10 Best flat screen TVs

Wally Nowinski
editor

When searching for the best flat screen TV, focusing on picture quality is paramount to ensure a visually stunning viewing experience. Since all TVs in our database are flat screen, your choice simplifies to assessing the picture quality, which encompasses factors like resolution, color accuracy, brightness, contrast ratios, and HDR performance. High-resolution TVs, such as 4K and even 8K models, offer incredible detail and clarity, making them a top choice for those prioritizing picture quality. Look for TVs that excel in delivering vibrant, true-to-life colors, deep blacks, and bright whites. HDR (High Dynamic Range) compatibility further enhances picture quality by improving the range of colors and contrast, making the images on screen more lifelike and immersive. By concentrating on these key aspects of picture quality, you'll find a flat screen TV that not only fits your space but also provides a premium viewing experience that can bring your favorite content to life.

Our experts used the PerfectRec decision engine to comb through our TV database and find the Best flat screen TVs available in 2024. Here are the top 10 picks.

Our criteria for Best flat screen TVs:

  • Screen type All TVs in our database are flat screen.
  • Picture Quality We focused on TVs with the overall best picture quality.
To consider others factors, try the PerfectRec decision engine to get your personalized TV recommendation
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10 Best flat screen TVs

1
BEST RATING
Movies & TV shows:
5.0
Picture Quality: Best in Class
Movies & TV: A+, Gaming: A+, Sports: A+
Bright Room: Excellent




Expert Summary
The Sony A95L OLED TV is a premium model with superb overall picture quality, making it an excellent choice for movies, sports, and gaming, especially in dark rooms where its contrast and black uniformity stand out. This TV offers an OLED display with high brightness and low reflection, which also makes it a good option for bright rooms, though there are other TVs that might outshine it in this aspect. For those interested in gaming, it has features like low response time and input lag. Sound quality is very good, and the TV can accommodate a soundbar with its adjustable stand. It supports several HDR formats including Dolby Vision but not HDR10+. Keep in mind, this TV comes at a high-end price, reflecting its premium features and performance.
Pros
  • Overall picture quality is top-notch
  • Excellent gaming, sports, and movie performance
  • Superb dark room viewing experience
  • Great sound quality with powerful speakers
  • Wide viewing angles for group watching
Cons
  • Not the brightest in sunny rooms
  • Gray uniformity could be better
  • Does not support HDR10+ format
2
BEST RATING
Gaming:
5.0
Picture Quality: Excellent
Movies & TV: A, Gaming: A+, Sports: A-
Bright Room: Very Good




Expert Summary
The Samsung S90C OLED TV is a high-end model with excellent overall picture quality, making it great for movies and series, with strong performance in bright rooms and an outstanding viewing experience in dark rooms. If gaming is a priority, this TV offers the best gaming experience with a 144Hz OLED screen and low input lag. Sports enthusiasts will appreciate the very good handling of fast-moving scenes. Although the sound quality is fair, this might not be a concern if you already have or plan to get a separate sound system. This TV comes at a premium price, but its features like a wide color gamut, high contrast, excellent HDR performance, including support for HDR10+, Dolby Vision, and HLG, could justify the investment if top-tier picture quality and future-proofing are important to you. Keep in mind that it may not be the best choice if you plan to use it as a PC monitor or if you heavily prioritize audio quality from the TV speakers themselves.
Pros
  • Excellent overall picture quality
  • Best for gaming experiences
  • Excellent in dark rooms
  • Very good in bright rooms
  • Wide viewing angles
Cons
  • Fair sound quality
  • No built-in great speakers
  • Not as bright as some TVs
  • No Dolby Vision support
3
BEST RATING
Gaming:
5.0
Picture Quality: Best in Class
Movies & TV: A, Gaming: A+, Sports: A-
Bright Room: Excellent




Expert Summary
The Samsung S95C OLED TV, a high-end model released in early 2023, excels in picture quality, making it an excellent choice for movies and dark room viewing. It also offers top-tier gaming performance with features like a 144Hz refresh rate, 4k resolution at 144Hz, and low input lag. For sports fans, its performance is very good, though it shines brightest with other content types. It handles bright rooms well due to its excellent reflection handling and viewing angles. The TV includes a One Connect Box for cable management, which means fewer cables will be visible, helping to maintain a clean setup.
Pros
  • Excellent overall picture quality
  • Top-notch for gaming
  • Great for movies and series
  • Outstanding dark room performance
  • Handles bright rooms well
Cons
  • No HDR10+ support
  • Sound may lack bass
  • Upscaling can be improved
  • Some motion processing issues
4
BEST RATING
Gaming:
5.0
Picture Quality: Best in Class
Movies & TV: A, Gaming: A+, Sports: A-
Bright Room: Excellent




Expert Summary
The Samsung S95C OLED TV, a high-end model released in early 2023, excels in picture quality, making it an excellent choice for movies and dark room viewing. It also offers top-tier gaming performance with features like a 144Hz refresh rate, 4k resolution at 144Hz, and low input lag. For sports fans, its performance is very good, though it shines brightest with other content types. It handles bright rooms well due to its excellent reflection handling and viewing angles. The TV includes a One Connect Box for cable management, which means fewer cables will be visible, helping to maintain a clean setup.
Pros
  • Excellent overall picture quality
  • Top-notch for gaming
  • Great for movies and series
  • Outstanding dark room performance
  • Handles bright rooms well
Cons
  • No HDR10+ support
  • Sound may lack bass
  • Upscaling can be improved
  • Some motion processing issues
5
BEST RATING
Movies & TV shows:
5.0
Picture Quality: Best in Class
Movies & TV: A+, Gaming: A+, Sports: A+
Bright Room: Excellent




Expert Summary
The Sony A95L OLED TV is a premium model with superb overall picture quality, making it an excellent choice for movies, sports, and gaming, especially in dark rooms where its contrast and black uniformity stand out. This TV offers an OLED display with high brightness and low reflection, which also makes it a good option for bright rooms, though there are other TVs that might outshine it in this aspect. For those interested in gaming, it has features like low response time and input lag. Sound quality is very good, and the TV can accommodate a soundbar with its adjustable stand. It supports several HDR formats including Dolby Vision but not HDR10+. Keep in mind, this TV comes at a high-end price, reflecting its premium features and performance.
Pros
  • Overall picture quality is top-notch
  • Excellent gaming, sports, and movie performance
  • Superb dark room viewing experience
  • Great sound quality with powerful speakers
  • Wide viewing angles for group watching
Cons
  • Not the brightest in sunny rooms
  • Gray uniformity could be better
  • Does not support HDR10+ format
6
BEST RATING
Movies & TV shows:
4.8
Picture Quality: Excellent
Movies & TV: A, Gaming: A, Sports: A-
Bright Room: Very Good




Expert Summary
The LG C3 OLED offers excellent picture quality, especially in dark rooms, making it ideal for movie enthusiasts and nighttime viewing. It has a superb contrast ratio and handles reflections well, so it's also a good fit for rooms with some light control. For gamers, its response time and low input lag provide a strong gaming experience, though it may not be as bright as some LED or QLED TVs. Sports fans will enjoy very good performance, but keep in mind that in brightly lit rooms or during daytime viewing, an OLED's brightness might be less impactful than other screen types. It supports advanced audio formats like Dolby Atmos, which enhances the viewing experience with immersive sound if you have a compatible sound system. The TV comes at a premium price, reflecting its high-end features and performance.
Pros
  • Exceptional overall picture quality
  • Outstanding for gaming
  • Excellent in dark rooms
  • Great for movies and series
  • Wide viewing angles
Cons
  • Lower brightness in bright rooms
  • Potential risk of burn-in
  • Average sound quality
  • Reflection handling could be better
7
BEST RATING
Bright Room:
4.9
Picture Quality: Very Good
Movies & TV: A-, Gaming: A-, Sports: B
Bright Room: Best in Class




Expert Summary
The Hisense U8K LCD TV offers a very good overall picture quality, making it well-suited for watching movies and series. It has excellent performance in dark rooms, with high contrast and good local dimming abilities. The screen shines particularly well in bright rooms and sports content is handled decently. If you're into gaming, this TV also provides a very good experience due to its high response time and low input lag. However, when watching sports, you may notice it's not the best performer. Color reproduction is excellent and the speakers are great, but keep in mind that the viewing angle is limited, which could be a downside if you often watch TV from wide angles. With support for HDR10+, Dolby Vision, and HLG, it can display a wide range of HDR content effectively. It's also equipped with 4 HDMI ports and can be used as a monitor. Overall, the TV is positioned at a midrange price and offers a slew of features that could make it a good fit for various uses, especially in bright rooms and for viewers who appreciate high-quality image and audio for movies and gaming.
Pros
  • Excellent dark room performance
  • Very good overall picture quality
  • Low input lag for gaming
  • Strong reflection handling
  • Powerful built-in speakers
Cons
  • Limited viewing angle
  • Fair performance in bright rooms
  • Gray uniformity could be better
  • Only fair sports content quality
8
BEST RATING
Bright Room:
4.9
Picture Quality: Very Good
Movies & TV: A-, Gaming: A-, Sports: B
Bright Room: Best in Class




Expert Summary
The Hisense U8K LCD TV offers a very good overall picture quality, making it well-suited for watching movies and series. It has excellent performance in dark rooms, with high contrast and good local dimming abilities. The screen shines particularly well in bright rooms and sports content is handled decently. If you're into gaming, this TV also provides a very good experience due to its high response time and low input lag. However, when watching sports, you may notice it's not the best performer. Color reproduction is excellent and the speakers are great, but keep in mind that the viewing angle is limited, which could be a downside if you often watch TV from wide angles. With support for HDR10+, Dolby Vision, and HLG, it can display a wide range of HDR content effectively. It's also equipped with 4 HDMI ports and can be used as a monitor. Overall, the TV is positioned at a midrange price and offers a slew of features that could make it a good fit for various uses, especially in bright rooms and for viewers who appreciate high-quality image and audio for movies and gaming.
Pros
  • Excellent dark room performance
  • Very good overall picture quality
  • Low input lag for gaming
  • Strong reflection handling
  • Powerful built-in speakers
Cons
  • Limited viewing angle
  • Fair performance in bright rooms
  • Gray uniformity could be better
  • Only fair sports content quality
9
BEST RATING
Bright Room:
4.9
Picture Quality: Very Good
Movies & TV: A-, Gaming: A-, Sports: B
Bright Room: Best in Class




Expert Summary
The Hisense U8K LCD TV offers a very good overall picture quality, making it well-suited for watching movies and series. It has excellent performance in dark rooms, with high contrast and good local dimming abilities. The screen shines particularly well in bright rooms and sports content is handled decently. If you're into gaming, this TV also provides a very good experience due to its high response time and low input lag. However, when watching sports, you may notice it's not the best performer. Color reproduction is excellent and the speakers are great, but keep in mind that the viewing angle is limited, which could be a downside if you often watch TV from wide angles. With support for HDR10+, Dolby Vision, and HLG, it can display a wide range of HDR content effectively. It's also equipped with 4 HDMI ports and can be used as a monitor. Overall, the TV is positioned at a midrange price and offers a slew of features that could make it a good fit for various uses, especially in bright rooms and for viewers who appreciate high-quality image and audio for movies and gaming.
Pros
  • Excellent dark room performance
  • Very good overall picture quality
  • Low input lag for gaming
  • Strong reflection handling
  • Powerful built-in speakers
Cons
  • Limited viewing angle
  • Fair performance in bright rooms
  • Gray uniformity could be better
  • Only fair sports content quality
10
BEST RATING
Gaming:
5.0
Picture Quality: Best in Class
Movies & TV: A, Gaming: A+, Sports: A-
Bright Room: Excellent




Expert Summary
The Samsung S95C OLED TV, a high-end model released in early 2023, excels in picture quality, making it an excellent choice for movies and dark room viewing. It also offers top-tier gaming performance with features like a 144Hz refresh rate, 4k resolution at 144Hz, and low input lag. For sports fans, its performance is very good, though it shines brightest with other content types. It handles bright rooms well due to its excellent reflection handling and viewing angles. The TV includes a One Connect Box for cable management, which means fewer cables will be visible, helping to maintain a clean setup.
Pros
  • Excellent overall picture quality
  • Top-notch for gaming
  • Great for movies and series
  • Outstanding dark room performance
  • Handles bright rooms well
Cons
  • No HDR10+ support
  • Sound may lack bass
  • Upscaling can be improved
  • Some motion processing issues