We've bought and tested over 40 Dell monitors. Dell releases a handful of monitors each year, and like many manufacturers, some of their most popular models tend to stay on the market for two to three years. Dell monitors range from basic 1080p monitors to the most advanced gaming or professional-grade monitors. Dell has a big focus on office-friendly monitors, and you can even buy monitors without stands, which is great if you need to buy screens for the entire office, and they're also gaining traction with gaming monitors.
Updates
- 04/18/2023 Dell Alienware AW2524H reviewed
- 01/20/2023 Dell Alienware AW3423DWF reviewed
- 11/23/2022 Dell Alienware AW2723DF reviewed
- 11/02/2022 Dell Alienware AW2523HF reviewed
- 06/03/2022 Dell Alienware AW3423DW reviewed
Best Dell Monitors
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Best Dell Monitor For Gaming
Mixed Usage8.7Office8.1Gaming8.7Media Consumption9.3Media Creation9.0HDR9.3Size34"Pixel TypeQD-OLEDMax Refresh Rate175 HzVariable Refresh RateYesNative Resolution3440 x 1440HDR10YesWhile most people often associate Dell monitors with office use, they also have a brand of gaming monitors known as Alienware. These monitors focus solely on gaming with higher refresh rates and fewer office features than their regular lineups. If you're looking for the best Dell gaming monitor, the Dell Alienware AW3423DW is an excellent option with stunning picture quality. Its 34-inch ultrawide screen offers plenty of space to view more of your game at once for an immersive gaming experience. It has native G-SYNC variable refresh rate (VRR) support, which is great if you have an NVIDIA graphics card, but if you have an AMD graphics card, you can also consider the Dell Alienware AW3423DWF, which has native FreeSync VRR support instead.
Both the AW3423DW and AW3423DWF are similar and feature QD-OLED technology that lets them display perfect blacks in dark rooms while making colors look vivid and highlights pop. However, this technology isn't perfect, as the black levels raise in bright rooms, and there are some issues with color fringing around text, but that isn't much issue with games anyways. Burn-in is also a concern on QD-OLEDs like these, but only if you constantly have the same static elements on the screen all the time.
If the risk of burn-in is a concern for you, or you simply don't want the ultrawide format, there are a few other options. The Dell Alienware AW2723DF has an even higher 280Hz refresh rate than the QD-OLED monitors, and it still delivers sharp images thanks to its 1440p resolution, but it doesn't offer the same perfect blacks. However, if you want an even higher refresh rate, the Dell Alienware AW2523HF can go up to 360Hz, and the Dell Alienware AW2524H has a max refresh rate of 500Hz, making these great choices for competitive gaming.
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Best Dell Monitor
Mixed Usage7.6Office8.4Gaming6.7Media Consumption7.7Media Creation8.6HDR6.9Size27"Pixel TypeIPSMax Refresh Rate60 HzVariable Refresh RateNoNative Resolution3840 x 2160HDR10YesIf you don't want a gaming monitor and you prefer something for productivity or general everyday use, there are a ton of options available to you. If that's what you want, the best Dell monitor we've tested is the Dell U2723QE. It's part of their high-end UltraSharp lineup that's packed with a ton of office features, making it an impressive choice for productivity. It has a massive USB hub with five USB-A ports and three USB-C ports, one of which supports DisplayPort Alt Mode with 90W of power delivery. It also has a KVM switch that allows you to control two devices with the same keyboard and mouse, which is ideal for multitasking.
On top of its impressive office performance, it's excellent for content creators as it displays a wide range of colors accurately. It also has wide viewing angles and exceptional ergonomics, making it ideal if you often need to share your screen with a coworker or client. Lastly, it has a 27-inch screen with a 4k resolution that delivers exceptional text clarity, but if you find the 27-inch screen too small, there's a larger variant known as the Dell U3223QE. However, colors are undersaturated in HDR, and it costs more, so the U2723QE offers better value.
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Best Mid-Range Dell Monitor
Mixed Usage7.7Office8.7Gaming7.1Media Consumption7.6Media Creation8.4HDR6.4Size27"Pixel TypeIPSMax Refresh Rate60 HzVariable Refresh RateYesNative Resolution3840 x 2160HDR10YesIf you don't need the best of the best in terms of Dell's productivity monitors and you prefer saving money with a mid-range option, then check out the Dell S2722QC. It's a step down from the Dell U2723QE as it's in the mid-range S Series lineup and not the UltraSharp lineup. There are a few trade-offs for getting some cheaper, but the main difference between these monitors is their features. While the U2723QE has a massive USB hub and its USB-C port supports 90W of power delivery, the S2722QC only has two USB-A ports and a USB-C port with 65W of power delivery. However, these ports are useful to use, and you still get a 27-inch, 4k screen that offers exceptional text clarity with the S2722QC.
This monitor is ideal for sharing your screen with someone next to you because it has wide viewing angles that keep the image consistent from the sides, and its excellent ergonomics make it easy to adjust. Unfortunately, it doesn't have a dedicated sRGB mode like the U2723QE, which means that its color accuracy isn't as good, but this is only a concern for photo and video editing as its accuracy is still decent enough for everyday work use.
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Best Budget Dell Monitor
Mixed Usage7.7Office8.7Gaming7.1Media Consumption7.6Media Creation8.4HDR6.4Size27"Pixel TypeIPSMax Refresh Rate60 HzVariable Refresh RateYesNative Resolution3840 x 2160HDR10YesIf you're on a tighter budget, consider the Dell S2721QS. It's similar to the Dell S2722QC because it has a 4k resolution and a 27-inch screen, but it doesn't have many extra features, which is what you have to expect for a low-cost model. It doesn't have a USB hub, meaning you can't easily connect a laptop via USB-C, or you can't connect extra peripherals either. However, considering it doesn't cost much and has excellent office performance, it offers great value, especially if you care about text clarity.
Besides the lack of extra features, it's similar to the S2722QC. It's still a great option to use in well-lit rooms as it gets bright enough to fight glare, and it has good reflection handling. It also has wide viewing angles if you want to share the screen with others, and its ergonomics are impressive. Like the S2722QC, it doesn't have a dedicated sRGB picture mode to limit colors to the sRGB color space, but the overall image accuracy is still decent enough for browsing the web or if your work doesn't require accurate colors.
If still do want something cheaper, Dell offers a few low-cost 1080p displays, particularly from their E Series lineup, which features basic displays that are smaller and don't support the latest technology. They're fine if you have an older computer or don't care so much about the picture quality, and just need something basic. Even if you want something a bit more advanced, the Dell S2421H is another cheap option with okay performance. However, it can be hard to find, but you can also get the Dell S2421HS, which is a similar monitor with a more ergonomic stand.
Compared to other brands
- Great ergonomics. Many Dell monitors have easily adjustable stands, allowing you to place the screen in the ideal viewing position. They're designed with multi-monitor setups in mind.
- Included office features. Their office monitors tend to have good office features, including USB hubs and Picture-in-Picture and Picture-by-Picture modes for multitasking.
- Great color accuracy. Dell monitors typically have good accuracy before calibration, which is important if your work requires accurate colors or you simply want to enjoy a life-like image.
- Growing gaming lineup. Dell's gaming lineup has been growing in the past few years with the addition of QD-OLED and high refresh rate monitors, so if you're a gamer you'll likely find what you're looking for with Dell.
- Limited availability at retailers. Dell monitors aren't sold at as many retailers as other brands, so if you want to buy one, it's best to get it directly through their website. Luckily, Dell often offers discounts on their website.
- Picture quality isn't anything special. Besides their QD-OLED monitors, Dell's displays usually have limited picture quality with a low contrast ratio, so they aren't anything special for watching content in dark rooms.
- Gaming lineup often beat by the competition. While Dell does offer many gaming monitors with different features, they do tend to cost more than the competition, and in terms of price versus value, Dell monitors usually lose out.
Dell vs ASUS
While both ASUS and Dell offer great gaming displays, ASUS tends to have more budget-friendly monitors for gamers, and they also have more gaming monitors available. On the other hand, Dell has a wider range of models for office use, and they include extra productivity features.
Dell vs LG
Dell monitors generally have much better ergonomics than LG and are generally better suited for office use. However, most LG monitors offer better motion handling and more advanced gaming features at a lower cost.
Buying a Dell monitor is generally a pretty safe bet, especially for office use. Like most brands, performance varies greatly, but even cheaper models perform well for most uses. While they offer great gaming performance with their Alienware lineup and are starting to grow in popularity, their gaming monitors often come with a price premium too, so other companies offer better value.
Lineup
Dell's lineup ranges from very basic, cheaper models to more advanced professional monitors. Their naming scheme is very easy to understand, so you know almost exactly what you're getting by the model number.
Dell model numbers start with a letter, which indicates the series:
- C: The C Series includes monitors with a built-in webcam for video conferencing, and it also has some portable monitors.
- E: This stands for the Essential Series, for basic and smaller displays that are cheap.
- P:​ Dell's Professional Series monitors tend to have the most productivity features.
- S: The S Series is their most popular lineup, and it's focused on office computers from budget to mid-range displays. The SE Series is also similar.
- U: The UltraSharp lineup is a step up from the S Series, and it offers higher-resolution displays with more features.
- AW: This is for Alienware monitors, which is Dell's gaming lineup.
Next comes a set of numbers to identify the size and model year. The first two are the size (21, 24, 27, etc.), and the last two numbers are the model year. Often, the model year will be the year after the monitor is released, similar to car models.
Most Dell model numbers end with one or more letters, used to identify certain features and the resolution. This isn't a complete list, but here are some of the most common suffixes:
- E: Ethernet port
- W: Ultrawide aspect ratio
- H: 1080p resolution
- D: 1440p resolution
- Q: 4k resolution
- F: AMD FreeSync support
- G: NVIDIA G-SYNC support
You can see an example of their naming scheme here:
- U2723QE: UltraSharp 27-inch model with a 4k resolution and an Ethernet port. 2023 model, but released in 2022.
- AW3821DW: Alienware 38-inch display with a 1440p ultrawide resolution. Released in 2020 as a 2021 model.
- S2421H: Entry-level S Series model with a 24-inch screen and 1080p resolution.
Recent Updates
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May 11, 2023: Removed the Dell S2421H as the 'Best Cheap Monitor' because it's hard to find; updated text for clarity throughout.
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Feb 13, 2023: Replaced the Dell S2721D with the Dell S2721QS because it went down in price; updated the text throughout for clarity.
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Nov 15, 2022: Moved the Dell Alienware AW3423DW to higher up in the recommendation to highlight differences with the Alienware lineup; updated text for clarity, including making sure info is updated in the 'Compared To Other Brands' section.
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Aug 17, 2022: Restructured article to reflect Dell's focus on office monitors; added the Dell U2723QE, Dell S2721D, and the Dell S2421H in their respective categories, and renamed the Dell S2722QC as the 'Best Mid-Range'; added the Dell Alienware AW3423DW as the 'Best Alienware Monitor' and removed the Dell AW2521H, Dell S2721DGF, and the Dell S3422DWG.
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Apr 13, 2022: Verified our picks for accuracy and refreshed the text.
Conclusion
Dell monitors range from basic, small monitors great for students to the most advanced professional displays for photo editing, media creation, or general office use. They also have a few great gaming monitors in their Alienware lineup, and while their gaming lineup has been growing, they're beat out by the competition in terms of value. Luckily, Dell monitors are well-built, and almost all of them have great ergonomics. Usually, buying a Dell monitor is a pretty safe bet, especially for office use.