The Best Motherboards for 2026

Michael Justin Allen Sexton — Sun, 21 Jun 2026 10:00:00 +0000

Building a desktop PC, or upgrading an aging one? Here's all you need to know about choosing the right motherboard—plus, our top tested picks in boards for the latest AMD and Intel CPU platforms.

We pondered several possible approaches to choosing a motherboard. Do you start with the CPU you want to install and launch your search from there? Do you start with the usage case, then drill down? (Say, gaming versus productivity work versus performance tweaking for fun.) Do you start with the …

Asus Beta BIOS Adds AMD's FPS-Boosting EXPO Ultra Low Latency Support

Jon Martindale — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 15:18:20 +0000

Another software tweak bringing free performance. I'm here for it.

Asus has launched a beta BIOS for its Crosshair X870E motherboards that may be the first to support AMD EXPO Ultra Low Latency (ULL), VideoCardz reports.

This profile automatically tunes and overclocks memory to deliver better performance, resulting in an …

MSI Is Changing Its Motherboard Design to Protect Enthusiasts' Fingers

Jon Martindale — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 21:13:08 +0000

PinSafe's flattened rear solder joints should prevent DIY PC builders from cutting themselves.

Component updates and evolutions aren't always about performance and capacity upgrades; sometimes, quality-of-life improvements can make a real difference. In the case of MSI's new PinSafe technology, it has developed a method for soldering its motherboards that reduces pin length and flattens solder on the rear …

Amid RAM Crunch, AMD EXPO Now Supports Chinese Memory, CUDIMM

Jon Martindale — Fri, 24 Apr 2026 13:32:42 +0000

This suggests Zen 6 could support much faster memory standards.

AMD has launched its latest memory profile update, laying the groundwork for future Zen 6 releases and improving support for alternative memory suppliers amid the RAM crunch.

As VideoCardz reports, EXPO 1.2 offers tentative support for new

Wood on a Motherboard? Gigabyte's Newest Product Gives a Nod To Nature

Michael Kan — Fri, 05 Dec 2025 20:07:24 +0000

The wood-accented motherboard also adopts some leather pull tabs.

Gigabyte’s newest motherboard is trying to stand out by incorporating some actual wood onto the product.

On Friday, the company announced the X870E AERO X3D WOOD, which looks like it could fit in a home furniture catalog.

The AM5 motherboard appears to …

ASRock Z890 Taichi

Michael Justin Allen Sexton — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 15:26:57 +0000

ASRock’s long-running line of Taichi motherboards often ranks among the best available for any given platform—and the new ASRock Z890 Taichi lives up to the legacy. At a $499 list price, this motherboard doesn’t come cheap, but it's well worth considering for luxury desktop builds, featuring …

US Delays the Return of 25% Tariff on GPUs for Another 3 Months

PCMag Canada — Thu, 28 Aug 2025 22:09:29 +0000

As GPU prices and supplies stabilize, the Trump administration declines to revive the China-focused tariffs until at least Nov. 30.

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A 25% tariff on Chinese-made graphics cards won't return for at least another 90 days.

The "Section 301" tariff was supposed to re-activate on Sept. 1, but on Thursday, the Office …

Buy Now? Trump Won't Revive 25% Tariff on GPUs for At Least Another 3 Months

Michael Kan — Mon, 02 Jun 2025 14:48:28 +0000

The exemption expired over the weekend, but the Trump administration gives GPU makers another reprieve as it weighs a larger package of semiconductor tariffs.

A dormant 25% tariff on Chinese-assembled graphics cards and motherboards will stay on hold for another three months after the Trump administration opted to extend the exclusion.

The 25% tariff was supposed to take effect over the weekend. But on Saturday, …

Gigabyte X870E Aorus Pro Ice

Joe Shields — Mon, 17 Feb 2025 15:00:00 +0000

A slick surface for your next AMD Ryzen PC build

Gigabyte's X870E Aorus Pro Ice is a midrange motherboard full of features, from a trio of PCI Express 5.0-capable M.2 sockets to 40Gbps USB4 ports, integrated Wi-Fi 7, and a winter-white design that's sure to look good inside your chassis. At $359.99 (sometimes offered with a …

ASRock X870E Taichi Lite

Joe Shields — Sat, 08 Feb 2025 23:05:05 +0000

High-end hardware cloaked by a midrange look

The little brother of ASRock's flagship X870E Taichi motherboard, the X870E Taichi Lite isn't cheap at $399.99 but gives you a lot for your money. While it lacks its sibling's fancy (and costly) aesthetic—no onboard RGB lighting—the Lite offers the same hardware configuration and overcompensating power …

MSI MPG Z890 Carbon WiFi

Joe Shields — Wed, 01 Jan 2025 19:00:00 +0000

Premium looks, solid performance, and friendly features for Intel "Arrow Lake"

We're not overly impressed when the phrase "sub-$500 motherboard" turns out to mean $499.99, but MSI's MPG Z890 Carbon WiFi pushes its latest Carbon effort (usually a midrange offering) toward the premium end of the market with many specs that users will surely like. From a …

Gigabyte X870 Aorus Elite WiFi7 Ice

Michael Justin Allen Sexton — Sat, 21 Dec 2024 15:00:00 +0000

A n-ice and feature-filled base for AMD AM5...but a little pr-ice-y

Gigabyte’s X870 Aorus Elite WiFi7 Ice is one of the more affordable AM5 motherboards to feature AMD’s new X870 chipset, but not necessarily in its arctic color scheme. This board has some noteworthy features, including built-in Wi-Fi 7 support and two USB4 ports, but its more …

Asus ROG Maximus Z890 Hero

Joe Shields — Wed, 27 Nov 2024 21:29:39 +0000

An all-access pass for your 'Arrow Lake' CPU

Meet Z890 and 1851: two numbers for a new chipset and a new socket that make up Intel's new-look desktop platform. As this is our first motherboard review for the recently released Intel "Arrow Lake" Core Ultra 200S CPUs, we’d like to lead off this review …

Asus TUF Gaming X870-Plus WiFi

Joe Shields — Sun, 20 Oct 2024 18:00:00 +0000

A DIY-friendly board with the latest trimmings

What qualifies as "budget" in the motherboard market is relative. Asus' TUF Gaming X870-Plus WiFi ($309.99) motherboards are budget-class for AMD's top-shelf X870 chipset, and, according to Asus these boards are “engineered with military-grade components, an upgraded power solution and comprehensive cooling system [, which] also …

Gigabyte X870E Aorus Master

Michael Justin Allen Sexton — Mon, 30 Sep 2024 22:19:58 +0000

AMD's newest chipset anchors this well-made, user-friendly motherboard

Gigabyte's X870E Aorus Master ($499) is one of the first motherboards released to feature AMD's cutting-edge X870E chipset. This chipset is oriented as a top-tier solution for games and overclocking enthusiasts. The X870E Aorus Master's overall features support this with a robust power system, excellent cooling, …

The Criterion Channel

Jordan Minor, Ben Moore — Wed, 17 Jul 2024 19:23:15 +0000

Classic films, modern convenience

If the modern cinema experience does not appeal to you, check out The Criterion Channel, a video streaming service that caters specifically to film fans. The Criterion Channel offers on-demand access to The Criterion Collection, which was previously available via Hulu and then the …

Asus Prime Z790-P Wi-Fi

Joe Shields — Tue, 25 Jun 2024 15:22:33 +0000

Primed to be the budget motherboard of choice

Asus' Prime Z790-P Wi-Fi ($219.99 list price; around $190 on sale) is an economical full-ATX motherboard that the company describes as "expertly engineered to unleash the full power of 13th Gen Intel Core processors, [providing] PC DIY builders with a range of performance optimizations via intuitive …

ASRock B760I Lightning Wi-Fi

Joe Shields — Mon, 27 May 2024 18:00:00 +0000

The uncommon Mini-ITX that's easier on the wallet

Sometimes economy class isn't a punishment. The ASRock B760I Lightning Wi-Fi is a low-priced ($184.99 at Newegg) Mini-ITX motherboard based on Intel's B760 chipset. Processor overclocking is limited, but memory overclocking is available up to a mind-blowing DDR5-8600+ (OC). You also get native 14th Generation CPU …

Gigabyte Z790 Aorus Elite AX Ice

Joe Shields — Sat, 25 May 2024 14:00:00 +0000

Arctic look, cool price for Intel's best

Listing for $269.99 and found, at this writing, for $10 less via Amazon and Newegg, Gigabyte’s Z790 Aorus Elite AX Ice gets you a lot (but not everything!) for your money in a standard ATX-size motherboard. This LGA 1700 effort is a budget-class board built on …

MSI B760M Edge Ti Wi-Fi

Joe Shields — Fri, 29 Mar 2024 20:30:00 +0000

A well-equipped but pricey MicroATX board

Built for those ready to spend a bit more for extra features, the $249.99 MSI MPG B760M Edge Ti Wi-Fi is a MicroATX-size motherboard based on the budget B760 chipset. The B760M Edge Ti has native Intel 12th-to-14th Gen processor support, a PCIe 5.0 slot, three …

Maxsun Challenger B650M Wi-Fi

Joe Shields — Thu, 28 Mar 2024 18:52:01 +0000

A capable budget Ryzen motherboard from a new face

Late last year, we covered the iCraft Z760M Wi-Fi from new-to-us motherboard maker Maxsun. (It's not often, after all, that we get to see a new player in PC mainboards.) Overall, we liked what it offered, and it was a valid option in that …

Biostar Z790 Valkyrie

Joe Shields — Fri, 29 Dec 2023 19:12:19 +0000

A flagship motherboard that forgot the Wi-Fi

Biostar lacks the US presence of motherboard vendors like Asus, ASRock, MSI, and Gigabyte, but the company is no slouch in the upper-midrange market. Its Z790 Valkyrie is an ATX-size platform priced at $499.99. Its subdued black-on-black design has a brushed-aluminum finish on the heatsinks and …

ASRock PG Z790 Lightning Wi-Fi

Joe Shields — Wed, 27 Dec 2023 19:34:40 +0000

The lowest-cost "Raptor Lake Refresh" board strikes, with lots to like

Major motherboard manufacturers have rushed to offer Z790 refresh boards that update the Intel chipset platform with native support for 14th Generation "Raptor Lake Refresh" processors like the Core i9-14900K. The least expensive we've seen is the ASRock Phantom Gaming Z790 …

Asus TUF Gaming Z790-Pro Wi-Fi

Joe Shields — Sun, 24 Dec 2023 13:00:00 +0000

TUF enough for 14th Gen CPUs, and easy enough on the wallet

The Asus TUF Gaming Z790-Pro Wi-Fi motherboard is an iterative update from the company's Z790-Plus Wi-Fi. Like its predecessor, it's a budget-priced Z790 offering that promises game-ready features and proven durability; Asus' TUF motherboards are engineered with military-grade components, upgraded power, …

Colorful CVN B760I Frozen Wi-Fi D5 V20

Joe Shields — Sat, 23 Dec 2023 17:00:00 +0000

Small-form-factor speed, straight from Shenzhen

Here's a stumper for your next round of bar trivia: Name the top graphics card company in China. It's Colorful, a brand barely known in the U.S. but successful since 1995 as a leading partner with Nvidia, AMD, and Intel in the Asian market. The latest B760

Adobe Lightroom Mobile (for iPhone)

Michael Muchmore — Mon, 18 Dec 2023 16:19:13 +0000

Most of Lightroom, on Your iPhone!

Lightroom, Adobe's professional photo-workflow software, is one of the more intensive desktop applications around, so when the company brought a version to the comparatively horsepower-challenged iPad last April, it obviously couldn't include all its most-powerful features. You might expect to get even less …

Asus ROG Strix Z790-A Gaming Wi-Fi II

Joe Shields — Fri, 01 Dec 2023 00:08:10 +0000

A deeply connected, quality-made midranger for 14th Gen Intel

According to Asus, its ROG Strix Z790-A Gaming Wi-Fi II motherboard serves Z790 refresh customers a balance of "style, performance, cooling, and connectivity." The board features black and silver styling that's only slightly changed from the original Z790-A Gaming Wi-Fi, but steps up its game with …

Maxsun iCraft B760M Wi-Fi

Joe Shields — Thu, 30 Nov 2023 23:48:41 +0000

Three M.2 sockets and good performance, but a higher price tag than its peers

Recently we had the opportunity to look at an Intel Z790-based motherboard from Maxsun, a manufacturer not well-known to the West, and liked what the Terminator Z790M D5 Wi-Fi had to offer. Today, we have the company's iCraft B760M Wi-Fi on the test …

Gigabyte Z790 Aorus Elite X Wi-Fi 7

Joe Shields — Sat, 28 Oct 2023 19:00:00 +0000

Integrated Wi-Fi 7 and native 14th Gen support at a modest price premium

Intel has released its 14th Generation desktop processors. The "Raptor Lake Refresh" chips don't represent an all-new architecture but a refinement of their 13th Gen predecessors, with slightly higher boost clock speeds and support for DDR5-6000 versus DDR5-5600 memory.

Maxsun Terminator Z790M D5 Wi-Fi

Joe Shields — Fri, 06 Oct 2023 22:56:01 +0000

"Max" out your M.2 storage in MicroATX

Maxsun isn't a familiar brand to many in the U.S., but enthusiasts in Eastern markets know its AMD-, Nvidia-, and Intel-based products ranging from motherboards and graphics cards to solid-state drives and memory modules. Here, we're checking out the company's Terminator Z790M D5 Wi-Fi, an Intel …

MSI MAG B760M Mortar WiFi

Eric Vander Linden — Fri, 29 Sep 2023 22:44:12 +0000

A MicroATX board that's almost an Intel LGA 1700 star

The MicroATX segment for Intel 700-series chipsets is littered with low-budget motherboards meant for basic home and office use. The selection of MicroATX boards with richer feature sets, including support for fifth-gen standards like DDR5 and PCI Express 5.0, is quite limited by comparison. Into this …

ASRock X670E PG Lightning

Joe Shields — Fri, 29 Sep 2023 22:21:55 +0000

Ryzen 7000 overclocking on a (relative) budget

AMD's X670E chipset is proving a popular platform, and the next compatible motherboard to hit our test bench is the ASRock X670E PG Lightning. This value-priced board ($259.99, readily found for $229.99 at retail) offers well-rounded specifications and a neutral, black-and-light-gray look that blends in well …

BritBox

Jordan Minor, Ben Moore — Fri, 22 Sep 2023 15:45:59 +0000

Quality British TV streaming in need of more features

British television fans should check out BritBox, especially if you enjoy BBC and ITV programs. BritBox has a deep well of British content, is relatively inexpensive, and doesn't run ads. However, it lacks offline downloads for mobile devices, user profiles, and some basic playback controls. As with other motherboard ($289.99) introduces itself anyway with an RGB-illuminated ROG symbol on the VRM heatsink. As its name implies, this board is designed for the latest AMD processors, with plenty of features …

Biostar B760A-Silver

Joe Shields — Sun, 10 Sep 2023 16:01:00 +0000

No Wi-Fi? Subtract some shine from this solid Silver

It's been a while (2017, precisely), since we've taken a deep look at a Biostar board. With an MSRP of $260 and street prices bouncing between $225 and $333, Biostar's B760A-Silver is an ATX-size motherboard that blurs the boundary between a mainstream and a midrange board. …

Asus TUF Gaming Z790-Plus Wi-Fi

Joe Shields — Sun, 03 Sep 2023 22:00:00 +0000

A budget-class motherboard that's TUF enough for everyone

The Asus TUF Gaming Z790-Plus Wi-Fi ($229.99) is an affordable Intel Z790 motherboard that promises game-ready features and proven durability. Asus boasts that it's engineered with military-grade components and a comprehensive cooling system intended for extended-use scenarios. Its lengthy feature list includes four M.2 sockets, capable …

ASRock B650E Taichi Lite

Joe Shields — Sat, 02 Sep 2023 16:00:00 +0000

A less aggressive Taichi board that can still...flex

Usually the "lite" version of a product removes features (or calories), but the ASRock B650E Taichi Lite ($299.99) loses only cosmetics. This AMD AM5 motherboard offers the same hardware configuration as its big sibling but forgoes the usual Taichi premium appearance (with 3D sculpted heatsinks and …

Baldur's Gate 3

Will Greenwald — Fri, 25 Aug 2023 14:58:05 +0000

As close as you can get to an actual D&D campaign

Baldur’s Gate 2 was hailed as one of the best RPGs of all time in 2000, and a superbly faithful adaptation of the Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 2nd Edition tabletop role-playing game. It’s still respected as a genre pinnacle more than two decades later. Larian Studios …

MSI MAG B760 Tomahawk Wi-Fi

Joe Shields — Sat, 22 Jul 2023 22:00:00 +0000

Chopping through the motherboard competition for under $200

The MSI MAG B760 Tomahawk Wi-Fi ($219.99 MSRP; often $199 or less on sale) is a full-featured ATX-size motherboard from the budget side of the tracks. As long as overclocking your processor isn't a requirement (remember the B760 chipset can overclock memory but not the CPU), …

ASRock Z790 PG Sonic

Joe Shields — Sun, 16 Jul 2023 13:00:00 +0000

Enough storage to satisfy Dr. Robotnik

Knuckles and Tails will have to wait their turn. The ASRock Z790 PG Sonic ($249.99) is an ATX-size Intel motherboard with a Sonic the Hedgehog theme unique to the PC building world (except for the company's B760M MicroATX version). Apart …

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