The Best Gaming Monitors Under 150 USD (2023 Reviews)

Want a new monitor for gaming and everyday use that’s cheap but also good and reliable? Afraid you won’t pick the best option due to the tons of research that has to be done that you simply can’t find the time to do?

We’ve done the research for you!

In this guide, you’ll find all the best displays available for under $150  — and we’ll help you pick the perfect one for you.

Most of these monitors are only available for under $150 when they’re on sale, however, they are actually on sale more often than not.

So, in case none of them are on sale, we recommend waiting for a price drop or considering one of the alternatives we’ve included in the review summaries below.

Further, feel free to leave us a comment if you need help picking the best monitor for you and we’ll gladly help you out!

You can view our changelogs for this buying guide at the end of this article.

About The Monitor

The Gigabyte G24F-2 is the most feature-packed budget gaming monitor you can get for around $150!

Image Quality

To start with, the Gigabyte G24F-2 has a wide 95% DCI-P3 color gamut coverage (~130% sRGB), providing you with extra saturated and color vibrancy compared to the standard displays with 100% sRGB color gamut.

The IPS panel of the monitor offers 178° wide viewing angles meaning that the image will remain flawless regardless of the angle you’re looking at the screen.

However, as expected from an IPS display, the static contrast ratio amounts to 1,100:1, so you won’t get as deep blacks as that of VA panels, which usually have a contrast ratio closer to 3,000:1, but suffer from other drawbacks.

Another thing to keep in mind about IPS monitors is IPS glow, which is characterized as visible glowing around the corners of the screen at certain viewing angles. It’s mainly visible when playing dark content in a dark room with high brightness settings, so it’s manageable.

Next, the Gigabyte G24F-2 has a peak brightness of 300-nits, so it can get more than bright enough in well-lit rooms.

While you might be able to find a 27″ 1080p high refresh rate gaming monitor on sale for under $150, 24″ sized models actually have a few advantages.

Most importantly, you get a higher pixel density of 92 PPI (pixels per inch) as opposed to 81 PPI. As a result, you get more screen real estate and sharper details on 24″ 1080p displays.

Competitive FPS players also prefer smaller screens as they allow them to see all the action happening on the screen at once without having to move their eyes/neck as much as they would on 27″ or larger monitors.

Features

The Gigabyte G24F-2 supports variable refresh rate (VRR) with a 48-180Hz range.

This technology allows your monitor to change its refresh rate dynamically according to GPU’s frame rates. For instance, at 65FPS, you get 65Hz and 65 whole frames are displayed without any tearing, stuttering or added perceptible input latency.

Below 48FPS, the monitor uses LFC (Low Framerate Compensation) to multiply the frame rate (47FPS -> 94Hz) in order to keep tearing at bay.

VRR on this monitor works over DisplayPort for NVIDIA GPUs (GTX 10-series or newer), over HDMI and DisplayPort for AMD GPUs, and over HDMI for Xbox consoles. HDMI is limited to 144Hz though.

The Gigabyte G24F-2 also supports MBR (Motion Blur Reduction) called Aim Stabilizer, which uses backlight strobing to reduce perceived motion blur at the cost of picture brightness, but it cannot be active at the same time as VRR.

Other features include Black Equalizer (improves visibility in dark scenes by altering the gamma curvature), Game Vibrance (saturation adjustment), a crosshair overlay, various picture presets and a refresh rate tracker.

Check out our full Gigabyte G24F-2 review for more information.

Design & Connectivity

The Gigabyte G24F-2 has an excellent design considering its price. The stand is sturdy and offers height adjustment up to 130mm, -5°/20° tilt and 100x100mm VESA mount compatibility.

Just like all monitors included in the guide, the screen has a light matte anti-glare coating that prevents reflections without making the image too grainy.

Connectivity options include two HDMI 2.0 ports, DisplayPort 1.2, a dual USB 3.0 hub and a headphone jack.

Alternatives

There are a lot of similar ~24″ 1080p high refresh rate IPS gaming monitors, but if you want a wide color gamut, we recommend the Gigabyte G24F-2. Alternatively, consider the AOC 24G2SP and the HP Omen 24.

If you’re just looking for the cheapest 24″ 1080p 144Hz+ IPS gaming monitor that’s actually good, check out the Koorui 24E3, which can be found on sale for $110.

About The Monitor

The LG 24GN600 is another excellent budget gaming monitor. It’s a bit faster than the Gigabyte G24F-2 but it doesn’t have as good colors or design.

Image Quality

Now, the Gigabyte G24F-2 has a slightly higher 180Hz refresh rate, however, the difference between 180Hz and 144Hz is barely perceptible, so you definitely shouldn’t base your purchasing decision on this alone.

The LG 24GN600 does have a bit faster response time speed meaning that pixels take less time to change from one color to another, which results in less noticeable trailing behind fast-moving objects.

To be fair, the difference in pixel response time speed between these two gaming monitors is very subtle, so most gamers won’t even notice it. If, however, you mainly play fast-paced competitive games, we recommend getting the LG 24GN600.

Further, the LG 24GN600 only covers the standard sRGB color gamut, so the colors will be less saturated in comparison to the Gigabyte G24F-2, but the brightness and contrast ratio are the same at 300-nits and ~1,000:1, respectively.

Features

The monitor supports VRR with a 48-144Hz range as well as Motion Blur Reduction.

Other features include Black Stabilizer (improves visibility in dark scenes), various picture presets and crosshair overlays.

It also supports HDR (High Dynamic Range), but it can only accept the HDR10 signal and display it. The monitor lacks proper hardware to actually improve the HDR image quality, so you can just ignore this type of HDR support.

Design & Connectivity

The stand of the monitor is tilt-only, but you can detach it and mount the screen to a third-party stand via the 100x100mm VESA pattern.

Connectivity options include two HDMI 2.0 ports, DisplayPort 1.4, a headphone jack and a USB port (service only).

Alternatives

We find that the most noticeable difference between the Gigabyte G24F-2 and LG 24GN600 for most gamers will be the color gamut as Gigabyte’s colors are significantly richer. If you don’t have a third-party stand and don’t want to mount your screen, Gigabyte’s ergonomic stand is also a big plus.

However, if you just play fast-paced games competitively, the LG 24GN600 will offer you with a bit smoother performance, so it might be worth those trade-offs.

There are a few more fast 24″ 1080p high refresh rate models, but they’re hard to find below $150:

• LG 24GN650
• HP X24i, X24ih

About The Monitor

The Pixio PX248 Prime doesn’t have as wide color gamut as the Gigabyte G24F-2 nor quite as fast response time speed as the LG 24GN600, but it’s always available for under $150 and still offers an enjoyable gaming experience.

Image Quality

With ~103 sRGB gamut size, the colors of the PX248 Prime are very similar to that of the LG 24GN600 (~100% sRGB), but you won’t get as vibrant colors as that of the Gigabyte G24F-2 (~125% sRGB).

Both the Gigabyte G24F-2 and the Pixio PX248 Prime have a similar pixel response time performance, which is more than fast enough for a smooth gaming experience, though the LG 24GN600 is slightly faster with less noticeable ghosting.

The Pixio PX248 Prime does have one advantage over both monitors. It has the highest peak brightness of 400-nits, so if you’re gaming in a particularly bright room, the PX248 is the best option for mitigating glare.

Features

Variable refresh rate is supported with a 48-144Hz range and you get other standard gaming features, such as crosshair overlays, Black Equalizer, on-screen timers and a refresh rate tracker.

Design & Connectivity

The stand of the monitor is tilt-only, but the screen is VESA mount compatible via the 100x100mm pattern.

Connectivity options include DisplayPort 1.2, HDMI 2.0, HDMI 1.4, a headphone jack, a USB port for firmware updates and there are two 2W built-in speakers for basic audio output.

About The Monitor

If you’d rather have a VA panel gaming monitor, the LG 24GQ50F is the best flat-screen model available!

Image Quality

The VA panel of this monitor provides you with a high 3,000:1 static contrast ratio, resulting in noticeably deeper blacks than that of IPS technology.

Additionally, you don’t get any IPS glow, which further improves the viewing experience when watching dark content in a dark room.

The viewing angles aren’t as good since there are some minor gamma/saturation shifts, but unless you plan on doing professional color-critical work, this won’t be an issue.

Next, the LG 24GQ50F has the standard sRGB color gamut, so due to its increased contrast ratio, the image will look more immersive than that of the Pixio PX248 and LG 24GN600 displays, but the colors won’t be as vibrant as that of the Gigabyte G24F-2.

The peak brightness is a bit lower at 250-nits, but that’s still more than enough under normal lighting conditions. If you’re in a particularly bright room with no means to block the lighting, you should consider a brighter monitor instead.

Features

The main drawback of most VA gaming monitors is the slow pixel response time speed, which results in smearing behind fast-moving objects that’s particularly noticeable in dark scenes.

Some users don’t mind this at all, some can tolerate it and some are completely repulsed by it. So, it all boils down to your own personal sensitivity to this type of visual artifact. For casual gamers, it most likely won’t be a big issue.

Another disadvantage of most VA gaming monitors is that they’re prone to VRR brightness flickering. The LG 24GQ50F supports variable refresh rate with a 48-144Hz range, however, in games with fluctuating frame rates, brightness flickering can be observed.

Related:What Is FreeSync Brightness Flickering And Can You Fix It?

It also usually occurs in in-game menus and loading screens, and when your frame rate is around the LFC (48FPS) threshold. The intensity of this issue varies from unit to unit, as well as from game to game and from your PC rig depending on how stable your frame rate is.

This issue can also affect IPS gaming monitors, but it’s not as common and even if you get an affected unit, it’s not as noticeable.

If you are not sensitive to screen tearing (it’s a lot less noticeable at 165Hz in comparison to 60Hz), you can just disable VRR to avoid this issue. The LG 24GQ50F also supports backlight strobing, so you can use that instead for better motion clarity if you don’t mind the introduced flicker and/or reduced brightness.

Other features include a refresh rate tracker, crosshair overlays and Black Stabilizer.

Design & Connectivity

The stand of the monitor is tilt-only, but there’s a 75x75mm VESA pattern for mounting.

Connectivity options include two HDMI 1.4 ports, DisplayPort 1.2 and a headphone jack.

Alternatives

There are a few more flat-screen 24″ 1080p high refresh rate gaming monitors, such as the AOC G2490VX and the Philips 242E1GSJ, however, they have even slower response time, resulting in more noticeable smearing, so we don’t recommend them.

About The Monitor

If you want a curved gaming monitor, the AOC C24G1A is our top recommendation for under $150!

Image Quality

The AOC C24G1A has a moderate 1500R screen curvature, but since it has a small 24″ display, it’s not that noticeable in real use. It adds a bit of extra depth without distorting the image too much, but there are other reasons to get this monitor.

First of all, it has a bit faster response time speed than the LG 24GQ50F. You’ll still get some smearing in dark scenes, but it’s as good as it gets as far as budget VA gaming monitors go.

Secondly, the AOC C24G1A has a wide ~90% DCI-P3 gamut coverage (~120% relative sRGB gamut size) for more vibrant color output.

Just like the LG 24GQ50F, it has a contrast ratio of 3,000:1 and a peak brightness of 250-nits. So, you get a bit more saturated colors, a slightly faster response time and a curved screen.

Features

The AOC C24G1A supports VRR with a 48-165Hz range as well as Motion Blur Reduction and other standard gaming features, including a crosshair overlay, Shadow Boost, Game Color, a refresh rate tracker and on-screen timers.

As expected, some VRR brightness flickering can occur in certain scenarios.

Design & Connectivity

The stand is sturdy and offers height adjustment up to 130mm, -4°/22° tilt, +/- 30° swivel and 100x100mm VESA mount compatibility.

Connectivity options include two HDMI 2.0 ports, DisplayPort 1.2, VGA and a headphone jack.

Alternatives

• AOC C24G1 – the previous version of this monitor with 144Hz and no wide color gamut

If none of the included monitors are available under $150, we’ve compiled a list of all 24″ 1080p 144Hz+ IPS gaming monitors, allowing you to quickly check if any of them are on sale. Monitors not in bold lead to our reviews for more information.

Conclusion

Did you find the best monitor under $150 for you?

Feel free to leave us a comment below if you need help picking the model that’s most suited for you!

Overall, we find that the Gigabyte G24F-2 offers the best value for money for most gamers, while primarily competitive FPS players might want to opt for the LG 24GN600 instead.

The Pixio PX248 Prime is an excellent budget option if the other models aren’t on sale or you want to save some money.

In case you’re not sensitive to smearing and screen tearing, one of the VA models will provide you with a high contrast ratio for deeper blacks. Both the AOC C24G1A and the LG 24GQ50F are great models, so pick according to your preference.