The 5 Best 4k TVs Under $500 - Winter 2020
Reviews

The TCL 6 Series/55R617 2018 is the best TV under $500. Its price fluctuates around the $500 mark, so it might be a few dollars more expensive when you check it out, though it's still worth it. This TV has great picture quality and can get very bright both in SDR and in HDR. Gamers will enjoy a responsive gaming experience due to the low input lag. The response time is very fast, and motion looks crisp with little motion blur trail behind fast-moving content. This TV has very good motion handling features like BFI, motion interpolation, and judder removal.

Unfortunately, the image loses accuracy when viewed at an angle, and there have been reports that the TV had issues with gray uniformity, although gray uniformity wasn't bad on our unit. On the upside, it has impressive HDR performance thanks to its wide color gamut and it can display HDR content with saturated colors and highlights that pop. Its dark room performance is also impressive. The TV displays deep blacks thanks to the high native contrast ratio and full array local dimming support.

It's worth noting that some retailers are currently offering the Vizio M Series Quantum 2019 M558-G1 at the same price as the TCL 6 Series 2018, though it isn't available everywhere at this price-point. The Vizio has better local dimming and much better black uniformity, making it a better choice for a dark room. However, the TCL is a great all around TV that should be able to handle a wide range of content and uses.

If you want the best value for size TV under $500, go with the TCL 5 Series/65S525 2019. This budget 65" TV has good picture quality and remarkably low input lag. Despite not having local dimming, this TV has deep and uniform black levels, though you'll get the best performance in a dark room. It utilizes Roku's smart streaming system, which is very easy-to-use and has an incredibly wide range of available apps.

This TV has a wide color gamut and supports Dolby Vision, making it a good choice for HDR content, though unfortunately it may not get quite bright enough for all highlights to stand out as intended. It's an excellent TV for gamers thanks to its very low input lag and very fast response time, which helps with motion blurring.

Unfortunately, like most TVs that use a VA panel, the image degrades at an angle, so you'll want to sit directly in front of the TV. Overall, this TV offers a great price-to-performance ratio, and if you want the biggest TV you can get under $500 while still maintaining good overall picture quality and features, this is a great choice.