The 5 Best 27-Inch Gaming Monitors - Spring 2023 Reviews

The best 27-inch gaming monitor we've tested is the LG 27GR95QE-B. It's a 1440p monitor OLED monitor that provides fantastic gaming performance alongside excellent picture quality. It has a 240Hz refresh rate that helps offer a smooth gaming experience at a high frame rate and has a near-instantaneous response time for incredible motion handling at its max refresh rate. However, it has overshoot that results in inverse ghosting with low-frame-rate signals, which is a bit disappointing for a high-end monitor, but it's only a concern if you play games at a consistently low frame rate. Luckily, it has low input lag for a responsive feel.

Its OLED panel offers excellent picture quality, especially if you game in dark rooms. It has a near-infinite contrast ratio that displays deep blacks next to bright highlights, and there isn't any blooming around bright objects. However, there are some drawbacks to this technology, as it doesn't get bright, and OLEDs run the risk of permanent burn-in with constant exposure to the same static elements over time, but it isn't a major concern if you play different games or watch varied content, and you still get a fantastic gaming monitor.

If you want a high-end gaming monitor but want to save some money, or you're concerned about the risk of burn-in associated with the LG 27GR95QE-B, then consider the LG 27GP950-B. It's a high-end monitor that's different from the 27GR95QE-B because it has a higher 4k resolution, but a lower 160Hz refresh rate. While you lose out on the remarkable dark room picture quality of the 27GR95QE-B, and you can't play games at a very high frame rate either, it at least delivers crispier images thanks to its higher resolution, making it the best choice for console gaming.

Even if you want to use it for PC gaming, its overclockable 160Hz refresh rate helps provide an excellent gaming performance. It has a quick response time that results in clear motion with minimal blur at any refresh rate you game at, and it has low input lag for a responsive feel. It has native FreeSync variable refresh rate (VRR) support to reduce screen tearing, and it's also G-SYNC compatible if you have an NVIDIA graphics card. It even has a few extra gaming features, like the ability to add a virtual crosshair that your system won't detect, giving you a competitive advantage in FPS games.

If you want a mid-range gaming monitor, or you don't need the 4k resolution of the LG 27GP950-B, check out the Dell Alienware AW2723DF. Its 1440p resolution and 240Hz native refresh rate are more comparable to LG 27GR95QE-B than the 27GP950-B, as it doesn't deliver the same sharp images as a 4k monitor. With an LED-backlit LCD panel, it also has a worse native contrast ratio and doesn't look as good in dark rooms as the 27GR95QE-B. However, it costs less than both LG monitors and still provides excellent gaming performance.

You can overclock it to a max refresh rate of 280Hz, but you need an NVIDIA 16 Series or newer graphics card that supports Display Stream Compression for it to work. Motion looks smooth over its entire refresh rate range because it has an excellent response time, but it doesn't have a backlight strobing feature to further reduce persistence blur. Like the 27GP950-B, it has native FreeSync VRR support, and it's also G-SYNC compatible, but if you have an NVIDIA graphics card that you want to take full advantage of, the ASUS ROG Swift PG279QM is a good alternative with native G-SYNC support, which also costs more.

If you're looking for a low-cost monitor but don't necessarily want something limited in features and performance, a lower mid-range option like the LG 27GP850-B is a good alternative, and it's also known as the 27GP83B-B. It has a 1440p resolution like the Dell Alienware AW2723DF, but the main difference is that the LG has a lower 165Hz native refresh rate. This means you can't play games at such a high frame rate, but if you have a computer without the latest tech that can't take advantage of 240Hz and higher monitors, you'll be satisfied with the LG too. It's available in two different variants, with the 27GP850-B model having an overclock feature to reach a slightly higher 180Hz refresh rate than the 27GP83B-B.

Both variants offer excellent gaming performance with incredible motion handling, especially with high frame rate signals. The 27GP850-B variant also has an optional backlight strobing feature to further reduce persistence blur, but it only works within a narrow refresh rate range, and it doesn't work at the same time as VRR. Speaking of VRR, it has native FreeSync support and it's also G-SYNC compatible if you want to use it with an NVIDIA graphics card.

If you just want a simple 27-inch gaming monitor and are on a budget, the Gigabyte M27Q is a good alternative to the LG 27GP850-B/27GP83B-B. In terms of features, it's very similar to the LG as it has the same 1440p resolution and a similar 170Hz refresh rate, but the main differences are with the performance. It has a slower response time with high-frame-rate signals, meaning that motion doesn't look as smooth as on the LG, which is the trade-off you need to make for getting something cheaper, but it still has excellent motion handling.

Another difference is that it uses another panel with a BGR subpixel layout. This is different from the RGB subpixel layout on the LG, but while this doesn't affect the picture quality or gaming performance, it can affect the text clarity when browsing through the web. Besides those small differences, the Gigabyte is still an impressive gaming monitor with low input lag, FreeSync VRR, and G-SYNC compatibility to reduce screen tearing. It even has a backlight strobing feature that you can use at the same time as VRR, which is a neat feature as many monitors can't do that, and it helps reduce persistence blur while improving the appearance of motion.