The Best Budget 4K TV

We analyzed 31,310 reviews from 36 websites to find the best budget 4k tv. Sources included:
WalmartBest BuyRakutenDigital TrendsNewegg
+31 More

Top Budget 4K TVs

Best for Most People
Best Budget 4K TV TCL 6-series 4K TV
$349 from 5 stores
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Why Consider This:
If you’re willing to pay a bit more to get much better performance, the TCL 6-Series offers major picture-quality improvements over the TCL 5-Series and Vizio M-Series Quantum. The TCL 6-Series remains one of the best budget TVs you can buy thanks to its beautiful 4K HDR performance and inclusion of high-end AV formats like Dolby Vision.
People Like:
  • Bright, colorful HDR
  • Supports Dolby Vision
  • Roku TV is amazing
People Dislike:
  • HD upscaling could be better
  • Poor motion handling
  • Desaturated off-axis viewing
89
Owner Score
2,319 Reviews from 5 Sites
80
Media & Critic Score
2 Media Reviews
Buy On Amazon.com
Best Value
Best Budget 4K TV TCL 5-Series 4K TV
$280 from 17 stores
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Why Consider This:
The TCL 5-Series produces a bright, punchy image, and it has a wonderful contrast ratio for an LCD/LED TV that lacks local dimming to more precisely adjust the backlight. The integrated Roku OS makes it one of the easiest TVs to use, and it supports every major streaming service. Gamers will appreciate the 5-Series’s low input lag, which means less time between when something happens in the game and when you see it on your screen.
People Like:
  • 4K, HDR with Dolby Vision
  • Roku TV built-in
  • Solid sound performance
People Dislike:
  • Low peak luminance
  • Smart system slowdowns
  • Mediocre upscaling
88
Owner Score
1,485 Reviews from 14 Sites
75
Media & Critic Score
2 Media Reviews
Buy On Amazon.com
Top Performance
Best Budget 4K TV Vizio M-Series Quantum 4K TV
$358 from 4 stores
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Why Consider This:
The Vizio M-Series Quantum is one of the only budget TVs to include both local dimming for improved contrast and quantum dots to produce the wider color gamut in Ultra HD movies. It had the best-looking SDR and HDR images of all the under-$500 50- and 55-inch 4K TVs we tested, but the local dimming is only moderately effective and works best in a completely dark room.
People Like:
  • Great color and a generally nice picture
  • Affordable for the image quality
  • Supports Chromecast, Apple AirPlay 2, Alexa, Google Assistant, and more
People Dislike:
  • Limited app selection on TV
  • Remote design is blah
  • No motion compensation or Bluetooth support
77
Owner Score
189 Reviews from 4 Sites
80
Media & Critic Score
2 Media Reviews
Buy On Amazon.com

How Critic.ly Saves You Time

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Unbiased & Unsponsored: Critic.ly aggregates and analyzes reviews from real owners and industry critics. We remove spam, sponsored reviews, and other forms of bias to make sure you get the best possible sense of what people actually think about products.
Our reviews of the best budget 4k tvs were based on 31,310 reviews from 36 websites.
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How to Find the Right Budget 4K TV

The most important thing to get out the way first is that 4K has become way cheaper in the last year or so. At this point you can find an entry-level 4K Samsung TV (40-plus inches) in the $300 price range. So if you’re looking into buying a new TV, then there really is no reason not to go 4K at this point. If your TV is dying or has already died, or if you’re looking for something a little larger, the 4K TVs covered in this guide offer great performance at a budget-friendly price, with integrated streaming services to watch your favorite movies and shows. Right now the TV industry is promoting three technologies that didn’t exist a few years ago, and unlike the curved screens or 3D technology of years past, these features do provide an obvious benefit, depending on the types of sources you plan to watch. One of them—Ultra HD resolution (four times the resolution of an HD or 1080p TV, also referred to as 4K)—is common on budget TVs. The other features—high dynamic range video (HDR) and wide color gamut technology (WCG), which give you, respectively, brighter, more lifelike highlights and more colors—are less common in lower-priced models, but they’re worth looking for.

Budget 4K TVs We Eliminated

We research and analyzed 7 budget 4k tvs. Here's what we concluded about the ones that didn't make the cut.
TCL 4-Series 4K TV
Eliminated - Not Enough Reviews
Owner score of 92 but hard to properly evaluate with only 887 owner reviews.
Hisense H8F 4K TV
Runner Up
Highly rated (84 owner score, 75 expert score), but a slight notch below the best.
LG UM7300 4K TV
Runner Up
Highly rated (92 owner score, 73 expert score), but a slight notch below the best.
Samsung RU7100 4K TV
Runner Up
Highly rated (92 owner score, 63 expert score), but a slight notch below the best.

Sources & Methodology

Critic.ly uses a combination of machine learning and human editors to help you find the best products.
We start by aggregating and analyzing reviews from real owners and industry critics. We remove spam, sponsored reviews, and other forms of bias to make sure you get the best possible sense of what people actually think about products.
We convert every review to a weight average score from 0 to 100.
For this article, we analyzed 31,310 reviews from 36 sites to find the best budget 4k tv.