Whether you have an Xbox Series X or S, you know they're powerful game consoles that both harness player-centric features at a less expensive price point than 4K HDR-capable gaming PCs. Plus, the game selection is improving with Microsoft buying every game studio under the sun, like the recently released Starfield for example. Of course, you'll want a good TV that can take advantage of all the features.
So, what kind of TV do you need to get everything that an Xbox Series X or Series S can offer? You'll want a 120 Hz refresh rate with VRR (variable refresh rate) support. Additionally, it's good to have a 4K, HDR, ALLM, and HDMI 2.1 at minimum. Having extras like Dolby Vision support is nice to have but not entirely necessary if you have HDR10 support. Most of the TVs below have those qualities. Here are the best TVs for Xbox Series X and S, starting with our top choice overall - the LG C3 OLED TV.
LG C3 OLED
The king of the mountain - for now.
The LG C3 is a monster TV at a good value. It costs less than other OLEDs while still delivering the kinds of features that make it great for Xbox.
- 120 Hz refresh rate, HDMI 2.1, and VRR support
- Outstanding picture quality that comes with an OLED TV
- Low input lag and excellent pixel response times are great for gaming
- Game mode can be a little dimmer than some would like
- Risk of permanent burn-in
- Speakers could be better
The LG C3 is an excellent TV for the Xbox Series X and S. It checks all the boxes in terms of features and adds a few more. The nature of OLED displays means you get perfect blacks, which translates to excellent contrast that looks great in darker scenes in TV, movies, and games. In addition, the quick pixel response times, mixed with the low input lag, make for one of the best possible gaming experiences. People use LG OLED TVs as PC gaming monitors specifically because LG TVs are so good at it.
That said, there are some downsides. Burn-in is a real risk, especially if you play the same game over and over again. We also weren't fans of the speakers. They sound a bit muddy and lack the clarity of even older LG TVs. In game mode, you get a neat 'Game Stabilizer' menu to fine-tune the picture quality without sacrificing input lag. However, even with aggressive settings, game mode, in general, is darker than on other TVs. Overall. This is a great television. It really is. There are just a few flaws that keep it from being perfect.
Samsung S90C
A great OLED TV with the features to match
The Samsung Class S90C is a great alternative to the LG OLED. It includes a brighter picture while still maintaining the greatness of OLED displays.
- 120 Hz refresh rate, HDMI 2.1, and VRR support
- The picture quality is essentially just as good as the LG C3
- Brighter overall than the LG C3
- Motion handling isn't the best
- Higher risk of burn-in than the LG C3
- No Dolby HDR, which the Xbox supports
The Samsung S90C is another great OLED option. It gets brighter than the LG OLED, especially in game mode, so it's a pretty good alternative for folks who don't want to dim their displays to play games. However, that extra brightness comes at a cost, and that cost is the increased potential for burn-in. With this one, you'll want to be more careful about leaving static elements on your screen for too long.
Other than that, the TV is exceptional. It has the same perfect contrast as any OLED should, and the picture quality is all-around excellent. Thanks to its brighter screen, it can really push those brighter colours and make them pop. The S90C also has Xbox-specific stuff like HDMI 2.1, 120 Hz refresh rate, VRR, and support for HDR. We think the motion handling could be better for general use, but otherwise, this is one heck of a TV.
Samsung QN90C Neo QLED 4K Smart TV (2023)
Mini-LEDs are where it's at for LCDs right now
The Samsung QN90C is a mini-LED TV that uses lighting zones to create deep blacks despite being an LCD TV. It does a great job of it, too.
- It gets crazy bright
- Excellent contrast ratio for an LCD TV
- Includes almost all of the Xbox-related gaming features
- No Dolby HDR
- Blooming can happen with small bright elements on darker scenes
- Stand is a bit wobbly on larger variants
The Samsung QN90C is a technological marvel. It uses mini-LEDs as a backlight, which the TV turns on and off to achieve darker blacks in scenes where backlighting isn't necessary. Samsung has hundreds of these dimming zones on the TV, so the TV can get pretty dark, bordering on OLED in some cases. Thus, it has one of the best contrast ratios of any LCD TV, and the picture quality is excellent to match. Oh, and this thing gets bright enough to use as a stun grenade. It has no problems fighting glare in a bright room.
There isn't much wrong with the QN90C. The stand is a bit thin if you buy one of the larger sizes, and that can cause wobbling, and it's missing out on HDR like its OLED sibling. Regarding picture quality, the mini-LED backlighting can struggle a bit with dark scenes with a lot of small bright elements, like an outside scene with stars in the sky, but it's honestly pretty negligible overall. This is a great alternative to OLED for folks who don't want to deal with burn-in.
Sony Bravia XR X90L
A good midrange TV with great Xbox support
The Sony Bravia XR X90L is a great midrange TV from Sony. It features local dimming zones for deeper blacks than regular LED TVs, and it has good gaming features.
- HDMI 2.1, 120 Hz, and VRR are all here
- Good picture quality for a FALD
- Low input lag and decent pixel response times
- Larger local dimming zones can cause blooming
- If you're going for a larger TV, the X93L is all-around better
The Sony Bravia XR X90L is a good midrange TV that should get you there in terms of usage with an Xbox. It has a 120 Hz refresh rate, VRR, and Dolby Vision HDR support for gaming. There are HDMI 2.1 ports as well, but you'll have to make do with just two of them as opposed to four as you get with more expensive TVs. Otherwise, this is a solid TV. It has good picture quality and excellent contrast for an LCD. It uses full-array local dimming but doesn't have as many lighting zones as mini-LED TVs.
There are minor knocks against the X90L. The larger local dimming zones are the only ones that you might notice in day-to-day content, as the larger dimming zones can cause blooming on smaller bright options in a dark scene. Plus, Sony also sells the X93L, but only in 65-inch and larger sizes. The X93L is Sony's mini-LED TV, and if you have the extra scratch and are in need of a larger TV, we recommend looking at that one before this one.
Hisense U8H ULED
Arguably the best TV under $1,000
The Hisense U8H brings mini-LED technology to the masses in a much more affordable package than its competitors.
- 120 Hz, HDMI 2.1, and VRR support all work with your Xbox
- Excellent picture quality with hilariously high peak brightness
- 528 dimming zones can produce some very deep blacks
- Doesn't handle colour gradients well at any resolution
- Speaker sound quality isn't the best
The Hisense U8H is a TV that punches above its weight class. It has an MSRP that is hundreds of dollars less than other mini-LED TVs while providing nearly the same picture quality and peak brightness as its more expensive competitors. It also often goes on sale for under $1,000, making it one of the best-value TVs for Xbox owners. It has all the usual things you need to get the most out of your Xbox Series X or S experience. However, it only has HDMI 2.1 on two of its four HDMI ports. That shouldn't be a big deal, though.
In terms of picture quality, this one is surprisingly good. It gets super bright, has punchy colours, and thanks to its mini-LED setup, it can do deep blacks in a lot of scenes without issues. Additionally, it comes with Google TV, which is great for streaming content across almost any streaming service you can think of. It can stutter during low frame rate content like movies, and it doesn't handle the colour gradients the best. However, as of this writing, it goes for just over 50 per cent of Samsung's mini-LED TV's price, so perfection wasn't expected.
TCL 6-Series R655 4K Mini-LED QLED
$600 for this thing is ridiculous
The TCL Class 6-Series TV is a mini-LED TV that goes for much less than most of its competitors. It has excellent picture quality for its price, and it's compatible with most of Xbox's features.
- Comes with HDMI 2.1, VRR, ALLM, and a 144 Hz refresh rate
- Picture quality and contrast is amazing for its price
- Supports Dolby Vision, albeit only at 60 Hz
- Speakers aren't great
- Mini-LED back lighting can cause blooming
- Fewer dimming zones than other mini-LED TVs
The TCL Class 6-Series is another midrange TV that is better than its price tag would suggest. It's a mini-LED TV, which makes it automatically better than essentially any other TV in its price range except the Hisense U8H. It gets plenty bright with excellent contrast. That's in general, by the way, and not just for its price point. It produces colour quite well and comes with Roku as its built-in OS, which is pretty easy to use.
For Xbox it supports everything except Dolby Vision HDR gaming, and it only has two HDMI 2.1 ports. Luckily, you only need one. The TV starts to show its price when it comes to extras. Its upscaling isn't great, and neither are the TV's speakers. It also comes with a few hundred fewer dimming zones than the Hisense, which means more blooming. Still, for under $600, this TV is crazy good, and it's better than essentially any other TV in its price range except the Hisense U8H, which is a little more expensive.
VIZIO V-Series 4K Smart TV
About as good as it gets for under $500
The Vizio V-series TV is a good option for budget gaming. It comes in a variety of sizes, and each one of them is inexpensive. It also supports the Xbox Series X quite well.
- Includes Dolby Vision HDR and variable refresh rate
- Decent picture quality for its price
- Good pixel response times and low input lag
- Only 60 Hz
- Conflicting reports about HDMI 2.1 inclusion
- It has good picture quality for its price, but you're getting what you pay for
The Vizio V-Series TV is a decent option for under $500. It doesn't have a 120 Hz refresh rate like we'd like to see for Xbox use, but it does still come with HDR and Dolby Vision. That's always a plus. Additionally, it has very low input lag, which is great for gaming. When you get below the $500 price tag, you start making some sacrifices. Since most Xbox games are 60 FPS anyway, the lack of 120 Hz support shouldn't hurt too much.
The only weird thing about this TV is its spec sheet. RTings says the TV only comes with HDMI 2.0 ports, but the official website lists it as having HDMI 2.1 ports. It's mostly a moot point since the TV can't physically do the stuff that HDMI 2.1 supports, but it's still a curiosity. Aside from the weird spec sheet, the TV is pretty decent and excels in the ways you'd want for a budget gaming TV.
Samsung Odyssey Neo G8
It's expensive, but it's good
A lot of folks use PC monitors for Xbox gaming, and the Samsung Neo G8 is among the best for it. It's 32 inches of pure, curved, mini-LED goodness.
- All of the benefits of an Mini-LED TV, but in a PC monitor
- HDR2000 support, which the Xbox can use
- Excellent picture quality, pixel response times, and contrast
- It's a 32-inch PC monitor for well over $1,000
- The mini-LED panel is a VA panel, so there is a bit of black smearing
The Samsung Neo G8 is an excellent mini-LED PC monitor. A lot of folks like to put their game consoles in the same room as their gaming PC and then use the same monitor for both. The Neo G8 excels at being both. It supports everything you need with an Xbox, including ALLM, VRR, 4K, HDR, and 120 Hz at 4K. The only thing it lacks is Dolby Vision HDR, but it has regular HDR, so it's not the biggest deal.
Otherwise, it's just about as good as any mini-LED TV, but in a PC monitor form factor. Its contrast with mini-LED dimming zones enabled doesn't produce as deep of a black as any of the mini-LED TVs above, but it's worlds beyond any other PC monitor aside from other mini-LEDs and OLED panels. It is a VA panel, so there is some black crush. PC gamers out there may want to check some YouTube videos to make sure it isn't too bad for them. Otherwise, this great 2-in-1 solution works with both Xbox and PC.
Best TVs for Xbox: The bottom line
Game consoles and TVs have coexisted for decades, so most modern TVs support modern game consoles. That said, you have three excellent choices here, depending on the TV screen tech you want to go with. The LG C3 is the best OLED for gaming in general, while the Samsung QN90C brings up the average for mini-LED TVs. For under $1,000, we think the Hisense U8H brings mini-LEDs to the budget realm better than any other TV.
LG C3 OLED
There aren't as many TV options as there used to be. Vizio used to compete very well in the sub-$1,000 space, and we just don't see them there anymore. TCL and Hisense have taken up those reigns with the Class 6-Series and the U8H, respectively. You can get some good budget options from Vizio with its V-Series, but ultimately, we think spending a few hundred more to step up to the TCL or Hisense will make you happier in the long run.
How did we choose the best TVs for Xbox?
In order to take advantage of everything an Xbox Series X or S has to offer, a TV needs to have 4K, HDR and Dolby Vision HDR, ALLM, VRR, and at least a 120 Hz refresh rate. In order to bring those features to the Xbox Series X and S, the TV also needs an HDMI 2.1 port; otherwise, 120Hz at 4K isn't possible.
We tossed out most of the TVs that didn't meet that criteria until we got to the budget lineups because we couldn't expect a $300 TV to have those features. From there, we made sure that the TV came in 55 inches because that's the most common U.S. household TV size. After that, we focused on choosing the best one in each product category. We sourced a number of reviews, including our own, as well as RTings measurements to back up our findings.
What size TV should I get for my Xbox?
That depends entirely on your playing area. We don't recommend super huge TVs if you're playing five feet away on your bed in your bedroom. That's insane, and your eyes will hate you. Meanwhile, getting a 42-inch TV for your living area while sitting on a couch 10 feet away is the opposite problem with exactly the same result. You'll spend so much time squinting at your TV that you won't enjoy it.
When it comes to TV sizes in general, it's all about viewing angles. You'll want a TV that takes up a decent amount of your field of view. You'll probably want to measure your specific setup and then see how things stack up. In general, you want to be about five and a half feet away with a 40-inch TV, and you want to add about six inches of distance for each screen size as you go up.
Should I use a TV or a PC monitor for my Xbox?
You can use both, and we have both listed. While we are big fans of the Samsung Neo G8, we think the best experience will be on a TV. TVs have better gaming specs than monitors do for the same price, and you get a lot more screen real estate, so it's better for living rooms and other larger room setups. For $700, a 55-inch Hisense U8H makes a lot more sense than a $700 gaming monitor. It has better picture quality, more advanced screen technology, and vastly more screen real estate than you'll get out of a similarly priced monitor.