The Best Budget AM5 Motherboards

It matches the B850M Pro RS on M.2 slot count (3). On wired network speed it leads this guide at 5Gbps, ahead of the B650M PG Lightning (2.5Gbps). No other pick in this guide offers a wi-Fi 7; compare the B850M Pro RS, which has a wi-Fi 6E.

You also get a PCIe 5.0 graphics slot. It uses AMD's AM5 socket, so it takes Ryzen 7000, 8000 and 9000 chips; a board built before a CPU's launch may need a BIOS update first, so check whether it supports BIOS Flashback. Check the manual for which M.2 slots share lanes with SATA ports or the second PCIe slot before filling them all. It was priced above the B850 Pro-A and below the B650 Gaming Plus at the time of writing.

Its 6+2+1 layout is best kept to six- and eight-core chips. It matches the B850 Pro-A, the B650 Gaming Plus, the B850M Pro RS and the PRO B650-S on wired network speed (2.5Gbps). No other pick in this guide offers 6+2+1 power stages; compare the B850M Pro RS, which has 8+2+1 power stages.

You also get memory support up to DDR5-7200 (OC) and the lowest price among the AM5 boards here. It uses AMD's AM5 socket, so it takes Ryzen 7000, 8000 and 9000 chips; a board built before a CPU's launch may need a BIOS update first, so check whether it supports BIOS Flashback. As a Micro-ATX board it fits smaller cases but has fewer expansion slots than ATX; check the gap between the GPU and the lower slots.

It suits desks with a network cable. It matches the B650M PG Lightning, the B650 Gaming Plus, the B850M Pro RS and the PRO B650-S on wired network speed (2.5Gbps). No other pick in this guide offers 14+2+1 power stages; compare the B850M Pro RS, which has 8+2+1 power stages.

You also get memory support to DDR5-8000 (OC) and no Wi-Fi, which keeps the price down for wired setups. It uses AMD's AM5 socket, so it takes Ryzen 7000, 8000 and 9000 chips; a board built before a CPU's launch may need a BIOS update first, so check whether it supports BIOS Flashback. There is no published M.2 slot count figure, whereas the PRO B850-P offers 3.

It covers a six- or eight-core Ryzen without extras. On wired network speed it ties with the B650M PG Lightning, the B850 Pro-A, the B850M Pro RS and the PRO B650-S at 2.5Gbps. 12+2+1 power stages is unique to it among these picks, while the B650M PG Lightning uses 6+2+1 power stages.

It also comes with Bluetooth 5.3 alongside Wi-Fi 6E, HDMI and DisplayPort outputs and one of the lowest prices here for an ATX AM5 board. It uses AMD's AM5 socket, so it takes Ryzen 7000, 8000 and 9000 chips; a board built before a CPU's launch may need a BIOS update first, so check whether it supports BIOS Flashback. Its price falls between the PRO B850-P and the B850M Pro RS, based on our last check.

Its 8+2+1 layout suits six- and eight-core chips. On M.2 slot count it ties with the PRO B850-P at 3. On wired network speed it ties with the B650M PG Lightning, the B850 Pro-A, the B650 Gaming Plus and the PRO B650-S at 2.5Gbps.

8+2+1 power stages is unique to it among these picks, while the B850 Pro-A uses 14+2+1 power stages. It uses AMD's AM5 socket, so it takes Ryzen 7000, 8000 and 9000 chips; a board built before a CPU's launch may need a BIOS update first, so check whether it supports BIOS Flashback. As a Micro-ATX board it fits smaller cases but has fewer expansion slots than ATX; check the gap between the GPU and the lower slots. Check the manual for which M.2 slots share lanes with SATA ports or the second PCIe slot before filling them all.

It is for builders who need nothing beyond the basics. Its 2 M.2 slot count is the fewest in this group; the PRO B850-P leads at 3. It matches the B650M PG Lightning, the B850 Pro-A, the B650 Gaming Plus and the B850M Pro RS on wired network speed (2.5Gbps).

It also comes with two PCIe 4.0 x16-size slots and memory support to DDR5-6000 (OC). It uses AMD's AM5 socket, so it takes Ryzen 7000, 8000 and 9000 chips; a board built before a CPU's launch may need a BIOS update first, so check whether it supports BIOS Flashback. Check the manual for which M.2 slots share lanes with SATA ports or the second PCIe slot before filling them all. At our last price check it topped the group, with the B850M Pro RS the nearest cheaper option.