The HP X24ih is a great entry-level gaming monitor. It has a 144Hz refresh rate with native FreeSync variable refresh rate (VRR) support to reduce screen tearing. Its response time is simply incredible, so fast-moving content looks smooth with almost no motion blur. Its IPS panel offers wide viewing angles, great for co-op gaming, but that means it has a low contrast ratio, so it's not the best choice for dark room gaming. If you want to use it in a well-lit room, it gets bright enough to combat glare and has good reflection handling. Unfortunately, its 24 inch screen and 1080p resolution may be too limiting for those looking for an immersive gaming experience, and it doesn't support HDR.
We buy and test more than 30 monitors each year, with units that we buy completely on our own, without any 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 and custom tools to measure various aspects with objective data-based results. We also consider multiple factors before making any recommendations, including the monitor's cost, its performance against the competition, and whether or not it's easy to find.
Our Verdict
The HP X24ih is a good monitor overall. It's great for gaming as it has a high refresh rate, VRR support, an incredible response time, and very low input lag. It's good for office use as well due to its high peak brightness, good reflection handling, and wide viewing angles. However, it's only decent for content creators because of its 24 inch resolution and 1080p screen, and its low contrast ratio results in blacks that look gray.
- Gets bright enough to combat glare.
- High 144Hz refresh rate and VRR support.
- Incredible response time results in smooth motion.
- Low input lag.
- Stand doesn't allow for swivel adjustments.
- Doesn't support HDR.
The HP X24ih is very good for office use. It has wide viewing angles, high peak brightness, and good reflection handling. Sadly, its ergonomics are unremarkable as it doesn't offer any swivel adjustment. Its low 1080p resolution and small 24 inch screen may not be good enough for multitasking, but it should be a good choice if you need a secondary monitor.
- Wide viewing angles.
- Good reflection handling.
- Gets bright enough to combat glare.
- Stand doesn't allow for swivel adjustments.
- Limited 24 inch screen and 1080p resolution.
The HP X24ih is great for gaming. It has a high 144Hz refresh rate with native FreeSync support to reduce screen tearing. Input lag is extremely low, and the response time is simply incredible, resulting in smooth motion. Unfortunately, it's not the best choice for dark room gaming as it has a low contrast ratio that makes blacks look gray.
- High 144Hz refresh rate and VRR support.
- Incredible response time results in smooth motion.
- Low input lag.
- Low contrast ratio.
The HP X24ih is decent for consuming media. It has wide viewing angles if you want to watch videos with some friends. Unfortunately, it has a low contrast ratio, so blacks look gray when viewing in the dark. Also, the 1080p resolution and 24 inch screen may not be the most ideal choice if you want an immersive viewing experience.
- Wide viewing angles.
- Good reflection handling.
- Gets bright enough to combat glare.
- Stand doesn't allow for swivel adjustments.
- Limited 24 inch screen and 1080p resolution.
- Low contrast ratio.
The HP X24ih is decent for content creators. It has wide viewing angles, which is great if you need to share your screen with a coworker or client. Unfortunately, its 24 inch screen isn't ideal for multitasking and the 1080p resolution doesn't allow you to see images and videos in great detail.
- Wide viewing angles.
- Good reflection handling.
- Gets bright enough to combat glare.
- Stand doesn't allow for swivel adjustments.
- Limited 24 inch screen and 1080p resolution.
- Low contrast ratio.
The HP X24ih doesn't support HDR.
Check Price
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the 24 inch HP X24ih monitor, which is the only size available. There's an X24i variant that has a different stand, which doesn't include height adjustment or a cutout for cable management. Our unit was manufactured in December 2020, and you can see the label here.
If someone comes across a different type of panel or their X24ih doesn't correspond to our review, let us know in the discussions and we'll update the review. Note that some tests, like gray uniformity, may vary between individual units.
Popular Monitor Comparisons
The HP X24ih is a great budget-friendly gaming monitor. It has a faster response time than most monitors in this price range, but there are options available with better ergonomics and HDR support, such as the Acer Nitro XF243Y Pbmiiprx. Also see our recommendations for the best budget monitors, the best gaming monitors, and the best 144Hz monitors.
The AOC 24G2 and the HP X24ih are very similar budget gaming monitors. They both have a 24" screen with a 1080p resolution and 144Hz refresh rate. The HP has slightly better response times; however, the difference is very small and likely not noticeable to most people. The AOC scores higher because it has a Black Frame Insertion feature, but you can't use it simultaneously with VRR. Likewise, the HP has wider viewing angles, but its ergonomics are worse because it doesn't swivel at all.
The Acer Nitro XF243Y Pbmiiprx is a better gaming monitor than the HP X24ih. The Acer's 144Hz native refresh rate can be overclocked to 165Hz, which the HP can't do. The Acer has much better ergonomics than the HP, making it easier to place the screen in an ideal viewing position. Lastly, the Acer supports HDR, while the HP doesn't, but it doesn't add much since it can't display a wide color gamut and has low HDR peak brightness.
The HP X24ih and the Dell S2721DGF are two great gaming monitors with different panel types. The HP has an IPS panel with wider viewing angles, and it also has a much quicker response time that results in smoother motion. However, the VA panel on the Dell provides a better contrast ratio, making it a better choice for dark room gaming. Other than that, they each have FreeSync support and low input lag for gaming.
The HP X24ih and the ViewSonic XG2402 are two great gaming monitors, but the HP is better for other uses. The HP has an IPS panel that provides wider viewing angles than the TN panel on the ViewSonic. The HP also has a quicker response time at 60Hz, resulting in smoother motion. However, the ViewSonic has much better ergonomics, making it easier to place the screen in an ideal viewing position.
Test Results
Although the HP X24ih is a gaming monitor, it has a more office-oriented design with an all-black body. There are glossy strips on the back to add some style. The stand has a curved top plate, which is a bit different from the flat stands on other HP monitors we've tested.
The HP X24ih has a basic square-based stand that supports the screen well. The top plate is a bit curved, making it a bit more difficult to put objects on it.
The ergonomics are unremarkable. This variant has height adjustment, but there's an X24i model that doesn't have it and may not have the ability to rotate into portrait mode either. If you want a similar gaming monitor with better ergonomics, check out the AOC 24G2.
The back of the HP X24ih has a simple design with glossy diagonal strips. There's basic cable management through a cutout in the stand. Since the X24i variant doesn't have a hole in the stand, it doesn't offer any cable management.
The build quality is decent. It has a basic plastic body, but the plastic on the stand feels a bit cheap. There's nothing premium about its build, but at the same time, there aren't any obvious loose parts or gaps in construction. The stand also supports the monitor well.
The HP X24ih has a disappointing contrast ratio, which is expected from an IPS panel. Blacks look gray when viewed in the dark, and there's no local dimming feature to improve it either. It's slightly lower than the advertised contrast of 1000:1, but this may vary between units.
This monitor doesn't have a local dimming feature. The video is provided for reference only.
The SDR peak brightness is very good. It gets bright enough to combat glare in most well-lit environments, and it maintains its brightness very consistently across different content. We tested the peak brightness after calibration in the 'Custom RGB' Picture Mode.
This monitor doesn't support HDR.
The HP X24ih has a very wide horizontal viewing angle, which is normal for an IPS panel. The image remains accurate when viewing from the side, which is great for co-op gaming.
Once again, the vertical viewing angle is good. You shouldn't notice any issues with image accuracy if you mount the screen above eye-level.
The HP X24ih has excellent gray uniformity, but this can also vary between units. The edges are a bit darker, but there's no dirty screen effect in the center. Uniformity is much better in near-dark scenes.
Our unit of the HP X24ih has disappointing black uniformity, but this may vary between units. There's noticeable backlight bleed along the bottom edge, and there's clouding throughout. Also, the entire screen looks blue due to the low contrast ratio.
The HP X24ih has great out-of-the-box accuracy. Any color and white balance inaccuracies are hard to spot. However, the color temperature is on the cold side, resulting in a blue tint. Also, gamma doesn't follow the target sRGB curve well, so dark scenes are darker than they should be, and bright scenes are brighter. Keep in mind that the out-of-the-box accuracy may vary between units.
This monitor has remarkable accuracy after calibration. Any remaining inaccuracies can't be spotted by the naked eye, and the color temperature is extremely close to the 6500K target. Gamma still isn't perfect, but it follows the target curve very well overall.
We experienced similar issues as many people online, who said the picture settings don't save and reset to their defaults after restarting the monitor. However, in our case, it switched out of the calibrated picture mode when we restarted the monitor, but it kept our calibration settings.
You can download our ICC profile calibration here. This is provided for reference only and should not be used, as the calibration values vary per individual unit even for the same model due to manufacturing tolerances.
The HP X24ih has an amazing SDR color gamut. It has perfect coverage of the sRGB color space used in most content and good coverage of the Adobe RGB color space used in photo editing.
Thanks to its very wide SDR color gamut, the HP X24ih also has an amazing SDR color volume. It displays bright colors well due to its high peak brightness, but with a low contrast ratio, it struggles with darker colors.
This monitor doesn't support HDR.
This monitor doesn't support HDR.
Our unit doesn't show any signs of temporary image retention after displaying a high-contrast, static image for 10 minutes. However, this can vary between units.
The gradient handling is excellent. However, it has an 8-bit panel and you may notice some banding present in darker colors.
There are some minor signs of vertical color bleed, but it shouldn't be noticeable in most content.
The HP X24ih's reflection handling is good. The matte finish handles a moderate amount of light well, but it's best to avoid placing it opposite a bright window.
The HP X24ih has decent text clarity. Enabling ClearType (top photo) improves the appearance of diagonal lines, such as on R and N, but makes straight lines less bold, like on T and I.
| Overdrive Setting | Response Time Chart | Response Time Tables | Motion Blur Photo |
| Level 1 | Chart | Table | Photo |
| Level 2 | Chart | Table | Photo |
| Level 3 | Chart | Table | Photo |
| Level 4 | Chart | Table | Photo |
The response time at max refresh rate is simply incredible. Fast-moving content looks extremely smooth, and there's almost no motion blur. The recommended overdrive setting, which is called Response Time, is 'Level 2'. It has a slightly quicker response time than 'Level 1', and there's too much overshoot on the faster settings.
| Overdrive Setting | Response Time Chart | Response Time Tables | Motion Blur Photo |
| Level 1 | Chart | Table | Photo |
| Level 2 | Chart | Table | Photo |
| Level 3 | Chart | Table | Photo |
| Level 4 | Chart | Table | Photo |
The HP X24ih's response time at 60Hz remains fantastic. Once again, motion looks smooth with minimal motion blur. We recommend setting Response Time to 'Level 1' because there's simply too much overshoot on the other settings. This means you may have to change the overdrive setting if the frame rate of your game drops.
This monitor has a flicker-free backlight, which helps reduce eye strain. It also doesn't cause image duplication with fast-moving content.
The HP X24ih doesn't have a Black Frame Insertion feature. If you want a monitor that does, check out the ASUS TUF Gaming VG249Q1A.
The HP X24ih has a fantastic 144Hz refresh rate. Although it's not certified by NVIDIA to be G-SYNC compatible, it works properly, but only over a DisplayPort connection. You can achieve its full refresh rate range with FreeSync enabled over both an HDMI and DisplayPort connection.
The input lag is exceptionally low and remains low with VRR enabled, which is fantastic.
The HP X24ih has a low 1080p resolution, which isn't ideal for office use, but its 24 inch screen helps increase pixel density. It has the same pixel density as a 32 inch, 1440p monitor.
The HP X24ih monitor has a few extra features, like:
- Frame Rate Counter: Adds an overlay displaying the current frame rate of your game.
- Crosshair: Adds a virtual crosshair on the screen for FPS games.
- Multi-Monitor Alignment Tool: Helps to align two or more monitors together in your setup.
- Low Blue Light Mode: Removes blue light to help reduce eye strain.
