When it comes to the best AM5 motherboards for gaming, there’s really no shortage of options in the market. To make your hunt easier, we’ve curated all the best AM5 motherboards across different price segments.
Best entry-level AM5 motherboards for gaming
With the AM5 socket’s introduction, motherboard prices have gone up across the board. This is due to various factors like DDR5 and PCIe 5.0 support. While sub-$100 motherboards are a thing of the past, the pricing situation has improved over the last year with all major motherboard manufacturers vying for the entry-level segment.
ASRock B650M-HDV/M.2
| Key specs | • Micro-ATX form factor • B650 chipset • 8-phase 50A power stages for vCore VRM • 1x Gen5 M.2, 1x Gen4 M.2• 1x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C (Front), 1x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-C (Rear), 6x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A (2 Rear, 4 Front), 8x USB 2.0 (4 Rear, 4 Front) • Dragon 2.5G LAN |
| What we like about it | • VRM capable enough for Ryzen 9 7950X • Pre-installed IO Shield |
| What we don’t like about it | • No WiFi |
If you’re tight on budget, the ASRock B650M-HDV/M.2 should be enough to get your AM5 system up and running. With VRM strong enough even for the Ryzen 9 7950X, you shouldn’t have any problem on the power delivery front. While ASRock didn’t include a PCIe 5.0 slot in their entry-level offering, it’s far from a dealbreaker as we’re long ways off any new graphics cards that would exceed the PCIe 4.0 bandwidth limit.
MSI Pro B650-S WiFi
| Key specs | • ATX form factor • B650 chipset • 12-phase 60A power stages for vCore VRM • 2x Gen4 M.2• 4x USB 2.0 (Front), 4x USB 5Gbps Type A (Rear), 2x USB 5Gbps Type A (Front), 3x USB 10Gbps Type A (Rear), 1x USB 10Gbps Type C (Front), 1x USB 20Gbps Type C (Rear) • Realtek 8125BG 2.5G LAN • AMD Wi-Fi 6E |
| What we like about it | • VRM capable enough for Ryzen 9 7950X • Adequate USB ports |
| What we don’t like about it | • No pre-installed IO shield• No Gen5 M.2 slot |
The MSI Pro B650-S WiFi is your no-frills option if you want a full-size ATX motherboard for your AM5 system. Equipped with enough USB ports and WiFi 6E, this mobo will serve you fine as a sub-$150 option. No Gen5 M.2 slot might be a dealbreaker for some. But if you not editing 8K videos, that shouldn’t be too big of an issue. Similarly, the lack of a PCIe Gen5 slot can also be forgiven due to the price point.
Best mid-range AM5 motherboards for gaming
In the sub-$200 range of AM5 motherboards, you’ve got choices galore. While the entry-level category has some of B650’s features cut off, this mid-range price point lets you access the cutting-edge features like Gen5 M.2 and Graphics Card support along with well-built VRMs to stably account for the most power-hungry Zen 4 and Zen 5 CPUs.
ASRock B650 Steel Legend WiFi (Editor’s Choice)
| Key specs | • ATX form factor • B650 chipset • 14-phase 80A power stages for vCore VRM • 1x Gen5 M.2, 2x Gen4 M.2 • 1x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A (Rear), 2x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A (Rear), 1x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C (Rear), 1x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-C (Front), 6x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A (2 Rear, 4 Front), 8x USB 2.0 (4 Rear, 4 Front) • Dragon 2.5G LAN • AMD Wi-Fi 6E |
| What we like about it | • Gen5 PCIe x16 slot for GPU futureproofing • Three M.2 slots (one of them being Gen5) |
| What we don’t like about it | • Low availability |
The ASRock B650 Steel Legend WiFi is hands-down the most feature-rich motherboard at this price. With a PCIe 5.0 slot, you don’t have to worry about a beefy GPU upgrade.
The Achilles’ heel, however, is its availability. Provided you can get your hands on it, there’s no better options at this point. It even competes with pricier motherboards, courtesy of its rock-solid VRM design and Gen5 support on both GPU and M.2 slots.
Gigabyte B650 Gaming X AX
| Key specs | • ATX form factor • B650 chipset • 8-phase 60A power stages for vCore VRM • 3x Gen4 M.2 • 1x USB 3.2 Type-C (Rear), 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A (Rear), 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 (Rear), 3x USB 2.0 (Rear), 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 Type-C (Front), 4x USB 3.2 Gen 1 (2 Rear, 2 Front), 4x USB 2.0 (Front) • Realtek 2.5G LAN • AMD Wi-Fi 6E |
| What we like about it | • Availability |
| What we don’t like about it | • Lacking feature set |
The Gigabyte B650 Gaming X AX motherboard is a solid choice at the price point. With VRM capable enough to handle the higher-end Zen 4 processors, this full-size ATX motherboard should serve you fine for your gaming AM5 build.
However, if you consider futureproofing, there are clearly a few caveats with no PCIe 5.0 and Gen5 M.2 support. That, coupled with weaker VRM design, makes Gigabyte’s offering pale in comparison to ASRock’s B650 Steel Legend WiFi.
Best high-end AM5 motherboards for gaming
If you are willing to spend around $250 for your motherboard, you get access to all the cutting-edge features and expansion slots.
ASRock B650E Taichi Lite
| Key specs | • ATX form factor • B650E chipset • 24-phase 105A power stages for vCore VRM • 1x Gen5 M.2, 2x Gen4 M.2 • 1 x USB4 Type-C (Rear), 1x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C (Front), 3x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A (Rear), 10x USB 3.2 Gen1 (8 Rear, 2 Front), 4x USB 2.0 (Front) • Killer 2.5G LAN • AMD Wi-Fi 6E |
| What we like about it | • Monstrously kitted VRM • Feature set comparable to boards priced $150 higher • Audio features |
| What we don’t like about it | • Low availability |
The ASRock B650E Taichi Lite is the most kitted-out motherboard in the sub-$300 range. Presented as a no-frills version of the $370 ASRock B650E Taichi, the Taichi Lite lacks RGB and some fashionable heatsink design of its big brother. However, with most of the functionalities intact including 5.0 support on both the primary PCIe and M.2 slots, it’s one of the most feature-rich AM5 motherboards in the price range.
Asus ROG Strix B650E-F Gaming WiFi
| Key specs | • ATX form factor • B650E chipset • 12-phase 80A power stages for vCore VRM • 1x Gen5 M.2, 2x Gen4 M.2 • 1x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C (Front), 1x USB 3.2 Type-C (Rear), 4x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A (Rear), 6x USB 3.2 Gen1 (4 Rear, 2 Front), 8x USB 2.0 (Front) • Intel 2.5G LAN • AMD Wi-Fi 6E |
| What we like about it | • SupremeFX Audio • The ROG aesthetic |
| What we don’t like about it | • No USB 4 port |
The Asus ROG Strix B650E-F WiFi is a solid contender in this price segment. With solid power delivery and standard set B650E features, you can’t really go wrong. However, as you might have assumed from the spec sheet, it loses out to ASRock’s Taichi Lite despite being $20 more. But depending on availability, this might be the next best choice for your AM5 gaming PC.
Best Mini-ITX AM5 motherboards for gaming
For small form-factor enthusiasts, we’ve curated the best Mini-ITX AM5 motherboards—one for budget-oriented SFF users, and another for those who want the best features.
ASRock A620I Lightning WiFi
| Key specs | • Mini-ITX form factor• A620 chipset • 8-phase 60A power stages for vCore VRM • 2x Gen4 M.2 • 4x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C (3 Rear, 1 Front),1 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-C (Front), 2 x USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A (Front), 6 x USB 2.0 (4 Rear, 2 Front) • Dragon 2.5G LAN • AMD Wi-Fi 6E |
| What we like about it | • Affordability • Pre-installed IO shield |
| What we don’t like about it | • No CPU overclocking |
The ASRock A620I Lightning WiFi is a solid choice for anyone who’s looking to build a budget AM5 Mini-ITX PC. For its sub-$150 price point, it comes armed with all the necessary features.
Although the A620 chipset prohibits you from CPU overclocking, it isn’t as big of an issue if you are pairing it with an X3D CPU. It still lets you overclock your memory, so you’re secure on that front.
Gigabyte B650I Aorus Ultra
| Key specs | • Mini-ITX form factor • B650 chipset • 8-phase 105A power stages for vCore VRM • 1x Gen5 M.2, 2x Gen4 M.2 • 1x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C (Rear), 2x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A (Rear), 6x USB 2.0 (4 Front,2 Rear), 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C (Front), 4x USB 3.2 Gen1 ports (2 Front, 2 Rear) • Intel 2.5G LAN • Intel Wi-Fi 6E |
| What we like about it | • M.2 and VRM cooling solution • Solid VRM design |
| What we don’t like about it | • Not enough USB 3 ports in the Rear IO |
The Gigabyte B650I Aorus Ultra is a premium Mini-ITX AM5 motherboard that offers most of the cutting-edge features of the chipset like Gen5 M.2 support.
With the well-built cooling solution that actively cools the primary M.2 drive and the VRMs, even your small form-factor rig will not run too hot.
How we came up with this list of AM5 motherboards for gaming
I’ve built PCs for myself and almost all of my real-life gamer buddies since my early teens. So, I know what goes into choosing the best motherboard in a particular budget. This AM5 motherboard research started as a small side-project for one of my friends who recently started working remotely and thus needed to build a powerful desktop PC with the AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D as the centerpiece.
Soon enough, I was rummaging through most of the manufacturer websites for spec sheets, and the reputed third-party hardware sites, Reddit, and other forums for reviews to find out the best AM5 motherboards in the market.
FAQs about the best AM5 motherboards for gaming
How long will AM5 last?
AMD announced in Computex 2024 the AM5 socket will be supported until 2027. While the 9000 series Ryzens are already being launched on the platform, we’ll (presumably) see at least two more generations of Ryzen CPUs on the AM5 socket.
Is X670 better than B650?
Generally, the X670 chipset motherboards come equipped with better VRM design and more PCIe lanes than the B650 ones. This naturally leads to more overclocking headroom and expansion slot options on X670 chipset motherboards.
However, any decent B650 board has enough slots for the average user. And, unless you’re into overclocking as a hobby, the mid-to-high-end B650 mobos offer enough power for moderate overclocking. So, X670 motherboards don’t make much sense at their premium, unless the additional features are something you specifically require.
Will AM4 heatsinks fit AM5?
If you are thinking about using your CPU Cooler from your AM4 system in your AM5 system, the answer is yes, you definitely can. The AM5 motherboard socket uses the same CPU cooler bracket size as the AM4 socket.
Published: Aug 29, 2024 01:37 am