Buying guide
How to Choose a TV
Buying a TV comes down to a handful of decisions: panel type, how bright your room is, screen size, and gaming needs. Here's how to weigh them — and skip the showroom spec hype.
Take the TV quiz →Start with your room
The single biggest factor is light. In a dark or controlled-light room, an OLED's perfect blacks and infinite contrast are hard to beat. In a bright, sunny room, you want a high-brightness mini-LED — or a bright, anti-glare OLED — that can fight glare. Raw contrast means little if you can't see past reflections.
Panel type: OLED vs mini-LED
OLED lights each pixel individually, for perfect blacks, the best dark-room contrast, and wide viewing angles — at the cost of lower peak brightness. Mini-LED uses a backlight split into thousands of dimming zones to get far brighter, which suits bright rooms and very large screens, with a small trade-off in black-level purity (occasional "blooming"). Our OLED vs mini-LED guide breaks down which wins for your room.
Brightness (nits)
More nits help most in bright rooms and with HDR highlights. Premium OLEDs now reach roughly 1,200–2,400 nits; flagship mini-LEDs push 2,800 and beyond. But measured brightness and glare handling matter more than the headline number — a glossy panel in a sunny room can look dimmer than a less-bright anti-reflective one.
Size and viewing distance
Bigger is usually better if you sit far enough back. Many living rooms suit 55–75 inches; go larger if your seating is farther away or you want a theater feel. Measure your distance before you commit.
Gaming features
If you game, look for HDMI 2.1, 120Hz (144Hz+ for PC), VRR, ALLM, and low input lag — and count the number of HDMI 2.1 ports if you'll connect multiple devices. Our best TVs for gaming page ranks the options.
HDR formats and smart platform
Dolby Vision and HDR10+ are the dynamic HDR formats; most content uses one or the other, and a few TVs skip Dolby Vision (Samsung) or HDR10+ (LG, Sony). The smart OS — webOS, Tizen, or Google TV — affects day-to-day use but rarely makes or breaks a TV, since you can always add a streaming stick.
Take the TVs quiz and we'll match these criteria to your room, content, and budget.
Still choosing?
Frequently asked
Is OLED or mini-LED better?
OLED for dark rooms, movies, and the best contrast; mini-LED for bright rooms, very large sizes, and the highest brightness without burn-in worries.
How many nits do I need?
For a dim room, roughly 600–1,000 nits is plenty. For a bright, sunny room, look for 1,500+ nits paired with an anti-glare screen.
What size TV should I buy?
Match it to your viewing distance and room. 55–65 inches suits many living rooms; go 75 inches or larger if you sit farther back.
Do I need a soundbar?
Most flat TVs have thin built-in sound. If you watch a lot of movies, a soundbar is the single biggest audio upgrade you can make.