The 6 Best 1440p Gaming Monitors of 2026  

Updated Jul 24, 2026 at 03:06 pm
Best 1440p Gaming Monitors
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There are a few advantages to getting a 1440p monitor for gaming. They strike a balance versus 1080p and 4k displays between having good enough image quality without being too taxing on your graphics card, allowing you to reach high frame rates. These monitors are available in a wide range of refresh rates, so they're great for almost any type of gamer. Even current-gen gaming consoles support 1440p signals, so these monitors are good choices for console or PC gaming.

There are a few things to look for in a 1440p gaming display. Its response time is important for sharp motion handling. Determining which VRR format it supports ensures compatibility with your graphics card, and having low input lag results in a responsive feel, which is the case with most monitors anyway. The majority of 1440p options are available with a 27- or 32-inch screen, but choosing the right size is a personal preference.

We've bought and tested more than 400 monitors, and below are our recommendations for the best 1440p gaming monitors. Also, see our recommendations for the best 1440p 144Hz monitors, the best 1440p monitors, and if you prefer a higher resolution, the best 4k gaming monitors. For more than just a monitor, check out the best gaming laptops and the best gaming headsets.

How We Test Monitors
How We Test Monitors

We buy and test more than 30 monitors each year, all of which we purchase ourselves, without cherry-picked units or samples. We put a lot into each unbiased, straight-to-the-point review, and there's a whole process from purchasing to publishing, involving multiple teams and people. We do more than just use the monitor for a week; we use specialized, custom tools to measure various aspects and deliver objective, data-driven results. We also consider multiple factors before making any recommendations, including the monitor's cost, its performance compared to the competition, and whether it's easy to find.

  1. Best 1440p Gaming Monitor

    The best 1440p gaming monitor we've tested is the ASUS ROG Swift OLED PG27AQWP-W. It's a high-end OLED with a fast refresh rate, delivering a smooth, responsive feel. It has a 540Hz refresh rate with its native 1440p resolution, and you can boost it to 720Hz at 720p using its dual-mode feature. This makes it versatile for playing different games. It has a near-instantaneous response time at any refresh rate, so fast-moving objects look sharp, and it supports all common VRR formats to reduce screen tearing. It even has features you'd expect in a premium gaming monitor, like HDMI and DisplayPort 2.1 bandwidth to make full use of modern graphics cards and gaming consoles.

    Besides its high-end gaming performance, it even delivers fantastic picture quality. Its OLED panel displays deep and inky blacks in dark rooms without any haloing around bright objects. It also displays a wide range of colors, makes small highlights stand out, and colors are vivid. Plus, its Tandem OLED panel gets bright, so it fights glare well in bright rooms. Its glossy coating results in clear images, but at the cost of mirror-like reflections. You can consider the LG 27GX790B-B if you want a matte alternative with fewer mirror-like reflections in well-lit rooms, but images are hazier.

  2. Best Upper Mid-Range 1440p Gaming Monitor

    If the ASUS ROG Swift OLED PG27AQWP-W is out of your price range or you won't take advantage of its high refresh rate, check out the ASUS ROG Strix OLED XG27ACDNG. You can often find it for less than the PG27AQWP-W, especially when it's on sale. It offers the same near-instantaneous response time, so motion is sharp. However, it has a lower 360Hz refresh rate, so it's not quite as smooth and responsive. It lacks a dual-mode feature to make it versatile for playing different types of games, but its refresh rate is still high enough for most PC gamers.

    It has a few advantages over the PG27AQWP-W, such as its QD-OLED panel delivering more vivid colors. One downside is that blacks look purple in bright rooms on this monitor, so you have to use it in a dark room to get the best performance. Luckily, it has typical gaming features, like support for all common VRR formats and HDMI 2.1 bandwidth. This means it supports most common signals with consoles, like a PS5 or PS5 Pro, Xbox Series X, or Nintendo Switch 2. That said, if you don't need HDMI 2.1 bandwidth and prefer saving money, the Dell Alienware AW2725DF is a good alternative, but it isn't as bright.

  3. Best Mid-Range 1440p Gaming Monitor

    Although the ASUS ROG Strix OLED XG27ACDNG offers good value as an OLED gaming monitor, if it's out of your budget or if it isn't on sale, the LG 27GX700A-B is a good alternative. There are a few differences in features compared to the ASUS, as it has a lower 280Hz refresh rate. This means gaming doesn't feel as smooth, but it's still high enough even for competitive PC gamers. It has many of the same benefits for gaming, though, including a fast response time for sharp motion, HDMI 2.1 bandwidth to take advantage of modern gaming consoles or PCs, and support for all common VRR formats to reduce screen tearing.

    There are also some differences in picture quality compared to the ASUS. As this monitor uses a Tandem OLED panel, its colors aren't as vivid as on the QD-OLED panel of the ASUS. However, the LG is a better choice to use in well-lit rooms because it gets brighter and it maintains lower black levels in a bright space, so you get those deep and inky blacks that OLEDs are known for in any environment. Plus, this monitor has a matte coating, which has less mirror-like reflections than the glossy coating of the ASUS, so it's better if you have a lamp nearby, as visibility won't be much of an issue.

  4. Best Lower Mid-Range 1440p Gaming Monitor

    If you want a lower-cost option without getting an entry-level model, the HyperX OMEN OLED 27q offers solid value as a lower-mid-range pick. As you drop down in price categories, the refresh rate also drops, as this monitor has a lower 240Hz refresh rate compared to the LG 27GX700A-B. This doesn't make a big difference for gaming, but it is a trade-off for getting the cheaper option. That said, it's another OLED that's fantastic for gaming, thanks to its sharp motion, deep blacks in dark rooms with bright highlights, and HDMI 2.1 bandwidth along with VRR support.

    The differences with the LG come down to picture quality, though. It isn't as bright, so it doesn't fight glare easily, and colors aren't as vivid. Combined with the fact that its black levels rise in bright rooms, making them look purple, you need to use this monitor in a dark room to get the best out of it. On the plus side, this monitor's glossy coating results in clearer images, and its superior text clarity makes it a better choice for playing text-based games.

  5. Best Budget 1440p Gaming Monitor

    If you're on a budget, you can get some budget-friendly 1440p monitors, like the AOC Q27G3XMN. It has a lower 180Hz refresh rate than the HyperX OMEN OLED 27q, so gaming feels less smooth. It also has worse picture quality because it doesn't have an OLED panel with the same deep blacks without any haloing around bright objects against dark backgrounds. Instead, it has Mini LED backlighting, which most entry-level monitors don't have. This helps it provide a good local dimming feature that displays deep blacks next to bright highlights, with only some haloing around bright objects against dark backgrounds. It even gets brighter than the HyperX in HDR, making it better to use in a bright room.

    In terms of gaming, it has a fast enough response time to ensure there isn't much blur trail behind fast-moving objects. However, its response time is slower than that of the HyperX, and it has black smearing with dark objects. If you can't find this monitor available, another option is the AOC Q27G40XMN, which is similar and is sold in the US only. It gets brighter and has better local dimming performance, but its motion handling is worse than the Q27G3XMN.

  6. Best Cheap 1440p Gaming Monitor

    If you need a basic 1440p gaming monitor that you can get for cheap, check out the Dell Alienware AW2725DM. It's a 27-inch monitor like the AOC Q27G3XMN, but its biggest downside is worse picture quality. It doesn't have Mini LED backlighting, so blacks look gray, and it fails to make highlights pop in HDR. Plus, its local dimming feature, which only turns on in HDR, performs terribly and causes haloing around bright objects in dark scenes. This means it's a bad choice for gaming in HDR, but this is what you have to expect at this price point, and it's better to game outside of HDR. It's still fine to use in a well-lit room, though, as it gets bright enough to fight some glare.

    It's a decent gaming monitor with a 180Hz refresh rate, the same as the AOC. It has good motion handling across its refresh rate range. While there's some blur behind fast-moving objects, it at least doesn't have black smearing in dark scenes like on the AOC. It also has a wider viewing angle than the AOC, which is helpful to know if you want to game with a friend sitting next to you, as the image remains consistent from the side.

Notable Mentions

  • ASUS ROG Swift OLED PG34WCDN: 

    The ASUS ROG Swift OLED PG34WCDN is a premium 1440p gaming monitor with a 34-inch, ultrawide screen. It provides a more immersive gaming experience than the ASUS ROG Swift OLED PG27AQWP-W for sim racing or atmospheric games. However, it costs more than the PG27AQWP-W and has a lower refresh rate.

     See our review
  • LG 27GX704A-B: 

    The LG 27GX704A-B is a lower mid-range gaming monitor that's an alternative to the HyperX OMEN OLED 27q if you want something for gaming in a bright room. It gets brighter than the HyperX and maintains lower black levels in well-lit rooms. That said, its colors aren't as vivid, and it sometimes costs more than the HyperX.

     See our review
  • Dell Alienware AW2726DM: 

    The Dell Alienware AW2726DM is a 240Hz QD-OLED monitor that competes with the HyperX OMEN OLED 27q. The Dell tends to cost less, so it's worth getting if you're on a tight budget. However, it lacks HDMI 2.1 bandwidth.

     See our review
  • LG 27GR83Q-B: 

    The LG 27GR83Q-B is an entry-level gaming monitor with a higher 240Hz refresh rate than the AOC Q27G3XMN. It's something to consider if you want a smoother gaming feel, but it has worse picture quality and sometimes costs more than the AOC.

     See our review
  • ASUS ROG Strix XG27ACS: 

    The ASUS ROG Strix XG27ACS is an entry-level 1440p gaming monitor that competes with the Dell Alienware AW2725DM. The ASUS has better motion handling with VRR, but otherwise, they're very similar. The ASUS can sometimes be harder to find, though.

     See our review

Recent Updates

  1.  Jul 24, 2026: 

    We made changes to better reflect the current market, including adding the LG 27GX700A-B as the 'Best Mid-Range 1440p Gaming Monitor' and renaming the HyperX OMEN OLED 27q to the 'Best Lower Mid-Range 1440p Gaming Monitor.' We moved the LG 27GR83Q-B to the Notable Mentions because of this. We also replaced the ASUS ROG Strix OLED XG27AQWMG with the LG 27GX704A-B in the Notable Mentions.

  2.  Jun 17, 2026: 

    In the Notable Mentions, we removed the Dell Alienware AW3225DM, and we added the high-end ASUS ROG Swift OLED PG34WCDN to better reflect the current market.

  3.  May 21, 2026: 

    In the mid-range category, we replaced the LG 27GX704A-B with the HyperX OMEN OLED 27q, which is cheaper. In the Notable Mentions, we replaced the Dell Alienware AW2723DF with the Dell Alienware AW2726DM.

  4.  Apr 24, 2026: 

    We added the LG 27GX704A-B as the 'Best Mid-Range 1440p Gaming Monitor,' and we renamed the LG 27GR83Q-B to the 'Best Lower Mid-Range 1440p Gaming Monitor.'

  5.  Mar 27, 2026: 

    We replaced the LG 27GX790B-B with the ASUS ROG Swift OLED PG27AQWP-W as it supports higher DisplayPort 2.1 bandwidth. We also replaced the Dell Alienware AW2723DF with the LG 27GR83Q-B for consistency with other reviews. In the Notable Mentions, we removed the MSI MPG 271QRX QD-OLED and the ASUS ROG Strix OLED XG27AQDMG, and we added the ASUS ROG Strix OLED XG27AQWMG and the AW2723DF.

All Reviews

Our recommendations are based on what we think are the best 1440p gaming monitors currently available. They're adapted to be valid for most people. The rating is based on our review, factoring in price and feedback from our visitors.

If you'd prefer to make your own decision, here is the list of all of our 1440p monitor reviews. Be careful not to get too caught up in the details. Most monitors are good enough to please most people, and the things we fault monitors on are often not noticeable unless you really look for them.