Best ASUS Intel Motherboards to Buy in 2024

Introduction

ASUS offers a wide range of Intel motherboards for gamers and creators alike. However, because ASUS’ components are so varied, it can be tricky to work out which ASUS Intel motherboard is best for you. Those looking to upgrade or start fresh are faced with a wide range of boards to choose from, so we’ve tested the best ASUS Intel motherboards to determine which options are the strongest.

In this buyers guide, we’ve rounded up some of the best ASUS Intel motherboards, considering various price points to help you determine your next purchase. We’ve tested each featured motherboard in this roundup and compared them against alternatives on the market to help decide which is the best bet.

Our Top Pick: TUF Gaming Z790-Plus WiFi

We’ve picked out the TUF Gaming Z790-Plus WiFi as the best ASUS Intel motherboard. This board has a wide range of features and the all black industrial design will look great in any build. All of this is packed into a board that sits at a great price point geared towards those looking for an affordable but feature-rich option to put into their gaming PC.

$264.06 at Amazon

Last updated: 2024-07-27 05:47:44 ET

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The Best ASUS Intel Motherboards

1. ASUS TUF Gaming Z790-Plus WiFi D4

The TUF Gaming Z790-Plus is the Z790 counterpart of a board featuring later on in this roundup, the TUF Gaming B760-Plus WiFi D4. Both the TUF Gaming B760-Plus and the TUF Gaming Z790-Plus utilise the same aesthetic of an industrial style plastered all over the heatsinks and PCB, meaning it will blend in well with most dark-themed PC builds. It’s well known that TUF motherboards tend to be a bit more barebones in terms of the look, but the uncovered PCB fits the aesthetic quite nicely, resulting in an almost futuristic design.

Additionally, because this is a Z790 motherboard, it takes the cake regarding features. With support for 128GB of DDR4 memory that can clock up to 5333MT/s and a 16+1 VRM configuration, overclocking for extra performance is incredibly viable. Expansion is also excellent, with support for a Gen5 GPU and four slots for Gen4 SSDs, a considerable amount of space for more storage.

The IO on this motherboard is quite impressive. It has eight USB ports, four of which are USB 3.2 Gen1, followed by three USB 3.2 Gen1 ports and a USB 3.2 Gen2x2 port, offering 20Gbps bandwidth. The front panel also has Thunderbolt 4 support for those who need fast transfer speeds.

Regarding caveats, the networking options could be better. ASUS has equipped the TUF Gaming Z790-Plus WiFi D4 with WiFi 6 instead of WiFi 6E. While this won’t mean much to those who use LAN, WiFi 6E offers an additional networking band that provides better speeds and stability, which is vital for fast-paced games.

2. ASUS ROG Maximus Z790 Formula

The ASUS ROG Maximus Z790 Formula hit the shelves with the arrival of Intel 14th-Gen CPUs, offering newer features thanks to technological improvements. The Z790 Formula is a white motherboard coated in bright heatsinks that offer a sophisticated and lighter theme. Admittedly, it’s slightly sad that ASUS hasn’t provided a white coating on the PCB, but because the heatsinks cover up most of the exposed metal, this can be excused.

Much like the ROG Maximus Z790 Hero, this Formula board is primarily aimed at enthusiasts looking to maximise performance in every possible area. Due to the substantial RAM and CPU overclocking support, this is highly viable with the Maximus Z790 Formula. With a 20+1+2 VRM power phase configuration, this board can handle a solid overclock on Intel’s Core-i7 and i9 ranges.

Regarding expansion, the Formula offers dual Gen5 graphics card slots and a Gen5 SSD slot, followed by four Gen4 storage slots. These provide ample expansion room for future component upgrades. Rear IO, as you can expect, is excellent, featuring two Thunderbolt4 ports and an extra ten USB ports, all of which are USB 3.2 Gen1 and higher. ASUS has also equipped the Formula with 5 Gigabit LAN and WiFi 7, offering increased stability and better speeds than WiFi 6E.

The ROG Maximus Z790 Formula is an incredible motherboard geared towards top-end systems. However, due to its wealthy features, its price point is not for the faint of heart, which will be a point of contention for many prospective buyers.

3. ASUS ROG Maximus Hero Z790

The ROG Maximus Z790 Hero is a high-end motherboard with a sophisticated but heatsink-heavy design, showcasing dark accents and RGB across the board. This board is primarily geared towards enthusiasts, but its robust and premium design helps it blend in well with other dark components. Furthermore, the rear IO heatsink features a mass of RGB that can be controlled through the ASUS Armoury Crate software, providing an element of customisation to your build.

The Maximus Z790 Hero is incredibly feature-rich. It offers two PCI-E 5.0 slots for GPUs, opening up future upgrade options. It’s worth noting that the Maximus Z790 Hero doesn’t have any built-in Gen5 SSD support, but ASUS has supplemented this by providing a ROG Hyper M.2 card, which allows you to connect Gen5 SSDs. Overclocking support is also excellent, with this board providing a 20+1 VRM power phase configuration alongside RAM overclocking speeds up to 7800MT/s.

The rest of the motherboard has exceptionally strong IO options. Thunderbolt 4 on the rear is great, providing excellent transfer and charging speeds. If Thunderbolt 4 wasn’t enough, the rest of the USB ports on this motherboard are all high-speed options, including 6 USB 3.2 Gen2 ports and four USB 3.2 Gen1 ports, for a total of 12. There’s also optical S/PDIF, five 3.5mm audio jacks, and a significant range of quality-of-life features designed to simplify the building process.

All these features come at a price, and it’s quite a heavy price tag. Ultimately, the Z790 Hero is geared towards enthusiasts, meaning it isn’t tailored towards most builders, making it a rather expensive board compared to alternative Z790 and B760 options.

4. ASUS TUF Gaming Z790-BTF WiFi

The TUF Gaming Z790-BTF WiFi is an ASUS reverse connector motherboard designed to hide cables by shifting them to the back of the PCB. These boards started to saturate the market in early 2024, with MSI and ASUS competing directly with PROJECT ZERO and BTF (Back to the Future) solutions, respectively. The ASUS BTF motherboards, however, are particularly unique as they take a genuinely cable-less approach, including the graphics card.

Each ASUS BTF motherboard utilises a high-power finger solution that connects to a GPU power connector on the rear of the board, which can then be plugged in using a traditional power supply. We’ve used BTF motherboards in many high-end builds, and they are immaculate. Furthermore, this TUF white motherboard offers a sleek spin on standard TUF boards, utilising the typical TUF industrial livery but across a range of white and grey heatsinks, offering a lighter theme to your build.

On the features front, the TUF Gaming Z790-BTF WiFi is a mid-range board offering solid expansion capabilities with Gen5 GPU support and four Gen4 SSD slots providing ample storage space. Rear IO is slightly more restricted compared to some of the more top-end motherboards in this roundup, but there are still eight high-speed ports to choose from, including a USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C port, offering 20Gbps speeds. Furthermore, networking solutions support the latest WiFi 7 and 2.5 Gigabit LAN for a more stable wired connection.

The one point to consider before buying a BTF motherboard is that these boards do not work with non-BTF graphics cards. BTF boards are specifically designed to provide a cable-free design across all components. For this reason, you need a BTF graphics card. Traditional GPUs that have power connectors on the card will not work in the TUF Gaming Z790-BTF WiFi.

5. ASUS ROG STRIX B760-A Gaming WiFi D4

The ASUS ROG STRIX B760-A is an excellent B760 motherboard that doesn’t disappoint aesthetically. With white heatsinks and RGB galore, this board’s a wonderful pick for any lighter-themed gaming PC build. The ROG STRIX B760-A is one of the few ASUS motherboards that offers a white aesthetic, making it a particularly unique option for those prioritising the look of their system.

On the features front, the ASUS ROG STRIX B760-A offers a Gen5 graphics card slot, providing a way to upgrade once the next generation of GPUs hits the shelves. Despite the lack of a Gen5 SSD slot on this motherboard, there are still three Gen4 options available, which is solid, especially considering this is more of a budget board, where storage options are generally a bit more restrictive.

On the rear IO, the ROG Strix B760-A houses nine ports, four of which are USB 2.0 and the rest USB 3.2 Gen1 or higher. This board also supports WiFi 6E and 2.5 Gigabit LAN, which are ample networking options for gaming. Additionally, there are five 3.5mm audio jacks, ideal for a dedicated audio setup.

Unfortunately, for those planning on pushing their CPU with some overclocking, the ROG STRIX B760-A isn’t a great option, as B760 motherboards don’t support CPU overclocking. This is limited to Z790 motherboards, which tend to be pricier than their B760 counterparts.

6. ASUS TUF Gaming B760-Plus WiFi D4

The TUF Gaming B760-Plus WiFi D4 is a great DDR4 option in ASUS’ current stack of Intel motherboards. Supporting the cheaper DDR4 memory standard and with a more bare-bone industrial design, this board is an excellent option for those shopping on a budget. Despite its cheaper aesthetic compared to other ASUS Intel motherboards, the TUF Gaming B760-Plus WiFi D4 offers fantastic features.

With support for a Gen5 graphics card slot, upgrading to the next generation of cards is incredibly straightforward and won’t require you to swap out your board. This board isn’t able to support Gen5 SSDs, but there are three Gen4 slots, which is ample for those looking to maximise their storage capacity. Like the ROG Strix B760-A, CPU overclocking isn’t an option here, but prospective buyers can maximise RAM performance with overclocking support up to 5333MT/s.

It’s nice to see support for a Thunderbolt4 port on the front IO and a solid but smaller set of rear IO, which includes five ports that are USB 3.2 Gen1 and higher. This board also has built-in WiFi 6 capability and 2.5 Gigabit LAN support, allowing gamers to choose between high-speed wireless or wired internet. Audio lovers can also leverage the optical S/PDIF and five audio jacks for those with surround sound systems or a soundbar.

The modest price point of this motherboard doesn’t come without compromise, and there are certainly drawbacks to this board. The main one is that the TUF Gaming B760-Plus WiFi doesn’t offer Gen5 SSD support. This limits the upgrading capabilities of this board quite significantly, as Gen5 SSDs offer lightning-fast speeds.

How We Tested the Best ASUS Intel Motherboards

To determine which ASUS Intel motherboards are the best options to buy, we’ve tested and benchmarked a large selection of them. We also compare each board against a wide range of criteria, such as features, design, and pricing, allowing us to ascertain each part’s value proposition. To read more about our testing methodologies, we’ve written a series of Behind the Scene articles that cover how we benchmark components.

Frequently Asked Questions

Z790 vs B760?

Z790 motherboards are generally pricier but offer better features, while B760 is primarily geared towards budget and mid-range systems looking to save some cash.

Does ASUS Offer Any AMD Motherboards?

Yes they do, there are a range of awesome ASUS AMD motherboards that we’ve covered in a buyers guide roundup.

Is Gen5 Support Necessary?

While only storage supports Gen5 bandwidth, graphics cards are likely to use this standard in the future to increase graphical performance.