The safe motherboard temperature is anywhere from20°C to 80°C. However, this completely depends on yourcooling setup, themotherboard’s build quality,ambient temperature, andairflow/ventilation.
Unlike CPUs and GPUs, there’sno one standard valuewhen measuring motherboard temperature. Thescattered sensorsacross the PCB are the ones that detect how hot it is (in different locations).
In this guide, I will share my test results to help you get an idea of the safe temperature limits. Also, I will provide handy tips on how to check the motherboard temperature and ways to prevent/solve overheating issues.
But before anything else, let’s quickly learn what Motherboard temperature sensors are.
Motherboard Temperature Sensors – A Brief Overview
Every computer component draws a certain amount of power to function. So, it’s pretty obvious for heat to be generated throughout the motherboard.
The more these components operate, the greater will be the heat generation. But note that thetemperature isn’t constant everywhere.
The hottest regions of the motherboard are where the basic components exist (mainly the processor and graphics card).
Modern boards are equipped with several sensors that help us get the reading of every location. These are usuallyscattered in and around the major sections–CPU socket,PCIe/DRAM slots,VRM (Voltage Regulatory Module),CMOS,chipset, etc.
Well, the exact number and where they are soldered completely depends on how the PCB is designed. Meaning, one motherboard can havesix to even ten sensorswhile the other may include justtwo or three!
How to Monitor Motherboard Temperature
My go-to method to check temperature is using ahardware monitoring utility. Apps likeHWMonitor,AIDA64, andHWiNFO64display all the sensors on your board with their live readings.
you may even utilizeBIOS Utility, anOEM tool, or anInfrared thermometerto do the needful. Let’s discuss each of them in detail.
Through Hardware Monitoring Tools
you may find a plethora of hardware-monitoring utilities that help measure the temperature of different components, including the motherboard. My personal favorites areHWMonitorandHWiNFO64.
