You'll be pleased to hear that for under £1,000, you can get some excellent TVs, ranging from QLED to mini-LED and even OLED, all in a variety of sizes as well. Whether it's the marvellous Samsung Q80C, a QLED master, or a mid-range OLED such as the LG C3, just because you're not getting the most expensive set doesn't mean you should settle for less. In this guide, we'll tell you how to maximise your budget.
Matt Bolton, Managing Editor – Entertainment
Look at the best TVs for under £1000 in our guide below and you’ll see that you don’t need to spend a fortune in order to upgrade your at-home viewing experience. Yes, there are many great, high-end TVs that are available for much more than a grand, but this is still a realistic price limit to set for the majority of people. With that amount you’ll still be able to bask in the warm glow of a new TV in your living room without breaking the bank.
Many of the best TVs under £1000 we’ve selected in our list also feature in our best TVs guide, as well as our best gaming TVs guide, proving you can get a lot for your money these days. It’s strange to think that, not that long ago, there weren’t any OLED TVs at all in this guide, but now a few of the best OLED TVs are cheap enough to meet our criteria.
Over the years, we’ve reviewed hundreds of TVs and we know exactly what to look our for. For example, not every mid- or lower-range screen offers the same level of HDR performance, image processing is often the first aspect of a screen to be compromised, and there could be huge discrepancies in audio performance to consider when you’re looking for a bargain, too.
Take a look at our guide below where we’ve detailed all of the specs and key things to consider when you’re on the hunt for a cheaper TV that’s under £1000. If you’re on a tight budget, you should also read our best TVs under £500 guide.
The best TVs under £1000 for 2024
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The best TV for under £1000 for most people
The Samsung Q80C sits firmly in the middle of Samsung's TV range but has one of the highest spec lists of QLED TVs. The Q80C demonstrates excellent bang for your buck, as it has a seriously good QLED picture. It also has a stacked suite of gaming features that will please both movie fans and gamers.
Sharpness, detail, bold colors, excellent lighting control and high brightness for a QLED screen are just some of the things we noticed about the Q80C's picture during testing. We said in our review that areas with dark tones "are capable of appearing with convincingly rich and deep black tones, even when they’re sharing the screen with fairly bright highlights" showcasing the Q80C's superb contrast, handled brilliantly by the QLED panel's lighting control.
The Q80C is surprisingly very gamer friendly at this price range as well, with a low 9.7ms input lag time, 4K 120Hz and VRR (including FreeSync Premium) on four HDMI 2.1 ports that is sure to please any gamer, especially those with more than one next-gen console.
The Q80C is the top of this list because not only does it offer everything we've mentioned above, but it does it all for an excellent value price, with the 55-inch available, at the time of writing, for an average price of £799. It's likely as the months go on that the 65-inch, priced at £1,099, will also drop below that £1,000 price point as well.
Read our full Samsung Q80C review
The best budget TV for under £1,000
If you're on a strict budget, the Amazon Fire TV Omni QLED is the ideal TV if you want a lot for your money. It has a colorful QLED picture with good HDR support, a few welcome gaming features and is decent in other areas but most importantly, it does all this for a superb price, with the largest 65-inch size also available for under £1,000 (and it's frequently on sale).
The picture of the Omni QLED is better than you would expect from a budget set. It's QLED screen isn't the brightest, with measured peak brightness levels at 531 nits, but colors still carry a vivid, punchy look and textures are detailed yet subtle. Black tones on the Omni QLED are middling and contrast isn't wholly accurate, but what the Omni QLED does as a budget set is still impressive.
Other features on the Omni QLED include Dolby Vision gaming, VRR and ALLM for gamers, hands-free control with Alexa and an Ambient Art mode. The Omni QLED may not be the best in any area, but what it does carry for its price will suit a lot of people who are on a lower budget.
Read our Amazon Fire TV Omni QLED review
The best OLED TV for under £1,000
It's not often you can get an OLED of this quality for under £1,000, but LG's OLEDs prices often fall after release and the mid-range LG C3 is no exception. You'll have to pay more for its larger sizes, as you can only get it in its 42 and 48-inch size for under £1,000, but you'll still be getting a fantastic picture and gaming performance in a nicely packaged TV.
Picture is punchy and dynamic on the C3, particularly when it's given HDR sources. During our testing, we viewed a Dolby Vision HDR scene from Elvis and said that "the stage lights in the background popped in a dramatic manner and I could easily see the detail in Elvis’s black outfit". Textures and contrast are indeed two other real highlights in the C3's picture, showcasing what an OLED screen can do. The C3 isn't as bright as other OLEDs, with the Samsung S90C and more premium LG G3 beating it, but you'll have to pay a lot more than £1,000 for these TVs.
The C3 also comes with a fairly full list of gaming features, including VRR, ALLM, 4K 120Hz, AMD FreeSync Premium all across its four HDMI 2.1 ports. Its performance is also phenomenal as we measured its input lag time at 9.2ms (in the Game Optimizer Boost Mode), which is sure to please competitive gamers.
Although it is only at smaller sizes, it's great that you can experience an OLED TV in this all important price range of under £1,000, especially one that performs well and ticks the majority of boxes.
Read more LG C3 review
The best mini-LED TV for under £1,000
The Hisense U8K provides unparalleled value. It has a mini-LED panel that makes short work of bright rooms, a brilliant picture and lots of gaming features, all for a budget friendly price.
The U8K's mini-LED panel and anti-glare coating enable it to thrive in bright rooms, which is perfect for sport viewing. We measured its peak brightness at 1,590 nits, which is more than enough to handle reflections when combined with all the other elements of its panel. But, the U8K also maintains excellent black levels that will keep movie fans happy as well. Contrast does fade when viewed from an angle, but it's hard to argue against the picture quality of the U8K at this price.
Gaming is also well catered for in the U8K, with Dolby Vision and 4K 144Hz support. It also has ALLM and VRR compatibility, alongside AMD FreeSync Premium Pro. This is a great suite of gaming features in a budget mini-LED and although it is limited to two HDMI 2.1 ports, it's welcome to see them at all.
The U8K isn't the most remarkable TV on the market, as there are more premium mini-LEDs and OLEDs available, but it does offer a great mini-LED package in its 55-inch model for under £1,000. We just don't think it's quite as good value as the Samsung Q80C.
Read the full Hisense U8K review
The best small mini-LED for under £1,000
The Samsung QN90C offers mini-LED tech in a smaller 43-inch, and sometimes 50-inch, size for those looking for something brighter than the LG C3 or Samsung Q80C. The anti-glare screen and high brightness are well suited to brighter viewing environments where natural light is an issue. It also has a lot of gaming features which gamers will be excited about as well.
Brightness is definitely one of the strongest aspects of the QN90C's picture – we measured peak brightness on the 65-inch model we tested at 1,787 nits – but it also maintains a rich contrast and deep black levels. It's also very good at showing a sharp, detailed picture that doesn't feel over-processed. The QN90C does suffer from some backlight blooming, but generally its picture is strong across the board.
The QN90C also serves as an excellent gaming TV that's full of features. It has four stocked HDMI 2.1 ports with VRR, ALLM and 4K 120Hz support. Samsung's Game Hub also collects popular cloud gaming apps such as Xbox and Amazon Luna for even more gaming options.
Sadly, the QN90C does lack Dolby Vision HDR support for both gaming and movies and its built-in speakers do lack bass, but overall it is a terrific option for those looking for a smaller mini-LED TV.
Read our full Samsung QN90C review
Best TVs under £1000 – FAQ's
How to choose the best TV under £1000 for you
Finding the best TV under £1000 that's right for you might seem simple. You just pick the one that's cheapest, right? That's not how it works. We've had a lot of experience testing TVs over the years and we can tell you that there's much more to it than finding a bargain.
To pick the best TV that's under £1000 if you're on a budget, you'll need to consider a few things. The first is whether you're looking for a certain kind of panel technology, like OLED or QLED. Take a look at our what is OLED and what is QLED guides to find out more. There was a time when you couldn't pick up a good OLED TV for under £1000, but as tech progresses, prices drop. That's why you'll find a few fantastic sub-£1000 OLED TVs in our guide above.
The next consideration is size. As you'll see from this list, to get a great quality TV for under £1000 you often have to sacrifice on size. Maybe this isn't a big deal because you don't have much space anyway. But if you were hoping to fill a large wall with a new screen you may have to compromise on features so you can go big on size.
Also consider what you'll be using the TV for. If you're paying less than £1000 there won't be many TVs that are fantastic all-rounders, serving up features for sports, movies, gaming and low brightness. You'll have to prioritise and consider how you'll be using your TV and what you'll predominantly be watching on it.
There's more to consider, but being wary of TV tech, size and your personal preferences will give you a great start on your mission to find the best TV under £1000 that'll suit you and your home.
Which TV brand is best value for money?
There are plenty of budget TV brands, but the TV brand that's best value for money is more often than not one of the high-end names, like Samsung, Sony, LG or Hisense.
In the guide above, we've included some of the smaller or entry-level options from these brands because we think they're fantastic value for money and you can pick one up for under £1000.
If you have a budget that's less than £1000 you might have trouble finding a TV from one of these brands, in which case some of the budget options from brands like Cello and Toshiba are still solid choices.
Is OLED better than LED?
There are so many TV tech terms to learn these days that it can be hard to keep up. But the basics between OLED and LED are that OLED TVs have individual pictures that receive power and luminance. Whereas LED TVs have persistent pixels that require an external light source.
As a general rule, OLED is better than LED. But there are exceptions. Due to the way the tech works, OLED tends to outperform LED when it comes to colour, response time, black levels and refresh rate, but LED tends to do well in terms of brightness, viewing angles and price.
It all depends on the kind of TV you're looking for and how far your budget can stretch.
How we test the best TVs under £1000
We weren't simply looking for TVs under £1000 for this guide, we wanted those that we feel are truly the best, offering excellent value for money.
We've tested hundreds of TVs over the years and we're looking for excellent picture, high brightness, high colour accuracy, good response time and refresh rate, versatile viewing angles and smart features at a price that's in keeping with the rest of the market.
Of course, we also consider specifics too, like gaming features and audio quality, but that's often the case when we're recommending TVs for a specific purpose. For this best TVs under £1000 guide it was all about getting the most for your money when your budget doesn't stretch that far.
We put all of the TVs in this guide through their paces to make sure we weren't suggesting these displays because they're cheap but because you can afford them and you'll still get a solid performance that should suit most homes.
Latest updates to this guide
February 7, 2024
Removed Hisense U8H, LG C2, Samsung BU8500, Sony X90K, Samsung Q80B, Samsung AU9000 and LG A2 due to limited stock levels. Replaced these with the Samsung Q80C, Hisense U8K, Amazon Fire TV Omni QLED, Samsung QN90C and LG C3.
