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Motherboard Feature Set and General Use Tier List For Intel and AMD. Version .64 WIP
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Tier List is NOT complete, double check the Motherboard's Specifications page. I'm always on a quest for knowledge, so if you find any errors or typos, or know something I missed about a Motherboard, let me know. Warning: INTEL boards are still a work in progress, many have not released and full VRM data is unavailable. I have done my best based on my knowledge. Many intel boards will shift tiers as more data comes out. This post is a living a document and gets updated periodically as new info comes out.
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This Tier List covers All current Motherboards and tiers them based on feature set. There are 7 criteria considered. Price, VRMs, Audio, Lan and networking, Internal Connectors, Back Panel I/O Connectors, and Special Features. This is general use tier list. It is not aimed at power users, but instead users with more common tasks, like gaming or streaming for example. Users with unique needs like a triple GPU setup, LN2 OCing, multiple PCIE lanes or other rarely used criteria should see what Motherboards are recommended for those tasks in communities that do those tasks. Reddit Thread and Guide to the List.Special Features are WIP
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Motherboard Tier and Name. Tier notes:Price in USD that I used for Tiering.4 Year Future Proof Rating:VRMS TierAudio TierLan Chip (NIC) TierWIFI SupportInternal Connectors/Headers TierBack Panel IOSpecial Features Tier
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This Section covers the Tier of each of motherboard. The column below is my personal ranking of each motherboard. The columns to my left give a tier for every feature on the Motherboard. Price has as large impact on this column. It is possible for a motherboard in this column to have features that are lower tier, but be ranked higher because the motherboard is cheap. It is also possible for a motherboard to have a Tier S feature set, but be ranked lower because it is priced way too high. Finally, anything in tier B, A, or S, is good mobo that I am comfortable with someone putting into a build that matches it, as long as the price is right. Obviously don't put an Overclocked 5950x on a B550 DS3h and complain that it doesn't work. Tier S: Highly Recommended, well priced and well featured. Boards here must outdo the competition at it's price point. Tier A: Highly Recommended. These miss S tier by maybe missing a feature, or being priced a bit high but are fully featured. In some cases these may be better then S tier boards. You can't go wrong with a board in tier A. Tier B: Recommended, minor caveats. These boards are typically missing some features but maybe are cheap, or are priced a little high for what you get. If you are on budget, live in country where these boards are cheaper options or need a feature on one of these boards that can't be gotten anywhere else, then these are perfectly acceptable as long you understand any limitations they may have. Tier C: These are really high quality boards focused on esoteric features like triple GPU setups, or LN2 OCing. These are not general use boards, and the focus of this guide is on general use. This means these Motherboards, while good for what they can do, are not great choices for most users. Power users who need these features will find them invaluable, but 97% of users will never use these esoteric features. Tier D: Not recommended. Many of these boards have incredibly weak feature sets, or skimp on the VRMs and similar. I call this the third world tier as a lot of users in non-western countries have to choose this tier as better motherboards are massively overpriced in their country. Users in the US, and most of the EU should avoid. Also included are certain high end boards that are so massively overpriced for the features and outcompeted that no one should buy them. Still these aren't the worst. If you understand the limitations these can work. Tier F: Do not buy. These boards are not for general usage, not even for a kids computer or are a MASSIVE rip off. They are either shockingly outcompeted at their price point, or are designed only for simple office work PCs or at most Netflix machines not for general use. Tier E: These are boards with some sort of flaw that keeps them out of the higher tiers. These are issues that are widespread, with multiple articles, or 100s or 1000s of forum posts from unique users.Tier list notes. These notes contain an explanation of why the board is listed at this Tier. These are not Reviews, these are simply my reasoning for why I chose where to tier this board. This section shows the pricing of the MOBOs that I used to judge them. This not the price of the board per se, but the price that I saw when I went to Tier the board. Newer MOBOs use launch MSRP or recent common prices. Some newer Motherboards had price drops real quick. Older Motherboards use common prices from recent months using sites like camelcamelcamel or PCPartpicker's price history feature. Some Motherboards like the x570 Pro4 would be a higher tier if sold at their common price last winter. This gives you an idea of how much the board is worth for sales. If you see a TBD it means the price TO BE DETERMINED, and it means the motherboard is not released yet, or not in my country, and may move a tier once I get proper price data.This rating is based on 4 technologies that you are somewhat or very likely to encounter in the 4 years a well built PC lasts. Nothing after 4 years is considered, because that is too long. You may never encounter or need these, but many of you will. These technologies can be found even on low end boards and were chosen because they are viable even for PC budget users. PCIE Gen 4 or 5: At some point, you will want a PCIE Gen 4 SSD if you want your PC to fully compete with consoles. Games will be heavily optimized for PCIE gen 4 SSDs, and PCIE gen 4 is needed for the real time data streaming which be very useful. For now, PCIE Gen 4 SSDs are overpriced, and not worth it as it only a few games use this feature, but in the lifespan of your build if you build right now, PCIE gen 4 may likely matter. USB-C: A recent change in European Union law requires most devices to have USB-C ports. Changes to laws like this are known as the Brussel Effect, because they change products worldwide. The EU has almost 446 million people in affluent countries. Many tech commentators feel USB-C devices are going become more common. While you may never need a USB-C port, having the option is nice, and can be purchased on motherboards at even budget prices. Thunderbolt 3/4 is considered a USB-C port, but a TB3 internal header for Add in cards is not. 2.5 GB Lan chip (NIC): 2.5 GB internet is the next big jump as it will work with cat 5e cables in most people's homes. Already a push is underway add this internet to many wealthy countries, already at least 40 million american households have access to 2 GB or faster internet. It may never come to your area, but if it does, you will be ready. And it can happen fast, in 2016 2.4% of homes in the United States had 1 GB internet available. By 2020 56% had 1 GB available. 1 GB internet should still be fine for the next four years for those concerned about how much they need it. VRMs that can run all CPUs this mobo supports at stock speeds with no OC: If you ever want to replace your CPU with a much better one, these VRMs will allow you to do that. Here are the tiers, and components will be listed next to the Tier rating, example Tier B, USB-C and VRMs. Tier S: Has all 4 of the above technologies Tier A: Has 3 of the 4 technologies, one must be VRMs, One must PCIE gen 4. Tier B: Has 2 of the 4 technologies. One must be PCIE Gen 4. Tier C: Has PCIE Gen 4 and nothing else, or Has no PCIE Gen 4, 2 other technologies. Tier D: Has 1 of these technologies. Tier F: None of these features. VRMs control the voltage going into the CPU. VRMS are both underrated and overrated. Too often Budget users purchase Mobos with VRMs too weak for their CPU. Meanwhile, at the high end most VRMs are fine. Because my guide is focused on general usage, VRMs are given no extra priority over other parts, and the only overclock I care about is a reasonable, functional one, not a record breaking one. If overclocking high end CPUs matters to you, do further research elsewhere. Tier S: Can run and give a general use overclock on everything without overheating. Do further research if you plan crazy stuff like LN2 ocing. Tier A: Can Run Entire CPU Stack at stock, and Overclock the high end but VRMs may run hot, but within spec. 12900K specifically may run hot at stock. Tier B: Capable of Running the entire CPU stack at stock. Likely won't OC the highest end CPUs CPUs without extra cooling. The VRMs likely run hot on a stock high core count CPUs like 12900k and may run hot on a 5950x. Tier C: Can run up to a stock 12700 without overheating. Stock 5900x, 12600k, 12700k may run hot. 5950x and 12900k are too hot. Tier D: not capable of running midrange CPUs like a 12600k at stock speeds at reasonable temps. A 12700 may run hot. AMD boards can do an 8 core. No 5900x or above. Tier F: High temps on an 12400f or 5600x at stock. May run hot: means the VRMs themselves may need additional airflow. You may need to to add extra fans and good ones like Noctua, buy a very well ventilated case with a mesh front, keep the PC dust free with regular maintenance and keep the PC in an air conditioned room in hot climates. Or just spend $10-20 more on a Motherboard with better VRMs. The audio capabilities of the motherboard. The Tiers are determined by looking at Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR) numbers, Right Mark Audio Analyzer (RMAA) data from various sources AND compiling the claimed headphone capabilities. There is no tier A to illustrate the jump between quality. Remember that motherboards are general use devices, so even the best codec may not provide the best audio to very high end equipment without additional external sound equipment. Note that the claimed headphone audio capabilities is what realtek specifies in their Data Sheets, NOT whether the Motherboard itself implements the codec fully. Tier B has an SNR and dynamic range close to the 1220, but worse headphone amp capabilities, this is likely why there is a discrepancy where many users find this codec great, but others report issues. Tier D does have a slightly better SNR then tier C, however, in testing it's dynamic range is the weakest. Finally, a rating of 32 ohms doesn't mean the AMP can't power headphones larger than that. Users should find many headphones in 32-80 ohm range may work fine, YMMV. Finally, a good external headphone amp or dac likely will perform better than most of these. Tier S Realtek 1220 or 4080: 120 SNR, Widest Dynamic Range in RMAA, and has a headphone amp rated for 600 ohm headphones. Tier B Realtek 1200: 110 SNR, Wider Dynamic Range in RMAA, and headphone amp rated for 32 OHM headphones. Tier C Realtek 892/897: 95 SNR, Ok Dynamic Range in RMAA, and headphone amp rated for 32 OHM headphones. Tier D Realtek 887: 97 SNR, Lowest Dynamic Range in RMAA, and headphone amp rated for 32 OHM headphones. This device controls your access ethernet, it does not affect WIFI speeds. 1 GB chips are fine for most use and majority of people's internet connections are slower than 1 GB. 2.5 GB chips are quickly becoming standard but 1 GB is fine. Tier S through B are the high end which test out a bit better in throughput, tier C works fine for the vast majority and were the old standard chips for YEARS, and tier F is currently faulty, do not buy. For 2 lan chip boards that do not use the a high end lan chip paired with a unique lan chip (5 GB or 10 GB) the best LAN is the only one counted. Tier S: 2 chips, Intel 1211 1GB and Realtek 8125 2.5 GB or any combo of the above and a second 5GB or 10 GB NIC. Tier A: Realtek 8125 or Intel I225-V B3 Stepping 2.5 GB, or single 5 or 10 GB NIC. Tier B: Intel 1211 1 GB Tier C: Realtek 8111h 1GB, or Intel 1219 1GB, or weird variants of these chips like the Realtek 8200a. Tier D: Anything not made by Realtek or intel. Tier F: Intel I225-V B1 or B2 steppingThe section covers whether a motherboard has WIFI/Bluetooth and what type. M.2 E key means the board has an open m.2 WIFI slot and open holes in the I/O shield for WIFI antennas. You can add a PCIE WIFI card to boards, but it's usually cheaper to buy a better Motherboard with WIFI, or add a WIFI m.2 module and antennas to an m.2 e key slot. If you do purchase an m.2 WIFI module for an empty m.2 e key slot, it's a good idea to buy Antennas (must be NGFF) with 25cm or longer pigtails to reach some of the slots. Note that most PCIE WIFI cards simply have m.2 WIFI cards in them. Almost every board with built in WIFI has an m.2 E Key.Internal Connectors or Headers Tier. This section covers the internal connectors of a motherboard. These tiers are not well defined as many motherboards have unique connectors, so a board may move up or down a tier even if has or lacks a component from a tier. Fan headers on ATX boards are considered acceptable if it has 4 non CPU headers for case fans on ATX cases, and 3 on mATX boards. Many unique connectors are of questionable utility for general use, but are incredibly important to those to those that need them. Others are really useful. For example, the B550 Pro4 gets an A tier for it's m.2 E key for WIFI, despite not having internal USB-C or TB3 header. Tier S: Amazing, must have internal USB-C, More fan headers then most cases need, 5V RGB, certain unique or rare connectors like TB3 or Ln2 Ocing support or the like, and/or other minor unique features. Tier A Excellent: Has an equal amount or more fan headers then most cases need, 5v RGB, Either Internal USB-C or Thunderbolt 3 header for TB3 AIC cards, and/or other minor unique features. Tier B Good: Must have more fan headers then most cases need, RGB of any type and/or other minor unique features. Tier C Mediocre: Must have RGB or a variety of other useful headers, equal fan headers to the case. Tier D Bad: Less fan headers then most cases at this Motherboards price point have. Tier F Terrible: Incredibly limited fan headers, no RGB. This section covers the connectors or ports on the back of the motherboard. These tiers are not well defined as many motherboards have unique connectors, so a board may move up or down a tier even if it has or lacks a component from a tier. Many unique connectors are of questionable utility for general use, but are incredibly important to those to those that need them. Others are really useful. Example, the MSI B550 Tomahawk is tier A despite only having 5 USB-A ports because it has an optical audio jack. For general use Tier B and above are usually fine. Tier S: Must have USB-C, 6 or more USB A connectors, Optical Audio, 5 or more audio jacks, and at least one of unique connectors, Wi-Fi holes, or overkill amount of ports. Tier A: Must have at least 6 USB A ports, USB C, Optical Audio, 5 or More Audio jacks or some other unique connector if it is deficient in one of the above. Tier B: Must have at least 5 USB-A Ports, USB-C or tons of USB A ports including superspeed, 3 or more audio jacks or some other unique connector, or lots of connectors if it is deficient in one of the above. Tier C: Must have at least 6 USB-A ports and other useful ports. Tier D: must have 6 USB-A ports. Tier F: Barely anything worth having. This tier covers the special features of a Motherboard. These are unique features that are uncommon. Many Motherboards do not have these. There is some overlap with the other tiers. These include WIFI, Bluetooth, BIOS Flashback, Debug LEDS, M.2 E Keys, Thunderbolt 3 headers, native Thunderbolt3, LN2 Overclocking Support and other features. Special features can be really useful to some users or even the most important thing in a build such as TB3 support for some audio engineers, and totally useless for others. A really high tier board can get a Tier F rating, and a low tier board can get a Tier S or higher rating if it is massively overpriced. Tier S: A wide range of useful special features including rare ones like for example an native TB3 ports without needing an add in card and lots of common ones like BIOS Flashback or Debug LEDs. It doesn't need all them, just a nice wide range or several rare ones. Tier A: A wide range of useful special features, or a couple rare ones Tier B: A few very useful special features that many users will get use out of. Tier C: A limited number of useful special features. Tier D: One special feature. Tier F: No special features:
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S Tier Boards: These boards have excellent features or unique features for the price, and are priced reasonably. As this guide focuses on general use, price is heavily considered. These boards are the best of the best for general use at reasonable price points. For a board to be S tier it must distinguish itself from the competition and provide features typically found on more expensive boards at a reasonable price.
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Motherboard Tier and Name. Tier notes:Price in USD that I used for Tiering.4 Year Future Proof Rating:VRMS TierAudio TierLan Chip (NIC) TierWIFI SupportInternal Connectors/Headers TierBack Panel IOSpecial Features Tier
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AMD Motherboards:
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ASRock A520M Pro4This board is really nice. This a cheaper B550m pro4 without PCIE gen 4 for much cheaper. Outcompetes the B450m Pro4. An excellent choice for budget builds. Highly recommended.85Tier C, USB-C and VRMsTier BTier BTier BM.2 E Key.Tier BTier BTier D
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Asrock B550m Pro4Great general use board, excellent connectivity. The m.2 E key is a really nice feature that allows you to add a WIFI m.2 module and antennas (needs 25CM NGFF pigtails) and save money over a PCIE WIFI card and keep your PCIE slot open.115Tier A, PCIE Gen 4, USB-C and VRMsTier BTier BTier B M.2 E keyTier ATier BTier C: M.2 E Key, Debug LEDS
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Asrock B550m ACA cut down version of the B550m Pro4 with preinstalled WIFI 5 and no USB-C. Competes with the Pro Vdh WIFI.115Tier B, PCIE Gen 4 and VRMsTier BTier BTier BWIFI 5Tier CTier BTier C: Debug LEDs, WIFI 5, Bluetooth 4.2
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 ASRock B550 Extreme4 Same as steel legend with mobo power buttons and different aesthetics. More expensive than the Steel Legend.185Tier STier STier STier AM.2 E keyTier ATier ATier A: M.2 E key, Postcodes, Debug LEDS, Optical Audio .
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 ASRock B550 Steel LegendGreat general use board, excellent connectivity. The m.2 E key is a really nice feature. 180Tier STier STier STier A M.2 E keyTier ATier ATier A: M.2 E key, Postcodes, Debug LEDS, Optical audio.
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ASUS B550 Tuf Gaming Plus The VRMs are a little weak but can OC a 3950x and still be almost 30 degrees cooler then where thermal throttling occurs. Really nice non-VRM feature set. 160Tier STier STier BTier AM.2 E KeyTier ATier ATier A: M.2 E Key, Bios Flashback, Thunderbolt 3 Header (needs add in card), Debug LEDs.
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 ASUS ROG Strix B550-F Gaming (B3 Stepping Lan chip only)Early versions had the faulty Intel I225v lan chip unless you get a B3 stepping chip, make sure to check your lan chips serial number, would be Tier S, my favorite and IMHO most feature complete out the competition in the 160-210 price point.180Tier STier STier STier ANoTier STier ATier A
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ASUS ROG Strix B550-F Gaming Wi-Fi (B3 Stepping Lan chip only)Early versions had the faulty Intel I225v lan chip unless you get a B3 stepping chip, make sure to check your lan chips serial number, would be Tier S, my favorite and IMHO most feature complete out the competition in the 160-210 price point. 200Tier STier STier STier AWIFI6Tier STier ATier S
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Asus ROG STRIX B550-A GAMING (B3 Stepping Lan chip only)
As long as you get this board with the B3 Stepping Intel i225-V you have an excellent top tier board.180Tier STier STier STier ANoTier STier ATier S
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 Gigabyte B550 Aorus ProThe is board as some nice specific features like a Thunderbolt 3 header that requires a 60 dollar + Add in Card. This one lacks internal USB-C for Cases with USB-C. Really good.180Tier STier BTier ANoTier ATier ATier A: Thunderbolt 3 header (needs add in card), Debug LEDS, Bios Flashback, Optical Audio
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Gigabyte B550 Aorus Pro V2And excellent mobo, same as the B550 Aorus Pro, but no TB3, and instead has internal USB-C for cases with USB-C. Easily competes with a B550 Steel legend and B550 Tomahawk. Excellent board for general use. 180Tier STier STier BTier ANoTier ATier ATier B: Debug LEDS, Bios Flashback, Optical Audio
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Gigabyte B550 Vision DCheapest Board with Thunderbolt 3 back panel ports, excellent implementation with top tier Titan Ridge Thunderbolt 3 ports, workstation focused270Tier STier STier STier BWIFI 6Tier ATier STier S: WIFI 6, Bluetooth 5, Postcodes, native thunderbolt 3, SATA DOM, Bios Flashback, Optical Audio
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Gigabyte B550 Vision D-PMostly same as the Vision D, adds front panel USB-C280Tier STier STier STier SWIFI 6Tier ATier STier S: WIFI 6, Bluetooth 5, Postcodes, native thunderbolt 3, SATA DOM, Bios Flashback, Optical Audio
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Gigabyte B550M Aorus Pro-PAn excellent mATX board. No TB3, but amazing feature set for the price. Competes nicely and pretty similar to the B550m Steel Legend and Mortar. 130Tier STier STier BTier ANoTier ATier ATier C: Bios Flashback, Optical Audio
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Gigabyte B550M Aorus ProThe cheapest board with a thunderbolt 3 header. Nice features otherwise. 130Tier STier STier BTier BNoTier ATier ATier B: Thunderbolt 3 header (needs add in card), Bios Flashback, Optical Audio
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Msi B550m Pro VDH WIFIOne the better cheaper reasonable boards with WIFI. Made tier S when I found myself trying to fit it into many builds where people need wifi at budget prices. Needs a case with a USB-C front port if you want USB-C.110Tier A, PCIE Gen 4, USB-C (front port only) and VRMsTier ATier CTier BWIFI 5Tier BTier CTier B: Bios Flashback, WIFI 5, Bluetooth 4.2, Debug LEDs
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INTEL Motherboards:
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Motherboard Tier and Name. Tier notes:Price in USD that I used for Tiering.4 Year Future Proof Rating:VRMS TierAudio TierLan Chip (NIC) TierWIFI SupportInternal Connectors/Headers TierBack Panel IOSpecial Features Tier
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Gigabyte B660 Aorus Master DDR4A excellent, well featured board that has every modern feature most users will ever need. Capable of running every 12th Gen Intel CPU at stock settings, even a 12900k, this is an excellent motherboard. One of the best Intel 12th Gen mobos, highly recommended.210Tier STier STier STier AWIFI6Tier STier STier B
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MSI B660 TOMAHAWK WIFI DDR4My absolute favorite intel board. A sensible VRM solution that isn't a waste of money by adding more VRMs than a locked board would ever need. Top tier audio codec, every connector you could ever need, and a reasonable price. One of the only intel boards to be price competitive with AMD B550 and lower end x570 boards. Highly recommended.190Tier STier ATier STier AWIFI6Tier ATier ATier B
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A Tier: Highly Recommended. These are excellent boards. It is very possible for a board to be better than an S tier board here, but because it lacks a certain feature you may not care about it, or is priced a bit high, or doesn't really distinguish itself from the competition. I ranked it lower than S tier. These boards are excellent choices for anyone looking for a mobo. You can't go wrong with an A tier board.
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Motherboard Tier and Name. Tier notes:Price in USD that I used for Tiering.4 Year Future Proof Rating:VRMS TierAudio TierLan Chip (NIC) TierWIFI SupportInternal Connectors/Headers TierBack Panel IOSpecial Features Tier
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AMD Motherboards:
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 Asrock B450m Pro4It has a better feature set then 42 out of 62 400 series boards, at least 6 B550 boards, and 2 x570 boards. This is a low end board, but at budget prices it is wonderful. The outdated chipset and lack pcie gen 4 took it out of S tier. Still the budget king although A-520 has some real good boards that compete with it, but do not best it. If you are buying a budget board this still rules. This is the ONLY B450 board to not have been outcompeted by a superior B550, X570, or A520 board. 83Tier C, USB-C and VRMsTier BTier CTier BNoTier BTier BTier F
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 ASRock B550M Steel LegendAn excellent midrange board, nicely balanced. 155Tier STier ATier BTier AM.2 E keyTier ATier ATier B: Clear CMOS button, Debug LEDS, M.2 E key, Optical Audio
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 Asrock X570 Phantom Gaming 4 WIFICheapest Board with WIFI 6, lacks a USB-C port, nice otherwise. 150Tier B, PCIE Gen 4 and VRMsTier BTier BTier AWIFI 6Tier BTier DTier A: WIFI 6, Bluetooth 5, Debug LEDS, Thunderbolt 3 Header (needs add in card)
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Asrock X570 TaichiA very nice and well featured board. No 2.5 Gb lan.290Tier A, PCIE Gen 4, USB-C and VRMsTier STier STier BWIFI 6Tier STier ATier S
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Asrock X570 Steel Legend Better features then the Asus X570 tuf and gigabyte x570 Elite, but slightly weaker VRMs but still decent VRMs. Lack of 2.5 GB lan chip and price keep it out of Tier S.190Tier A, PCIE Gen 4, USB-C and VRMsTier ATier STier BNoTier ATier ATier B
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Asrock X570 Steel Legend [Wi-Fi]The price keeps this excellent mobo out of tier S.200Tier A, PCIE Gen 4, USB-C and VRMsTier ATier STier BWIFI 6Tier ATier ATier A
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ASRock B550 Phantom Gaming 4This boards lack of USB-C keeps it out of Tier S. Nicely priced ATX board. 115Tier B, PCIE Gen 4, and VRMsTier BTier BTier BM.2 E KeyTier BTier CTier C
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ASRock B550 Phantom Gaming 4acThis boards lack of USB-C keeps it out of Tier S. Nicely priced ATX board with wifi. 125Tier B, PCIE Gen 4, and VRMsTier BTier BTier BWIFI 5Tier BTier CTier B
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 ASRock B550 PG VelocitáThis is the same as the b550 Extreme 4, but with a superspeed 10 GBPS internal USB-C port instead of a 5GBPs internal port for notably more money. 220Tier STier STier STier A M.2 E keyTier ATier ATier A
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Asrock X570 Phantom Gaming XSuper good, super spendy. Love it, but many of the features can be had on cheaper B550 boards. If you got the money you can't go wrong here.340Tier STier STier STier SWIFI 6Tier STier STier S
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Asrock X570 CreatorA shockingly good workstation board. Thunderbolt 3, 10 GB lan and a massive host of other features. Also incredibly expensive. 490Tier STier STier STier SWIFI 6Tier STier STier S
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Asrock X570 Pro4A really nice midrange board, with a well balanced feature set. I prefer this board to most of the competition in the 140-160 dollar price point, where it used to be priced. It's weaker but still decent VRMs and lack of 2.5 GB internet keep it out of S tier. Also, it's current price of 170 is too high. Bring it back to it's pre covid price of 150 and we talk about S tier. 170Tier A, PCIE Gen 4, USB-C and VRMsTier ATier BTier BM.2 E keyTier ATier BTier B
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 ASRock B550 Pro4Actually has slightly less features then the mATX version for a lot more money. Still decent. Needs to be cheaper to fit in S tier. 135Tier A, PCIE Gen 4, USB-C and VRMsTier BTier BTier BM.2 E keyTier ATier BTier C
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Asrock X570 Phantom Gaming 4sNice general use board. Lacks USB-C. 140Tier B, PCIE Gen 4 and VRMsTier BTier BTier BM.2 E keyTier ATier DTier B: M.2 E Key, Thunderbolt 3 Header (needs add in card), Debug LEDs.
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ASRock B550 Taichi (B3 Stepping Lan chip only)Love the aesthetic. Super good, super spendy. Love it, but many of the features can be had on cheaper B550 boards. If you got the money you can't go wrong here. Make sure you get the B3 stepping chip version.300Tier STier STier STier AWIFI6Tier ATier ATier S
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Asrock X570 Phantom Gaming-ITX/TB3A very well featured mITX board with lots of high end features. Native Thunderbolt 3 is awesome at this price.232Tier STier ATier STier BWIFI 6Tier BTier ATier B
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 Asus TUF Gaming X570-Plus [Wi-Fi]A nice and reasonably priced mobo, lacks WIFI 6, but has high end fast WIFI 5 and Bluetooth 5. 170Tier A, PCIE Gen 4, USB-C and VRMsTier STier BTier BWIFI 5Tier BTier ATier C
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 Asus TUF Gaming X570-Plus A nice and reasonably priced mobo. Lower end lan chip holds it back from tier S. 160Tier A, PCIE Gen 4, USB-C and VRMsTier STier BTier BNOTier BTier ATier D
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Asus TUF Gaming X570-PRO (WI-FI)Confirmed by the reddit thread as having B3 stepping for the lan chip. Easy competition for the x570 tomahawk. Really nice and you get ASUS RGB support.220Tier STier STier BTier AWIFI6Tier ATier STier A: WIFI 6, Bluetooth 5, Bios Flashback, Optical Audio, Debug LEDs.
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 Asus Prime X570-P and Asus Prime X570-P/CSMNicely priced, it's lack of USB-C and lower end lan chip hold it back from tier S. The CSM is the same board.140Tier B, PCIE Gen 4, and VRMsTier ATier BTier BNoTier BTier CTier F
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ASUS B550 Tuf Gaming Plus WIFI The VRMs are a little weak but can OC a 3950x at still be almost 30 degrees cooler then where thermal throttling occurs. Really nice non-VRM feature set.175Tier STier STier BTier AWIFI 6Tier ATier ATier A: WIFI 6, Bluetooth 5, Bios Flashback, Thunderbolt 3 Header (needs add in card), Debug LEDs.
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Asus ROG Strix X570-E GamingSuper good, super spendy. Love it, but many of the features can be had on cheaper B550 boards. If you got the money you can't go wrong here.300Tier S Tier STier STier SWIFI 6Tier STier ATier A
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 Asus Prime X570-ProThis for a long time was the cheapest zero compromises board. It's lack of 2.5 GB lan keeps it out of S tier. Great board. 230Tier A, PCIE Gen 4, USB-C and VRMsTier STier STier BNoTier ATier ATier C
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ASUS ROG Strix B550-E Gaming (B3 Stepping Lan chip only) Super good, super spendy. Love it, but many of the features can be had on cheaper B550 boards. If you got the money you can't go wrong here. Make sure you get the B3 stepping chip version.270Tier STier STier STier AWIFI6Tier STier ATier S
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Asus ROG Strix B550-XE Gaming (B3 Stepping Lan chip only)Super good, super spendy. Love it, but many of the features can be had on cheaper B550 boards. If you got the money you can't go wrong here. Make sure you get the B3 stepping chip version.330Tier STier STier STier AWIFI6Tier STier ATier S
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Asus ROG STRIX B450-F GAMING IIOne of the very few B450 boards worth noting. ASUS updated the VRMs to be able to handle any Ryzen CPU at stock settings, and even OC a 12 core. This board has rock solid high end components all the way through and BIOS flashback. Easily equal or better then multiple B550s around this price point, if you don't care about PCIE 4.0135Tier B, USB-C and VRMsTier ATier STier BNoTier BTier ATier B
70
Asus X570 ROG Crosshair VIII Hero [Wi-Fi]Super good, super spendy. Love it, but many of the features can be had on cheaper B550 boards. If you got the money you can't go wrong here. LN2 Overclocking support. 380Tier STier STier STier SWIFI 6Tier STier STier S
71
Asus ROG X570 Crosshair VIII Dark HeroSuper good, super spendy. Love it, but many of the features can be had on cheaper B550 boards. If you got the money you can't go wrong here. LN2 Overclocking support. 400Tier STier STier STier AWIFI 6Tier STier STier S
72
ASUS TUF Gaming B550M-Plus Wi-FiA nice little mATX board with nice features. A little overpriced. 170Tier STier STier BTier AWIFI 6Tier BTier ATier B
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ASUS TUF Gaming B550M-PlusA nice little mATX board with nice features. A little overpriced. 160Tier STier STier BTier ANoTier BTier ATier C
74
75
MSI A520M VECTOR WIFI Decent VRMs for the price, lack of fan headers, lack of PCIE Gen 4 and USB-C is rough, has wifi. It's price makes it a good buy for budget builds as it has WIFI at a cheap price. Recommended for students on a budget and kids who don't need crazy features. However, many users would be better off spending a little extra here.85Tier D, VRMSTier D Tier CTier BNoneTier DTier DTier D: WIFI 6, Bluetooth 5
76
MSI B550 TomahawkNice general use board.180Tier STier STier BTier ANoTier ATier ATier C: Bios Flashback, Debug LEDS
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MSI X570 Tomahawk WIFIA very nice feature complete mobo, priced a little high220Tier STier STier BTier Awifi 6Tier ATier ATier A: WIFI 6, Bluetooth 5, Debug LEDS, Optical Audio, Bios Flashback,
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 MSI B550M MortarAn excellent midrange board.160Tier STier STier BTier ANoTier ATier BTier C: Bios Flashback, Debug LEDS, Optical Audio.
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 MSI B550 Gaming Carbon WifiSame as the B550 Gaming Edge with more USB-A ports and different aesthetic, more expensive then the Gaming edge. 210Tier STier STier BTier AWIFI 6Tier ATier ATier A: WIFI 6, Bluetooth 5, Debug LEDS, Bios Flashback
80
 MSI B550M Mortar WifiExcellent wifi 6 mobo, a reasonable set of features.170Tier STier STier BTier AWIFI 6Tier ATier BTier B: Bios Flashback, Debug LEDS, Optical Audio, WIFI 6, Bluetooth 5
81
MSI B550 Gaming Edge WifiExcellent wifi 6 mobo, since not every one needs wifi it is a little lower in the S tier.190Tier STier STier BTier AWIFI 6Tier ATier BTier A: WIFI 6, Bluetooth 5, Debug LEDS, Optical Audio, Bios Flashback,
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 MSI X570 UnifySuper good, super spendy. Love it, but many of the features can be had on cheaper B550 boards. If you got the money you can't go wrong here.300Tier STier STier STier AWIFI 6Tier BTier STier A
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MSI MPG X570S EDGE MAX WIFIA nicely featured board with pretty much every modern high end feature.300Tier STier STier STier AWIFI 6Tier ATier ATier B
84
MSI MPG X570S Torpedo MaxA nicely featured board with pretty much every modern high end feature. Basically an X570s Tomahawk max wifi without the wifi.260Tier STier STier STier AnoTier ATier ATier B
85
MSI MAG X570S TOMAHAWK MAX WIFIA nicely featured board with pretty much every modern high end feature.290Tier STier STier STier AWIFI 6Tier ATier ATier B
86
87
Gigabyte X570 Aorus Pro [Wi-Fi]Not quite as feature complete as the X570 Taichi, no thunderbolt 3 header. Still excellent. Price and lack of 2.5 GB keep it out of S tier. 290Tier STier STier STier BWIFI 6Tier ATier ATier B
88
Gigabyte B550 Aorus Elite V2
This a gigabyte B550 Aorus Elite, with an internal USB-C header for cases that need USB-C. To use the USB-C you need a case with USB-C160Tier STier STier BTier ANoTier ATier BTier C
89
Gigabyte B550 Aorus Elite AXThis a gigabyte B550 Aorus Elite, with WIFI 6. The WIFI 6 moves it up a tier and puts wifi 6 in a lower price bracket. Nice board.170Tier A, PCIE Gen 4, 2.5 GB Lan, VRMsTier STier STier A WIFI 6Tier BTier CTier B
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Gigabyte B550 AORUS ELITE AX V2This a gigabyte B550 Auros Elite AX, with an internal USB-C header for cases that need USB-C. To use the USB-C you need a case with USB-C170Tier STier STier STier A WIFI 6Tier BTier CTier B
91
Gigabyte X570 Aorus MasterSuper good, super spendy. Love it, but many of the features can be had on cheaper B550 boards. If you got the money you can't go wrong here.350Tier STier STier STier SWIFI 6Tier ATier STier A
92
Gigabyte X570S AeroAn excellent and beautiful MOBO, with some features not available on other X570 and B550 boards such as passive chipset cooling, and 20GBPS USB-C Gen 2x2 ports.350Tier STier STier STier SWIFI 6Tier STier STier S: WIFI 6, Bluetooth 5, debug LEDs, Passive chipset cooling, thunderbolt 3 header, Bios Flashback, Optical Audio
93
Gigabyte X570 Aorus UltraA very powerful board, loads of features. It's price and lack of 2.5 Gb keeps it out of S tier, but in many ways it's better then those boards. 288Tier STier STier STier BWIFI 6Tier ATier ATier B
94
Gigabyte X570S AERO GA good board aimed at workstation users. Has a great selection of parts.330Tier STier STier STier AWIFI 6Tier ATier STier A
95
Gigabyte X570S Aorus MasterSuper good, super spendy. Love it, but many of the features can be had on cheaper B550 boards. If you got the money you can't go wrong here, however, for the vast majority of users the X570s Aorus Pro AX does everything this board does for $60 cheaper.360Tier STier STier STier AWIFI 6Tier ATier STier A
96
Gigabyte X570S Aorus Pro AXA nicely featured board with pretty much every modern high end feature.300Tier STier STier STier AWIFI 6Tier ATier STier A
97
Gigabyte X570S AORUS ELITEA nicely featured board with pretty much every modern high end feature. I have not been able to find accurate Pricing data in the US. It has less features then x570S Aorus Pro AX, and no wifi, so don't pay more then 300.TBDTier STier STier STier ANoTier ATier ATier B
98
Gigabyte X570 I AORUS PRO WIFIA solid Mini ITX board loaded with high end features.210Tier STier ATier STier BWIFI 6Tier CTier BTier C
99
INTEL Motherboards:
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Motherboard Tier and Name. Tier notes:Price in USD that I used for Tiering.4 Year Future Proof Rating:VRMS TierAudio TierLan Chip (NIC) TierWIFI SupportInternal Connectors/Headers TierBack Panel IOSpecial Features Tier