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The Best H470 Motherboards

Showing the benefits of choosing a H470 in a marketplace that is currently flooded with overpriced options

Updated: Oct 19, 2023 12:28 pm
ASUS PRIME H470 PLUS 2

The arrival of the 10th generation of Intel processors also means a whole new range of motherboards for PC builders to choose from, and as the Comet Lake processors are only compatible with the LGA 1200 socket, there’s a chance you may have to pick up a whole new motherboard if you want to run a 10th generation Intel system.

There are a number of different options when it comes to picking up a motherboard. If you want to go all out, a Z490 motherboard would be your best bet. If you don’t need all those extra features and overclocking, we think it’s worth your time checking out either an H410 or H470 motherboard.

In this article, we’ll be covering the best H470 motherboards as well as some of the key things you’ll want to look at when shopping for a new motherboard. We’ll even go through some of the more technical terms you’ll see on product pages and what each term means, so if this is your first build – don’t panic, we’ve got you!

Although this article focuses on 2023, and H470 motherboards are more than a few years old, we think they’d make a great budget motherboard for a new build. Or a cheap replacement if your motherboard went on the fritz. These are still the best H470 motherboards to be had in 2024.

Our Top Picks

01
Best in Class
Best Overall H470 Motherboard
ASRock H470 Steel Legend
ASRock H470 Steel Legend
02
Another Great H470 Motherboard
ASUS ROG STRIX H470 I Gaming
ASUS ROG STRIX H470-I Gaming
03
A Great Value ASUS H470 Motherboard
ASUS PRIME H470 PLUS
ASUS PRIME H470-PLUS

How We Choose

Choosing the best hardware for your build can be a difficult task. There’s often so much choice out there and sometimes it’s hard to know what to look for in a motherboard. That’s why we put together guides like these, to help you make the best possible choices with as much information as possible.

When we choose components, we take the time to research them thoroughly and test them out ourselves under workshop conditions. Our research also involves product specification research, customer reviews, and comparing benchmarks. Only after this are we confident in selecting specific products to recommend. That’s how we know we’re picking the best options and hardware we’d be happy to see in our own PC builds.

Things To Consider

What Budget Should I Set For An H470 Motherboard?

When shopping for a new motherboard, we know that it ultimately comes down to your budget. Thankfully, if you’ve decided that you’re going to be running an Intel Comet Lake processor in your upcoming build, there are cheaper options out there than the Z490 chipset.

Although they are pretty similar in price, H470 and H410 chipset motherboards make for some great, affordable options. Out of the motherboards we’ve covered today, you’ll be looking at spending around $200 for a fully-featured model.

On the lower end of the scale, it’s more than possible to pick up an H470 motherboard for around $125 – $170. Of course, this all depends on where you shop and the current availability. It’s always best to have a good scout around for the best prices before you go through with a purchase.

Form Factor

Once you’ve established what technical requirements you need, it’s important not to overlook something as simple as the form factor of your motherboard.

The form factor refers to the size of the motherboard, which is important if you’re ever hoping to fit it inside your PC case. If you already have a PC case, you’ll need to check what size motherboards it can support. If you’re short on space, a mini-ITX or mini-ATX may be your only option. However, if you’re looking for the most powerful motherboards, an eATX board is your best bet. Just be warned that these motherboards are usually much bigger.

Motherboard form factor

We’ve listed the different form factors below with their measurements.

  • Mini-ITX – 6.7” x 6.7”
  • Mini-ATX – 5.9” x 5.9”
  • microATX – 9.6” x 9.6”
  • ATX – 12” x 9.6”
  • eATX – 12” x 13”

Socket

The part of the motherboard that holds your processor is called the socket. Each motherboard will have different types of sockets. That means new motherboards may not be able to support older CPUs and vice versa.

This means you’ll also need to take a look at the type of CPU you’ll be using. If you’re upgrading to Intel’s 10th generation processors, you will need to look for a motherboard which includes an LGA 1200 socket. This will be completely different if you’re looking at AMD processors, so it’s always worth double-checking first.

Chipset

The chipset on your motherboard will determine how many USB ports, SATA ports, and PCIe lanes you have available. It will also determine what generation the USB ports are so it’s important to consider this before buying a motherboard.

Ideally, you’ll want more ports than you need right now so that you’ve got the option for expandability in the future. It could be worth checking out a more advanced chipset such as the Z490 chipset if you’re planning on upgrading in the future.

Fan Headers

Cooling is a priority in any type of PC build to ensure that all the components are working well and not in danger of getting damaged. That means the number of fan headers on your motherboard is an important consideration as well.

PWM headers on a motherboard are used to connect fans to your case, which keeps the whole build cool. Most motherboards these days tend to have plenty of fan headers, especially the bigger form factor ones but it’s still important to double-check there’s enough for what you have planned.

Memory

Another important thing to consider is the maximum amount and type of RAM the motherboard can support. Different motherboards will support different speeds and sizes of memory as well as multi-channel support.

If you will be using this PC as a gaming system, it’s crucial that the motherboard can support enough RAM to run your games effectively. This is something you will be able to check on the manufacturer’s website before purchasing.

Smaller form-factor motherboards will generally have fewer memory slots which are something you’ll want to pay close attention to when building.

PCI Slots

PCI slots are slots on the motherboard which allow you to attach various hardware components such as graphics cards or sound cards. Therefore, the number of PCI slots you have available is something else to look out for.

It might be a good idea to list out the different components you’ll want to attach to your motherboard. However, you might want to go for a motherboard that has more PCI slots just to give you some more space in your PC case and the option to upgrade in the future.

Does motherboard selection affect a PC’s performance?

The motherboard is the central hub of the system and plays a critical role in the communication and performance of all the other components, including the CPU, memory, storage, and graphics card. The specifications and features of the motherboard, such as the CPU socket compatibility, RAM support, number of expansion slots, and storage options, can all impact a PC’s performance.

For example, a motherboard with higher memory speeds and a larger number of RAM slots can provide better performance for memory-intensive tasks. Additionally, the type and number of expansion slots available on the motherboard can affect the upgrade potential of the system and its ability to accommodate additional components, such as a higher-end graphics card. Therefore, careful consideration of the motherboard specifications and compatibility with the rest of the components is important to ensure optimal performance for the specific use case of the PC.

The Best H470 Motherboard In 2021

01
ASRock H470 Steel Legend
ASRock H470 Steel Legend
02
ASUS ROG STRIX H470 I Gaming
ASUS ROG STRIX H470-I Gaming
03
ASUS PRIME H470 PLUS
ASUS PRIME H470-PLUS
04
GIGABYTE H470M DS3H
GIGABYTE H470M DS3H

In-depth Review

Best in Class
01
Best Overall H470 Motherboard
ASRock H470 Steel Legend
ASRock H470 Steel Legend
Form Factor ATX
Socket LGA 1200
Chipset H470
PROS
  • Great color scheme
CONS
  • Not the cheapest on the list

The ASRock H470 Steel Legend really sticks to its name with this motherboard. If you want a motherboard with a design that will bring a bit of life to your system, the steel and arctic camouflage design of the H470 Steel Legend is refreshing, to say the least. You’ll also get a nice bit of RGB lighting that can be controlled with ASRock’s Polychrome Sync as well as four RGB headers for you to run your own lighting strips.

For a board of this price, it’s also impressive that ASRock has included two M.2 slots that you can plug your NVME SSDs into. These two Ultra M.2 sockets support SATA3 6 GB/s and PCIe Gen3 x4 modes to allow for data transfer speeds of up to 32 GB/s.

With the Base Frequency Boost feature (BFB) you’ll be able to access some of the locked away potential of your non-overclockable CPUs. While it isn’t technically overclocking if you’re running a non-K Intel 10th generation CPU you can boost the frequency of your processor to grab a bit of extra performance.

02
Another Great H470 Motherboard
ASUS ROG STRIX H470-I Gaming
ASUS ROG STRIX H470 I Gaming
Form Factor Mini ITX
Socket LGA 1200
Chipset H470
PROS
  • Small, compact design
CONS
  • Limited RAM slots

If you’re looking for a motherboard to fit inside a compact case, a Mini ITX board is the perfect solution. It isn’t as small as a Mini-ATX motherboard, but you’ll be able to grab a few extra features at the cost of space.

With compact builds being pretty cramped, to begin with, there isn’t a whole lot to the design of this motherboard. This isn’t the worst thing in the world as you might not even notice if it’s in a cramped case. This is a fairly standard all-black motherboard with a brushed-metal effect on the heatshields.

You’ll find a decent array of ports on this motherboard including two M.2 sockets, four SATA 6 Gb/s, and two DDR4 2933/2800/2666/2133 memory slots. There are also six USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports on the rear of the motherboard as well as a single USB 2.0 port (Type C). Everything else on the board is fairly standard and you won’t be sacrificing too much in the way of connectivity for the smaller form factor.

For networking connectivity, you’ll find onboard WiFi 6 (802.11ax) as well as Intel I219-V 1Gb Ethernet to give you the best speeds.

03
A Great Value ASUS H470 Motherboard
ASUS PRIME H470-PLUS
ASUS PRIME H470 PLUS
Form Factor ATX
Socket LGA 1200
Chipset H470
PROS
  • Great cooling options
  • Energy efficient design
CONS
  • Plain design

Next on our list of ATX motherboards is the ASUS Prime H470-PLUS. This is a perfect motherboard for those looking for a wide range of ports and slots for expandability.

This isn’t the best-looking motherboard on the list though and has a fairly plain design. There aren’t any fancy colors or angled designs to speak of and the color scheme is a muted black and grey style. While this is a bit of a shame for those who like to have their systems on display, you’ll still be able to add a bit of color through RGB lighting strips if you choose.

On the good side, this motherboard offers Ultrafast connectivity with dual M.2, 1 Gb Ethernet, Thunderbolt 3 support, and USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type C ports. The cooling system onboard is impressive and consists of a VRM heatsink, a PCH heatsink, and hybrid fan headers. Fan Xpert 2+ allows you to optimize cooling for GPU and CPU-intensive tasks.

Another thing that this motherboard offers is an enhanced power solution. This motherboard is built with 6+1+1 power stages, alloy chokes, and durable capacitors to ensure more stable power delivery. Despite the power delivery, this motherboard manages to still be energy efficient thanks to the Energy Processing Unit which optimizes power consumption.

04
Best H470 Motherboard For Cool Temps
GIGABYTE H470M DS3H
GIGABYTE H470M DS3H
Form Factor Micro ATX
Socket LGA 1200
Chipset H470
PROS
  • Will fit in the most compact of cases
CONS
  • Basic design
  • No IO cover

Gigabyte’s H470M motherboard is a Micro ATX board that will suit most PC cases as a mid-range form factor. This motherboard has quite a plain and simple design at first glance but there is some room to add in RGB lighting on here for those who want it. You’ll be able to use Gigabyte’s RGB Fusion 2.0 software to have total control over the lighting including the color and patterns.

There is also a great focus on cooling options on this motherboard. You’ll find six temperature sensors and four hybrid fan headers that aim to keep your system as cool as possible. Also, if you’re worried about noise, the built-in Fan Stop software will stop the fans spinning when temperatures are low.

If you’re building for the future, this is a pretty well-built motherboard. GIGABYTE has included their “double locking” bracket on this motherboard that aims to keep your components secure through the use of a front side and a backside lock.

Another handy feature is GIGABYTE Q-Flash Plus which allows you to flash the BIOS without having to install the CPU, memory, or graphics card.

Final Word

That brings us to the end of our list of motherboards today. We’ve tried to bring you a varied list that gives you a couple of different options when building. While an H470 motherboard doesn’t have the same level of features as the Z490 series, it’s still a great platform to start your build on.

Did we miss any great motherboards from our list? What have you used in your builds? Let us know down in the comments section below. If you want to chat with other readers about the latest technology, be sure to head on over to the Community Hub as well.

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