Best Smart TVs 2022

When choosing a new smart TV, you have many choices to make. How much do you spend? Which brand is best? What’s the best screen size and resolution? LED, QLED, Neo-QLED, OLED, ULED? Aaaaaaahhhh!

We’ve compared several new smart TVs, considering these questions and more, and found four to recommend to you. The Samsung QN90A is our overall favorite, the LG C1 OLED is our pick for best picture, and bargain hunters will love the TCL 6-Series Roku TV and Hisense U7G.

Jump to:

• Best smart TVs
• What to look for

Best smart TVs

• Samsung QN90A Neo QLED ($1,397.99)—Best overall
• LG C1 OLED Smart TV ($1,296.99)—Best picture
• TCL 6-Series Mini-LED QLED Roku TV ($699.99)—Best under $1,000
• Hisense U7G ULED ($649.99)—Best under $600

Compare top smart TVs

Data as of post date. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.
Amazon.com Price as of 2/24/22 1:05 p.m. MST. CableTV.com uses paid Amazon links. Read full disclaimer.

Samsung QN90A Neo QLED—Best overall

• Cheaper price
• Stunning picture quality
• ATSC 3.0 compatibility
• Object Tracking Sound+
• Ultra-thin design

• Lower brightness and contrast than OLED

Samsung’s QLED TVs are highly rated—the Q90T was our best overall pick last year, and we like the manufacturer’s Neo QLED (“New QLED”) TVs enough to make the QN90A our top pick for 2022.

QLED displays are a Samsung technology that uses a layer of quantum dots with a LED backlight and LCD screen. Neo QLED improves on its predecessor by adding mini-LEDs and even smaller nanoparticles, increasing brightness, color, and detail, plus wider viewing angles.

Add to that AI upscaling from HD to 4K, NextGen TV (ATSC 3.0) compatibility (so you can tune into free 4K broadcasts), and speakers all around the TV plus Object Tracking Sound+ (OTS+), and the QN90A amounts to an incredibly immersive viewing experience.

Gamers and sports fans will also love that the QN90A has minimized motion blur and enhanced motion clarity.

Gamers can also check input lag in real time and play ultra-wide supported games in 21:9 or 32:9 aspect ratios. The QN90A also has four HDMI ports, including one HDMI 2.1 port that supports the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 gaming consoles at their highest resolutions.

Like the Q90T, the QN90A has a gorgeous, thin design that looks great in any room (especially when wall-mounted) and the same Ultra Viewing Angle, made better with Neo QLED technology.

Samsung QN90A Neo QLED prices by screen size

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Something else we like about the QN90A is that the 55” version is currently $100 cheaper than the 55” Q90T was last year. Since when is a new TV model ever cheaper than the old one? Wow.

You can see pricing for all seven sizes of the QN90A above. If you choose to buy through Amazon, be sure to select a size before ordering.

LG C1 OLED—Best picture

• Superb picture quality
• Wide contrast ratios
• Fast and responsive user interface (great for gaming)

• Convoluted setup and options

While there’s much to love about the Samsung QN90A, OLED TVs still offer better picture quality than Neo QLED. The LG OLED C1’s picture is brighter, more colorful, and more detailed, with a contrast ratio spanning clean whites to perfect blacks. That earns LG the right to boast of “extreme realism” in its marketing materials.

A lot of ingredients go into the LG C1 OLED’s stunning picture quality. The C1 OLED has AI-upscaling for the best resolution, pixel-level dimming for contrast, OLED Motion Pro for image smoothing blur, and Cinema HDR with Filmmaker Mode for the ideal home cinema experience.

If you’re a gamer, you’ll be happy to know that the C1 OLED is fast and responsive, with a Game Optimizer mode, variable refresh rate, auto low-latency mode, and more.

LG OLED C1 prices by screen size

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Finally, the 55” LG C1 OLED is about the same price as our best overall pick, the Samsung QN90A (also 55”). But if you want the C1 OLED in a different size, you can see available screen sizes and Amazon pricing in the table.

TCL 6-Series Mini-LED QLED Roku—Best under $1,000

• Excellent user interface (Roku)
• Sleek design
• Google Assistant and Alexa compatibility

• Lower contrast than OLED
• No Bluetooth

Although both the Samsung QN90A and LG C1 OLED offer tremendous bang for your buck, we realize that not everyone has that many bucks. The TCL 6-Series Roku TV has a retail price of $949.99 but sells for $699.99–$749.99 on Amazon and Best Buy. And it’s quite a deal.

The 6-Series has a Mini-LED QLED display, 4K HDR Pro resolution, THX-certified Game Mode with variable refresh rate, Natural Motion 480 motion enhancement technology, and a tuner with a live TV channel guide.

It also runs on the popular Roku platform, so you’ll have access to dozens of streaming services from Amazon Prime Video to Netflix to Peloton to Spotify. Unfortunately, the included Roku remote isn’t a voice remote—but the TV is compatible with Siri, Google Assistant, and Alexa (sorry, Samsung fans, no Bixby).

TCL 6-Series Mini-LED QLED Roku Smart TV prices by screen size

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Finally, a wonderful thing about the TCL 6-Series is that it comes in two larger sizes. So you’re not only getting a solid smart TV for less money, you can jump up to a 65” screen and still save $200 over the Samsung QN90A and LG C1 OLED.

Hisense U7G ULED—Best under $600

• Great price
• Bright, colorful picture
• Tons of features for the money

• Lower contrast than OLED

If you’re looking for an even better bargain than the TCL 6-Series, you can find one with Hisense TVs like the U7G. Like the 6-Series, the U7G might not have everything that the bigger-name TVs offer, but you still get a lot for around half the price (or better).

The first thing you’re probably wondering is, What’s ULED? Yeah, like we need another LED-based display type to remember. ULED (“ultra light-emitting diode”) is Hisense’s version of QLED, a combo of an LCD (liquid crystal display), LED backlight, and quantum dot technology.

A drawback to ULED technology, compared to other TV display types, is that ULED is limited to 4K resolution. Otherwise, the U7G has a lot of what the Samsung and LG TVs have: high resolution, HDR, billions of colors, high brightness, motion blur smoothing, responsiveness, Dolby Atmos sound, a gaming mode, voice remote, and more.

Hisense U7G ULED prices by screen size

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Hisense likes to say its TVs are “the TV your old TV wants to be,” and it “makes everything you watch look like the 4th of July.” That’s definitely sales-speak, but the TVs are a truly fantastic value for the price.

And, like with the TCL 6-Series Roku TV, you might be able to afford to get a larger size with the money you save.

What to look for in a smart TV

Not quite sure what smart TV specs or features you need? Don’t worry; we’ve got you. Here are the key considerations when buying a smart TV.

Screen size

How big do you need your TV to be? Keep in mind bigger isn’t always better—if you’re in a bedroom or smaller living room, a more compact TV may actually be better.

That’s because every TV has an optimal viewing distance based on screen size, angle, and room size. For the average living room, we recommend a 55”–65” screen.

Display type

Smart TV technology is moving fast, so it’s understandable if you’re confused by the growing number of screen display types.

The three most common types of smart TV displays are LED, OLED, and QLED. You’ll also see Neo QLED and ULED TVs.

LED (light-emitting diode)

Your standard LCD display illuminated by LED lights, either from behind or the sides. LED TVs are the most affordable of these display types and are brighter than OLED—but they have poor viewing angles.

OLED (organic light-emitting diode)

OLED is a newer display type where each pixel lights up individually, rather than using a backlight. Generally, OLED TVs are more expensive than LED or QLED TVs, and they produce a better and brighter picture. Because each individual pixel can turn on and off, there’s a better contrast ratio, which gives the picture stunning depth.

QLED (quantum dot LED or quantum dot light-emitting diode)

QLED TV technology uses nanoparticles to boost brightness, color, and contrast. QLED is most common with Samsung TVs, but the manufacturer does license the technology to other TV makers. This display type has the best colors and brightest display, but it also has poor viewing angles and variable picture quality.

Last year, Samsung started selling Neo QLED TVs, which are QLED TVs with even smaller LED nanoparticles for more color and brightness.

You can learn more about OLED and its cousins with our guide What is OLED TV?

Resolution

These days, most TVs come in 4K Ultra HD, but now we’re starting to see TVs (and gaming consoles) that are capable of up to 8K resolution.

For most people, we recommend buying a 4K TV instead of a more expensive 8K TV because there isn’t enough 8K content available yet. But gamers might be fine with spending the extra money on an 8K TV, since 8K games are available now for the Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, and the NVIDIA SHIELD TV Pro.

Refresh rate

Refresh rate is how quickly the picture on your screen updates, measured in Hertz (HZ). Look for a refresh rate of at least 60 Hz (one refresh per second), and preferably 120 or 240 HZ.

Higher refresh rates are better for displaying quick action like sports. Above 240 Hz, there’s little noticeable improvement, though—at least with current technology.

HDR

HDR stands for high dynamic range, and it’s a screen technology that helps increase the contrast between light and dark parts of an image. It’s one of the few television features that truly lives up to the hype. And fortunately, most TVs above $500–$600 have it.

Sound quality

Built-in speakers on smart TVs can be lacking. This is especially true if you’re used to external audio like from a sound bar or surround sound system. Don’t expect much from your TV’s internal speakers—for the best sound, we recommend a sound bar or surround sound system.

Final take

To recap, the Samsung QN90A ($1,397.99) is our best overall pick because it’s feature rich and surprisingly affordable. The LG C1 OLED ($1,296.99), gives you that bright, colorful, detailed picture and excellent viewing angles (and plenty of features in its own right) for the same price.

If you’re looking to spend less money, the TCL 6-Series Mini-LED QLED Roku TV ($699.99) and Hisense U7G ULED ($649.99) offer amazing bang for not as many bucks.

Finally, if you’d like to supplement our research with your own, check out our Smart TV Buyers Guide for more shopping tips.

Methodology

Our TV experts research and, when possible, test smart TVs from top brands and evaluate them based on price, features, specs, and overall bang-for-your-buck. We then present our findings to our readers, along with recommendations. To learn more about our process, see our How We Rank page.

Smart TV FAQ

Disclaimer

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