The Best Gaming Monitors Under 250 USD (2024 Reviews)

While new monitors with higher resolutions and faster refresh rates are continuously being released and announced left and right, their prices are jumping up accordingly as well.

Luckily, this also signifies that older technology is becoming more affordable!

As a result, for just $200 – $250, you can nowadays get a fast 240Hz monitor for competitive gaming, a 4K display for amazing detail clarity, an ultrawide screen for extra immersion, or a 1440p 144Hz gaming monitor for mixed-use.

Note that some of these monitors are under $250 only when they’re on sale, but these sales are frequent. So, if the monitor you’re interested in goes for over $250, consider waiting for it to go on sale, check out our recommended alternatives, or visit our best monitors under $200 guide.

As you can see, you can get a pretty awesome gaming monitor at this price range!

If you’re looking for something more modest such as a 1080p 144Hz gaming monitor, make sure to visit our best gaming monitor under 200 USD buyer’s guide.

In case you can afford something pricier, check out our ultimate best gaming monitor guide.

If you want to view our changelogs for this particular buying guide, you can do so at the end of this article.

About The Monitor

Want a gaming monitor with the highest refresh rate, lowest input lag, and fastest pixel response time under $250? Look no further than the ASUS VG259QM!

Image Quality

This display is based on a 24.5″ IPS panel with a rapid 1ms GtG response time speed that’s needed to eliminate motion blur and trailing behind fast-moving objects.

What’s more, it’s capable of doing that without sacrificing color accuracy or viewing angles as the TN panels do!

So, you’ll get precise, consistent and rich colors, while the image remains perfect regardless of the angle you’re looking at the screen!

Further, the monitor has a 400-nit peak brightness, which is more than enough even in rooms with strong lighting. The contrast ratio amounts to 1,000:1, which is standard for both IPS and TN panels.

Black depth isn’t quite as good as it’s on VA panels with a ~3,000:1 contrast ratio, but VA monitors at this price range have other issues, such as narrower viewing angles and notably slower response time that causes smearing in fast-paced games, at least at this price range.

Features

Moving on, the ASUS VG259QM offers plenty of additional gaming features.

It supports variable refresh rate (VRR), which can entirely remove screen tearing and stuttering within the 48-280Hz/FPS (Frames Per Second) variable refresh rate (VRR) range of the monitor.

Other useful features include ‘Shadow Boost’ for better visibility in shadows in video games, various picture presets, crosshair overlays, a refresh rate tracker, on-screen timers and ELMB-Sync (Extreme Low Motion Blur) backlight strobing technology that can work at the same time as VRR.

Design & Connectivity

The design of the monitor is also very good considering its price.

You get full ergonomic support including up to 130mm of height adjustment, -5°/33° tilt, +/- 90° swivel, +/- 90° pivot and 100x100mm VESA mount compatibility.

Connectivity options include two HDMI 2.0 ports, DisplayPort 1.2, dual 2W integrated speakers and a headphone jack.

Alternatives

• Pixio PX259 Prime – tilt-only stand
• Lenovo Legion Y25-30 – USB hub and integrated speakers

If you plan on using backlight strobing, we highly recommend investing $30 more in the ViewSonic XG2431 with Blur Busters Approved MBR performance.

You might also be able to find a 27″ 1080p 240Hz IPS gaming monitor for around $250 – check out the KTC H27E22F for more information, though we don’t recommend 27″ 1080p displays due to lower pixel density.

About The Monitor

If you want a monitor with a higher 1440p resolution, you can even find 32″ models for less than $250 thanks to the Sceptre E325B-QPN168!

Image Quality

The Sceptre E325B-QPN168 is based on an IPS panel with a wide 92% DCI-P3 color gamut, which results in vibrant and saturated colors for a more lifelike picture.

Further, it has a strong peak brightness of 400-nits, while the contrast ratio is 1,000:1, as expected from IPS technology.

Moreover, it has a fast pixel response time speed for virtually no ghosting in fast-paced games.

Finally, you get buttery-smooth VRR performance with stable G-SYNC performance and MBR for less motion blur.

Design & Connectivity

The stand of the monitor offers up to 95mm height adjustment, +/- 15° swivel, -5°/15° tilt, 90° pivot and 75x75mm VESA mount compatibility.

Connectivity options include two HDMI 1.4 ports, HDMI 2.0, DisplayPort 1.2, a headphone jack, and dual 2W integrated speakers.

Alternatives

If you want a smaller 27″ 1440p high refresh rate IPS model, check out the KTC H27T22S for $150 or the Acer XV271U M3 for $200.

You can also find a 24″ 1440p 240Hz IPS model, the Titan Army P2510S.

However, keep in mind that you can find 27″ 1440p 240Hz IPS models for as low as $280, such as the Gigabyte GS27Q-X.

Alternatively, you might be interested in 1440p models, however, note that these panels suffer from dark smearing due to slow response time in this price range, as well as VRR brightness flickering. The best-value models include the Koorui 27E6QC and the Gigabyte M32QC.

If you decide to go with a VA model, we recommend investing ~$280 in the AOC Q27G3XMN as it offers proper HDR support with a 336-zone mini LED FALD (full-array local dimming) backlight, a high 1200-nit peak brightness and exceptional color gamut.

About The Monitor

The LG 29WQ500 is the best budget monitor for productivity work, content creation, and casual gaming!

Image Quality

Ultrawide monitors have an aspect ratio of 21:9 as opposed to the standard 16:9 widescreen ratio.

This provides you with extra horizontal space, which translates to a broader field of view in video games and more workspace for office-related tasks.

Most movies are shot at an aspect ratio that’s close to 21:9, so you’ll get a more cinematic viewing experience too!

Now, content that doesn’t support 21:9 natively will have to be zoomed/cropped or stretched to fill the screen, or you can just play it with black borders at the sides.

Luckily, most newer content, including video games, supports 21:9.

Moving on, the 2560×1080 resolution displayed on the 29″ sized screen of the monitor results in a decent pixel density of roughly 95 pixels per inch.

So, you’ll get a crisper image quality than the standard 1080p on 24″ (91 pixels per inch), but still not quite as sharp as 1440p on 27″.

The LG 29WQ500 has an IPS panel, it’s factory-calibrated, and it covers 99% of the sRGB color space. The colors are precise, accurate, and vibrant, allowing you even to do some entry-level color-critical work.

Plus, the ultrawide aspect ratio is great for video/audio editing as you get a better view of your interface, horizontal timelines, etc.

Features

Just like the previous monitors, the LG 29WQ500 supports AMD FreeSync (works well with compatible NVIDIA cards) with a VRR range of 40-100Hz/FPS.

It has a quick enough response time speed for its 100Hz refresh rate, so there’s no noticeable ghosting in fast-paced games.

Further, we find that going to 100Hz from 60Hz/75Hz is more noticeable than the difference between 100Hz and 144Hz. So, you get buttery-smooth gameplay even with 100Hz.

Other gaming features include crosshair overlays and Black Stabilizer for better visibility in darker games.

The monitor also supports HDR (High Dynamic Range), but due to the lack of localized dimming, wide color gamut, and strong peak brightness, you can just ignore it.

Design & Connectivity

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

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

Note that because this 29-inch monitor is wider, it’s also shorter than a 16:9 display of the same diagonal size. The LG 29WQ500 flat-screen monitor is as tall as a regular 23″ 16:9 display, which may take some time getting used to, especially if you’re accustomed to bigger monitors.

Alternatives

• LG 29WQ600 – the same monitor with integrated speakers and a USB-C port (DP Alt Mode, but no power delivery). It’s more expensive, but can be found on sale for ~$250

About The Monitor

If you want a curved ultrawide monitor with a high refresh rate, the Sceptre C305B-200UN1 is the best model available for under $250!

Image Quality

The monitor is based on an 1800R curved VA panel with a high 3,000:1 contrast ratio, a 250-nit peak brightness, and ~90% sRGB gamut coverage.

It has a high 200Hz refresh rate, which provides a significant boost in motion clarity as opposed to 60Hz/75Hz.

As expected from a VA panel at this price range, some smearing will be noticeable in fast-paced games, but mainly in darker scenes. So, unless you’re particularly competitive or sensitive to smearing, it will be tolerable or even negligible.

Features

The Sceptre C305B-200UN supports AMD FreeSync with a 48-200Hz VRR range and it works with compatible NVIDIA GPUs. However, some units might exhibit brightness flickering with fluctuating frame rates.

Other useful features include Picture in Picture/Picture by Picture and various picture presets.

Check out our full Sceptre C305B-200UN1 review for more information.

Design & Connectivity

The stand of the monitor is tilt-only, but you can detach it and mount the screen via the 75x75mm VESA pattern.

Connectivity options include two HDMI 1.4 ports, HDMI 2.0, DisplayPort 1.2, dual 3W integrated speakers and a headphone jack.

Alternatives

Note that you can sometimes find 34″ 3440×1440 144Hz curved VA monitors on sale for ~$250, such as the KTC H34S18S.

About The Monitor

The Acer CBL282K smiiprx is one of the most affordable 4K monitors available yet it offers an impressive image quality!

Image Quality

Based on an IPS panel, the Acer CBL282K has a consistent image quality with 178° wide viewing angles. Moreover, it has a wide 90% DCI-P3 color gamut for more vibrant colors and a decent 300-nit peak brightness.

Further, its 4K UHD resolution results in a rich pixel density of ~157 pixels per inch on 28″ sized screens. While this makes small items such as text unreadable, you can scale up your interface and increase the size as well as the sharpness of text.

Features

Additionally, the Acer CBL282K 4K monitor supports AMD FreeSync for tear-free gameplay within the supported 40-60Hz dynamic range.

Keep in mind that 4K is very demanding to drive, so unless you have a powerful GPU, we suggest getting a lower-resolution display for PC gaming.

As many console games are limited to 30FPS or 60FPS, the Acer CBL282K is a great monitor for the PS4 Pro and the Xbox One X.

It’s also a good choice for those who need a monitor mainly for work, content creation, and watching videos with some light gaming on the side. Just make sure that your PC will be able to handle your favorite games at 4K with decent frame rates in this case!

Design & Connectivity

The stand offers full ergonomic support, including up to 130mm height adjustment, -5°/35° tilt, 360° swivel, +/- 90° pivot and 100x100mm VESA mount compatibility.

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

Alternatives

In case the Acer CBL282K is not available, check out the following models, all of which are based on the same panel:

• ASUS VG289Q
• ASUS VG289Q1A
• Acer CB282K
• Samsung U28R550
• MSI G281UV

Alternatively, consider the cheaper Philips 278E1A and the Sceptre U275W-UPT with no VRR support, or the Acer CB272K with FreeSync and excellent Delta E < 1 factory calibration.

About The Monitor

The Innocn 27M2U-D usually goes for $300, but it can be found with a $100 coupon for just $200, which makes it the cheapest monitor with proper HDR support!

Image Quality

While there are many LED-backlit displays that can accept the HDR10 signal and display it, for a true HDR viewing experience, you’ll need either full-array local dimming or an OLED panel.

The Innocn 27M2U-D has 384 dimming zones spread across the panel that can dim areas of the image that are supposed to be dark without affecting the areas that should remain bright, thus significantly increasing the contrast ratio!

On top of that, the monitor can reach a stellar 1,000-nit peak brightness for vivid highlights and has an exceptional color gamut with 99% DCI-P3 and 99% Adobe RGB coverage. There’s also a dedicated sRGB mode and Delta E < 2 factory calibration.

Even without its HDR capabilities, this monitor is worth $300 (let alone its $200 sale price) for its amazing color coverage and accuracy.

The only downside is the low 60Hz refresh rate and lack of VRR support, which will repulse most gamers. However, if you’re not that into fast-paced gaming, you might be okay with a lower refresh rate.

If you’re interested in a higher refresh rate display with proper HDR support, you’ll have to invest at least $280 in the AOC Q27G3XMN with a 27″ 1440p 180Hz flat-screen VA panel.

Design & Connectivity

The stand of the monitor offers height adjustment up to 120mm, 90° pivot, -5°/20° tilt, +/- 25° swivel and 100x100mm VESA mount compatibility.

Connectivity options include DP 1.4, two HDMI 2.0 ports, USB-C with DP Alt Mode and 65W Power Delivery and a headphone jack.

About The Monitor

You can even find a 32″ 4K monitor for under $250 – the Sceptre U325W-UPT.

Image Quality

The Sceptre U325W even uses an IPS panel with a wide ~125% sRGB color gamut volume, wide viewing angles and fast response time.

It also has a bit higher 70Hz refresh rate with VRR support, while other specifications include a standard 250-nit peak brightness and a 1000:1 static contrast ratio.

4K UHD resolution looks incredibly sharp even on 32″ sized screens with roughly 140 PPI, allowing you to enjoy crisp text and fine details.

Design & Connectivity

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

Connectivity options include two HDMI 2.0 inputs, two DisplayPort 1.4 inputs, a headphone jack and dual 2W integrated speakers.

Conclusion

And that’s that! These are the best monitors for gaming under 250 USD that you can get your hands on right now!

We will update this article as soon as any better deals come up. In the meantime, feel free to leave us a comment below if you need any help picking your next monitor.

Overall, you can’t go wrong with the ASUS VG259QM if you’re a competitive player.

In case you’re more of a casual gamer, we recommend the Sceptre E325B-QPN168 – or the Sceptre C305B-200UN1 if you’re not sensitive to ghosting and tearing.

The LG 29WQ500 is great for mixed-use and if you have a bit weaker PC system, while the Acer CBL282K and the Sceptre U325W-UPT will certainly appeal to console gamers and aspiring content creators on a budget.