You finally managed to buy all the components for your new gaming rig including a new graphics card for which you probably paid two or 2x or 3x the MSRP. Well, now it’s time to complete your rig with one of the best gaming monitors. Luckily, there’s no shortage of gaming monitors on the market, so you have the liberty to pick up the one you want based on the GPU you just bought. After all, it’s the graphics card that tells you what kind of gaming monitor is worth buying.
There are a few things to consider while shopping for gaming monitors. The one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t work here, sadly, because each user has a different preference. While some users want a high-refresh-rate panel, others may want to buy a high-resolution monitor for 4K gaming. And then there are people who give more importance to extra technologies like HDMI 2.1 bandwidth too. Keeping all that in mind, here’s our list of the best gaming monitors you can buy right now. It doesn’t include all the available options on the market but these are the ones we think are worth considering in 2022.
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- Best overall gaming monitor: Samsung Odyssey G7
- Best 1440p gaming monitor: ViewSonic Elite XG270QG
- Best 4K gaming monitor: LG UltraGear 27GN950
- Best budget gaming monitor: MSI Optix G24C4 FHD
- Best high refresh-rate Esports gaming monitor: MSI Oculux NXG253R
- Best ultra-wide gaming monitor: ASUS ROG Strix XG49VQ
- Best big-sized gaming monitor: Gigabyte Aorus FV43U
- Best gaming monitor with HDMI 2.1: Acer Nitro XV282K
Best overall gaming monitor: Samsung Odyssey G7
While 4K gaming is no longer a distant dream for gamers, it’s safe to say that the majority are still leaning towards 1440p gaming. There are a ton of great 1440p gaming monitors out there that’ll serve you well without costing too much money. That being said, there are only a few that checks all the right boxes to deliver a good gaming experience. Well, the Samsung Odyssey G7 curved gaming monitor is one of those products and it’s our pick for the best overall gaming monitor you can buy in 2022.
In terms of specifications, the Samsung Odyssey G7 sports a 27-inch curved VA panel with a maximum resolution of 2,560 x 1,440. It supports up to 240Hz refresh rate and has a 1ms response time, which is amongst the fastest we’ve seen. This particular panel peaks at 350 nits brightness and has a 2,500:1 contrast ratio. The Odyssey G7, as you can see, is quite good on paper. This monitor is a great option for those who want a high-resolution panel and also those who like a high refresh rate. It essentially offers the best of both worlds, so what’s not to like?
One thing that’s worth pointing out about this monitor, however, is the fact that it has a 1000R curved display. This essentially means the monitor has a high curvature which may take some time to get used to. If you are someone who’s coming from a flat panel then a monitor with something like 1500R or 1800R will be easier. That being said, the Odyssey G7 will allow you to get more immersed into the games that you play thanks to that curved.
The overall build quality of the Samsung Odyssey G7 is also among the best. In fact, this is one of the most stylish-looking monitors that we’ve seen in a while. It sports an LED ring light at the back along with a sturdy stand that’s capable of supporting the monitor well. As for the ports, you get an HDMI 2.0 port, two DisplayPort, a single 3.5mm headphone jack output, and three USB 2.0 ports. Some other noteworthy features of the Odyssey G7 curved gaming monitor include HDR support, adaptive sync, and compatibility for both Nvidia G-Sync and AMD FreeSync for a tear-free gaming experience.
All things considered, this is one of the best gaming monitors on the market right now. The Odyssey G7, as we mentioned earlier, offers the best of both worlds — a fast 240Hz display with 1ms response time and a high-resolution 1440p display. The overall picture quality of the monitor is also great, be it for gaming, media consumption, or just for day-to-day workloads. Samsung also sells a 32-inch version of the Odyssey G7, which is also equally good, if not better. You might want to check it out if you like having bigger displays on your setup. The 27-inch panel, however, is the one we think that most should buy. It’s a solid 1440p gaming monitor for $700.
- The Samsung Odyssey G7 curved gaming monitor is an excellent choice that offers the best of both worlds - a 240Hz 1440p panel with a 1ms response time.
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Best 1440p gaming monitor: ViewSonic Elite XG270QG
While the Samsung Odyssey G7 curved gaming monitor has a great 1440p panel, we wanted to add a non-curved option for those who prefer flat panels. As such, we’ve picked the ViewSonic Elite XG270QG has the best 1440p gaming monitor you can buy on the market right now. This one has a 27-inch 1440p display with support for up to a 165Hz refresh rate. It’s a great 1440p panel that also has quite a bit of personality to it.
The ViewSonic Elite XG270QG features a 27-inch IPS display with a maximum resolution of 2,560 x 1,440. It has what Viewsonic calls a “borderless” design but it’s not technically edge-to-edge as we’ve seen on a lot of monitors. In fact, there’s a sizable bezel on the bottom with the text “Elite” to represent the series. This particular monitor has received rave reviews from a lot of enthusiasts for both its color accuracy and response time. This monitor covers 100-percent of the DCI-P3 space and up to 89-percent of the Adobe RGB space.
The ViewSonic Elite XG270QG also happens to be one of the fastest displays around with support for up to 165Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time. This is a great option to consider if you’re into multiplayer FPS titles like Apex Legends, Valorant, CS:GO, and more. Sure, it’s not particularly easy to buy GPUs right now, but you won’t necessarily need a very demanding GPU to push games at 1440p at high frame rates, especially the ones we’ve mentioned above.
The overall build quality of the ELite XG270QG is great. It’s got an all-black body with quite a bit of RGB lighting. There’s lighting at the back of the display that throws a shade of light on the wall behind the monitor. You’ll also find more lights at the bottom of the panel next to the buttons. These lights can be programmed to show either static or other effects based on your mood. You also get two flexible mouse bungees. As for the port selection, the ViewSonic Elite XG270QG is equipped with one HDMI 2.0 port and one DisplayPort 1.4b port. Additionally, you also get three USB 3.0 ports and a single USB Type-B upstream port for connecting the monitor to your PC.
The panel quality is also among the best and we think it’s great for gaming as well as media consumption. It’s also a fantastic display to be used to get through your day-to-day workloads, so a great monitor overall. This particular monitor is available for $600 right now, which is a pretty good price for the kind of feature it brings to the table. We’ll soon be reviewing this monitor at XDA, so we’ll update this space with more inputs from our testing process soon. In the meantime, you can hit the link below to find the best price for this monitor in case you’re interested in buying it right now. We think it’s a great 1440p non-curved alternative to the Odyssey G7 monitor that we’ve mentioned above.
- The Viewsonic Elite XG270Q is a great 1440p gaming monitor with support for up to 165Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time.
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Best 4K gaming monitor: LG UltraGear 27GN950
Powerful new graphics cards like the RTX 3080 and the Radeon RX 6800 XT have enabled 4K gaming for a lot of users. Sure, these GPUs aren’t readily available on the market right now, but there’s no denying that they’re incredibly powerful and deliver a great 4K gaming experience. If you have one of these powerful GPUs which you are looking to pair with a high-end 4K display, then we recommend picking up the LG ULtraGear 27GN950 monitor.
The LG UltraGear 27GN950 has already made it to a couple of best gaming monitors collections, so it’s hardly a surprise that we’ve added it to our collection of the best gaming monitors too. It sports a 27-inch UHD panel with support for up to 144Hz refresh rate. We’re looking at a maximum resolution of 3,840 x 2,160 for this NanoIPS panel and it’s got a 1ms response time too. It peaks at 400 nits of brightness and has a 100:1 contrast ratio.
On paper, as you can see, it’s hard to beat the LG UltraGear 27GN950. It’s a fully kitted display that offers plenty of great features. It also supports HDR which is great for playing some of the best AAA titles. You also both Nvidia’s G-Sync and AMD’s FreeSync adaptive refresh, making it a great all-rounder. The LG UltraGear 27GN950 shines in the design and build quality department too. There are slim bezels around the panel, giving it a very modern look. You also get a good quality stand that keeps this thing nice and sturdy on the desk. LG has also added some lighting at the back but it isn’t too obnoxious. You can customize this “Sphere Lighting”, so that’s great too.
In terms of the port selection, you get two HDMI 2.0 ports along with a single DisplayPort 1.4 as part of the essentials. The overall panel quality is also great and it’s gotten some really good reviews overall in the community. The gaming experience is also going to be just as good thanks to the 144Hz refresh rate support. You’ll definitely need a powerful GPU to push games at 4K, though. Unlike 1440p resolution, not many GPUs are capable of running a lot of games at 4K. Even the less demanding titles like Valorant, for instance, will demand a lot of GPU power to push 4K at 144Hz, so keep that in mind.
If you don’t have a powerful GPU then we think you’d be better off sticking to 1440p or even a 1080p monitor, for that matter. There are plenty of great options to choose from, so be sure to go through this entire list to find your pick. It goes without saying that the LG UltraGear 27GN950 is also an expensive gaming monitor coming in at $800. You are getting a super high-resolution display with support for a 144Hz refresh rate, after all. It’s not the most expensive out there, but we think $800 is a lot for most people. That being said, it can’t better than this when it comes to 4K gaming monitors.
- The LG UltraGear 27GN950-B is one of the best 4K gaming monitors out there with a good mix of features and a super fast, high-resolution panel.
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Best budget gaming monitor: MSI Optix G24C4
1080p (FHD) is still the preferred resolution for a lot of gamers which we why we also wanted to add a good 1080p monitor to this collection. You’ll find a lot of 1080p monitors on the market but we think the MSI Optix G24C4 is a good option to consider. This particular monitor only has a 24-inch display but we think that’s the sweet spot for 1080p resolution. You can also find a lot of 27-inch or even 32-inch 1080p monitors but the resolution is a bit too low for the 27-inch form factor.
The MSI Optix G24C4 has a fairly simple design. It’s mainly made out of plastic but it has thin bezels surrounding the display. The stand also looks very sturdy and it does a great job of holding the monitor steadily on the surface. It doesn’t offer a lot of adjustment options, though. You can only tilt the monitor’s vertical angle and that’s about it.
The MSI Optix G24C4 sports a 24-inch curved VA panel with a maximum resolution of 1920 x 1080. It also offers support for up to 144Hz refresh rate and has a 1ms response time. This MSI monitor peaks at 250 nits of brightness with a 3000:1 contrast ratio. This one has a curved panel but the curvature is rather subtle, which is good for those who are coming from a flat panel. We’re looking at 1500R curvature, so it’s going to be less noticeable than the Samsung Odyssey G7’s 1000R curvature panel.
The overall picture quality of this display is also pretty good. It covers up to 100-percent of the sRGB color space and up to 88-percent of the DCI-P3 space. The support for up to 144Hz refresh rate means it’s a good option for those looking to dive into some multiplayer FPS titles. There are also plenty of graphics cards out there that can easily push games at 1080p resolution, which is also why this is the preferred resolution for most gamers. Even the budget GPUs like the Nvidia RTX 3050 and the Radeon RX 6500 XT can run a lot of demanding titles at 1080p.
In terms of connectivity, the MSI Optix G24C4 has a single DisplayPort 1.2 port and two HDMI 1.4 ports. You don’t get built-in speakers on this monitor but it comes with an audio jack. All things considered, we think the MSI Optix G24C4 is a great budget gaming monitor that offers a lot of good features at this price point. You can pick up this particular monitor for just around $180 right now, making it the most affordable gaming monitor in this collection.
The MSI Optix G24C4 is not without its caveats but it’s still a lot better than many options in this price range. It would’ve been nice to have more connectivity options and more adjustment options for the monitor, but it makes for it in the picture quality and the performance department.
- The MSI G24C4 is a reliable budget gaming monitor that offers a good set of features for the price. It only has a 24-inch display but we think it's the sweet spot for 1080p.
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Best high refresh-rate Esports gaming monitor: MSI Oculux NXG253R
There are plenty of high refresh rate gaming monitors on the market but the MSI Oculux NXG253R holds a special spot in many collections when it comes to the best gaming monitors. That’s because this gaming monitor sports a 360Hz IPS display. It’s also a G-Sync compatible panel with rapid response times. This monitor is preferred by a lot of Esports professionals who prefer high refresh-rate monitors for playing competitively.
The MSI Oculux NXG253R has a 24.5-inch 1080p monitor which means it has a maximum resolution of 1,920 x 1,080 only. It’s not as sharp as many other monitors mentioned in this collection, but that’s not even the selling point for this piece. It manages to get attention with its 360Hz fast IPS panel. Playing multiplayer Esports games like CS:GO and Valorant will be a treat on this monitor. You won’t need a very powerful GPU to push such high frame rates in these games. Even a decent 1080p or 1440p budget GPU can easily push upwards of 300FPS in games like Valorant.
This isn’t the only monitor to have such a high refresh rate panel. But MSI has managed to deliver a good overall experience thanks to good build quality and a decent set of features. You can use the MSI Oculux NXG253R in both portrait and landscape orientations which also makes it a pretty versatile option. It also offers good tile adjustment for those who need it. There’s very little in the name of RGB lighting on this monitor as we only a small strip of light between the text G-Sync 360 and MSI, separating the two. In terms of the ports, the MSI Oculux NXG253R features two HDMI 2.0 ports and a DisplayPort 1.4b input. This is in addition to the 3.5mm audio port and the USB-A 3.2 upstream port.
This MSI monitor has also received pretty decent reviews from a lot of enthusiasts in the community. The overall panel quality of the MSI Oculux NXG253R is on-par with a lot of other high-end panels on the market. The gaming experience is also going to be great. You can obviously play all kinds of games you want on this monitor but it’s going to really shine in Esports titles in which having a faster display matters a lot.
All things considered, we think the MSI Oculux NXG253R is a great monitor overall. This is a perfect monitor for somebody who likes to play a lot of competitive FPS games online. Having a high-refresh panel is great but playing games on a super smooth 360Hz gaming monitor is going to be really great experience. Despite being a 1080p monitor, however, the MSI Oculux NXG253R costs as much as $600. That makes it one of the most expensive 1080p gaming monitors on the market right now, if not the most. You are paying a premium price here mainly for the high refresh rate panel, so keep that in mind. If that’s not something you’re after then we think you are better off buying a budget, 1080p monitor. This one is usually available at discounted prices though, so be sure to check the link below.
- The MSI Oculux NXG253R is one of the best Esports gaming monitors out there with a 1080p 360Hz display fast IPS display.
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Best ultra-wide gaming monitor: ASUS ROG Strix XG49VQ
Ultrawide monitors have a special place in the community. They’re obviously not for everyone these ultrawide displays are preferred by those who want to replace their dual monitor setup with a single, seamless display on their desk for a minimal overall look. There are plenty of ultrawide monitors on the market but we think the ASUS ROG Strix XG49VQ is a good place to start for those who are moving from a standard monitor. It’s not as expensive as many other ultrawide monitors on the market.
The ASUS ROG Strix XG49VQ sports a 49-inch panel with a maximum resolution of 3840×1080. It’s a 144Hz VA panel with a 4ms response time. As you can tell, this is a great gaming monitor that can be used with both PC as well as gaming consoles. As is the case with every other ultrawide gaming monitor, this is a curved screen so you may have to get used to it if you are coming from a normal display. We’re looking at a 32:9 aspect ratio, so you know exactly what to expect from this panel.
The ASUS ROG Strix XG49VQ is also said to have a pretty good image quality. It has DisplayHDR 400 and features like Shadow Boost for enhancing details in darker areas. For gaming enthusiasts, the Strix XG49VQ offers 144Hz refresh rate support with FreeSync. The overall gaming performance of the panel is known to be pretty good and it offers a great level of immersion. An ultrawide monitor like this is perfect for those who want to experience simulations. Titles like Microsoft Flight Simulator are going to look great on an ultrawide monitor.
In terms of the ports, we’re looking at one DisplayPort and two HDMI ports along with a 3.5mm audio port. Additionally, you also get three USB ports for connecting other stuff. This particular monitor has a built-in speaker, which is a good touch. We know a lot of people don’t like using built-in monitor speakers but they’re ready to go if/when you need them. It goes without saying that you will need a pretty powerful system to push games that will fully cover the display. We’re looking at more screen real-estate which means your system will essentially be pushing more pixels.
And in case you are wondering, this monitor also supports the next-generation consoles. However, you will only be able to push them till 1080p @ 120Hz. Overall, we think the ASUS ROG Strix XG49VQ is a great ultrawide monitor that’s worth considering. You also choose more expensive options including the Samsung Odyssey Neo G9 but this ROG Strix option stands as a good option for many who are coming from a regular panel. Coming in at under $800, it’s not the most affordable gaming monitor out there, but it’s definitely not as expensive as a lot of other options either. Besides that, this one also tends to be available at discounted prices so be sure to hit the link below and see if you can grab it at a discount.
- The ASUS ROG XG49VQ is a good ultrawide monitor option and it acts as a good entry point for those who are coming from a standard monitor setup.
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Best big-sized gaming monitor: Gigabyte Aorus FV43U
While most people don’t prefer buying monitors bigger than 32-inch, we know there are people who like to have a big-sized monitor in their gaming setups. If you are one of them, then we think you’d be interested in checking out the Gigabyte Aorus FV43U. This monitor is essentially a TV replacement for many as it packs a massive 43-inch panel.
A 43-inch panel may sound too big for a monitor but we think it hits the sweet spot when it comes to the big-sized gaming monitor. We think this one is large enough to sit close to it and enjoy the content or play games. It also has a good amount of height thanks to the 16:9 aspect ratio. If you are on the look for a jumbo-sized gaming monitor, then we think the Gigabyte Aorus FV43U is a solid option to consider.
The Gigabyte Aorus FV43U comes with a 43-inch VA panel with edge array lighting. It’s to a 16:9 aspect ratio, as we just mentioned, and it has a maximum resolution of 3840×2160. This particular panel also supports a 144Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time, which means it’s great for gaming. In addition to that, the Gigabyte Aorus FV43U also has support for FreeSync, thereby enhancing your gaming experience further.
In terms of the image quality, the Gigabyte Aorus FV43U handles things very well too. It offers 1,000 nits of brightness and a 4000:1 contrast ratio. This makes it better than a lot of options mentioned in this collection. It also comes with support for DisplayHDR 1000 and HDR10 certification. Those who are looking to use this monitor with the next-generation consoles including Xbox Series X, S, and PS5 will also have a great time as it sports HDMI 2.1 ports. We’re also adding a dedicated monitor listing that comes with HDMI 2.1 port right after, but it’s safe to say that the Gigabyte Aorus FV43U is a solid option too.
Speaking of ports, the Gigabyte Aorus FV43U monitor has a single DisplayPort 1.4 port, two HDMI 2.1 ports, a USB-C port a couple of USB 3.0 ports, and a 3.5mm jack. You also get an IR remote with this particular monitor, so it’s safe to say that it also doubles up as a TV in your gaming room. Another good thing about the Gigabyte Aorus FV43U is that it also comes with HDMI, DisplayPort, and USB-C cables. It isn’t unusual for monitors to come with cables but a lot of manufacturers tend to miss out on that.
There’s not much to talk about the overall design and the build quality of the Gigabyte Aorus FV43U too. It has standard bezels around the panel with AORUS branding on the front along with a basic black-colored plastic body at the back with no RGB lighting. We think it looks pretty good and the overall build quality is also quite sturdy. All things considered, the Gigabyte Aorus FV43U is a great option for those who are looking to buy a big-sized gaming monitor.
- The Samsung UR59C may not be the fastest monitor on this list, but it's an affordable and reliable option that's perfect for casual gamers.
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Best gaming monitor with HDMI 2.1: Acer Nitro XV282K
There aren’t too many good gaming monitors out there that come with HDMI 2.1 ports. It’s not a particularly difficult category to explore but the options are certainly very limited. Acer, however, is one of the manufacturers to have launched a gaming monitor with an HDMI 2.1 port and we think it deserves a spot in our collection of the best gaming monitor with HDMI 2.1. We’re talking about the Acer Nitro XV282K, the company’s new UHD gaming monitor.
In terms of the specs, the Acer Nitro XV282K features a 27-inch 4K UDH monitor with a maximum resolution of 3840 x 2160. It’s an IPS panel with support for up to 144Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time. We’re also looking at a peak brightness of 400 nits and it has a contrast ratio of 1000:1. The specs of the Acer Nitro XV282K, as you can see, are pretty good overall. In fact, it’s on par with a lot of other high-end monitors in this collection, which is great.
One of the best things about this particular monitor is that it comes with two HDMI 2.1 ports along with a DisplayPort 1.4. You also get a 3.5mm audio port along with a USB hub. The fact that it has HDMI 2.1 ports, makes it a great option for those who are looking to pair with the next-gen consoles including Xbox Series X and the PlayStation 5. HDMI 2.1 will allow you experience 4K @ 120Hz with those consoles, which is great. This is an important feature to have that even a lot of high-end TVs don’t offer. The overall gaming experience of the Acer Nitro XV282K is great with PC too.
We’re looking at a 4K display with support for a 144Hz refresh rate and 1ms response, so it’s very similar in specs to the LG UltraGear monitor that we’ve added as our pick for the best 4K gaming monitor. There’s not much to talk about the design of the Acer Nitro XV282K, though. It’s a fairly simple-looking monitor that lacks any kind of “gaming” aesthetics. It doesn’t have an edge-to-edge panel but the bezels around the display are quite minimal. The stand looks very basic too but at least it does a good job of holding the monitor in place. The stand also offers a good amount of adjustment options, so that’s good.
The overall gaming experience on the panel is also said to be pretty good. The same goes for the image quality too. Despite being a relatively new monitor on the market, it has already received pretty good reviews from the enthusiasts in the community, so we think it’s definitely worth checking out. It is, however, worth pointing out that it’s an expensive monitor coming in at $900. That’s not really surprising considering it’s very similar in specs to the LG UltraGear monitor that we mentioned earlier. We also recommend checking out the Gigabyte Aorus FV43U that we’ve mentioned above. That one also comes with HDMI 2.1 ports but it’s relatively bigger than this Acer monitor in size, so keep that in mind.
- The Acer Nitro XV282K is a great option to consider if you are looking to buy a 4K gaming monitor with an HDMI 2.1 port.
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Best gaming monitors to buy in 2022: Final Thoughts
Well, that brings us to the end of our collection of the best gaming monitors you can buy in 2022. As you can see, there are a lot of options to consider in the gaming monitor space. That being said, we think the Samsung Odyssey G7 is the best overall gaming monitor you can buy right now. It’s got a curved screen, so you may have to look at other options like the ViewSonic Elite XG270QG. If you’re looking to buy a 4K gaming monitor then we think you should consider either the LG UltraGear 27GN950 or the Acer Nitro XV282K that comes with HDMI 2.1 ports. Additionally, we’ve also added some other options including the Gigabyte Aorus FV43U and the ASUS ROG Strix XG49VQ too, so be sure to check them out.
If you’re not particularly looking for just gaming monitors, then you might want to check out our collection of the best monitors. That list has a lot more options to choose including the ones for productivity. And if you are building a new setup from scratch, then we have some other collection articles that you might be interested in including the best webcams and the best mechanical keyboards. Alternatively, you can also join our XDA Computing Forums to discuss your setup or get more product recommendations from the experts in our community.
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