Top 5 Best B450 Motherboards (2020)

Published: June 15, 2020

Chasing the best B450 motherboard for your new budget AMD gaming PC build? After a near-death experience, B450 motherboards are alive and kicking in 2020 thanks to AMD reversing their initial decision to drop support for future Ryzen 4000 (Zen 3) processors on their B450 chipset.

But to be fair, even if AMD didn't reverse the decision, B450 motherboards would still be well worth considering for new system builds on a budget, as the majority of people building with the latest Ryzen 3rd gen CPUs (like the Ryzen 5 3600 or Ryzen 7 3700X etc) don't care about upgrading to Ryzen 4th gen in only 6-12 months time.

See Also: How to Choose a Motherboard (Specs Explained)

Pros

• Best overall value Micro-ATX B450

• Updated "Max" BIOS for guaranteed Ryzen 3000 compatibility out the box

• New BIOS means highly likely to support upcoming Ryzen 4000 CPUs without issues

• 4 memory slots; nice for a cheap board

• Suitable for light overclocking

Cons

• Plain design (looks more brown than black which is hard to see in product images)

• Only 2 fan headers for connecting your case fans (plenty for budget builds though)

Honorable Mention: Gigabyte B450M DS3H (mATX)

You're going to see a lot of MSI in our recommendations here, but for good reason as they undoubtedly have some of the best B450 motherboards on the market overall for various reasons.

But back to what most people care about - building with a Ryzen 3000 CPU now and not worrying about upgrading in only 6-12 months to the next upcoming Ryzen series. If on a budget and you're looking for the cheapest B450 that's still good quality and reliable, with a nice set of features, the B450 Pro-VDH Max is our top pick (if you're also after a mATX (Micro ATX) model for smaller cases).

It's not the most amazing looking board, but that isn't an issue for most budget builders where maximizing aesthetics is not a concern. Besides, it doesn't look that bad, and the motherboard isn't something you see much of once your system is built anyway as your other parts mostly cover the board.

And that's assuming you have a see-through side panel on your case; if you don't, it wouldn't matter if your mobo was a funky pale green abomination resembling Yoda's soup in ESB. If you have a larger case (even a roomier mid tower) and want to "fill out" your build a bit more with a full-sized ATX board, I'd get the B450-A Pro Max instead though (see next).

Pros

• Best overall bang for buck full-sized B450

• Updated "Max" BIOS

• Highly likely to support upcoming Ryzen 4000 


• 4 case fan headers to accommodate tons of fans (without needing to buy a splitter or fan hub)

Cons

• Only 1 RGB header (not a problem for multiple RGB fans if you use a RGB controller/hub)

• Like the Pro-VDH, looks quite basic (dull, even)

• Tomahawk Max doesn't cost much more and is superior for overclocking and aesthetics

Since they look very similar, you could say the MSI B450-A Pro Max is essentially the Pro-VDH mentioned above but in full-sized ATX with a few extra features and better cooling/VRM for basic overclocking. At around 100 bucks you can't go wrong if you're not chasing aesthetics, as this basic-looking board comes with everything you likely need for a typical mid-range gaming PC.

It's even got 4 fan headers should you want to fill out your case with a nice amount of fans. Plus, the fact that it's the updated "Max" model of this board means that it has better support for BIOS updates, so you shouldn't have any issues upgrading to future Ryzen 4th gen (4000 series) processors if that's your plan.

Pros

• Updated "Max" BIOS

• Highly likely to support upcoming Ryzen 4000 

• Best VRM of any B450 for overclocking

• 4 case fan headers
  

• Much slicker color scheme than the MSI B450-A Pro, with a little built-in RGB lighting to boot

• Has a super-fast USB Type-C port

Cons

• Only 1 M.2 Slot
  


• No ARGB (Addressable RGB) header, but it does have 2 standard RGB headers

Not to say other B450 models aren't suitable (or good) for overclocking your Ryzen CPU, but the Tomahawk Max (and original Tomahawk non-max) is well known among enthusiasts for having the best VRM and cooling of any B450 board out there (see a B450 VRM tier list compiled by enthusiasts here, and just one of many VRM temperature tests here, both showing the Tomahawk on top of the B450 heap).

Pros

• Likely to support upcoming Ryzen 4000 


• WiFi and Bluetooth

• Decent VRM for overclocking

• 2 M.2 slots

Cons

• Only 2 RAM slots (standard for mITX though)

• 1 chassis fan header (can use pump header, buy splitter/hub, or connect to PSU molex)

Asus to the rescue here, saving us from having to recommend MSI for every single one of our top 5 best B450 motherboards which could potentially make this guide seem a little biased to some readers (which couldn't be further from the truth as MSI objectively owned the B450 market from day one)

If you're assembling a miniature SFF (Small Form Factor) system using the mITX (Mini ITX) standard, your choices narrow a fair bit as there aren't a heap of mITX B450 motherboards out there. But if we had to pick one, the Asus ROG Strix B450-I Gaming WiFi would be it.

Pros

• The #1 best B450 motherboard overall

• Updated "Max" BIOS

• Highly likely to support upcoming Ryzen 4000 

• Excellent crisp design and RGB lighting

• 3 total RGB headers (1 being ARGB) to support lots of RGB fans or accessories

Cons

• One of, if not the most expensive B450 (same price as budget X570 boards)

• No WiFi 6 support for next-gen wireless routers (but no biggie)

Most motherboards do not come with built-in WiFi/wireless capability, meaning you have to buy a separate wireless adapter to install in your desktop if you were planning to get online wirelessly with your new PC. 

But if you want a board that already comes with WiFi, and you're not in the market for a Mini ITX like the Asus above (which has WiFi too), the B450 Gaming Pro Carbon Max is worth a look if you're willing to spend a little more on a premium B450 (though keep in mind it'll work out roughly the same cost overall if you were to get a wireless PCIe adapter for a cheaper board).

By "out the box" we mean without having to update the BIOS (the motherboard's software) before the CPU can work. The answer is no, not all B450 motherboards that you buy are 100% guaranteed to come shipped with a Ryzen 3000 ready BIOS, but the good news is, in 2020 most B450 motherboards will come shipped with an updated BIOS that supports Ryzen 3000 processors.

It's unlikely that you would receive old motherboard stock that has the older BIOS, which would require you to do the BIOS update yourself (which sometimes requires you to have an older Ryzen CPU on hand to perform the update if your motherboard doesn't have a BIOS flashback feature). But it is possible, especially if buying from lesser-known retailers (or buying a used motherboard). 

If you want to 100% ensure the B450 motherboard you buy has the new Ryzen 3000 BIOS, for "plug and play" compatibility with Ryzen 3000 CPUs (like the 3300X, 3600, 3700X, 3900X, and so on), you can either stick to MSI's "Max" range of B450 boards (which released after Ryzen 3000 CPUs and are guaranteed to have the new BIOS), or you can ask the seller/retailer directly if the board you will receive comes with the new BIOS. If you're buying at a local store, look on the box for a "Ryzen 3000 Ready" sticker.