The 5 Best Budget And Cheap Monitors - Spring 2025

The best budget monitor we've tested is the AOC Q27G3XMN. It's a 27-inch, 1440p monitor mainly designed for gaming, but it's versatile for other uses, too. The main advantage of this over other budget-friendly monitors is that it uses Mini LED backlighting, which is a feature mainly found on higher-end models. Combined with its high native contrast ratio and good local dimming feature, it displays deep blacks against bright highlights, which is great for gaming in dark rooms. It also gets bright enough to fight glare and make highlights pop, so it's a great choice for watching content or gaming in HDR.

Although it's limited in extra features besides that, which is expected for a low-cost monitor, it's also useful for gaming. It has a max 180Hz refresh rate that you can reach over DisplayPort, and motion looks sharp thanks to its fast response time, but there's smearing with fast-moving objects. However, if you can't find this monitor available in your region, check out the Acer Nitro XV275U P3biipx instead. It performs similarly and also has Mini LED backlighting, but it has worse motion handling.

If you want a higher resolution than on the AOC Q27G3XMN, there are some 4k displays you can get at a budget cost, like the Dell S2721QS, which is designed with work in mind. It's different from the AOC Q27G3XMN as it doesn't have Mini LED backlighting or gaming features, and the picture quality is much worse in HDR. It's also limited to a 60Hz refresh rate and has worse motion handling, but that's what you have to expect from a productivity monitor.

On the plus side, it's a good choice if you have a well-lit office space as it gets bright enough to fight glare and has good reflection handling, so visibility isn't an issue. Its wide viewing angles and excellent ergonomics also make it a good choice for sharing your screen with someone next to you. However, one downside of using it for work is that it doesn't have a USB hub, so you need to make sure you can connect all your devices directly to your computer. You can also check out the Dell S2722QC if you want a low-cost 4k monitor with a USB hub, but it costs more.

Should you be on a tighter budget, you can also look into the Dell Alienware AW2724DM, which is worth getting when you can find it on sale, like from Dell's website. It's different from the Dell S2721QS because it has a lower 1440p resolution, so text doesn't look as sharp. While it's still versatile enough to use for work, as it gets bright and comes with an ergonomic stand, it's instead focused on gaming and is more of a cheaper alternative to the AOC Q27G3XMN. The main difference versus the AOC is that it lacks Mini LED backlighting and has a low contrast ratio, and its local dimming feature performs terribly, so it's a bad choice for HDR.

Luckily, it's still a decent gaming monitor, whether you're gaming on a PC or console. Motion looks sharp at any refresh rate, and it doesn't have smearing, like on the AOC. You can also overclock its native 165Hz refresh rate to 180Hz. Although it lacks HDMI 2.1 bandwidth to take full advantage of consoles, it still supports 1440p signals up to 120Hz and downscales 4k @ 60Hz signals from a PS5, PS5 Pro, or Xbox Series X|S. It also supports VRR with any console, which not many entry-level monitors can do.

If you find that the 27-inch screen of the Dell Alienware AW2724DM is too big for your needs, there are some smaller cheap monitors you can consider, too. One of those is the Dell G2524H, which is a step-down model from the AW2724DM. It has a lower 1080p resolution, so images aren't as detailed, and it lacks some features as it doesn't even support HDR. However, it has advantages in other ways as it has a higher 240Hz native refresh rate that you can overclock to 280Hz, so it's a good choice if you're a competitive gamer who craves high refresh rates.

This high refresh rate even helps make motion look sharp, and there's minimal blur behind fast-moving objects. It's also a good choice for gaming in a well-lit room, as it gets bright enough to fight glare, but it looks worse in a dark room because blacks look gray. That said, if you prefer a cheap 24-inch monitor with a higher contrast ratio, you can also check out the AOC 24G15N, which costs less than the Dell. However, it also has much worse motion handling and a lower refresh rate.

Although the monitors recommended above have 24- to 27-inch screen sizes, which represents most of the budget monitor market, there are a few decent low-cost 32-inch monitors available if you want a bigger screen. Budget monitors of this size aren't as good as smaller displays, but if you want a larger display, the LG 32GN650-B is a decent choice, and you can also find it as the 32GN63T-B at different retailers. Both models perform the same, so you can get whichever you can find for cheaper. Like the Dell Alienware AW2724DM and the AOC Q27G3XMN, it's focused on gaming as it has a 165Hz refresh rate.

The main downside to this monitor is that fast-moving objects look blurry, and there's some smearing and inverse ghosting, though it's still decent enough if you don't play many fast-moving games. Since it has a VA panel, it displays fairly deep blacks next to bright highlights. However, the image looks washed out from the sides, so it's not a good choice if you regularly share your screen with someone else next to you.