Best 65-inch 4K TVs 2019: the best big screen TVs for any budget

(Image credit: Hisense)

If you're on the hunt for a bigger television screen, you could do a lot worse than a 65-inch TV. You'll need a decent amount of space in your living room to fit it, of course, but if you have the room to spare, a 65-inch TV could be just the thing to take your home entertainment setup to the next level.

TV makers are going bigger and bigger every year; while 55-inch TVs are still the flagship, the market for 65-inch TVs is growing fast, with most sets these days being offered in both sizes – if not larger ones too. (We're sure to see a lot more of them at IFA 2019 this year as well.)

Why go as big as a 65-inch TV, we hear you say? Well, Most smart TVs nowadays will pack in 4K resolutions, while many feature color and contrast improvement with HDR (high dynamic range), and a 65-inch TV can help show off those enhancements in far more detail than a meagre 40-inch TV set. If you want to go even larger, you can also consider these 75-inch TVs – or make a real statement with the Samsung Q950R, which measures a whopping 98 inches.

The trouble is, getting a bigger screen can also just show off the imperfections in a TV's processing even more clearly – which is why we've brought together the best 65-inch TVs in this handy guide, to make sure you won't regret investing in a big-screen set. With the top picks from the likes of Samsung, Sony and LG, you know you're getting the very best 65-inch 4K TVs out there.

Make sure you know your budget though, as stepping up to a 65-inch TV can cost you a pretty penny – though you may be able to get a decent discount in the Black Friday sales in November, if you can wait that long.

We're well into 2019 now, and most (though not all) of the year's new releases have trickled out – and we'll be updating this list every few weeks as new models hit the market. But for now, these are the best 65-inch 4K TVs out there.

If a 65-inch TV is going to be far too big for your home, then take a look at our top pick of the best best 55-inch and best 40-inch TVs instead.

Best 65-inch TV sets: making a choice

The sets in this list give you a wealth of choice at the popular 65-inch TV size, but as we've said, sometimes a lot of choice gets confusing. That's why we're here to try and help you answer the question: which one is right for you?

Currently, our favorite 65-inch 4K TVs are LG's series of OLED TVs, boasting exceptional black levels and premium HDR in the form of Dolby Vision. On the other hand, they aren't the best option for brightly lit rooms.

If your living room's ratio of windows to doors is too high, you might want to consider Samsung's QLED TV series for your 65-inch 4K TV purchase instead. In comparison to the LG mosels, these are bright and colorful, and pack in technology that helps them cope with overly bright environments.

Of course, Sony TVs come with both OLED and LED panels, and you can't go wrong with these either – so you really are spoilt for choice when it comes to picking out the best 65-inch TV set.

Don't forget 60-inch TVs either – we haven't highlighted any in particular in this list, but you still get a decent-sized set, all the benefits of a 4K resolution, and the usual set of smart TV features too. Oh, and they're a little bit cheaper.

As you consider what you can afford, how bright your room is and where it'll look best in your living room, let's take a look at our favorite 65-inch 4K TVs right now. Each one in this list has been tested and approved by our expert team of reviewers, so you can make a well-informed decision.

1. The best 65-inch TV: LG OLED65C8

The love affair with LG OLED continues

Superb picture quality

Comprehensive features

Elegant design

Limited peak brightness for HDR

No HDR10+ support

The big question this year for 65-inch 4K TV buyers with money to spend is QLED or OLED? QLED is Samsung's LCD-based screen tech, while LG makes not just the panels for its own OLED TVs but the other makers too.

An OLED like the OLED65C8 is hard to beat for a cinema-like environment. This 65-inch TV actually has much better contrast, and probably color, than your local cinema screen.

It uses WebOS software too, which just about the best smart TV interface out there in our humble opinion.

Cinematic images, smart software and slick design – what more could you want? Well, as you're asking, Samsung's QLED TVs are much brighter (which does wonders for HDR), and their motion handling is a little better too. However, for the image quality fundamentals of color and contrast, the LG OLED65C8 still wins in our opinion.

This TV is so high up our list for its practicality, though. It costs less than other OLEDs, or Samsung's top QLED, which makes it our top choice. While this year's LG C9 OLED is already on the market, the 2018 model is almost half the price right now – making it currently a dead good deal too.

Read the full review: LG OLED65C8

2. The close second best: Philips OLED 803 4K

Philips redefines reality with next-gen P5 image processor

Superb image performance

Three-sided Ambilight

Designer good looks

No Freeview Play

Android update is long overdue

Only two full-specification 4K HDMI inputs

Philips has significantly upgraded the picture processing power of its 2018 OLED TVs, and the benefits of this new-found brawn can be seen writ large, with enhanced contrast and spectacular colors.

The brand’s second generation P5 Perfect Processing Engine offers twice the picture processing power of the original, and that was a pretty impressive chip in its own right.

The effectiveness of Philips second generation P5 picture engine may sometimes be subtle with real-world content, but it gives this 65-inch TV set an edge when it comes to playing 4K or HD in SDR.

Buyers should weigh the visual benefits against the minor irritations, like poor catch-up TV provision, just two full-spec UHD HDMI inputs, and the lack of Dolby Vision. The Philips Hue-compatible Ambilight room lighting system, and the promise of an early Android TV updates, however, might just balance the books.

With a competitive price point for the technology on offer, the 803 is arguably Philips most compelling OLED proposition to date.

Read the full review: Philips OLED 803 4K HDR TV

3. The LCD champ: Samsung Q90 QLED TV

The best QLED to date

Superb picture quality

Incredible HDR performance

Wider viewing angles

Comprehensive smart platform

No Dolby Vision support

No Dolby Atmos speakers

Samsung's flagship 4K QLED for 2019 has somehow managed to outdo last year's Q9FN, and well deserves a place on this list.

As the top model in Samsung's QLED range – 8K models like the Q950R aside – the Q90 offers a truly dynamic picture with market-leading picture processing and incredible HDR images. Not to mention a dazzling peak brightness of 1,600 nits (double that of most OLEDs). And with a sleek, bezel-less design, and the OneConnect box to tidy away all your cables, the Q90 is as nice to look at when the TV is off as well.

But one of the most impressive innovations with the Q90 is the viewing angles: something that LCD panels traditionally struggle with, given that backlighting usually faces directly forwards. Samsung has tackled the problem admirably, with its Ultra Viewing Angle technology meaning that contrast and color are as strong off-axis as they are head-on, correcting one of our main complaints for the Q9FN.

Add to that the built-in Bixby voice assistant and comprehensive smart platform, and you have a top-class television full able to compete with the OLED TVs out there.

Read the full review: Samsung Q90 QLED TV

Best 65-inch 4K TVs — Image Credit: Panasonic

4. Most tasteful 65-inch TV: Panasonic TX65FZ952B

For our European readers, Pana's flagship OLED makes a great centerpiece

Superb 4K image quality

Elegant smart platform

Technics-tuned soundbar

No Dolby Atmos or Vision

The Panasonic TX65FZ952B is perhaps the classiest OLED TV around – it comes with a clever soundbar, but detach it and the TV looks restrained and minimal. The soundbar also has a mammoth 12 drivers, for audio actually worth listening to.

Picture quality is fantastic on this 65-inch 4K TV set, edging out LG's models with better handling of areas of shadow, which can look a little noisy in the LG sets. Not so here, however.

On the downside, there's no Dolby Atmos or Dolby Vision processing, which seems a shame when the audio and visual sides are otherwise so strong.

The price also needs to be considered. At several hundred dollars (or pounds) more than the LG C8 or Sony KD-65AF8, you had better appreciate the extra magic Panasonic has put into this 65-inch TV's processing and calibration.

Read the full review: Panasonic FZ950/952

5. LG's fancier OLED set: OLED65E9

For larger budgets, the E9 OLED offers a bit more oomph in audio

Awesome picture quality

Excellent operating system

Much improved gaming potential

Occasional picture noise

Lacks brightness vs LCD

LG'S OLED 65E9 doesn't stray too far from the C Series model listed above, though the design is a bit more ambitious, with a gorgeous bezel-less glass panel that appears to simply float above the TV stand.

You're getting an equivalent picture and 2nd-gen a9 processor, and in terms of getting bang for your buck, the C Series is generally the better option. But for those wanting something with the wow factor – even when you're not watching anything on it – and a boosted audio system packed in, the E9 is certainly the premium option.

But the OLED65E9 will add a good few hundred dollars (or pounds) to the cost of your OLED television, which aren't cheap to begin with, so we advise you think carefully about whether the upgrade is worth it for you.

Read the full review: LG OLED65E9

65-inch Sony A9F/AF9 OLED — Image Credit: Sony

6. Master OLED upscaler: Sony A9F/AF9 OLED

Most of your content in HD/SDR? Sony's upscaling tech is second to none

Impressive upscaling

Audio+ sound system

Android Oreo smart platform

Lean back design

Reworked image presets

Black level crushing

There are nowadays a handful of choices if you want a 65-inch OLED TV. Sony, Panasonic and LG all make them, and each offers multiple options.

The 65-inch Sony KD-65AF9 is one of the best, too. Sony has some terrific upscaling algorithms at play, meaning even those HD/SDR images get the cinematic treatment on this 4K set – often more so than LG's own panels. The new X1 Ultimate processor clearly helps with picture processing, with the vivid color and flawless contrast expected of a top-class OLED.

The AF9 struggled with a frustrating smart platform, but its successor's Android Oreo interface is simpler, stripped back, and much faster to load too.

Sony still insists on a lean-back design that works better on paper than it does on practice, but it's a small complaint for one of the year's best OLEDs. Just stay clear of the Netflix Calibrated Mode: as it stands it tends to harm rather than help the picture.

Check out the full review: Sony A9F / AF9 OLED

7. A master of motion: Sony XBR-65X900F

Top LCD picture quality with improved HDR and motion

Excellent motion handling

Great contrast

Contentious design

Android TV can test your patience

The Sony XBR-65X900F was one of the first 65-inch 4K TVs of 2018, taking over from 2017's Sony XBR-65X900E.

Improvements include greater brightness, which improves HDR performance, and even better motion handling. In fact, we doubt you'll find smoother motion handling on any other set.

Image quality is also fantastic, with great black depth and insight – even SD content looks good. As this is an LCD you don't quite get the perfect blacks of OLED, but it gets as close as LCD can.

Like previous Sonys, the Sony XBR-65X900F uses Android TV, which can be frustrating at times. However, it does give you access to masses of apps, games and streaming services. Sound quality has improved too, although this TV's speakers won't, of course, make an action movie's explosions shake your floorboards.

In the UK this 65-inch TV set is known as the KD-65XF9005.

Read the full review: Sony BRAVIA XBR-65X900F

8. The best entry-level OLED: LG OLED65B8

LG's entry level OLEDs continue to impress

Excellent all-round image quality

HDR10+, HLG, Dolby Vision support

Lacks some brightness

Middling processor

If OLED displays seem too expensive, LG might just have your plan B. The LG OLED B8, like the OLED B7 before it, offers a great entry point into the OLED display technology.

It's exactly the same OLED panel as the more advanced W8, C8, or E8 televisions from LG, so even if it's the runt of the litter, you're still getting some serious OLED contrast levels at more affordable price.

The B8 has stuck with last year's processor while the rest of the family get an upgrade, but you're still getting a great base level of image quality. The body of the set has also been slimmed down to only 1.85 inches, seemingly without impacting on the sound quality from its built-in speakers.

If you're looking to get a taste of OLED for a good £200 / $200 less than the C8, the B8 is still an example of great image quality and gorgeous design. Get on that OLED ladder.

Read the full review: LG OLED B8 (OLED55B8, OLED65B8)

9. For lower budgets: TCL 6-Series Roku TV (US only)

The best 65-inch TV for those of us on a budget

Bright, colorful HDR

Supports Dolby Vision

Roku TV is amazing

Loss of darker details

Limited motion settings

There's no doubt in our minds – the TCL P6-Series was hands down the best budget TV of last year in the sub-$1,000 price range. It made our Best TVs of 2017 list, as well as our Best 4K TVs of 2017 list, alongside OLEDs from Sony and LG, and QLED TVs from Samsung – all of which cost two, three, four or even five times as much as TCL’s budget-friendly series.

If there was a downside to last year's models, one that could've and should've been fixed by year's end, it was the fact that the TVs were limited to one size – a paltry 55-inch screen. Worse, production couldn’t keep up with the heavy demand once word got out how spectacular those TVs were.

Thankfully that's all changed this year and the TCL 6-Series is now available in a gorgeous, affordable 65-inch TV size that not only looks phenomenal, but goes easy on your wallet as well for a 4K screen.

Read the full review: TCL 6-Series (R615, R617)

Hisense H8B ULED — 65-inch TCL 6-Series Roku TV

10. For UK viewers: Hisense U8B ULED TV

A cheap 65-inch TV with an easy-to-use smart platform

Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos

Easy to use smart platform

Solid build quality

Not HDR10+ compatible

Slapdash local dimming

Hisense is a TV brand known for bringing some real budget prices to even some of the biggest screens, and the U8B proves it. Sold only in the UK, this edge-lit 65-inch 4K TV bundles a host of different patented technologies that make up Hisense's ULED panels – essentially a jacked-out LED display, rather than a different type of technology altogether.

Why so cheap? The edge lighting won't make for the most consistent brightness across the screen – compared to a full array backlight – but it does keep the panel wonderfully thin. With a silver trim and imposing stand, too, this is a television designed to have an impact.

The Hisense U8B ULED has a clean and straightforward UI, through its Vidaa U smart platform, with plenty of streaming and catch-up apps – including FreeView Play. With Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos, there's plenty of premium format support too – though sadly not HDR10+.

You won't get quite the picture quality of other entries on this list, but it's not quite a straggler, either. This is a fully-fledged 4K panel, with crisp images and decent motion handling – even if the edge-lighting and dimming zones can lead to blooming around bright areas of the screen. For the price, definitely a 65-inch TV to consider.

Read the full review: Hisense U8B ULED TV review