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The best gaming monitor is a key part of any PC build. You’ve probably spent a small fortune acquiring a decent graphics card, so you want a monitor that’ll really let that card strut its stuff. The best models display silky-smooth frame rates backed up by outstanding picture quality and perfect color reproduction. Ultimately, you want to make sure you don’t bottleneck your PC with a lousy monitor, and, with these panels, you won’t.<\/p>\n
The GPU-monitor symbiosis is important to understand. Picking up a super expensive 4K monitor with a high refresh rate would be overkill if you’re still packing a GTX 1060. The best displays need to best graphics cards to achieve their full glory. If you managed to score yourself a fancy Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti or one of those high-end AMD RX 6000 series GPUs, you’ve got plenty of options to choose when it comes to gaming monitors. They’ll give up decent framerates even on 4K panels.<\/p>\n\nIf you’re thinking of future-proofing your setup, why not go for a higher resolution? You can always use it at a lower res for now. And for the competitive gamer who values speed above all else, one of the high refresh rate monitors is where you want to look.\u00a0<\/p>\n
We’re constantly testing an exhaustive number of gaming monitors, to make sure we’ve found the best gaming monitors for each budget bracket and performance needs. This list frequently gets updated as newer models pass our rigorous testing.<\/p>\n
Best gaming monitor<\/h2>\n\n
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At last, a true OLED gaming monitor for the PC.<\/p>\n
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Specifications<\/h4>\n\n
Screen size: <\/span>34-inch<\/span><\/p>\nPanel type: <\/span>QD OLED<\/span><\/p>\nAspect ratio: <\/span>21:9<\/span><\/p>\nResolution: <\/span>3440 x 1440<\/span><\/p>\nResponse time: <\/span>0.1ms<\/span><\/p>\nRefresh rate: <\/span>175Hz<\/span><\/p>\nWeight: <\/span>15.26lbs<\/span><\/p>\nRefresh rate technology: <\/span>G-Sync Ultimate<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
Reasons to buy<\/h4>\n+<\/span><\/p>\nFabulous contrast and colours<\/p>\n
<\/span>+<\/span><\/p>\nStupendous pixel response<\/p>\n
<\/span>+<\/span><\/p>\nGenuine HDR capability<\/p>\n
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Reasons to avoid<\/h4>\n–<\/span><\/p>\nNot a great all-purpose panel<\/p>\n
<\/span>–<\/span><\/p>\nNo HDMI 2.1<\/p>\n
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OLED has truly arrived on PC, and in ultrawide format no less. Alienware’s 34 QD-OLED is one of very few gaming monitors to receive such a stellar score from us, and it’s no surprise. Dell has nailed the OLED panel in this screen and it’s absolutely gorgeous for PC gaming. Although this monitor isn\u2019t perfect, it is dramatically better than any LCD-based monitor by several gaming-critical metrics. And it\u2019s a genuine thrill to use.<\/p>\n
What that\u00a034-inch, 21:9 panel can deliver in either of its HDR modes\u2014HDR 400 True Black or HDR Peak 1000\u2014is nothing short of exceptional. The 3440 x 1440 native resolution image it produces across that gentle 1800R curve is punchy and vibrant. With 99.3% coverage of the demanding DCI-P3 colour space, and fully 1,000 nits brightness, it makes a good go, though that brightness level can only be achieved on a small portion of the panel.<\/p>\n
Still, there\u2019s so much depth, saturation and clarity to the in-game image thanks to that per-pixel lighting, but this OLED screen needs to be in HDR mode to do its thing. And that applies to SDR content, too. HDR Peak 1000 mode enables that maximum 1,000 nit performance in small areas of the panel but actually looks less vibrant and punchy most of the time.<\/p>\n
HDR 400 True Black mode generally gives the best results, after you jump into the Windows Display Settings menu and crank the SDR brightness up, it looks much more zingy.<\/p>\n
Burn-in is the great fear and that leads to a few quirks. For starters, you\u2019ll occasionally notice the entire image shifting by a pixel or two. The panel is actually overprovisioned with pixels by about 20 in both axes, providing plenty of leeway. It\u2019s a little like the overprovisioning of memory cells in an SSD and it allows Alienware to prevent static elements from \u201cburning\u201d into the display over time.<\/p>\n
While we didn\u2019t sense any subjective issue with this 175Hz monitor, there\u2019s little doubt that if your gaming fun and success hinges on having the lowest possible latency, there are faster screens available. You can only achieve the full 175Hz with the single DisplayPort input, too. The Alienware 34 QD-OLED’s response time is absurdly quick at 0.1ms, however, and it cruised through our monitor testing suite. You really notice that speed in-game, too.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There’s no HDMI 2.1 on this panel, however. So it’s probably not the best fit for console gaming as a result. But this is PC Gamer, and if you’re going to hook your PC up to a high-end gaming monitor, we recommend it be this one.<\/p>\n
Read our full Alienware 34 AW3423DW review.<\/p>\n
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2. LG 27GN950-B<\/h3>\n <\/span> <\/span> <\/span> <\/span>The fastest, most responsive 4K gaming monitor<\/p>\n
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Specifications<\/h4>\n\n
Screen size: <\/span>27-inch<\/span><\/p>\nPanel type: <\/span>Nano IPS<\/span><\/p>\nAspect ratio: <\/span>16:9<\/span><\/p>\nResolution: <\/span>3840 x 2160<\/span><\/p>\nResponse time: <\/span>1ms<\/span><\/p>\nRefresh rate: <\/span>144Hz<\/span><\/p>\nWeight: <\/span>16.9lbs<\/span><\/p>\nRefresh rate technology: <\/span>G-Sync Compatible, FreeSync Premium Pro<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
Reasons to buy<\/h4>\n+<\/span><\/p>\nBright vivid colors<\/p>\n
<\/span>+<\/span><\/p>\nG-Sync\/FreeSync compatible<\/p>\n
<\/span>+<\/span><\/p>\nExcellent response time for a 4K monitor<\/p>\n
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4K gaming is a premium endeavor. You need a colossal amount of rendering power to hit decent frame rates at such a high resolution. But if you’re rocking a top-shelf graphics card, like an\u00a0RTX 3080 or\u00a0RX 6800 XT\u00a0then this dream can be a reality.<\/p>\n
The LG UltraGear is the first 4K, Nano IPS, gaming monitor with 1ms response times, that’ll properly show off your superpowered GPU. Coming in with Nvidia G-Sync and AMD\u2019s FreeSync adaptive refresh compatibility, this slick slim-bezel design even offers LG\u2019s Sphere Lighting 2.0 RGB visual theatrics.<\/p>\n
And combined with the crazy-sharp detail that comes with the 4K pixel grid, that buttery smooth 144Hz is pretty special.<\/p>\n
While it does suffer from a little characteristic IPS glow, it appears mostly at the screen extremities when you\u2019re spying darker game scenes. This isn’t an issue most of the time, but the HDR is a little disappointing as, frankly, 16 edge-lit local dimming zones do not a true HDR panel make.<\/p>\n
What is most impressive, however, is the Nano IPS tech that offers a wider color gamut and stellar viewing angles. And the color fidelity of the NanoIPS panel is outstanding.<\/p>\n
LG\u2019s default calibration is virtually faultless, with impeccable detail in both black and white scales. Beyond the strict metrics, it\u2019s a seriously vibrant and punchy display in terms of image quality on the Windows desktop.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This screen pops.<\/p>\n
Hop in game and it\u2019s just as impressive. We\u2019ll never tire of the buttery smooth goodness that is 144Hz. But combined with the crazy-sharp detail that comes with the 4K pixel grid, well, it\u2019s pretty special.<\/p>\n
The LG UltraGear 27GN950-B bags you a terrific panel with exquisite IPS image quality. Despite the lesser HDR capabilities, it also nets beautiful colors and contrast for your games too. G-Sync offers stable pictures and smoothness, and the speedy refresh rate and response times back this up too.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And while the lack of HDMI 2.1 and USB Type-C are a little limiting, especially looking forward, right now it’s one of the best monitors going.<\/p>\n
Read our full LG 27GN950 review.<\/p>\n
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