the Atlantic. It’s perfect for your retro gaming setups, especially if you missed out on the SNES Classic. It includes a massive heatsink (sadly incompatible with Pi 3B+), and you could even fit a tiny case fan inside for extra cooling powers.
£20 / $26
Nucleus Wood Zero: best for a natural look
This beautiful Pi Zero case has both form and function. It’s made from mahogany, and offers excellent ventilation for the board. While you can’t really access the GPIO pins with it on, it’s still a lovely case that properly protects the Pi Zero inside.
£4 / $5
ZeroView: best for window recording
The ZeroView is a very simple case idea. Insert your Pi Zero, connect a Pi Camera Module, and then use the included suction cups to attach it to a window. It’s great for time-lapses of your garden, a motion-sensing security camera for your front porch, or even a dashcam for your car. We love it.
£7 / $9
LCD Case: best compact screen case
The 3.2-inch″ screen form-factor is very popular for Raspberry Pi screens, and SB Components makes the excellent LCD Case which fully exposes the screen (and the usual extra buttons), while keeping the rest of the Pi enclosed. It’s useful for several project types, and overall just looks nice and compact.
£4 / $5
PiShell: Best new configuration
Recently crowdfunded, the PiShell should be available shortly after you read this. It’s a good and sturdy case that, similarly to the official case, can be partially taken apart to access the top of the Pi. Unlike the full-size official case, it has a wall-mounting point and a hole for the camera to peek out of as well.
£6 / $8
These cases not what you want? Then you can always 3D-print your own Raspberry Pi case. If you’re not up to designing one yourself, make sure to check Thingiverse.