Posted On July 14, 2022.

Here is the latest update to our list of recommended Intel motherboards in our series of motherboards buyers guides. All numbers in the text are updated to reflect pricing at the time of writing.

Best Intel Motherboards: June 2022

Along with Intel's comprehensive selection of 12th Gen Core series processors, there's an equally comprehensive selection of motherboards to go with them. For the entry-level, there's the very affordable and solid bang for buck Core i3-12100 ($130), with the mid-range being dominated by the Core i5 and i7 processors with up to twelve cores (8P/4E). At the top of the stack is the flagship Core i9-12900K and Core i9-12900KS processors with sixteen cores for the most demanding workflows, applications, and games.

Every processor regardless of use case and price point needs an equally capable motherboard to get the most out of the performance. With a wide variety of LGA 1700 motherboards including the premium Z690, more affordable H660, and B660 chipsets, to the more affordable and entry-level H610 models, there is a myriad of options available. We're taking a look at what's currently available on the market for Intel's 12th Gen Core series processors ranging from 'money no object', all the way down to what's hot in terms of value in our latest motherboard buyer's guide for June 2022.

Here are our choices in the motherboard market for Intel. For AMD recommendations, head on over to our AMD guide. This is updated monthly just like our Intel motherboard buyers guide.

Our recommendations for motherboards are based entirely on personal and professional opinions. There are notably many different motherboards across the Intel chipsets including the latest Z690, B660, H660, and H610 chipsets for 12th generation processors, with pre-existing 11/10th gen options including Z590, B560, Z490, and the B460 chipsets. We've considered and factored all of these into our decision, and ultimately, some of our choices and options here are also limited by what stock is available.

Over the next couple of months, we'll be reviewing and analyzing what the Z690 motherboards have to offer, including both DDR5 and DDR4 variations. As we get to grips with Alder Lake and Z690, we'll be able to make some more informed choices in comparison to what we've selected for now. Rest assured, all of the picks selected are my personal and professional choices, options I would be willing to spend my hard-earned money on.

Best Intel Motherboard For Gaming/Performance

MSI Pro Z690-A WIFI (DDR5) ($230 at Amazon/$230 at Newegg)

While performance is subjective to the overall hardware configuration of a system, the motherboard is undoubtedly the gateway to unlocking all of the new features. There are many Z690 models to consider, but for November, one board that piques my interest is from MSI, the Pro Z690-A WIFI (DDR5) to be exact. Now while the aesthetic might not be the typical quintessential gaming-themed motherboard, it's got everything needed to get gamers off the ground with a decent feature set, and it has an equally attractive price point.

Some of the MSI Pro Z690-A WIFI's most notable features include Intel's latest Wi-Fi 6E CNVi with an Intel I225-V 2.5 GbE controller. Coupled with support for up to three PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2, one PCIe 3.0 x4 M.2, and six SATA ports, it has everything a gamer could need ranging from super-fast NVMe or even conventional hard drives for game storage. One of the biggest advancements of opting for Alder Lake is that it has plenty of varied PCIe support, including one full-length PCIe 5.0 x16 slot, two full-length PCIe 3.0 slots operating at x4/x1, with an additional and smaller PCIe 3.0 x1 slot. Perhaps the most important addition to Z690 is support for the latest DDR5 memory, with the MSI Pro Z690-A WIFI supporting DDR5-6400 out of the box, with a combined capacity of up to 128 GB across four memory slots.

The MSI Pro Z690-A WIFI can be currently purchased for $230 at Newegg, with Amazon coming in at an equal $230 as well. A Z690 model with DDR5 support, PCIe 5.0 support, three M.2 slots, and Wi-Fi 6E/2.5 GbE for $215, is a fantastic price. Most of the Z690 boards are so over-engineered that a model such as this will still give you all the performance benefits of the 12th generation Intel chips, but with more budget to spend on DDR5 memory, storage, and perhaps if you're lucky a graphics card; stock permitting of course.

Original Post: Best Intel Motherboards: June 2022