LG makes the best OLED TVs on the market, full stop. Their C-series has been the default recommendation for home theater enthusiasts for years, and the 2025-2026 lineup continues that dominance. But LG also sells QNED (Mini-LED) and budget LCD TVs that aren't nearly as impressive — knowing which tier to buy is the key decision.
Quick answer
- Best overall: LG C5 OLED — the benchmark. Perfect blacks, Dolby Vision, 4K/144Hz, best gaming features
- Best value: LG C4 OLED — same picture as C5, lower clearance price. Buy this if you find it on sale
- Best premium: LG G5 Gallery OLED — brighter than C5, flush wall mount, MLA technology
- Best budget OLED: LG B4 — entry-level OLED, still real OLED blacks at a lower price
- Best non-OLED: LG QNED90 — Mini-LED for bright rooms where OLED's price is too high
LG C5 vs C4 — which to buy?
This is the most common question. The honest answer: buy whichever is cheaper at the time you're shopping.
The C5 is the 2025 model with a slightly updated processor. The C4 is the 2024 model that performs virtually identically for movie watching and gaming. If the C4 is $200+ cheaper (which it often is during clearance), buy the C4. If they're close in price, get the C5 for the newer processor and longer software update timeline.
Both have:
- OLED panel with perfect blacks
- Dolby Vision IQ and Dolby Atmos passthrough
- 4 HDMI 2.1 ports (all supporting VRR, ALLM)
- eARC on HDMI 2
- Sub-2ms input lag in Game Mode
- webOS smart TV platform
Key difference: the processor. The C5 runs the α9 Gen8, the C4 the α9 Gen7, and the gap shows up in upscaling of low-quality sources more than in anything else. (The α11 is the G-series part — it's in the G5, not the C5, and that's a common mix-up.) Both do 4K/144Hz on all four ports — 144Hz arrived with the C4, not the C5, and it only matters to PC gamers anyway, since the PS5 and Xbox Series X both cap at 4K/120Hz.
Our picks
LG C5 OLED — best overall LG TV
The C5 is the TV that every other TV is compared against. OLED panel with per-pixel dimming delivers perfect blacks — dark scenes look exactly as the director intended, with zero light bleed or blooming. Dolby Vision IQ adjusts brightness based on your room's ambient light. All four HDMI 2.1 ports run at full 48Gbps bandwidth, which means you can connect a PS5, Xbox, Apple TV, and Blu-ray player without any compromises.
The webOS Gaming Dashboard makes switching between game and movie modes effortless. The α9 Gen8 processor handles upscaling and motion processing well. Out-of-box calibration is close enough to reference that most people won't need to adjust anything beyond brightness.
Not ideal for: Very bright rooms with direct sunlight — OLED is more susceptible to washout than Mini-LED.
LG C5 OLED on Amazon (paid link)
LG C4 OLED — best value LG TV
Same OLED technology, same perfect blacks, same Dolby Vision, same 4 HDMI 2.1 ports. The C4 uses the α9 Gen7 instead of the C5's α9 Gen8 — one generation, and the difference is invisible in normal viewing. Buy this if it's cheaper than the C5, which it usually is.
55" models typically $1,000-1,100 on sale. 65" models $1,100-1,200 on sale. These are the best OLED prices available.
LG C4 OLED on Amazon (paid link)
LG G5 Gallery OLED — best premium LG TV
The G5 is LG's flagship. It uses MLA (Micro Lens Array) technology that makes the OLED panel significantly brighter than the C5 — this reduces the gap between OLED and Mini-LED in bright rooms. The flush wall mount is included (designed to sit flat against the wall like a picture frame), and the overall build quality is a step above the C-series.
Buy the G5 if brightness in a moderately bright room is your concern, or if you want the absolute best picture quality LG offers. For most people, the C5 or C4 is enough.
LG G5 Gallery OLED on Amazon (paid link)
LG B4 OLED — cheapest OLED
The B4 is LG's entry into OLED. It has the same self-emissive panel technology — perfect blacks, wide viewing angles, Dolby Vision — but with a lower-tier processor — the α8 on the 55, 65 and 77-inch sizes, while the 83-inch uses the α9 Gen7 — and slightly lower peak brightness than the C-series. All four HDMI ports are HDMI 2.1 (48Gbps), supporting 4K/120Hz with VRR — an upgrade over the B3 which had only two full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 ports.
For movie watching, the B4 looks nearly identical to the C4. The gaming gap isn't port count — it's the refresh cap, since the B4 stops at 4K/120Hz where the C4 goes to 144Hz — plus lower peak brightness on bright HDR content. If you primarily watch movies and TV shows, or you game on a console rather than a PC, the B4 is an excellent way to get OLED quality at the lowest price.
LG B4 OLED on Amazon (paid link)
LG QNED90 MiniLED — best for bright rooms on a budget
If OLED's price is too high or your room is extremely bright, the QNED90 is LG's best alternative. Mini-LED backlighting with quantum dots and NanoCell technology. It gets bright enough for sunny rooms and supports Dolby Vision, 4K/120Hz, and VRR.
Black levels don't match OLED, and local dimming can produce visible blooming around bright objects in dark scenes. But for the price, it's a solid TV that handles bright rooms better than any OLED at this cost.
LG QNED90 on Amazon (paid link)
Which port is eARC on an LG?
On LG's current C and G series OLEDs — C3, C4, C5, G4, G5 — eARC is HDMI 2. The B4 is the exception you should not guess at: published listings give HDMI 2, HDMI 3 and "all four" depending on where you look, so read the label on the socket. That is an OLED convention, not an LG-wide one: the QNED90 recommended above puts eARC on HDMI 3, and LG's spec sheet says so. Check the sheet for your exact model rather than assuming.
One thing worth clearing up, because a lot of advice gets it backwards: the eARC port is a normal, full-bandwidth HDMI input that happens to also send audio out. It is bidirectional. On a C4 or C5 all four ports are 48Gbps, so a console on HDMI 2 loses nothing. The only reason to keep it free is that a soundbar will eventually want it.
For soundbar recommendations that work seamlessly with LG TVs, see: Best soundbar for LG TV
LG vs Samsung: which to buy?
Choose LG if: You watch in a dark or moderately lit room, Dolby Vision matters, you want the best gaming TV, or you want the cleanest smart TV interface (webOS is less ad-heavy than Samsung's Tizen).
Choose Samsung if: Your room is very bright (Samsung's Mini-LED and anti-glare are superior), you want Samsung ecosystem integration (Q-Symphony, SmartThings), or you prefer Samsung's design options (The Frame).
See: Best Samsung TV
FAQ
Is the LG C5 worth it over the C4? Only if the price difference is small ($100 or less). The picture quality is virtually identical. The C5 has a slightly newer processor and will receive software updates for longer.
Do LG TVs support HDR10+? No. LG TVs support Dolby Vision and HDR10 but not HDR10+ (Samsung's format). In practice, this rarely matters — most content that has HDR10+ also has Dolby Vision, and Dolby Vision is the better format.
Should I buy OLED or QNED? OLED if your budget allows and your room isn't extremely bright. The picture quality difference is significant — once you see OLED blacks, it's hard to go back. QNED is a reasonable compromise if OLED is out of budget.
How long do LG OLED TVs last? Modern OLED panels are rated for 100,000+ hours. Burn-in is possible with static content (news tickers, game HUDs) but is not a practical concern with normal mixed-use viewing.
Related guides
- Best soundbar for LG TV — WOW Orchestra and eARC picks
- Best Samsung TV — LG's main competitor compared
- Best TV for movies — cross-brand movie-watching picks
- Best gaming TV for PS5 and Xbox — gaming-specific recommendations