The 5 Best 120Hz TVs - Spring 2022 Reviews

The LG C1 OLED is the best 120Hz OLED TV we've tested. It's an excellent TV that's exceptional in dark rooms because it can turn each individual pixel off, resulting in a near-infinite contrast ratio. This means that it displays perfect blacks, and there's no blooming around bright objects either.

In terms of gaming, it has many features that you'll enjoy if you're a competitive gamer. It has variable refresh rate (VRR) support to reduce screen tearing and HDMI 2.1 bandwidth on all four of its HDMI inputs, meaning you can play 4k games up to 120 fps without any issue from the Xbox Series X and PS5. You can even play 4k @ 120Hz games in Dolby Vision from the Xbox Series X, and it displays a wide range of colors for HDR content. With motion handling, OLEDs offer an advantage because they have a near-instantaneous response time, so there's no motion blur, but low-frame-rate games stutter because each frame is held on longer.

Unfortunately, the main downside to owning an OLED is the risk of permanent burn-in. It can happen with cumulative exposure to the same static elements over time, like if you're using it as a PC monitor, but it's not an issue if you watch varied content and play different games. If this isn't a concern for you, it's one of the best 4k TVs with a 120Hz panel that we've tested.

The best 120Hz OLED TV that we've tested with great motion processing features is the Sony A90J OLED. Although all OLEDs have a near-instantaneous response time for smooth motion handling, this one has better features than the LG C1 OLED to improve the appearance of motion with low-frame-rate content like in movies. It's also available in a few different size variants, so you'll likely find the size for your needs.

It has a motion interpolation feature that brings 30 and 60 fps content up to 120 fps, which is known as the 'Soap Opera Effect', and it helps improve the appearance of motion in movies. It works well with most content, but like most TVs, there are artifacts in busier scenes. It also removes 24p judder from any source, which is important if you tend to watch movies from a 60p or 60i streaming box. Lastly, if you watch HDR content, it gets brighter than the C1, so highlights pop more, and it has much better out-of-the-box accuracy, so colors appear more life-like.

Sadly, while it has high-end gaming features like HDMI 2.1 bandwidth and VRR support, it doesn't support FreeSync and has higher input lag than the C1. If you're a competitive gamer, there are better OLED options for you, but if you tend to watch movies and want the best motion handling possible, it's one of the best 4k 120Hz TVs we've tested.

The Samsung QN90A QLED is the best 120Hz LED TV we've tested. It's an excellent TV that offers stunning picture quality while delivering amazing gaming performance. It especially excels with HDR games because it uses Mini LED backlighting that lets it get very bright in HDR, enough to make highlights stand out, and it also displays a wide color gamut.

It has HDMI 2.1 bandwidth on one HDMI port. While you can take full advantage of the Xbox Series X and PS5 with it, you can't connect both gaming consoles at once for high-frame-rate gaming since there's just one port. Motion looks smooth thanks to its quick response time, it has low input lag, and it has FreeSync VRR support to reduce screen tearing. Although you don't get the same perfect blacks like on an OLED, it still has an excellent contrast ratio, and its local dimming feature helps improve native contrast ratio.

Unfortunately, its local dimming feature performs worse in Game Mode than outside of it as it raises the black levels and colors look washed out, but it still performs decently. Also, this TV has some uniformity issues with dirty screen effect in the center, which could get distracting while watching sports. On the plus side, it has fantastic out-of-the-box accuracy, meaning you won't need calibration. All in all, it's the best LED TV with a 120Hz panel.

The Sony X90J is the best mid-range 4k LED TV with a 120Hz refresh rate that we've tested. It's an impressive TV with fantastic contrast, a great response time, and excellent SDR peak brightness. It has a great local dimming feature, making it a great choice for dark-room viewing, and it delivers an impressive HDR movie-watching experience. Like the Sony A90J, it has impressive processing, with great tone mapping in HDR and fantastic gradient handling.

It's an excellent TV for gaming. It's been updated to receive support for variable refresh rate technology, and it's fully compatible with everything the PS5 has to offer. It has fantastic low input lag, resulting in a responsive gaming experience. Unlike Samsung TVs, including the Samsung QN90A, there's no difference between 'Game' Mode and 'Movie' Mode, so you don't have to sacrifice picture quality when gaming.

It's not perfect, though, as it falls just short of being able to display a wide color gamut with HDR content. HDR still looks amazing on it, but some colors appear slightly muted compared to other TVs. Overall, this is a great TV.

If you're looking for bang for your buck, then the Hisense U8G is a great choice. It's in the same price range as the Sony X90J, and while it has worse processing overall, with more noticeable banding in HDR and worse upscaling, it offers an amazing gaming experience overall and similar picture quality.

It's an excellent gaming TV as it has an excellent response time, so there's very little blur behind fast-moving content. It has fantastic low input lag for a responsive gaming experience, and its variable refresh rate feature is fantastic, as it's compatible with FreeSync as well as G-SYNC and HDMI Forum VRR, ensuring a nearly tear-free gaming experience from almost any source.

Sadly, the main downside of this TV is that there are motion issues with 4k @ 120Hz content, particularly in Game Mode. There are red ghosting and motion artifacts that could get particularly distracting. However, it's not as bad if you lower the refresh rate or disable VRR. If this isn't a problem for you, then it's still the best 4k 120Hz TV for gaming in terms of value.