The Best LED TVs Under $2,000 of 2026

The Hisense U8G is one of the best TVs Hisense has ever released, offering a blend of top-shelf performance and future-facing features for a far friendlier price than most of its direct competitors. If you’re in the market for a premium TV but blush at the price of something like the Samsung QN90A, the U8G might be the perfect compromise.

From a hardware standpoint, the U8G is a heavyweight. It’s equipped with full-array local dimming, quantum dots, and HDMI 2.1 ports. It also supports 4K/120fps gaming, Auto Low Latency Mode, and Variable Refresh Rate, which means it’s a great pickup for folks who own (or plan on buying) an Xbox Series X or PlayStation 5.

In our lab tests, the U8G dazzled us; it’s one of the brightest TVs we’ve ever tested, and its out-of-the-box color accuracy is incredible. SDR content (cable TV and most streaming content) looks terrific on the U8G, but HDR content (4K Blu-rays and movies mastered for Dolby Vision) is its bread and butter. Simply put, if you want your next TV to showcase all that HDR has to offer, the U8G is one of the best ways to go about doing that.

Unfortunately, the U8G’s Android-based smart platform, while flexible in its app selection, isn’t our favorite. The user interface is a bit hard to navigate and, overall, rather rough around the edges. Still, you can solve this problem by dedicating one of the U8G’s ports to an external streaming device. The U8G’s local dimming is also not as refined as some of the competition (such as the aforementioned Samsung QN90A), so it may not be the best choice for cinephiles and picture purists who would prefer a balanced picture over intense HDR performance.

But all told, the Hisense U8G still rivals some of the best LED TVs we’ve seen in recent years, and manages to do so at a significantly lower cost. If you’re looking for a future-facing TV for a terrific price, it’s hard to beat the U8G.

The Samsung Q90T (available for under $2,000 in 55- and 65-inch variants) is one of the brightest TVs we’ve tested, making it a great pick for people with bright living rooms—or folks who see themselves gaming during the daytime. Picture quality is top-notch, too; the Q90T is capable of bright, vibrant colors and respectable black levels, in part because of quantum dots (microscopic dots that enhance a TV's colors and overall brightness level).

As far as gaming features go, the Q90T has you covered: four HDMI ports (including one HDMI 2.1 port and eARC passthrough support), VRR (FreeSync), and ALLM are all accounted for. The TV also features a native refresh rate of 120Hz, which is a great feature to hang your hat on if you're a gamer or a sports fan. The Q90T's built-in, Tizen-based smart platform isn't our favorite, but it offers a fair amount of flexibility for folks who don't want to invest in a streaming device—though we recommend that you do if you don't end up buying a Roku TV.

Because the Q90T is one of Samsung’s flagship TVs, the price is a bit steep compared to most TVs in its performance class. That said, if you don’t mind paying a premium, it’s a great fit for all uses—including next-generation console gaming.

The Samsung QN85A (available for under $2,000 in 55- and 65-inch models) is a second-tier flagship that packs many of the same hardware and software features you’ll find in the Samsung QN90A, but there are some crucial differences between the two.

Like the QN90A, the QN85A features Samsung’s Neo QLED display technology, which combines quantum dots with mini-LEDs. The quantum dots allow for incredibly bright highlights and rich color, while the mini-LED backlights give the QN85A tight control over its contrast zones. Unfortunately, while the QN85A boasts some serious brightness (well over 1,000 nits in HDR), its black levels are very shallow, creating a washed-out look during dark scenes and flattening detail overall. We suspect that the TV’s panel type is the culprit.

Still, there’s quite a bit to appreciate here, if you’re able to get past the QN85A’s disappointing black levels. While its panel may not be the best for movie night, it offers great off-axis viewing, meaning it looks similarly good from anywhere in the room, so it works well with a crowd. One (but not all) of the TV’s HDMI ports offers HDMI 2.1-specified features, including 4K/120fps support and FreeSync, making it a good choice for gamers. Samsung’s new Game Bar feature is nice to have in tow, too, as it puts useful gaming-related information and settings into one easy-to-access menu.

Overall, we recommend the Samsung QN85A to anyone who’s looking for a bright, well-designed smart TV with a focus on gaming, but we don’t recommend it for A/V enthusiasts and cinephiles who value picture quality. It’s an impressive TV in many respects, but its worse-than-average black level is a significant strike against it.

The Samsung Q80A (available for under $2,000 in 50-, 55-, and 65-inch models) is a mid-range TV with the look and feel of a luxury set. It’s a great option for gamers—or for folks who are just looking for a bright TV—but the Q80A’s panel type produces very shallow black levels. This makes it a not-so-great choice for people who watch Blu-rays and stream content in a dim or dark setting.

The good news is that, setting aside the subpar contrast, the Samsung Q80A gets good marks in other performance areas. Its quantum dot display creates a colorful, well-saturated picture, and it’s capable of sustaining 500+ nits of brightness in HDR, so newer content (like 4K Blu-rays and certain streaming content) will really shine.

If features are what you’re after, the Q80A has those in spades: Tizen Smart TV, HDMI 2.1 support, FreeSync (VRR), Auto Low Latency Mode, Samsung Game Bar, Multi View, Samsung Health, and support for Q-Symphony soundbars.

The best thing you can say about the Samsung Q80A’s panel type is that it delivers extra-wide horizontal viewing angles, making it a great option for group viewings. Unfortunately, this comes at the expense of the TV’s contrast. Additionally, a fair amount of light bloom is noticeable when bright picture elements clash with dark.

All told, it’s easy to recommend Samsung Q80A to gamers and bright TV enthusiasts, but there’s a harder case to be made for its use as a home theater centerpiece. With black levels this shallow, cinephiles are better off springing for the Samsung QN90A, whose panel type delivers a picture that’s better suited for movie night.

If you’re looking for a taste of the quantum dot experience but don’t want to pay top dollar for a luxury option, the Samsung Q60A is a great choice, as long as you understand its limitations ahead of time.

The Q60A’s panel is outfitted with quantum dots and Samsung’s dual-LED backlight technology. The latter doesn’t offer the high-level contrast control of Samsung’s mini-LED backlight—which is exceptionally showcased on Samsung’s QN90A—but it gets the job done. We measured deep black levels and better-than-average brightness for a mid-range LED TV (around 400 to 500 nits in HDR). And while the Q60A isn’t as colorful as some of Samsung’s more premium quantum dot-equipped offerings, it’s still capable of about 90% HDR color saturation, which makes it a great pick for cinephiles on a budget.

In addition to its decent performance, it’s got a sleek design and a fair number of features. Most of this year’s flashy Samsung-related TV features can only be found in the company’s higher-end models, but there are still a few to be found in the Q60A, including the Samsung Health suite, Ambient Mode, and support for Q-Symphony soundbars. You’re also getting the newest version of Samsung’s Tizen-based smart platform.

The Q60A does offer Auto Low Latency Mode, but as far as gaming enhancements go, that’s about all there is; you’re not getting Variable Refresh Rate or support for 120fps, which makes it a less-than-ideal choice for serious gamers.

If you want a better-performing 4K/HDR TV, or a TV that’s better-equipped to handle next-generation gaming, there are better options out there. That said, if all you need is a good-looking TV with a sleek design and a handful of nifty features, the Samsung Q60A is a good choice.

The Sony X800H (available for under $2,000 in five screen sizes ranging from 43 inches to 75 inches) is a solid mid-range TV with accurate color, impressive brightness, and dependable viewing angles. It’s a great option if you’re a diehard Sony fan, but if you’re just looking to maximize your dollar, there are better-performing TVs in this price range.

Thanks to Sony’s Triluminous technology, the X800H produces rich, accurate color and offers Dolby Vision support, making it a terrific mid-range option for cinephiles. It also gets quite bright for a TV at this price, so if you’re planning on putting your new TV in a brightly lit room, the Sony X800H is worth a look.

Unfortunately, the X800H gets so bright that its black levels remain relatively shallow. In addition, the X800H’s native refresh rate is 60Hz, so it’s not exactly the ideal choice for hardcore gamers.

There are better-performing TVs that offer similar peak brightness levels and comparable color production, but that’s not to say that the Sony X800H isn’t worth consideration. Just keep its limitations in mind.

The TCL 5-Series isn’t the most robust 4K TV on the shelf, but what it lacks in performance it makes up for in value: This is a budget-friendly quantum dot TV with commendable picture quality that won’t break the bank.

While not nearly as bright and colorful as the rest of the mid-range and high-end QLED TVs we reviewed this year, the TCL 5-Series is nevertheless brighter and more colorful than most of the slightly cheaper, entry-level TVs that occupy the same store shelf. And at this price point, it’s a steal of a deal that most bargain shoppers will appreciate.

Its motion handling and viewing angles aren’t particularly impressive, and it won’t net you any up-and-coming features like VRR and ALLM, but the 5-Series is a better performer than you might expect given its price. Plus, being a Roku TV, it features a terrific, easy-to-use smart platform built right in.

If you’re looking for a bargain but you want to avoid scraping the bottom of the barrel for the cheapest possible TV, the TCL 5-Series is worth the minor price hike over the lowest-tier options. It's an especially great TV for folks who are upgrading to 4K for the first time.