When it comes to budget CPUs, no doubt, AMD tops the list with some of its powerful budget processors that can give you a great gaming experience. However, the launch of Intel’s budget 9th generation processor like the i5 9400F has turned the tables. Needless to say, the Intel i5 9400F is one of the best budget processors available out there.
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But with i5-10400F under Intel’s kitty, there’s no need to go for the 9400F now. While the 9400F came with 6 Cores and 6 Threads, the 10400F comes with 6 Cores and 12 Threads — a jump of 6 Thread — and a base frequency of 2.9GHz which can be boosted to 4.3GHz. Regarding price, it is available for $128 on Amazon (as I write this) which is even cheaper than the 9400F.
That said, it is also essential to find a suitable motherboard that can support the i5-10400F. In this post, I have made a list of the 5 best motherboards for i5-10400F you can buy.
Best Motherboards for i5-10400F
| Best Motherboards for i5-10400F | Form Factor | Chipset | Buy Now |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSI MAG B560M Mortar | mATX | B560 | |
| ASRock B560 Steel Legend | ATX | B560 | |
| ASRock H570M-ITX/AC | mini-ITX | H570 | |
| GIGABYTE B560M AORUS PRO AX | micro ATX | B560 | |
| ASUS Prime H410M-E | micro ATX | H410 |
| Best Motherboards for i5-10400F | Form Factor | Chipset | Buy Now |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSI MAG B560M Mortar | mATX | B560 | |
| ASRock B560 Steel Legend | ATX | B560 | |
| ASRock H570M-ITX/AC | mini-ITX | H570 | |
| GIGABYTE B560M AORUS PRO AX | micro ATX | B560 | |
| ASUS Prime H410M-E | micro ATX | H410 |
Since the i5-10400F is a locked processor, there’s no point in investing in Z-series motherboards as they are relatively expensive and mostly preferred for extreme overclocking performance. Hence, I have mainly focused on H-series and B-series motherboards that offer plenty of features at an affordable cost.
Also note that unlike the i5 9400F, which ran on an LGA 1151 socket motherboard, the i5-10400F requires a motherboard with an LGA 1200 socket. So make sure you don’t try running the 10400F on your old LGA 1151 motherboard.
In this post, I have categorized each of these motherboards into — Top Pick, Runner-up, Mini-ITX, Value for Money, and Budget.
Having said that, here are the 5 best motherboards for i5-10400F.
Top Pick: MSI MAG B560M Mortar
If you have been looking for the best motherboard under $150, look no further than the MSI MAG B560M Mortar. A micro-ATX motherboard with built-in Wi-Fi support, solid aesthetics, dual M.2 slots, and high-speed memory speed makes it my top pick for the best motherboards for the i5-10400F.
The MSI MAG B560M Mortar supports 10th generation, 11th generation, Pentium Gold, and Celeron processors based on LGA 1200 sockets. It comes with four DIMM slots that can hold up to 128GB of memory and a max memory speed of 5066+MHz. For display connectivity, it has one HDMI 2.0b port that supports a max resolution of 4K@60Hz and one DisplayPort 1.4 that supports a max resolution of 4K@60Hz.
The board has multi-GPU support for 2-Way AMD Crossfire Technology. It sports built-in Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth v5.2, two PCIe 4.0/3.0 x16 slots, one PCIe 3.0 x1 slot, dual M.2 slots, six SATA III 6GB/s, two USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, five USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, and eight USB 2.0 ports.
Overall, the MSI MAG B560M is a pretty solid motherboard with impressive features, an attractive design, and low cost.
Pros
- Solid aesthetics and attractive design
- High-speed memory support
- Multi-GPU support
- Built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth support
- Affordable pricing
Cons
- Lack of USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports
- No RGB lighting
Runner-up: ASRock B560 Steel Legend
The ASRock B560 Steel Legend is the second-best motherboard on this list. With almost similar features to the MSI MAG B560M Mortar (except for a few things), it can be your best bet if you want more M.2 slots. Also, it costs less than the top pick, so you can also consider this option if budget is your concern.
The ASRock B560 Steel Legend supports 10th and 11th-generation processors based on LGA 1200 sockets. It comes with four DIMM slots that can hold up to 128GB of memory and a max memory speed of 4800+MHz. For display connectivity, it has one HDMI 2.0 port that supports a max resolution of 4K@60Hz and one DisplayPort 1.4 that supports a max resolution of 4K@60Hz.
The board also includes two PCIe 4.0/3.0 x16 slots, two PCIe 3.0 x1 slots, three M.2 slots, six SATA III 6GB/s, two USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, five USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, three USB 2.0 ports. Unfortunately, it doesn’t come with built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth installed. So you have to make use of ethernet in order to run the internet on your PC.
That said, the ASRock B560 Steel Legend offers great performance without breaking the bank. For the performance at this price, it is a good deal to be considered.
Pros
- Looks attractive
- High-speed memory support
- Three M.2 slots
- Affordable pricing
Cons
- Lack of USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports
- No built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth support
Mini-ITX: ASRock H570M-ITX/AC
The ASRock H570M-ITX/AC is a compact-size motherboard with fewer features as compared to its bigger counterparts but comes in handy while building a mini-tower PC or in case you want to accommodate bigger RTX GPUs.
The ASRock H570M-ITX/AC supports 10th and 11th-generation processors based on LGA 1200 sockets. It comes with two DIMM slots that can hold up to 64GB of memory and support a max memory speed of 5066+MHz. For display connectivity, it has one HDMI 2.0 port that supports a max resolution of 4K@60Hz and one DisplayPort 1.4 that supports a max resolution of 4K@60Hz.
Apart from that, the board also comes with built-in Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth v4.2, one PCIe 4.0/3.0 x16 slot, two M.2 slots, four SATA III 6GB/s, three USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, two USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, and four USB 2.0 ports.
Summing up, if you are looking for a motherboard that doesn’t hold too much space inside your case, then nothing can be better than the ASRock H570M-ITX/AC.
Pros
- Compact in size
- High-speed memory support
- Two M.2 slots
- Built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth support
Cons
- Older versions of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth
Value for Money: GIGABYTE B560M AORUS PRO AX
If you need a motherboard with a well-balanced price-to-performance ratio or in short, a good value-for-money motherboard, you can consider the GIGABYTE B560M AORUS PRO AX, a micro-ATX motherboard competing well against but at a cost lower than all the above three motherboards.
The GIGABYTE B560M AORUS PRO AX supports 10th generation, 11th generation, Pentium Gold, and Celeron processors based on LGA 1200 sockets. It comes with four DIMM slots that can hold up to 128GB of memory and support a max memory speed of 4800MHz. For display connectivity, it has one HDMI 1.4 port that supports a max resolution of 4K@30Hz and one DisplayPort 1.2 that supports a max resolution of 4K@60Hz.
The board has multi-GPU support for AMD Quad-GPU CrossFire and 2-Way AMD Crossfire Technology. It sports built-in Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth v5.1, two PCIe 4.0 x16 slots, one PCIe 3.0 x1 slot, dual M.2 slots, six SATA III 6GB/s, two USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, five USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, and ten USB 2.0 ports.
That said, for those who consider buying products with the best return on investment, I would recommend you buy the GIGABYTE B560M AORUS PRO AX.
Pros
- Attractive design
- High-speed memory support
- Multi-GPU support
- Built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth support
- Best value for money
Cons
- Only two USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports
Budget: ASUS Prime H410M-E
If your budget doesn’t permit you to spend more than $100, then the ASUS Prime H410M-E can be your best bet. While it is not going to blow your mind with its features, it is surely worth a deal considering its price of just $90 on Amazon (as I write this).
The ASUS Prime H410M-E supports 10th generation, Pentium Gold, and Celeron processors based on LGA 1200 sockets. It comes with two DIMM slots that can hold up to 64GB of memory and support a max memory speed of 2933MHz. For display connectivity, it has one HDMI 1.4b port and one D-Sub port. Other than that, it also comes with one PCIe 3.0 x16 slot, two PCIe 3.0 x1 slots, one M.2 slot, four SATA III 6GB/s, four USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, and six USB 2.0 ports.
Overall, the ASUS Prime H410M-E offers decent performance without any lack of performance. If RAM memory isn’t your concern (which shouldn’t be), you can definitely go for this motherboard.
Pros
- Simple yet elegant look
- Dual display connectivity
- Cheap price
Cons
- Only one M.2 slot
Wrapping Up
Since the i5-10400F is a budget processor with not-so-high performance and locked capabilities, it is a perfect component for budget gamers who don’t want to go expensive yet want to enjoy playing games at max settings.
And that’s why there is no need to invest in expensive motherboards as it will be overkill. Instead, the above 5 motherboards are perfect for the i5-10400F, and won’t cost you a fortune to get your hands on one of them.
Anyways, if it was me building a decent rig and I was picking a motherboard from this list, I would either go with the top pick – MSI MAG B560M Mortar or the ASUS Prime H410M-E (all depending on what my budget for the build was).
With that said, the others are solid options too. It’s just that the feature on these motherboards will tick all of the boxes for what I would be looking for.
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