Top 3 Best 4K TVs In 2024

Not sure which is the best 4K TV for you?

These days, 4K content is dominant almost everywhere. You can enjoy your favorite games, movies, and TV shows in 4K with relative ease now, as long as you have a good display. Of course, other than the resolution, there’s a lot more that you have to look for when buying a new 4K TV.

In this guide, I’ve picked out 3 of the best 4K TVs today while keeping aspects such as brightness, color accuracy, sound, and HDR performance in mind.

First, we have a budget-friendly option that delivers impressive performance without breaking the bank. Next, a premium choice that offers top-tier features and stunning visuals and finally, my top pick combines outstanding performance, a rich feature set, and great value.

So let’s get started!

Number 3. Hisense 55U6K Mini-LED Smart TV – Best Budget 4K TV

TVs are cheaper than ever now, and you can find a great 4K display even if you’re on a relatively tight budget. However, that doesn’t mean that you should just go out there and buy the cheapest one. As these high-resolution displays have become more accessible, there are a lot of TVs that don’t perform well. Fortunately, the Hisense 55U6K isn’t one of them.

It is a 55-inch 4K TV that’s an improvement over its predecessor, the U6H, in almost every way. It has lower input lag, great response times, a Mini-LED display, and slightly better HDR performance. For the price, it packs a lot of display tech that you’d only see in higher-end TVs.

Design-wise, it doesn’t stand out as anything special. It has thin borders, a Hisense logo at the bottom, four HDMI ports, and a pair of adjustable feet. While the TV is relatively stable with these included feet, you’re much better off mounting it to the wall to avoid wobble.

The most interesting thing about this TV is the fact that it uses both Mini-LED and QLED technologies in tandem. Mini-LED consists of thousands of tiny LEDs that provide more precise backlighting than a traditional LED backlight. This helps improve the contrast and brightness.

On top of that Mini-LED backlight, Hisense is using a layer of Quantum Dots. These Quantum Dots are tiny particles that are tuned to convert light into specific colors. The result is a wider and more color-accurate spectrum than regular LED TVs. By combining Mini-LED with Quantum Dots, it manages to have improved contrast, black levels, and color vibrancy. This Mini-LED panel also gives the TV Full Array Local Dimming, which results in better peak brightness.

So, what does all that mean for picture quality? Well, the TV has fantastic contrast for deep blacks, arguably the best in this price range. It even features decent low-resolution upscaling, meaning you can watch your favorite content with great sharpness and detail. It also gets bright enough to prevent glare, which is especially important for SDR content.

On top of that it has a very wide color gamut, giving it a surprisingly colorful and vibrant image. You don’t need to calibrate it much either, which is always a plus. HDR content looks great here, and it supports various formats such as HLG, Dolby Vision, and HDR10+. Unfortunately, it’s not all perfect. There are some uniformity issues at peak brightness, and the viewing angles are a bit narrow.

With that said, those are issues that will only be noticed by enthusiasts or those with a particularly discerning eye. Most people won’t catch on to these issues, and that’s exactly why this TV is great for most people. It’s also a great choice for gaming, thanks to the low input lag, VRR support, and low response time. Unfortunately, there’s no HDMI 2.1 here.

As for the competition, there isn’t a TV out there that can compete with the picture quality at this price. Hisense’s own U7N comes close, as it has even better HDR performance and HDMI 2.1. However, it is slightly more expensive. The U6K is the better value, as the picture quality is good enough for the average consumer.

So, while the U6K isn’t perfect by any means, it’s just about the best 4K TV you can get at this price. It wipes the floor with cheaper TVs that use traditional LED backlights and is an especially huge upgrade from edge-lit LED TVs. At this price, it’s a fantastic purchase.

To sum up, what I like is…

Reasonable price tag
Low response time for gaming
Bright and vivid image quality

On the downside…

Narrow viewing angles
No HDMI 2.1

RATINGS:
Brightness: 8/10
Contrast: 8/10
Colors: 8/10
Gaming Performance: 8/10
Value for Money: 9/10
Overall Rating: 8.5/10

Number 2. Samsung OLED 4K S95C – Best Premium 4K TV

High-end TVs have always carried a ridiculous price premium, and for the longest time, they didn’t offer enough benefits to justify the price. However, the S95C comes close to outshining its high price tag. This TV combines Samsung’s brilliant Quantum Dot technology with a fantastic OLED panel for the ultimate experience. It is still utterly expensive, but it would have been even pricier a couple of years ago. For enthusiasts looking for a cinematic experience, it has a lot to offer.

The S95C builds upon the strengths of its predecessor, the S95B, by offering even higher peak brightness. It achieves this feat through a combination of hardware and software advancements, making it a great choice for rooms with lots of natural light or even for those who enjoy watching HDR content in brightly lit environments.

Design-wise, the S95C follows the minimalist trend Samsung is known for. The bezels are practically nonexistent, creating a near-bezel-less look that keeps the focus on the stunning picture. The TV is built slim and sleek, making it a welcome addition to any modern living space.

Now, let’s cut to the heart of the matter: picture quality. The reason this TV is so impressive is because it combines beautiful OLED panels with cutting-edge Quantum Dot (QD) technology. OLED panels are great for their perfect blacks and contrast ratio, but a bit limited in terms of peak brightness.

That’s where quantum Dots come in. These tiny particles act like color filters, enhancing the brightness and color reproduction of the LEDs. The QD layer sits on top of the OLED panel, resulting in perfect blacks with higher peak brightness than traditional OLED TVs. Of course, you can’t solve every problem that comes with OLED panels. Some OLED panels are prone to burn-in, a permanent discoloration of the pixels caused by static images displayed for too long. While it’s not as big of an issue with modern OLED panels, you’ll want to be hesitant leaving a static desktop on this TV if you’re hooking it up to a TV.

Another area where the S95C stands out is gaming. With its near-instantaneous response time and support for features like Variable Refresh Rate, the S95C offers a buttery smooth gaming experience. Gamers will also appreciate the inclusion of multiple HDMI 2.1 ports, allowing for high-resolution gaming at up to 4K 120fps.

The HDR experience is also remarkable. Even without local dimming, it manages near-perfect lighting zone transitions because of the phenomenal contrast ratio. There’s no distracting blooming here, and you get deep uniform blacks and bright highlights as a result. Reflection handling is also great.

With all that said, there’s a lot of competition at the higher end of the market. Sony A95L OLED for example, is arguably a better TV for home theaters. It supports more HDR formats and has even more accurate color tuning. Unfortunately, it’s significantly more expensive. For the vast majority of people, the S95C is the more practical choice because of its value.

Overall, this TV is fantastic for almost any use case. If you want a high-end gaming experience, great HDR content, and fantastic colors, then this is the one to get. Just be wary of using it with a PC because of burn-in issues.

To sum up, what I like is…

Superb contrast level
Phenomenal HDR performance
Great gaming performance
Uniform picture quality

On the downside…

Expensive
Slight risk of burn-in

RATINGS:
Brightness: 9/10
Contrast: 10/10
Colors: 9.5/10
Gaming Performance: 9/10
Value for Money: 8/10
Overall Rating: 9/10

Number 1. LG C3 Series OLED Evo – Our Top Choice

A great 4K TV should be one that perfectly balances value, performance, picture quality, and software. If you’re looking for all of the above, then LG has an answer for you with their OLED C3. Paired with LG’s latest OLED Evo technology, this fantastic TV brings high-end OLED and HDR goodness at a more attainable price than previous flagships.

This TV is an incremental upgrade over the already successful LG C2. The newer version is a bit brighter and has better low-resolution sharpness processing. While those are not major differences by any means, the C3 is still worth considering because of the superb OLED panel.

Unlike the Mini-LED and Quantum Dot displays out there, LG doesn’t have any fancy tricks to boost the brightness or contrast levels here. Instead, they’re relying entirely on the OLED panel for its naturally deep blacks and fantastic color reproduction. Unlike most LED TVs, there’s no backlight here as the OLED pixels can change their brightness and color individually.

As a result, OLEDs tend to have almost perfect contrast and deep inky blacks. There’s also a noticeable absence of blooming and haloing effects. The handling of reflection is superb here, and the viewing angles are fantastic.

The best part is that this TV works well for both HDR and SDR content. The high peak brightness helps a lot here, and the lack of blooming improves the HDR image. You can use this TV comfortably in bright rooms, as it’s bright enough to display an accurate picture in any situation. However, it does have an auto-dimming feature that’s a bit too aggressive. I recommend turning this off for the best experience.

On top of being great for watching content, it’s also great for playing games. It has a low response time, supports G-Sync and VRR, and features HDMI 2.1. All of this translates to buttery smooth gameplay with new consoles like the PS5 and Xbox Series X. It even pairs nicely with a high-end gaming PC.

Apart from just the impressive display, the processing power also shines here with excellent motion handling. Fast-paced scenes are rendered smoothly without judder or ghosting. Paired with the phenomenal contrast ratio, the gaming experience is fantastic.

Compared to more expensive TVs, like Sony’s X93L, the LG still manages to be surprisingly competitive. The Sony is brighter, which makes it an even better choice for bright rooms. However, LG has a wider viewing angle and better contrast. Considering the C3 is also cheaper, it’s the better choice for most people.

All in all while it’s only a slight improvement over its predecessor, it manages to be enough for the LG C3. It’s one of the brightest, sharpest, and most color-accurate TVs out there. Considering it’s cheaper than a lot of flagship TVs, it’s a great choice if you care about watching high-quality content and enjoying your favorite games at full visual fidelity.

To sum up, what I like is…

Highly competitive price
Deep inky blacks
Fantastic HDR performance
Superb gaming performance

On the downside
Auto-dimming feature is too aggressive
Slight risk of burn-in

RATINGS:
Brightness: 9/10
Contrast: 9/10
Colors: 9/10
Gaming Performance: 9/10
Value for Money: 9/10
Overall Rating: 9

So what do you think? Which of these is the best 4K TV for you?

Or do you think another TV is better?

Tell us in the comments below.