The Best Gaming PC Motherboards

It is the board to start from unless you need something specific. On M.2 slot count it ties with the X870 AORUS Elite, the Z890 Tomahawk and the B850 Steel Legend at 4. On wired network speed it ties with the Z890 Tomahawk at 5Gbps.

It shares an AM5 socket with the X870 AORUS Elite and B850 Steel Legend; the Z790 Tomahawk MAX goes with an LGA1700 socket. It also offers a PCIe 5.0 x16 slot with Steel Armor and a rear USB 20Gbps Type-C port. 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. It was the highest-priced of the 5 picks at the time of writing, so the case for it rests on what it adds over the X870 AORUS Elite and the rest.

It is the X870 board with the longest cover here. It matches the B850 Tomahawk MAX, the Z890 Tomahawk and the B850 Steel Legend on M.2 slot count (4). It matches the B850 Steel Legend and the Z790 Tomahawk MAX on wired network speed (2.5Gbps).

Like the B850 Tomahawk MAX and B850 Steel Legend, it has an AM5 socket, while the Z890 Tomahawk uses an LGA1851 socket. It also offers EZ-Latch for tool-free card removal and 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. When we checked, only the Z890 Tomahawk and cheaper picks cost less, and the B850 Tomahawk MAX cost more.

It runs only LGA1851 processors, not older 12th to 14th Gen chips. It matches the B850 Tomahawk MAX, the X870 AORUS Elite and the B850 Steel Legend on M.2 slot count (4). It matches the B850 Tomahawk MAX on wired network speed (5Gbps).

It is the only pick here with an LGA1851 socket; the B850 Tomahawk MAX has an AM5 socket instead. It also offers a PCIe 5.0 graphics slot and M.2 heatsinks on every slot. Check the manual for which M.2 slots share lanes with SATA ports or the second PCIe slot before filling them all. When we checked, only the Z790 Tomahawk MAX and cheaper picks cost less, and the X870 AORUS Elite cost more.

It fits light-themed builds that still need plenty of storage. On M.2 slot count it ties with the B850 Tomahawk MAX, the X870 AORUS Elite and the Z890 Tomahawk at 4. On wired network speed it ties with the X870 AORUS Elite and the Z790 Tomahawk MAX at 2.5Gbps.

It shares an AM5 socket with the B850 Tomahawk MAX and X870 AORUS Elite; the Z790 Tomahawk MAX goes with an LGA1700 socket. 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 undercut the Z790 Tomahawk MAX and every other pick on price at the time of writing. The trade-off is M.2 slot count; for more, the Z790 Tomahawk MAX offers 5.

It is the most complete Z790 board for its price here. Its 5 M.2 slot count is the most here; the B850 Tomahawk MAX comes next at 4. On wired network speed it ties with the X870 AORUS Elite and the B850 Steel Legend at 2.5Gbps.

You get an LGA1700 socket here, which sets it apart from the B850 Steel Legend and its an AM5 socket. It also comes with Bluetooth 5.4 alongside Wi-Fi 7 and a PCIe 5.0 graphics slot. It uses Intel's LGA1700 socket for 12th, 13th and 14th Gen Core processors; check the CPU support list for the BIOS version your chip needs, since early boards shipped before 14th Gen launched.

Its price falls between the B850 Steel Legend and the Z890 Tomahawk, based on our last check. If wired network speed is your priority, the B850 Tomahawk MAX (5Gbps) is the stronger choice.