When you’re looking for unbelievable colors and contrast along with inky black levels, your TV of choice should be an OLED. Unlike traditional LED-LCDs, OLED TVs contain no actual light source. Thanks to the organic makeup of an OLED, each individual pixel on the screen is self-emissive and can be toggled on or off. This is how these TVs are able to achieve such arresting and accurate picture quality.
For years, LG has been the predominant player in the OLED game, but now Samsung and Sony produce some excellent OLEDs too. In fact, every OLED manufacturer makes more than one set, so choosing the model that’s best for you isn’t just a matter of what brand to go with.
Fortunately, we know a thing or two about AV products, and we’ve had the honor of vetting and testing many different OLED TVs. And we compiled all our findings in this rotating roundup. Here are all the best OLED TVs you can buy right now!
LG 65-inch G4 OLED
Best overall
- Outstanding brightness
- Astounding accuracy
- Unprecedented flexibility
- Awesome gaming performance
- Five-year warranty
- Hit-or-miss sound
- Frustrating remote
LG has done it again folks. One of our favorite TVs of 2023 was the amazing LG G3 Series, and now that set has been ousted from its throne… only to be replaced by the LG G4.
Much like its older brother, the G4 leverages Micro Lens Array (MLA) technology to achieve the kind of brightness levels we’d expect from an LED-LCD. We've put the G4 through several picture tests and were absolutely blown away by its peak luminance, breathtaking colors, and next-level HDR performance. LG has long been a TV brand one gravitates toward for picture accuracy, and thanks to features like Filmmaker Mode on the G4, that reputation continues.
As part of LG’s Gallery (what the “G” in G4 stands for) lineup, this OLED is designed to look like a piece of artwork when mounted to a wall. And if you purchase the 77-, 83-, or 97-inch version of the G4, the low-profile wall mount comes in the box (the 55- and 65-inch versions come with a tabletop stand). Each of the TV’s four HDMI ports are 2.1 certified, with resolution and refresh rate capped at 4K/120Hz. Action movies, sports, and gaming will look particularly great on the G4, and lower-res sources get the 4K upscaling treatment.
While webOS 24 and the included LG Magic Remote may not be for everyone, we have no doubt that if you’re looking for the best OLED picture that money can buy in 2024, you’ll be hard-pressed to do better than the LG G4 Series.
LG C3 Series OLED
Runner-up
- Delightful contrast
- Excellent color performance
- Very good processing
- Killer gaming features
- Five-year warranty
- Low-level color shift
- Too-frequent updates
Man, it was a tough call for the “Best OLED for most people" laurel, but after weighing the options and getting into the nitty-gritty of specs and cost, we believe the best OLED for most folks is undoubtedly the LG C3 (at least until we get our hands on the 2024 LG C4, that is). Available in 42-, 48-, 55-, 65-, 77-, and 83-inch sizes, the LG C3 delivers an amazing picture that reaches some pretty impressive peak brightness levels, but more importantly, when it comes to both HDR and SDR performance, the C3’s color and contrast capabilities are simply through the roof.
The C3 is powered by LG’s revamped a9 AI Processor Gen6 (also found on the LG G3), which acts as the catalyst for features like AI Super Upscaling 4K and AI Picture Pro. The C3 also includes LG’s smart TV platform, webOS, for all your Netflix and Disney+ streaming needs. The UI is still a bit cluttered (something we’ve found irksome for a few years now), but distracting advertisements are easy to forgive when your OLED dishes out 4K at 120Hz across all four HDMI 2.1 inputs.
What’s the difference between the LG C3 and the premium G3 model below? The latter employs Micro Lens Array technology as part of its engineering, which allows the G3 to achieve higher peak brightness levels than the C3. Oh, and the G3 is meant to be hung on a wall (it comes with an LG wall mount), so it doesn’t come with a stand, although you can purchase one separately.
Like any OLED TV, the LG C3 is going to look its best in dark rooms (those with bright rooms may want to look into QLED technology), but if your viewing space is troubled by ambient lighting, the C3 does an excellent job at handling reflections and looks great from a number of vantage points throughout a larger room.
LG M3 Wireless
A wire-free flagship
- Gorgeous OLED picture quality
- Low-latency wireless for gaming
- Solid wireless signal connection
- Easy setup
- Good sound
- Wireless box needs true line of sight
It was only a matter of time before a TV company decided to go wireless, at least in terms of AV connectivity. Sure, Samsung’s One Connect tech is great for consolidating wire clutter, but the LG M3 Series goes a step further by eliminating cable leads altogether. That’s right: The M3 Series wirelessly beams picture and sound to the TV via its Zero Connect Box.
A line-of-sight peripheral that should be placed no further than 30 feet away from the M3 Series, you’ll be able to connect everything from streaming devices to gaming consoles to the Zero Connect. Caleb Denison, our editor-at-large, has had the privilege of seeing this bad boy in action, and reported that there is no discernible picture difference between a tried and true HDMI cable and the M3’s wireless tech.
As for overall picture quality, the LG M3 is simply a beast. As we’ve come to expect from the kinds of OLED, LG's M3 Series delivers excellent color and contrast, on top of class-leading brightness for an OLED display. LG’s phenomenal a9 AI Processor Gen 6 is responsible for the TV’s image upscaling, and it does a terrific job at further enhancing visuals for each and every frame.
The M3 is also optimized for next-gen gaming, with resolution and motion clarity topping out at 4K/120Hz. You’ll be able to grab this model in 77-, 83-, and 98-inch sizes, and even though this is LG’s first foray into wireless TV tech, the execution is already excellent and we can’t wait to see what future iterations of the M3 Series will look and sound like.
Sony 65-inch XR A95L
The best OLED for videophiles
- Outstanding color accuracy and brightness
- Excellent contrast and luminance
- Great sound
- Gorgeous game mode picture quality
- Incredibly good upscaling
- Some deep features not available at launch
We finished our review of the Sony XR A95L as very happy campers. In fact, we awarded the latest Sony QD-OLED flagship a perfect five out of five stars. This TV is seriously good, and because we’re dealing with a QD-OLED display, there’s plenty of brightness, colors, and contrast perks thanks to those onboard quantum dots. But we’re really just scratching the surface with those highlights; so let’s take a look under the hood.
As we’ve come to expect from most Sony sets, the formidable A95L is equipped with the company’s Cognitive Processor XR (CPXR) as the main brains behind the picture. As it handles everything from frame-to-frame improvements and 4K upscaling, we’ve always been major fans of Sony’s picture engine, but when you combine the CPXR with the A95L’s native panel tech and XR Triluminos Max, you get movies, shows, and video games that look like they could leap right off the screen.
This is also the first of Sony’s QD-OLEDs to be equipped with the Pentonic 1000 HDMI chipset, which allows for Dolby Vision gameplay at up to 120Hz. That’s on top of other gaming features like VRR support and HDMI 2.1 connectivity.
As for the latter, only two of the TV’s four ports support the latest HDMI standard, and as our own Caleb Denison points out in his review, one of these ports is also the TV’s HDMI ARC/eARC port. This may pose a little trouble for those who may want to use the eARC connection for Dolby Atmos or HDMI CEC purposes, but one can always invest in an HDMI switcher if push comes to shove.
Beyond that one minor hitch, the Sony A95L lives right on the cutting edge of TV tech, and other manufacturers should definitely be taking notes.
Samsung 65-inch S95D QD-OLED
Best Samsung OLED
- Exellent brightness
- Eye-popping color
- Snappy operation
- Great gaming features
- Awesome for bright rooms
- Anti-glare treatment is polarizing
- Blacks may appear lifted in bright rooms
While we couldn’t help but leave the Samsung S95C in our roundup for the time being, 2024 has given us the incredible Samsung S95D. This is the third generation of Samsung’s QD-OLED technology, combining quantum dots and self-emissive pixels to deliver a TV with plenty of picture detail — especially when it comes time to dig into its color palette.
At one time, brightness was a major concern when buying an OLED TV, but sets like the S95D lay those worries to rest. In our own picture tests, editor-at-large Caleb Denison clocked 1,450 nits for peak brightness performance. While this isn’t exactly on par with QLEDs like the Hisense U8N, this type of brightness is a huge step forward for all OLEDs, not to mention the TV’s anti-glare matte screen, which helps to cut down on how much ambient lighting interferes with your picture.
The S95D is equipped with four HDMI 2.1 inputs, and supports 4K/144Hz with Variable Refresh Rate. Whether you plan on hooking up your console or gaming PC, you’ll get near-instant response time and super-low input lag with this Samsung QD-OLED. We were also quite impressed by the S95D’s built-in speakers, which brought far bigger sound to the table than we’re used to from any modern TV.
Available in 55-, 65-, and 75-inch sizes, the Samsung S95D QD-OLED is further proof that Samsung knows exactly what it’s doing with OLED technology.
Samsung 65-inch S95C QD-OLED
The best QD-OLED
- Incredibly bright colors
- Perfect black levels
- Pristine overall picture
- Great upscaling
- Awesome for gaming
- Mediocre sound
- No Dolby Vision support
The Samsung S95C rolled out the red carpet for another generation of Samsung’s amazing QD-OLED technology. For those unaware, this display combines the best parts of QLED lighting and quantum dots with the self-emissive pixels of an OLED panel. The end result? A vibrant picture with excellent color saturation and deep black levels — a videophile’s dream. Now as far as side-by-side comparisons go, the S95C is pretty close to the S95B, the 2022 version of the Samsung QD-OLED but there are a few key differences.
For one, the S95C is able to get up to 144Hz with all the appropriate PC connections. If you’re the kind of person who loves fast-action gameplay, the S95C has got you covered. Movie die-hards will still be capped at 120Hz motion, but Samsung’s Motion Xcelerator Turbo Pro returned for 2023, delivering some of the best 4K visuals for all your favorite action flicks and sporting events. That’s on top of Samsung’s Neural Quantum Processor for all your 4K upscaling needs, and the amazing Q-Symphony 3.0, which lets you pair compatible Samsung soundbars with the S95C speakers for an enhanced audio experience.
For 2023, the S95C screen also delivered higher peak brightness than the S95B, and all of the TV’s inputs are housed on the Slim One Connect box. You’ll also be able to stream all your favorite movies and TV shows through Samsung’s Tizen-powered Smart Hub, and access your many digitized Xbox games using Samsung Gaming Hub.
It might be a little more expensive than the competition, but the Samsung S95C is one of the best TVs you’ll have ever purchased — trust us. But, if you're not in a hurry, and you like to have the latest and greatest, you could always wait for 2024's S95D, which features Samsung's pretty amazing new Glare Free technology.
Sony 65-inch XR A80L
Another great Sony OLED
- Great picture quality
- Stunning HDR performance
- Google TV runs well
- Solid price
- Lower brightness levels for SDR content
- Only two HDMI 2.1 ports
- Not a QD-OLED
Not all of us can splurge on a flagship TV. But that’s why models like Sony's XR A80L are so good. Technically considered an entry-level set, this 2023 model isn’t a QD-OLED like its higher-priced sibling, the A95L. Instead, we’re dealing with a traditional WOLED panel that’s actually supplied by LG Display.
One of the most important things to think about when buying any new TV is how it’s going to look when displaying HDR-optimized content, as well as regular SDR sources. In the case of the Sony A80L, HDR content looks fantastic, with great peak and color brightness levels, as well as a wide color gamut and a near-perfect contrast ratio.
SDR performance isn’t bad either, although you’ll definitely notice a drop in the brightness department. And even though the A80L does a nice job with reflection-handling, it may not be ideal for brightly lit rooms.
Under the hood, Sony’s Cognitive Processor XR runs a good part of the show (just as it does on the flagship A95L), but without the aid of quantum dots for enhanced color saturation. Oh, and similar to the A95L, the A80L includes four HDMI ports, but only two of them are HDMI 2.1-certified, and one of these two ports is also the TV’s ARC/eARC connection. Come on, Sony!
Still, if you’re looking to dive into the world of OLED TVs, but don’t want to spend upwards of $2,000 on an ultra-premium model, the Sony A80L is a solid middle ground between lackluster entry-level sets we wouldn’t recommend to our worst enemies and flagship displays that cost as much as a mid-2000s used Corolla.
Frequently Asked Questions
OLED stands for organic light-emitting diode, and its signature characteristic is that each pixel on the screen of an OLED TV emits its own light and color and can be turned completely off to deliver true black color.
Be sure to check out our QLED versus OLED explainer. In general, OLED TVs produce a higher-quality image than QLED TVs, but there are caveats. QLED TVs get brighter, and so they’re the better choice for brightly-lit rooms.
Trick question! OLED is a description of a kind of TV display, whereas 4K refers to a TV’s native resolution. Like LED and QLED TVs, you can buy 4K and even 8K OLED TVs — the choice is yours.
If you’re a gamer, make sure your OLED TV supports HDMI 2.1 at the least, and in an ideal world, it should have Nvidia G-Sync and AMD FreeSync, too. If you’re a cinephile or video maven, find a model with the best picture processing.
We think OLED TVs still currently produce the best overall image quality, but upcoming new formats such as QD-OLED, microLED and mini-LED-based QLED TVs are starting to threaten OLED TV’s crown.
Yes, all OLED TVs are compatible with at least HDR10 — the most common HDR format — while most offer support for HLG and Dolby Vision, too.
For the vast majority of buyers, burn-in will not be a problem, but it can happen. When it occurs, it’s usually because someone has set their OLED TV to show a TV channel or a video game that has on-screen graphics that don’t move much or at all and left it there for many hours each day, for many days in a row.
We believe that LG Electronics makes the best overall OLED TV: the G3 Gallery Series. That said, Sony’s image processing is slightly better, so if image perfection is your main yardstick, a Sony OLED TV is a great way to go.
Yes. OLED TVs are definitely expensive when compared to some other options, but their black levels, contrast, and color make for an awesome viewing experience.
We've tested a lot of TVs. A lot. Our editor-at-large and resident TV expert, Caleb Denison, has been covering the TV and home theater space for decades. He's one of the best int he business. But rather than trying to detail his reviewing process here, he's laid it all out in this excellent explainer on how he tests TVs.
Glossary of terms
Here’s a rundown of some of the most common terms associated with today’s TV technology.
4K Ultra HD
This refers to a display resolution that is four times that of 1080p HD. A 4K Ultra HD TV’s pixel resolution is a 3,840 x 2,160 grid in a 16:9 aspect ratio, resulting in nearly 8.3 million pixels. This increase in density adds striking detail and realism to an image and allows larger screens to be viewed from closer distances without individual pixels becoming visible.
High dynamic range (HDR)
High dynamic range is probably most familiar to people through the HDR mode on their digital cameras. It’s designed to deliver a picture that has greater details in the shadows and highlights, plus a wider range of colors. HDR in televisions pursues the same goal. The color palette is wider, blacks are deeper, and whites are brighter.
Presently, there are two major HDR formats: HDR10 and Dolby Vision, with a third — HDR10+ — beginning to show up on new models, particularly those from Samsung. The first is the HDR standard, but Dolby Vision offers a premium experience. Consider a TV that supports both. HLG (hybrid log gamma) is another recent addition to the HDR collection, which supports over-the-air (OTA) broadcast content with HDR.
Full-array local dimming (FALD)
This refers to an LED TV’s backlighting system. A FALD display contains an array of LEDs spread out in a grid behind an LCD panel, rather than just at the edges of the TV. This LED array is broken up into zones that can be dimmed when necessary to achieve better black levels. Another benefit is more uniform brightness across the screen.
Wide color gamut (WCG)
These are the expanded color reproduction abilities of a 4K Ultra HD TV, which are closer than ever to what we see in a digital cinema. By approaching (or sometimes exceeding) the Digital Cinema Initiative’s (DCI) P3 color specification, a 4K UHD TV can produce billions of more colors than a 1080p HD TV.
Quantum dots
A layer of film loaded with tiny nanocrystal semiconductors is placed in a TV’s display panel to help produce a more accurate array of colors. Quantum dots work by producing a purer form of white light from a TV’s backlighting system, which helps the TV’s color filter perform more accurately.
Phosphor-coated LED
An alternative to Quantum Dots, phosphor-coated LEDs have a chemical coating to alter the light’s output. When used in a TV, this results in a purer backlight that’s more easily manipulated by a TV’s color filter, resulting in a wide color gamut and increased color accuracy.
HDMI 2.1
The latest version of the HDMI spec. It offers new enhancements for video games like variable refresh rate (VRR) and automatic low-latency mode (ALLM) and the ability to pass 4K signals to the TV at up to 120Hz, for ultra-smooth motion. HDMI 2.1 is a requirement for 8K video sources like the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. For most non-gamers, HDMI 2.1 is a nice way to future-proof yourself but it's nowhere near a necessity yet.
HDCP 2.3
The latest version of the High-Bandwidth Digital Content Protection technology, which provides copy prevention specifically of 4K Ultra HD and 8K content. Any source device that requires HDCP 2.3 will require a TV with an HDCP 2.3-compliant HDMI port for a compatible connection.
HEVC (H.265)
Stands for “High-Efficiency Video Coding.” A compression technology developed to make large 4K UHD video files smaller and, therefore, easier to stream over broadband Internet connections. HEVC is said to double the data compression ratio over H.264, the predominant encoding technology used today for 1080p videos while retaining the same video quality. A smart TV or streaming set-top box must be able to decode HEVC to playback 4K Ultra HD video from sites like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video.
VP9
An alternative to HEVC developed by Google and used predominantly for encoding 4K Ultra HD YouTube videos. For a smart TV or streaming set-top box to play 4K Ultra HD YouTube videos, it must be able to decode VP9 videos.
