Use these motherboards for the NZXT H1 PC case

The NZXT H1 is a compact chassis, only supporting Mini-ITX motherboards. If you buy an ATX board, it won't fit inside the PC case. I've rounded up some of the best motherboards for both Intel and AMD that will work well with the H1.

Best ITX for AMD

Staff Pick

ASRock X570 Phantom Gaming

This small motherboard from AsRock features AMD's latest X570 chipset, unlocking support for Ryzen 3000 series and PCIe 4.0. On the rear, this board has Wi-Fi, PS/2, HDMI, DisplayPort, S/PDIF, one USB 3.2 Gen 2 Thunderbolt 3 port, two USB 3.2 Gen 2, two USB 3.2 Gen 1, and 1Gb LAN.

$240 at Newegg $380 at Amazon {.end}

Best ITX for Intel

Staff Pick

ASUS ROG Strix Z490-I Gaming

ASUS managed to pack many features onto the ROG Strix Z490-I Gaming, including plenty of RGB and even two M.2 slots. This small board comes with support for up to 10th Gen processors from Intel. ASUS made available 2.5Gb LAN, DisplayPort, HDMI, four USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports (one being a Type-C), two USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, two USB 2.0 ports, and the Wi-Fi 6 module.

• $298 at Amazon
• $300 at Newegg {.end}

Best Budget ITX for AMD

ASRock B450 Gaming-ITX/AC

The B450 Gaming-ITX/AC from ASRock allows you to install an M.2 SSD (the slot is located on the rear of the PCB), throw in up to 32GB of RAM, and the latest Ryzen 3000 CPUs. That all sounds good enough already, but it's the price that sweetens the deal further. For ports, it has Wi-Fi, PS/2 port, HDMI, DisplayPort, Optical S/PDIF, two USB 2.0 ports, two USB 3.1 Gen 2 ports (one is Type-C), two USB 3.1 Gen 1 ports, and 1Gb LAN.

• $125 at Amazon
• $191 at Newegg

Best Budget ITX for Intel

ASUS ROG Strix B460-I Gaming

This Mini-ITX motherboard from ASUS is an affordable option for Intel processors, and compact PC builds. We've got Wi-Fi 6, 1Gb LAN, DisplayPort, HDMI, one USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 port, six USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, and a single USB 2.0 port. While it may appear affordable, this board does come with some heatsinks for the VRMs, which is excellent if you plan on pushing the board harder.

$150 at Amazon $150 at Newegg

Choosing the right motherboard

You'll need to pick a Mini-ITX motherboard for the NZXT H1 case, which narrows down our search somewhat, but you'll need to decide on which platform you wish to use: Intel or AMD. That, and the budget needs to be checked to see how much you can spend on a board. I rounded up four recommendations, two for each platform, that should provide ample functionality for your PC build.

The best pick for AMD goes to the ASRock X570 Phantom Gaming. Not only does it have an excellent component setup with high-quality capacitors and decent power delivery, but also Thunderbolt 3. That's right; there's Thunderbolt 3 on this AMD motherboard. You could install any Ryzen 3000 processer on it, too, including a Ryzen 9 if you want to create a powerful compact PC.

For Intel fans, the ASUS ROG Strix Z490-I Gaming is an excellent choice. Like the AMD ASRock recommendation, this motherboard comes with the best chipset available, Intel's Z490 chipset. This provides Wi-Fi 6, M.2 slots, plenty of other expansion ports, and 2.5Gb LAN. Throw in a 10th Gen Intel CPU, and you've got one powerful small PC.