Best 4K TV 2019: Your definitive guide to the top Ultra-HD TVs

For over a decade, HD TVs ruled the market. Their 1080p (and often, lower) resolution felt like a huge jump from the CRT TVs we had been using. As hard as it is to believe, 4K TVs are a similar jump in technology you saw 10 years ago, promising four times the resolution and exceptional contrast.

So why should you ditch that 1080p TV? Not only do 4K TVs simply look better thanks to the increased pixel density and support for wide color gamut technology, but they're usually just as cheap as a 1080p TV - even if you buy them brand-new. In fact, buying a new 1080p TV is getting harder and harder as more manufacturers continue to phase them out of their product lineups.

But with so many options out there, narrowing down a year's worth of high-caliber screens to just eight is a tough job. But that's where we come in.

We've viewed the vast majority of the 4K TVs on the market, and have narrowed them down to a list of the top 4K TVs on the market for 2019 with screens from Samsung, Sony and LG leading the pack, and lower-cost options like Vizio, Hisense and TCL following just behind.

If you recently bought something from another manufacturer that you love and you don't see it on this list, it doesn't mean we've intentionally snubbed it. Unfortunately best-of lists are tiny and we can only squeeze so many screens on here. That said, we're always adding more screens to this list, so be sure to check back this time next month.

Should I wait until Black Friday to buy a 4K TV?

Considering that it's already October, it's probably best to wait it out for Black Friday 2019 or, if you can't be bothered to fight it out in the crowd, Cyber Monday.

While TV manufacturers have yet to unveil which TVs will be on sale that day, chances are good that many of the TVs you see below will be on sale for at least $100-$200 off their regular price, with some getting more of a discount than others.

The only precaution we'd tell you to take is to really look at the model number of any TV deals that seem too good to be true. If it's not exactly the same TV you see on this list (or on another trusted reviews website for that matter), it's probably not the same TV. We'd also recommend staying away from any bargain basement priced 4K TV, as these screens usually don't have good upscaling.

If you can hold out a few weeks, stick with us and we'll hook you up with all the best Black Friday TV deals.

What is 4K? Watch the video below to find out:

What are the best 4K TVs in 2019?

Last year, the Samsung Q9FN was the TV to beat. It won award-after-award for its features and image quality, not to mention its excellent, improved smart platform that came with Bixby support and Samsung SmartThings. However it wasn’t perfect and there were legitimate complaints about viewing angles and an over-aggressive local dimming system that crushed black detail.

Samsung has clearly taken these criticisms to heart, and directly addressed them in the Q90. The new model has a visibly superior viewing angle that holds its own against OLED, and the local dimming delivers deep blacks without losing shadow detail. To that end, the new Ultra Black Elite filter is nothing short of a revelation, rejecting ambient light in a way that just staggers belief.

The Q90 is able to deliver images that can directly compete with an OLED, with natural colors, bright highlights, deep blacks, and well defined shadows. It can also surpass any OLED when it comes to HDR, with images that are often breathtaking in their detail and dynamic range.

In fact our only real criticism would be that, unlike some of the competition, the Q90 doesn’t support Dolby Vision. However in all other respects the Samsung Q90 is an absolutely stellar TV that takes QLED to another level.

Read the full review: Samsung Q90R QLED TV

If smart features are the most important criteria for you when picking out a new 4K TV, then you can't do any better than the new LG C9 OLED. The 2nd generation Alpha9 processor, which uses AI enhancements to deliver stellar SDR and HDR images, helps make the upscaling and processing second-to-none with incredible levels of detail and image fidelity.

Add to that a robust smart platform and new AI sound options that analyze and improve sound quality in real time, and you have one of the smartest – and, in our opinion – one of the best 4K TVs on the market. Not to mention one of the best OLED TVs too.

Read the full review: LG C9 OLED (OLED55C9, OLED65C9, OLED77C9)

The Vizio P-Series Quantum X is a home run for Vizio. Sure, the SmartCast interface isn’t all the great, and the speakers are worth bypassing, but the TV is packed with awesome features and backed up by an excellent image quality. We’re looking forward to AirPlay 2 and HomeKit support, but even without those features the TV is still one of the best options in its price range.

If you truly have deep pockets and want the best image quality out there, then it’s still worth going for LG's OLED or Samsung's QLED TVs - but in the absence of a six-figure salary, the $2,199 Vizio P-Series Quantum X PX-65G1 is clearly an excellent option for those that want quantum dot tech in a smart TV at Vizio-level prices.

Read the full review: Vizio P-Series Quantum (PQ65-F1)

A direct replacement for last year's Sony A9F/AF9 OLED, the Sony A9G/AG9 Master Series OLED is the new flagship of Sony’s TV fleet. It embraces a characteristically minimalist design that disguises a host of cutting-edge features like Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos support, plus Netflix Calibrated Mode (of interest to many), and IMAX Enhanced certification (of interest to few).

This is a screen that looks premium, and has a spec on the right side of righteous. The Android platform is easy to live with, that vibrating sound system entertaining and picture quality top notch. Offering Dolby Vision is a welcome refinement, but the caveat is a lack of support for HDR10+. That said, it does a fabulous job up-scaling HD/SDR so it's easy to overlook the lack of at least one HDR format.

It's undoubtedly expensive but, all things considered, this glass is class.

Read the full review: Sony A9G Master Series OLED

Overall, the LG E9 OLED offers a dazzling picture, with crisp detail and truly cinematic visuals. LG’s organic LED displays lack the brightness of competing models, but those after a proper movie night in won’t be disappointed.

The E9 differs mostly from other LG OLEDs in its shape and its size options – both the more premium W9 and cheaper C9 offer a larger 77-inch model – but we’d be surprised if the E9’s all-glass panel design didn’t impress you. With a unique look, and the multi-channel audio to elevate it above other OLED sets in the range, the E9 is a fantastic addition to any living room if you can afford one.

Read the full review: LG E9 OLED (OLED55E9, OLED65E9)

While it's not as impressive as this year's Vizio P-Series Quantum X, last year's Vizio P-Series Quantum still offers an incredible deal for those who can find one.

It’s a big, bold and affordable screen that supports most forms of HDR and has the ability to light up the room with its 2,000 nits of peak brightness. It might not be able to hit the inky black levels of OLED, and suffers from slow startup, but it is by far the best value quantum dot TV on the market.

That being said, if there’s anything substantial holding the Vizio P-Series Quantum back, it’s Vizio’s smart platform: In just a few words, SmartCast is one of the least robust platforms and one of the slowest, too. Startup from a complete shutdown takes a seriously long time, and navigating around the interface isn’t nearly as snappy as LG’s WebOS or Samsung’s Tizen platform.

Still, if you don't mind a slow OS, this is a great budget big-screen TV.

Read the full review: Vizio P-Series Quantum (PQ65-F1)

Samsung’s flagship Q90R QLED TV blew us away recently with its wider viewing angles, deeper blacks, and superior HDR images - sadly, however, not everyone can afford the flagship model. So what can Samsung offer for those wanting to experience QLED picture quality on a budget?

Despite sitting lower down in the QLED line-up, the Q70R includes the same comprehensive smart platform, extensive connections, and cutting-edge features found further up the range. This isn’t the flashiest-looking TV that Samsung has ever made, but if your funds are limited the Q70 is a cracking QLED all-rounder that’s worth checking out.

Read the full review: Samsung Q70R QLED TV

Sporting the upgraded X1 Ultimate processor, Netflix Calibrated Mode and the latest version of Android TV, Sony’s mid-range X950G has a lot going for it.

Right out of the box, the best way to describe the image quality of the X950G is… well, natural. It’s not flashy. It’s not overly bright. Colors aren’t oversaturated. It’s just a really natural picture with subdued colors and great black levels perfect for HD/SDR content. That said, if you’re the kind of person that wants a bit more pop to your images all you need to do is turn on Live Color in the picture settings. This mode works on HD/SDR content to add a bit more color saturation to the image and helps to make the image ‘pop’ in a way that really grabs your attention.

It’s a shame that poor sound quality ruined such a great 4K/HDR TV, however, taken by itself, the Sony X950G is an immaculate screen with a ton of potential.

Read the full review: Sony BRAVIA X950G (XBR-65X950G)

If you have deep pockets and a checkbook filled with blank checks, we’d tell you to reach deep and shell out for only the best 4K TVs on the market – LG’s crazy-thin OLED W8 or Samsung’s ultra-bright Q9FN QLED. But that’s not always realistic: for the vast, vast majority of us, our budget to spend on a 4K UHD TV is limited to somewhere under $1,000 – and often it's even less than that.

To that end, it’s absolutely fair to say that the TCL 6-Series is the best TV you can possibly get in this price range. Its performance per dollar is unmatched and its picture quality – despite a few minor flaws – will truly impress you.

Said simply, if there’s a better value 4K TV on the market, we’ve yet to see it.

Read the full review: TCL 6-Series (R615, R617)

Hisense's H8 Series has long offered high quality at a very reasonable price, but these days it's getting harder and harder to make waves in the budget TV market - Samsung and LG now offer plenty of great 4K HDR TVs well under the $1,000 mark, while TCL has been making headlines with its $600 TCL 6-Series.

But the H8F is a little different than previous-gen H8 series TVs. It's the company's best value TV yet and offers both Android TV and the company's proprietary ULED TV tech that it claims offers better contrast and performance than rival LED TVs.

Sure, it's not going to compete with LG's OLEDs or Samsung high-end QLED models, but this affordable 4K screen is one of the best in its price range, and the only sub-$500 model we feel comfortable recommending to our readers.

Read the full review: Hisense H8F (55H8F) review