Searching for the best gaming TV to pair with your console, or perhaps even a hardcore PC, requires a bit of thought. You need to consider your budget, firstly, and then figure out which TV will give you the best image quality for the room it's placed in, and whether it comes with specific gaming features.
For example, both the PS5 and Xbox Series X are designed with HDMI 2.1 connectivity in mind, meaning you’ll need a TV that supports this standard via its HDMI ports to experience the full capabilities of either console. Fortunately, the vast majority of the best TVs today do support this standard, although the exact number of a TV's HDMI inputs that support it can vary. Some will have just two supporting ports while others offer a greater selection of four.
January 16, 2026
Replaced the Sony Bravia 8 with the Bravia 8 II as the 'best for PS5' pick. Removed the 'Elite TV for PS5' category.
Best gaming TVs in Australia in 2026
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The best gaming TV overall
The LG C5 is an excellent all-around TV for gaming, movies, and just about anything else. It has a new Brightness Booster feature that vastly improves image quality over its C4 predecessor and, depending on the size you opt for (of which there are many) it can now be picked up for a truly attractive price.
The further boost in brightness over the C4 (which is marginal, we must admit) is made possible by a new Alpha 9 Gen 8 AI Processor that also improves audio from the TV’s built-in 2.2-channel speakers with virtual 9.1.2-channel upmixing. The Dolby Vision, HDR10, and HLG HDR formats are all supported, and there’s a new Dolby Vision Filmmaker Mode preset that gives you an accurate Dolby Vision HDR picture without having to muck with picture settings and menus. And, the C5 gets a full new suite of AI smarts that can further improve picture and sound quality.
The C5 continues where the C4 left off by being 144Hz-certified by Nvidia, which is great news for PC gamers. Xbox Series X and PS5 console owners will appreciate the C5’s four HDMI 2.1 ports with 4K 120Hz support, along with VRR, and ALLM. Cloud gaming is also well represented on the LG C4, with GeForce Now, Amazon Luna, Utomik, Blacknut, and Boosteroid apps available in the Games Quick Card on the TV’s webOS 25 smart interface.
Read the full LG C5 review
The best gaming TV for PS5
The Sony Bravia 8 II is Sony's current flagship OLED, released in 2025. It's not a replacement for the Bravia 8, as its name could imply, but instead is more of an upgrade as it uses a QD-OLED panel, as opposed to the WOLED panel in the other model. While it doesn't have all the gaming features of TVs from LG and Samsung, it's the perfect TV for PS5, thanks to PS5-centric features.
Clearly it's because Sony makes both devices, and when a PS5 is connected to the Bravia 8 II, the TV benefits from an Auto HDR Tone Mapping feature, which matches the dynamic range of generated images to what the screen is capable of. It also supports Sony's Game Menu 2, a similar feature to LG's Game Optimizer, for example, where gaming and picture related adjustments can be made during gameplay. The Bravia 8 II's gaming performance is solid overall, although the 16.3ms input lag time we measured is higher than most other TVs we've tested. The other downside to the TV is that it also only two of its four HDMI ports support the higher-spec 2.1 standard, so owners of multiple consoles and a soundbar should take note.
Where the Bravia 8 II really impresses is with its built-in sound. Most TVs we review have weak built-in speaker systems, but the Bravia 8 II bucks the trend in a big way. Its Acoustic Surface Audio+ means sound travels directly through the screen of the TV for more direct, clearer audio. The Bravia 8 II also delivers accurate, well-mapped sound and good power with solid bass.
The Bravia 8 II's picture quality is also superb. Delivering rich, natural colours and excellent shadow detail with inky blacks, the Bravia 8 II is fantastic for both movies and gaming. Its QD-OLED panel also delivers high brightness, which we measured at 1,439 nits peak. It also does a great job upscaling older movies and TV shows, as we found when streaming an episode of Colombo from the 1980's.
Read our full Sony Bravia 8 II review
The best budget gaming TV
If you're searching for a great gaming TV without breaking the bank, then the TCL C6K definitely deserves your attention as it's incredibly well-specced for the price.
With 4K 120Hz (with 144Hz option), Dolby Vision gaming, VRR including AMD FreeSync Premium and Nvidia G-sync and ALLM, the C6K has a near-complete list of gaming features you'd expect to find on more premium gaming TVs.
Our reviewer measured an input lag time of 13.6ms, which admittedly can be improved upon, but you'd need to spend an awful lot more money that what the C6K demands. It should please all but the most hardcore gamers. Plus, we found the Game Master mode to be particularly effective, which allows you to customise additional settings such as Dark Detail.
We also found the C6K was able to produce a bright, bold picture. Black levels were particularly impressive, although we did experience some black crush in certain movie scenes. Again though, for the price, there's little to find fault with.
As is the case with many TVs, the C6K's sound quality doesn't quite match its picture, but its directional sound, solid bass, and clear dialogue will suit a lot of games, as we discovered testing with Battlefield V. Ultimately though, its narrow soundstage means a soundbar may be required.
Bang for your buck is at the core of the C6K. With prices hovering around AU$1,200 for a 65-inch screen size at the time of writing, it is hard to argue against the performance and features it delivers for the price.
Read our full TCL C6K review
The best gaming TV for bright rooms
Whether you like to gaming during the day, or at night with the overhead lights on full blast, the Samsung QN90F's high brightness, reflection-beating Glare Free screen and vibrant colours make it possible without interruption.
With four HDMI 2.1 ports supporting 4K 165Hz, VRR (AMD FreeSync Premium Pro), HGiG, ALLM and HDR10+ gaming, the QN90F is well equipped for current-gen consoles. It also has an ultra-low 9.5ms input lag time for impressively slick performance and features Samsung's Gaming Hub, which serves as a portal for all things gaming, including access to plenty of apps such as Xbox.
The QN90F's picture holds up well in bright rooms thanks to its high peak brightness (2,087 nits) and fullscreen brightness (667 nits) and effective Glare Free screen. It also delivers realistic details and textures and stunning contrast, with deep black levels. Those same qualities also make it a fine TV for watching movies and TV shows in similarly bright conditions.
While the QN90F may be one of the pricier TVs on this list, it delivers across the board for both gaming and picture quality. If you find your room is too bright for a standard TV, the QN90F could be the answer.
Read our full Samsung QN90F review
The best budget OLED gaming TV
If you want the perfect contrast and rapid response times of OLED, but for a lower price this is your option. It isn't the brightest OLED ever as it makes do with a WOLED panel, but it still delivers all the wonderful qualities inherent to OLED, namely deep blacks and excellent contrast.
Admittedly, it's not a huge upgrade over the previous LG B4 OLED, but considering that screen is no longer available, the B5 is more than happy to take its place. Once again, LG has integrated four HDMI 2.1 inputs with 4K 120Hz support, making it just as capable from a hardware perspective for gamers as higher-end screens (and, in many cases, surpasses more expensive models that only get two HDMI 2.1 ports). And while it doesn't get any significant brightness boost over its predecessor, it does gain a new processor which ushers in a number of overall picture improvements.
All four HDMI inputs also support VRR (with Nvidia G-Sync and AMD FreeSync) and 4K Dolby Vision gaming. LG's gaming menu makes an appearance once again too, making it easy to tweak settings as needed to and you can even choose a preset depending on game genre.
Response time is very low at 9.1ms with Boost turned on, and it'll auto switch to gaming mode when it detects you've fired up a console.
For movies and TV, it's great there too – it has a less advanced image processor than the C5, but it's still great for a mid-range TV. Vivid colours, deep black levels and excellent motion handling make the B5 a winner when it comes to picture quality. The audio isn't that impressive, but we can live with that, especially if using a gaming headset.
Read our full LG B5 review
The best OLED gaming TV for brightness
The LG G5 features LG's latest OLED panel tech, known as a Primary Tandem RGB OLED (or four-stack), helping it to deliver stunningly high brightness levels for OLED (the brightest we've measured so far). When combined with the G5's full array of gaming features, it's the ideal TV for those who want OLED gaming in bright rooms.
As with LG's other OLED TVs, the G5 is equipped with four HDMI 2.1 ports, all of which support 4K 165Hz, VRR (including AMD FreeSync Premium and Nvidia GSync formats) Dolby Vision gaming and ALLM, meaning it covers every base. Combine this with its ultra-responsive performance (and low 9.1ms input lag time) and you get a superb OLED for gaming.
We measured the G5's peak brightness at 2,268 nits and fullscreen brightness at 331 nits (both in Filmmaker Mode), making it the brightest OLED we've tested so far. Its high brightness lets it be used in brighter viewing environments while maintaining accurate colour, black levels and contrast. To some, it could just be the perfect TV.
The flagship G5 is undoubtedly a pricey, premium OLED TV. While there are better-priced mid-range options, such as the LG C4 at the top of this list, when it comes to bright room gaming, there aren't any better OLED TVs than the G5.
Read our full LG G5 review
Best gaming TVs: FAQs
What makes a quality gaming TV?
If you’re seeing terms like Variable Refresh Rates, Auto Low Latency Mode and HDMI 2.1, you’d be forgiven for wondering just what it all means. So to help you better understand what it is and why it matters when selecting a gaming TV, we’ve defined the relevant terms for you below:
Frames per second (FPS):
Video as a technology works through the capture and display of still images at various rates per second, with frame rates, or FPS, a measure of how many times the image is updated each second on screen. As a general rule, the greater the FPS, the smoother a game will play. But not every TV is able to match the FPS your console or PC may be able to generate, making understanding them particularly important when it comes to gaming. It is also important to note that frame rates are not the same as refresh rates, which we’ll explore below.
Variable Refresh Rate (VRR):
Before the days of variable refresh rates, games were usually locked at a maximum of 60Hz - or the equivalent of 60 FPS. That not only hindered the performance capabilities of your gaming machine, which may well be powerful enough to reach much frame rates than 60, but it also meant the image itself might occasionally show glitches known as ‘tearing’ as the console and TV struggled to sync the signal.
VRR came first to the PC, where it’s known as G-Sync (Nvidia’s tech), or Adaptive Sync (an open standard which AMD also brands as ‘FreeSync). It allows the output of the console - which can vary immensely, often dipping down to below 60 FPS, and as high as a few hundred FPS - to be matched exactly by the TV. So - every single frame your console generates is displayed at that same moment on your TV, instead of being forced into 60 FPS on the TV, which results in the aforementioned glitching.
If your TV has VRR, it may well be marketed as AdaptiveSync, FreeSync, or even G-Sync. If you have any of these you’re good to go, and just need to make sure this feature is enabled on your TV’s menu (usually in Game Mode).
The end result is gaming that’s buttery smooth even during fast-paced movement, free of graphical glitches, and is much less likely to induce motion sickness.
Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM):
The moment you press a button on your pad, or turn the wheel of your sim car, or make any input - that signal has to travel from the controller to the TV, be processed by the TV, and translated to a response on-screen. That delay (which we call lag, or latency) is tiny - a few dozen milliseconds at most - but it’s enough to sometimes make you feel an odd disconnect with the game and what you’re doing.
ALLM solves that by automatically switching to a low-latency mode when gaming where the lag is reduced to an absolute minimum, making you feel more in control, and the gaming experience more natural.
The fancy name obscures what is actually just a feature indicating that your TV has the ability to recognise when it’s being asked to pair up with a gaming console and adapt its output to the demands of gaming and ensure best possible performance.
High Dynamic Range (HDR):
Believe it or not, there is a whole new world of colours and colour variations beyond the colours of the rainbow, with variations of white (light) and black (darkness) being relevant to video content including video games. HDR is simply an indication that a TV boasts the ability to display a wider range of colours and shades, allowing it to display your games at their best through clearer, more dynamic colours and brightnesses as well as deeper shadows.
The two most common HDR formats are either HDR10 or HDR10+, with HDR10+ considered to be the superior of the two as its name would suggest.
If your game supports HDR, and it will need to, then your HDR-capable TV will look absolutely gorgeous, with sunlight so bright you almost feel your eyes burn, and colours so rich and beautiful the game world becomes stunningly real.
HDMI 2.1:
HDMI is simply the designation for the connection technology responsible for transmitting from Point A (your console) to Point B (your TV), with this HDMI technology offering superior integration with VRR, ALLM and the frame rate demands of your favourite video games.
2.1 is the very latest HDMI standard, and it allows higher resolutions at higher frame rates, with HDMI 2.1 able to display a 4K picture at over 60Hz. HDMI 2.1 is a very new standard, and it’s only starting to appear on devices now. Much more common is the older HDMI 1.4a standard, which limits 4K gaming to just 30Hz (or FPS). So, getting a TV for gaming with HDMI 2.1 is an absolute must. Note you will need an HDMI 2.1 compatible cable for the magic to happen, and your console or PC must also be able to output a HDMI 2.1 signal.
Do I need an 8K gaming TV?
On paper, 8K sounds pretty good, and with the power of the latest games consoles surely they must demand the latest resolution technology, right? Not quite. While the PS5 and Xbox Series X do have compatibility support with 8K and the power to output 8K content built-in, neither demand this resolution. In fact, game developers themselves generally aren’t working with 8K resolution in mind.
By all means, in 3-4 years time we could be seeing games demanding 8K, but it’s very much a non-essential right now that you’d be paying more for unnecessarily.
New gaming TVs for 2026
At CES 2026, several brands will be revealing their TV lineups for 2026 and among them were a few TVs that may well make their way onto this list, either alongside or replacing their predecessors.
From Samsung, we have the Samsung S95H, its flagship 2026 OLED and successor to the Samsung S95F. It promises to be 35% brighter than the model it replaces, along with a new metal frame around the bezel for a more premium look. The headline change, however, is that physical connections are returning the rear of the screen, and it won't use the One Connect box by default.
You'll be able to buy one separately, however, and in doing so, you can double the number of usable HDMI ports from 4, to 8!.
Also from Samsung is the Samsung QN90H, the successor to the best TV for bright rooms on this list, the Samsung QN90H. The QN90H will be available in a huge 115-inch guise.
The LG C6, the successor to the LG C5 that sits at the top of this list, gets some interesting upgrades. Firstly, it will be available in two versions: the C6 and C6H. The latter model, the C6H, will get the same Primary RGB Tandem 2.0 panel that's also being used in the flagship G6, which should result in a huge upgrade over the C5 it replaces. The only downside is that this panel will only be used in the 77-inch and 83-inch sizes, which will likely mean a premium price tag.
The main thing to note about the C6H is that it doesn't have as good an anti-reflection coating as the LG G6, despite having the same core OLED panel. It and the regular C6 will be on par in this regard.
The regular LG C6 will use the same kind of panel as the LG C5, and comes in 42-inch, 48-inch, 55-inch and 65-inch sizes. So these will all be less bright and rich than the C6H's sizes – and it's worth mentioning here that the 42-inch and 48-inch sizes are also less bright than the other sizes, due to how tightly the pixels are packed together. So really there are three tiers of LG C6 brightness variations, but only two model names.
As for the flagship G6, that too will get the Primary RGB Tandem 2.0 panel – an upgrade on the panel used in the current LG G5. This is said to usher in upgrades including Hyper Radiant Color technology, which, according to LG, extends the brightness benefits of its Primary RGB Tandem panel to other picture quality factors such as color and contrast.
LG’s specs for the new G6 include a Brightness Booster Ultra feature that will provide a 20% brightness increase over the G5. Reflection Free Premium tech will enable the G6 to deliver “perfect black’ in light or dark viewing conditions, with lower than 0.5% screen reflectance.
How we test the best gaming TVs
Read the specs and marketing claims of TV makers and they often over promise on what the TV can really do. That's why we've extensively tested all of the best gaming TVs in this list to ensure they work well and deliver on their next-gen gaming specs.
What that means is we'll publish the official specs from the TV manufacturer, like the input lag or refresh rates on offer, then tell you ourselves whether the TV lived up to them in practice.
To do this, we tend to review TVs with a range of different content. Of course, next-gen gaming takes priority in this guide, but we imagine you'll also want to know what movies and TV shows are like to watch as well.
That means as well as testing for all of the key specs you need in a gaming TV, like refresh rates and HDMI connections, we're also looking for good picture quality, vibrant colours and viewing angles to suit all kinds of rooms.
Sound is less of a priority with most gaming TVs as you'll get the best experience from gaming headphones or a soundbar, but it's always good to know you'll get a decent built-in experience. Which is why we've also detailed what it was like to listen to these TVs without additional devices, too.
As we've reviewed many TVs over the years – and many of the best gaming TVs – all of our testing isn't done in isolation, but takes into account the performance and specs of every TV that's come before it.
You can read about how we test, review and rate any product on TechRadar if you'd like to know more.
