Best Intel 11th Gen Motherboard 2024 – best for Rocket Lake

Taking a close look at the best motherboard for Intel 11th Generation

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When it comes to building a new gaming PC, a solid, reliable motherboard is absolutely crucial. Various chipsets come with different features, so to ensure you get the best out of your new 11th-Gen desktop CPU, today, we are going to be looking for the best Intel 11th Gen motherboard for a selection of needs.

To support Intel’s Rocket Lake CPUs, we saw the release of the Z590 chipset coming into play. These motherboards promise native PCIe 4.0 support with 11th-gen processors, USB 3.2 Gen2x2 support, and upgraded power delivery. The 11th generation was one of the best-performing generations in our opinion and still holds up its end today. There are plenty of reasons to snag an 11th gen CPU, they’re perfect for more budget-orientated builds. And of course, every good CPU needs a motherboard.

Without further ado, let’s take a look at the best motherboards for 11th gen Intel CPUs, our top selection is the ROG Maximus XIII Hero Z590, ASUS Z590 TUF gaming plus wifi, Gigabyte Z590I AORUS Ultra.

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Best Intel 11th Gen motherboard in 2024

Anyone looking to compare and contrast our selection of 11th generation Intel-friendly motherboards can take a look at our reviews below! We explain the pros, cons, and everything else in between for each board.

ROG Maximus XIII Hero Z590

ROG Maximus XIII Hero Z590

Intended Build

High-end

Form Factor

ATX

Socket

LGA 1200

Chipset

Z590

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Pros

• Excellent build quality
• Impressive power delivery
• Beefy heatsinks
• Supports 5333+MHz RAM

Cons

• Very expensive

The Asus ROG Maximus is a board that needs little introduction, it’s fantastic. The latest iteration of this superior board is the XIII hero Z590, a new board designed to support the new Intel processors.

Like its predecessor, we see the LGA 1200 socket, a similar spacious layout, thermal cladding, and an impressive design. This board features a robust power solution of 14+2 power stages rated for 90 Amps, with enlarged VRM heatsinks and an aesthetically superb integrated aluminum I/O cover. It is clear this has been made for high performance and while it could seat any of Intel’s 11th-Gen CPUs, we feel this would be best for the high-end gamers out there who opt for the i9-11900K.

The armor of the board combines with the ROG RGB lighting to create a very unique-looking motherboard, this looks amazing. Other features from the Z590 are PCIe 4.0, Thunderbolt 4, and Wi-Fi 6E, giving you everything you need to bring the best out of your new Intel-based build.

Asus Z590 TUF GAMING Z590-PLUS WIFI

Asus Z590 TUF GAMING Z590-PLUS WIFI

Intended Build

Mid to high-end

Form Factor

ATX

Socket

LGA 1200

Chipset

Z590

How We Review

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Pros

• Improved design
• Now supports faster RAM (5133MHz)
• Stable and reliable

Cons

• Basic aesthetics

Asus has upped its game with one of its highly favored motherboards – The TUF Gaming Plus. This Z590 chipset variant now features their latest design that not only looks stunning, with an all-black look but is ready to bring the best out of your new 11th-gen intel CPU.

This board now comes with an upgraded power delivery, with 16 DrMOS power stages and an improved cooling system (enlarged VRM heatsink), enabling this to drive your new processor. This board can support faster memory than ever before (5133 MHz) and now features PCIe 4.0 m.2 support for up to 64Gbps.

On top of PCIe 4.0, we see USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 Type-C and Thunderbolt 4 connectivity. Furthermore, this board comes with Wi-fi 6 and a 2.5 Gb ethernet port. Once again Asus smashes it with the TUF.

Gigabyte Z590I AORUS ULTRA

Gigabyte Z590I AORUS ULTRA

Intended Build

Mid to high-end

Form Factor

Mini-ITX

Socket

LGA 1200

Chipset

Z590

How We Review

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Pros

• Excellent performance for the size
• Large heatsink
• Very reliable

Cons

• Lacks some features compared to ATX sized variants

While the design of the Gigabyte Z590I Aorus Ultra looks almost identical to the previous generation, there is more than meets the eye here. Right off the bat, we see an enhanced power design from 8 to a direct 10+1. The VRM enhancement features across the entire new chipset and this board comes with the cooling system to match.

This board has been optimized and now features improved memory trace, faster read/write speeds, and of course PCIe 4.0. All this power in such a small space is backed up with excellent thermal solutions. The M.2 features a large thermal guard and you can benefit from unthrottled performance thanks to the fin-arrays and heat pipes. This cooling solution dissipates heat well, making this a viable option for overclockers too. Like with other Z590 boards, the connectivity options have been bolstered, with USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 Type-C and Wi-Fi 6.

Asus Prime Z590-P

Asus Prime Z590-P

Intended Build

Budget

Form Factor

ATX

Socket

LGA 1200

Chipset

Z590

How We Review

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Pros

• Very affordable
• Improved features and design
• Robust

Cons

• Less features than the premium options

The Asus Prime Z590-P may not be winning any awards but this is a very sturdy option and probably about as “budget” as we would recommend for the Z590 chipset. The power delivery has been boosted and we see an optimized cooling design to help you push your Intel 11th gen CPU further.

This board is built to handle the additional bandwidth of your new Intel CPU and will provide the fundamentals to boost daily productivity – not bad for a budget option. Cooling the VRMs we see two huge heatsinks and thermal pads to improve heat transfer. The M.2 slot also features a heatsink, stopping any throttling you may experience. The aesthetics have also been enhanced with the Prime, giving you something that looks and performs exceedingly well for less.

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Things to consider

It’s all well and good for us to recommend you the best Intel 11th Gen motherboard but like with all the components you buy for your PC, there are a few key areas you need to consider before buying. With the new 11th-gen Rocket Lake CPUs featuring support on the LGA 1200 socket, this means older generation motherboards are also viable options but are they best for the job? In this section, we are going to go over a few of these key areas in detail to help you understand more about the motherboard you want to buy.

What Budget Do I Need For Intel 11th Generation?

For PC builders without deep pockets, the budget is often the first port of call. Your budget requirements can bring limitations as to what motherboard you choose at the end of the day, which in some cases could leave you without the features you were hoping to get.

For the best motherboard pairing with an 11th gen CPU, we are mostly going to be focusing on the standout chipset – Z590. This chipset brings a premium to the table as it is by far the best for Intel CPUs, meaning you are already likely to need more cash at your disposal than an AMD builder. Of course, this doesn’t apply to everyone, as many budget-focused builders will know but you can still expect to spend anything from $100+ on a motherboard.

While this can’t be said for all motherboards, generally, a higher price brings in more features like PCIe 4.0 support and better VRMs. 

Form Factor

An important thing to consider with a motherboard is its form factor. Motherboards are available in a variety of sizes, so you need to ensure it is going to fit inside your case. If you have already decided on a case then just check its specifications to see what mobo you can install inside.

Above you can see the sizes that are available to most consumers and ideally you will want to go for an ATX-sized board. ATX is the most common size and there are a greater number of cases that support this size. Don’t let that sway you but sometimes smaller-sized motherboards will lack features. 

The range of sizes goes from EATX boards, which are designed for PC enthusiasts who require that extra power and set of features all the way down to Mini-ITX boards, which are perfect for smaller form factor builds. For gamers on a tight budget, mATX size boards are often a cheaper alternative to budget ATX boards, offering savings that could go towards a better CPU or GPU.

Chipset

One of the most important factors when buying a new motherboard is the chipset. The chipset is mostly responsible for what features you are going to get, whether that’s PCIe, overclocking support, or the USB generation. We see the H510, H570, B560, and Z590 chipsets coming out to support Rocket Lake processors, with Z590 being the most premium.

Z490 or Z590

Intel introduced the LGA 1200 socket and Z490 chipset back for the 40th-gen Comet Lake processors and many Intel fans worried that they may not see support for future processor launches. Well, not to worry, it has been announced that some Z490 motherboards are going to support 11th gen Intel CPUs, with Gigabyte already confirming this. So even though Comet Lake processors will only support PCIe 3.0, some Z490 motherboards are set to get an upgrade to 4.0.

What about the Z590? Well, these motherboards as we have seen share the same LGA 1200 socket and will come in with native PCIe 4.0 support. These boards will also provide an additional x4 PCIe lanes, giving you a total of x20 lanes. The Z590 chipset will also feature x8 DMI support, working only with the new 11th gen CPUs.

Another area we see the Z590 excel over its predecessor is with connectivity. The Z590 will feature USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 (Type-C, 20 GB/s) support for up to three ports and will support 10 USB 3.2 Gen 2×1 (10GB/s) ports, whereas the Z490 can only support six. The Z590 is also going to see the latest iteration of wireless networking with Wi-Fi6E, and Thunderbolt 4 slots. Both chipsets offer similar levels of performance but to get the most out of your 11th gen CPU, the newer Z590 is the way to go.

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What’s good about 11th gen Intel processors?

11th Gen Intel Core processors, codenamed “Tiger Lake”, are the latest generation of Intel processors, released in September 2020. These processors are built on a 10nm process technology and are designed for ultrathin laptops. They offer several key advantages over previous generations of Intel processors, including:

• Increased performance: 11th Gen Intel Core processors offer significant performance improvements over their predecessors, with up to 20% faster single-threaded performance and up to 2x faster integrated graphics performance.
• Improved power efficiency: 11th Gen Intel Core processors are more power-efficient than previous generations, which helps to extend battery life in ultrathin laptops.
• Advanced features: 11th Gen Intel Core processors include a variety of advanced features, such as Thunderbolt 4 support, Intel Wi-Fi 6 (Gig+), and Intel Deep Learning Boost.
• Integrated Xe graphics: 11th Gen intel processors come with powerful integrated graphics which is Intel’s Xe graphics.
• AI acceleration: Intel DL Boost technology is integrated into 11th Gen Intel Core processors, which can help to accelerate AI workloads, enabling faster processing of tasks such as image recognition, natural language processing, and machine learning.

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Final word

So, there we have it, the best Intel 11th Gen motherboard, and a few other highly recommended options to cater to any budget requirements you may have. This roundup is Z590 heavy but this chipset has the best features to really make your Rocket Lake CPU sing. All of our selections are reliable and offer overlocking support, so, which are you going to go for?