The Best Motherboards for Intel Core i5-11400 CPU

In April 2021, Intel released its 11th Gen Core “Rocket Lake” lineup of desktop CPUs which brought new microarchitecture improvements, as well as an IPC gain of up to 19% over the previous generation. Among these new CPUs, probably the most interesting model is the new Core i5-11400, which is primarily designed to be used by gamers, and it promises to deliver great performance for an affordable amount of money.

Read more: The Best Budget CPU Coolers in 2021

The new Intel Core i5-11400 is available in two variants – one without an integrated GPU (i5-11400F), and one with an integrated Intel UHD Graphics 730 solution (i5-11400). For a price of less than $200, the Core i5-11400 has a lot to offer. The CPU features 6 cores and 12 threads, a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, full support for PCIe 4.0 interface and AVX-512 instruction set, as well as a TDP of only 65 watts. The only flaw of this amazing CPU is that it doesn’t support overclocking, which some high-end gamers may find disappointing.

Due to the fact that it features an updated microarchitecture, and full support for PCIe 4.0 interface, the Core i5-11400 isn’t backwards compatible with older motherboards featuring Intel H410 or B460 chipsets. This CPU, however, does support motherboards with Z490 and H470 chipsets, but support varies from model to model. In order to get the most out of the new Core i5-11400 you’ll need a motherboard featuring Intel’s new Z590, B560, or H570 chipset. In this roundup, we’ll examine the best motherboards for the Core i5-11400 CPU that are currently available on the market.

Best Overall: ASUS ROG Strix B560-A Gaming Wi-Fi

ASUS ROG Strix B560-A Gaming Wi-Fi is probably one of the best motherboards which you can pair with the new Intel Core i5-11400 CPU. Although it doesn’t support overclocking (which is perfectly fine since the i5-11400 can’t be overclocked), this motherboard is packed with plenty of features.

The ROG Strix B560-A Gaming Wi-Fi comes with 8+2 power stages VRM design, as well as with superior chokes and durable capacitors to ensure the stable power delivery to your CPU. The board also comes with one PCIe 4.0 x16 expansion slot, and one PCIe 3.0 x16 slot, and it also features two M.2 slots for PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSDs. Another great thing about this motherboard is that it comes with Realtek’s 2.5G Ethernet LAN, as well as with an onboard Intel’s Wi-Fi 6 module for improved connectivity.

At its rear panel, the ROG Strix B560-A features a whooping 9 USB ports, and a BIOS FlashBack button for safe and simple BIOS updating. This boards also features a pre-mounted I/O shield, and ASUS’ Aura Sync RGB lighting which many gamers will surely like. Overall, the ROG Strix B560-A is a high quality motherboard made by a reputable brand, and as such is a perfect choice for building a gaming PC with an Intel Core i5-11400 CPU.

Best Budget: Gigabyte H470M DS3H

Despite the fact that it features an older Intel H470 chipset, the Gigabyte H470 DS3H motherboard is fully compatible with the latest 11th Gen Intel Core CPUs thanks to its updated BIOS. Besides that, it is also quite cheap, so it’s no wonder this is one of the best budget motherboards to pair with the Intel Core i5-11400.

The H470 DS3H is primarily intended for users on a tight budget. It doesn’t support overclocking, has no RGB lighting, and it doesn’t support PCIe 4.0 interface. Nevertheless, this a very “straight to the point” motherboard. It features two PCIe 3.0 x16 slots, two M.2 slots, high-end audio capacitors, and 2-way CrossFire support. It is also worth mentioning that this motherboard comes with four types of video connectors at its rear panel, which is quite impressive.

However, low price does come with some compromises. This motherboard features simple Gigabit LAN controller, and the number of USB ports at its rear panel is quite underwhelming. However, if you don’t mind the lack of extra features, and want an affordable and robust motherboard for your Intel Core i5-11400 CPU, then Gigabyte H470 DS3H is a solid choice.

Best Micro-ATX: ASUS TUF Gaming B560M-PLUS WiFi

If you are looking for a high quality microATX motherboard which supports Intel Core i5-11400, then look no further past the ASUS TUF Gaming B560M-PLUS WiFi. This compact motherboard features a powerful 8+1 power stages VRM design, and it comes with plenty of useful features which are all tightly packed in a one well-rounded package.

The B560M-PLUS WiFi comes with an improved VRM, M.2 and PCH heatsinks which prevent its components from overheating, and it also features a 6-layer PCB design for improved durability. This motherboard also comes with two PCe x16 slots, out of which one supports PCIe 4.0 interface, and it also sports 9 USB ports, which is praiseworthy. Another great feature of this motherboard is its integrated Intel Wi-Fi 6 module which allows you to connect your PC to a wireless network.

Although it doesn’t support CPU overclocking, this motherboard is very-well suited for handling high-end Intel CPUs, such as the Core i5-11600K, or Core i7-11700. Featuring good build quality, pre-installed I/O shield, and easy to use BIOS, this is a very good motherboard for building a compact gaming PC.

Best Mini-ATX: Gigabyte H470I AORUS PRO AX

Gigabyte H470I AORUS PRO AX is another motherboard with an older Intel H470 chipset that supports the latest 11th Gen Intel Core CPUs. Despite the fact that it features a bit older tech, this is still an impressively feature-rich motherboard that can fit into almost any small form factor case.

Although its dimensions are quite small, the H470I AORUS PRO AX comes with two M.2 NVMe slots, an integrated Intel Wi-Fi 6 module, 2.5G Ethernet LAN, 11 different system headers, pre-installed I/O shield, and addressable RGB lighting. This motherboard also features a decent 5+1 phase digital VRM design, which is powerful enough to keep the Intel Core i5-11400 up and running.

Just like any other motherboard, this one also has its downsides. The CPU cooler and RAM clearance on this motherboard is very tight, so keep that in mind before making a final purchase. Also, the H470I AORUS PRO AX doesn’t support PCIe 4.0 interface, so if you plan to take full advantage of this new interface, you should consider purchasing a more powerful board.

Conclusion

The Intel Core i5-11400 is one of the most interesting processors in the Intel’s 11th Gen Core CPU family. Featuring plenty of cores, and full support for PCIe 4.0 interface, this competitively priced CPU easily beats the AMD Ryzen 5 3600X when it comes to price-to-performance ratio.

However, in order to fully experience the power of this mid-range gaming CPU, you will need to get yourself a new motherboard. Although some older motherboards based on the Z490 and H470 chipsets may support the Intel Core i5-11400, we still recommend getting the ones based on B560 or Z590 chipsets because of their native support for the 11th Gen Intel Core CPUs. We hope our buying guide helped you in search of the information you were looking for. If you have any questions, feel free to post comment below. We will try to help you.

Read more

• The Best Motherboards for Gaming in 2021: 10 Options for AMD & Intel CPUs
• Z490 Motherboard List, Specifications, Features and Intel Core CPU Compatibility
• The Best Motherboards for Intel Core i5-10600K