A motherboard is one of the most important components to purchase when building a new PC as it’s the foundation for all of your machine’s parts to interact, but it’s far from a one-size-fits-all solution in 2025. There are four motherboard sizes available, each with different strengths and weaknesses, with smaller and larger fiberglass rectangles used for different purposes.
Table of Contents
- No 1 MSI B450 Tomahawk
- No 2 MSI MAG Z490 Tomahawk
- No 3 ASUS ROG Maximus Z790 Hero
Top 3 Best Motherboards In 2025
No 1 MSI B450 Tomahawk
The MSI B450 Tomahawk is the successor to the popular B350 Tomahawk and offers users a slightly better feature set. This starts with including a pair USB 3.1 Gen2 ports, as well as customizable RGB LED lighting integrated into the board.
The B450 Tomahawk is a gaming-themed motherboard and comes from MSI’s ‘Arsenal’ range of motherboards designed to offer users an affordable option with many of the features found on the more expensive models, but with some differentials to keep the overall cost down.
This includes the pairing of decent quality and cost-effective Realtek controllers on audio side and the networking side. On the rear panel, MSI now includes a pair of USB 3.1 Gen2 ports, one Type-A and one Type-C.
There is also two USB 3.1 Gen1 Type-A ports, and two USB 2.0 ports, with an option to increase the USB options by a further two and four respectively with internal headers. Video outputs from any integrated graphics can be made through a DVI-D port or an HDMI 1.4 port. A single PS/2 combo mouse and keyboard port is also present.
Pros
- Six fan headers
- Decent VRM
- Equipped with USB 3.1, USB Type-C and M.2 32Gbps
- Affordable price point
Cons
- Lacks secondary M.2
- RGB headers not independently controllable
No 2 MSI MAG Z490 Tomahawk
The MAG series was born through rigorous quality testing and designed to be a symbol of sturdiness and durability. Focused on providing the best user experience, the MAG series has a simple installation process coupled with a friendly user interface making it the best choice for entry level gamers. Here are some of the first pictures of the MAG Z490 Tomahawk and MEG Z490 ACE motherboards by MSI.
The Tomahawk brand of motherboards by MSI strike a chord with value-conscious gaming PC builders, and the MAG Z490 Tomahawk appears to live up to that. The board offers an impressive 14-phase CPU VRM that pulls power from a 8+4 pin EPS power input.
The CPU socket is wired to one PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slot. Other expansion slots include an x16 (gen 3.0 x4 electrical) slot, and a couple of x1 slots. You get two M.2 slots, both with heatsinks.
The enlarged PCH heatsink on the MAG Z490 Tomahawk is studded with RGB LEDs, while it also includes a few upscale features such as a rear I/O shroud and an integrated I/O shield. On the connectivity front, we spy two wired networking interfaces, from which one is 2.5 GbE and the other 1 GbE, and an ALC1200-class CODEC based audio solution.
Pros
- I/O shroud is actually functional
- Relatively advanced VRM system for its price
- Dual LAN ports
- 20 Gbps USB 3.2 2×2 is rare at this price point
- Click BIOS 5 is pretty impressiv
- MSI Dragon Center is a breath of fresh air
Cons
- RAM slots uses two lock tabs
- Dual LAN is probably less useful than WiFi + LAN
- VRM can get quite toasty
No 3 ASUS ROG Maximus Z790 Hero
The Asus ROG Maximus Z790 Hero is a very well-built, well-equipped, and good looking motherboard. From the 40 Gbps ports to the flagship-class audio, you’re not going to find many boards that look better or have better specifications. this premium motherboard offers a slew of features along with the classic high-end appearance found on the ROG Maximus motherboards.
You get twelve USB ports on the rear IO, Thunderbolt 4 Type-C ports, five total M.2 sockets, flagship-class audio, and robust power delivery to support the latest Raptor Lake processors. Overall, it’s a good-looking and handsomely equipped option, but the high price will be a turnoff for some users On the hardware front, the Hero comes with everything the Z790 platform offers, and plenty of extra features.
You get PCIe 5.0 slots and a PCIe 5.0 M.2 socket, the ROG Supreme FX ALC4082 codec with ESS SABRE DAC, ultra-fast 40 Gbps Thunderbolt 4 Type-C ports on the rear IO, 20-phase 90A VRMs and a sleek, modern, high-end appearance. Performance across our test suite was, on average, the best we’ve seen from our early testing on the platform. Pulling the Hero out of the box, just by the weight you know you’re dealing with a high-quality product.
The black-on-black design is built on an 8-layer PCB, with some silver accents along with branding on the heatsinks and shrouds. The heatsinks are heavy, with deep notches cooling the VRMs and a beefy heatsink to cool the top M.2 socket.
There’s an RGB element above the rear IO area that illuminates some ROG branding – these are the only integrated RGBs on the board. Regardless, the Z790 Hero defintely looks the part of a high-end motherboard.
Pros
- 12 USB ports (two 40Gbps Thunderbolt ports)
- Five total M.2 sockets (including a 5.0 socket)
- 20–Phase, 90A VRMs
- Flagship-class audio solution
Cons
- Comparably equipped boards cost less
Which motherboard should you buy?
We’ve outlined the four different motherboard sizes available in 2025, their use cases, price differences, and varying features as they stand right now. Choosing a motherboard is not as cut and dry as you would expect, and that’s why you need to visualize your rig before putting any money down. Consider the chipset of the board for starters. Will you use AMD’s AM4 or AM5 platform? Similarly, will you pay the premium investing in Intel’s latest LGA 1851 socket instead of sticking with the older (and arguably better) LGA 1700 platform that hosted Alder Lake and Raptor Lake?
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