MSI B850 GAMING PLUS WIFI PZ vs TUF GAMING B650-PLUS WIFI

Researched, not hands-on tested.How we review ›

all judged against motherboards at a similar price

The MSI B850 GAMING PLUS WIFI PZ scores 6.6/10 overall, ahead of the TUF GAMING B650-PLUS WIFI at 6.3/10.

The MSI B850 GAMING PLUS WIFI PZ leads on power delivery and BIOS and support.

The TUF GAMING B650-PLUS WIFI leads on value.

They score the same on platform and features and connectivity.

MSI B850 GAMING PLUS WIFI PZ

6.6/10verdict: good, not the best

The MSI B850 GAMING PLUS WIFI PZ is an ATX AM5 board for people building a mid-range Ryzen 7000, 8000 or 9000 system. It suits buyers who want Wi-Fi 7, 5Gbps wired networking and a 12-phase VRM without moving up the range. It fits best alongside a discrete graphics card that connects over DisplayPort.

Typically about £219.94 in the UK when we researched itCheck price at Amazon UK

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TUF GAMING B650-PLUS WIFI

6.3/10verdict: good, not the best

This is an ATX AM5 board for builders who want a B650 platform with PCIe 5.0 NVMe, three M.2 slots and 2.5GbE. It suits Ryzen 7000, 8000 and 9000 builds that need a good spread of rear ports and a front USB-C header. Buyers who want Wi-Fi 7, rear USB4 or a PCIe 5.0 graphics slot need to look elsewhere.

Typically about £127.99 in the UK when we researched itCheck price at Amazon UK

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Scores, criterion by criterion

Criterion	Weight	MSI B850 GAMING PLUS WIFI PZ	TUF GAMING B650-PLUS WIFI
Platform and features	25%	6/10	6/10
Connectivity	25%	7/10	7/10
Power delivery	20%	7/10	6/10
BIOS and support	15%	7/10	5/10
Value	15%	6/10	7/10
Overall		6.6/10	6.3/10

Specifications

Spec	MSI B850 GAMING PLUS WIFI PZ	TUF GAMING B650-PLUS WIFI
Socket	AM5; supports AMD Ryzen 9000, 8000 and 7000 series desktop processors	AM5 (supports Ryzen 9000, 8000 and 7000 series desktop processors)
Chipset	AMD B850	AMD B650
Form factor	ATX, 243.84 x 304.8 mm	ATX, 30.5 x 24.4 cm
Memory	DDR5, 4 DIMM slots, up to 256 GB maximum	DDR5, 4 DIMM slots, speeds 4800 to 7600+ (OC), ECC and non-ECC unbuffered, EXPO; spec page lists 256GB maximum, user manual lists 128GB
M.2 slots	Three M.2 Key M slots: M.2_1 from CPU up to PCIe 5.0 x4 (2260/2280); M.2_2 from CPU up to PCIe 4.0 x4 (22110/2280); M.2_3 from chipset up to PCIe 4.0 x2 (2260/2280). Taken from the non-PZ sibling's MSI spec page and user guide; the PZ page confirms one PCIe 5.0 M.2 slot.	Three M.2 Key M slots (2242/2260/2280; M.2_2 also 22110). M.2_1 PCIe 5.0 x4 and M.2_2 PCIe 4.0 x4 with Ryzen 9000/7000; M.2_3 PCIe 4.0 x4 from chipset, sharing bandwidth with the second x16 slot. Four SATA 6Gb/s ports.
PCIe slots	One PCIe x16 slot, described as PCIe 5.0 on MSI's PZ page; MSI's regional spec page shows PCIe 5.0 x16 with Ryzen 9000/7000 and a UK review describes the non-PZ sibling as PCIe 4.0 x16, so the generation is disputed	With Ryzen 9000/7000: one PCIe 4.0/3.0 x16 slot. With Ryzen 8000: one PCIe 4.0 x16 slot (x8/x4). From B650 chipset: one PCIe 4.0/3.0 x16 slot (x4 mode) and two PCIe 4.0/3.0 x1 slots.
Networking	Wi-Fi 7 and 5G LAN (Realtek 8126VB 5 Gbps wired, per MSI's spec page for the non-PZ sibling)	Realtek 2.5Gb Ethernet with TUF LANGuard; 2x2 Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) with Bluetooth 5.2; no Wi-Fi 7
Rear USB	Rear: one USB-C 10 Gb/s port per a PZ review (MSI's sibling spec lists two); front USB 5Gbps Type-C header	Rear: 8 ports (1 USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 Type-C, 3 USB 3.2 Gen 2 including 1 Type-C, 4 USB 2.0 Type-A); no rear USB4. Front: 1 USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C plus USB 3.2 Gen 1 and USB 2.0 headers.

Strengths and weaknesses

MSI B850 GAMING PLUS WIFI PZ

+ Wi-Fi 7 and 5Gbps wired LAN
+ 12+2+1 power design with two 8-pin connectors
+ Flash BIOS button works without CPU or memory
− No HDMI output reported; DisplayPort 1.2 only
− Only one M.2 slot runs at PCIe 5.0
− Third M.2 slot is limited to PCIe 4.0 x2

Skip it if:

Buyers who need HDMI output from the board itself
Builders who want two PCIe 5.0 M.2 slots
Builders who need more than four SATA ports for bulk storage

Read the full MSI B850 GAMING PLUS WIFI PZ review ›

TUF GAMING B650-PLUS WIFI

+ PCIe 5.0 x4 M.2 slot plus two more M.2 slots
+ Rear USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 Type-C and 2.5GbE
+ Owners praise its value and rear I/O
− Wi-Fi 6 only, with no Wi-Fi 7
− Four of eight rear USB ports are USB 2.0
− One reviewer found BIOS and RGB setup bothersome

Skip it if:

Buyers who want Wi-Fi 7 or rear USB4
Builders who want a PCIe 5.0 graphics slot
People who need many fast rear USB ports

Read the full TUF GAMING B650-PLUS WIFI review ›

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