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No built-in Wi-Fi, but enough headers for fans and PCI 4.0 support for faster M.2 SSDs.

Best budget

One of the cheapest AM4 motherboards you’ll find.

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X CPU with MSI motherboard

ASUS’s TUF Gaming B550M-Plus motherboard unboxed.

I used this exact model before upgrading to the Tomahawk.

Great for cost-saving with mid-size cases or generally skipping sockets you won’t use.

It’s the catch-all 5600X board.

MSI B550 Tomahawk

ASUS’s TUF Gaming B550M-Plus motherboard unboxed.

It’s basic but capable.

I’ve always used AMD processors in my custom-built desktop PCs and don’t feel much temptation to switch.

Besides CPU and socket compatibility, that’s what matters above all: proper support for your other components.

MSI B550 Gaming Gen3

If you’re running a PCIe 4.0 solid-state drive, don’t settle for a PCIe 3.0 motherboard.

ASUS TUF Gaming B550M-Plus

ASUS ROG STRIX B550-F GAMING WIFI II

Gigabyte A520I AC

ASUS TUF Gaming B550M-Plus unboxed

ASUS’s TUF Gaming B550M-Plus motherboard unboxed.

Gigabyte B650 AORUS ELITE AX ATX

ASUS TUF GAMING X670E Plus WiFi

AMD Ryzen 9 9950X in AM5 motherboard socket

Header with motherboards for the Intel Core i5-14600K

MSI RTX 3060 Ventus 2X graphics card and MSI motherboard boxes

AMD Ryzen 9 7000

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Founders Edition power adapter in box

Asus Rog Zephyrus G14 Ryzen

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang addresses participants at the keynote of CES 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada, on January 6, 2025.

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Founders Edition (front) compared to RTX 5090 Founders Edition (rear)

Nintendo Switch 2 on the left with ROG Ally and ROG Ally X on the right.

Nintendo Switch 2 and Steam Deck on peach background.

MSI Claw 8 AI+ flat on a table with a Steam Deck below it.

MSI Claw 8 AI+ propped up next to an ROG Ally X on a table.

NVIDIA RTX 5070 vs. RTX 5070 Ti

AMD RX 9000

Rockstar Games' Grand Theft Auto VI trailer played on a screen in front of the game title.