The 4 Best Monitors Under $200 - Fall 2021 Reviews

The best monitor under $200 with a 1080p resolution that we've tested is the Acer Nitro XF243Y Pbmiiprx. It's an IPS model well-suited for a wide variety of uses. It has amazing ergonomics, including a full 360-degree swivel, and the viewing angles are excellent, making it a great choice for sharing content and playing co-op games. Visibility in bright rooms is good, but like most IPS monitors, it isn't ideal for dark rooms due to its low contrast ratio, making blacks appear closer to gray.

Motion handling is superb for something in this price range. It has a 165Hz refresh rate and an exceptional response time, producing clear images in fast-moving content and providing more responsiveness. It supports FreeSync natively to reduce screen tearing and is compatible with NVIDIA's G-SYNC, though only over a DisplayPort connection. The backlight is entirely flicker-free, and there's also a blue light filter that can help reduce eye strain.

As expected for a budget monitor, it can't display a wide color gamut and doesn't get bright enough for a true HDR experience. There's a pair of speakers built-in, but sadly, there are no USB ports for charging. You can add a virtual crosshair or frame rate counter on the screen and control the monitor's settings through software. The price is just a tad above $200, but considering its excellent gaming performance, it's well worth spending a few extra dollars.

The HP X24ih is the best monitor under $200 for office use. It's similar to the Acer Nitro XF243Y Pbmiiprx in that it's a 24 inch monitor designed for gaming and has a 1080p resolution, but it's also very good for office use. It comes with a fairly ergonomic stand that allows you to adjust its height and rotate it into portrait mode, but you can't swivel it.

It's decent for content creators because it displays a very wide color gamut in SDR, including good coverage of the Adobe RGB color space used in photo and video editing. It also has great out-of-the-box accuracy, but this can vary between units. It performs well in bright rooms because it has good reflection handling and gets bright enough to fight glare in most settings, but we don't suggest placing it opposite a window with direct sunlight.

Unfortunately, it doesn't support HDR, which is somewhat expected for a low-cost monitor. It also doesn't have any extra features like built-in speakers or a USB hub, but you can still add a virtual crosshair or an alignment overlay to help with multi-monitor setups. On the plus side, it has a 144Hz refresh rate with an incredible response time, so motion looks smooth, and the low input lag delivers a responsive desktop experience. Overall, if you need the best monitor under $200 for office use, you should be happy with this one.

The best portable monitor under $200 is the Lepow Z1. These types of monitors are different from typical desktop models because you're meant to use them on-the-go, and often sacrifice picture quality for their smaller size. It's well-built, and it comes with a dedicated folio case that doubles as a stand, so it protects the screen when you carry it in your bag.

Portable displays have different inputs than desktop monitors; in this case, it has a Mini HDMI input and two USB-C ports. One of the USB-C inputs supports DisplayPort Alt Mode, meaning that you can display an image from a compatible device, and the other one is for charging only. Although the 1080p resolution may not seem appealing, the smaller screen provides higher pixel density, meaning that text looks sharp and legible. It has wide viewing angles, so the image remains accurate if you place the screen next to your laptop or desktop monitor.

Unfortunately, it doesn't offer good picture quality, and it's not suggested for content creators. It can't display a wide color gamut, even in SDR, so it doesn't display a wide range of colors. The out-of-the-box accuracy is poor. Motion looks terrible because it has a really slow response time, and you'll notice motion artifacts. However, this is typical of most portable monitors, and it's still one of the best monitors under $200.