The 4 Best 40-42-43 Inch TVs - Fall 2024

The best 42-inch TV we've tested is the LG OLED42C4PUA. It's a fantastic model that looks amazing in a dark room but is capable enough in a brighter environment. It delivers superb picture quality thanks to its near-infinite contrast ratio, and it has an excellent selection of additional features. Its built-in LG webOS interface has a massive selection of streaming apps, making it a great choice for a dorm or other small space. It's also great for watching movies and has good image processing features, like Dolby Vision and DTS advanced video and audio format support.

HDR content looks excellent on this TV thanks to the near-infinite contrast of its OLED panel, and it displays a wide range of colors, so content looks vibrant. Its nearly instantaneous response time makes it great for gaming, resulting in crystal-clear motion with no distracting blur behind fast-moving objects. It supports HDMI 2.1 bandwidth on all four HDMI ports, allowing for 4k @ 144Hz gaming with VRR, meaning you can take full advantage of the PS5, the Xbox Series X|S, or a PC with a recent graphics card.

The best 43-inch TV in the upper mid-range category we've tested is the Samsung QN43QN90DAFXZA. It's an impressive TV that gets very bright, making it more suitable for well-lit rooms than the LG C4 OLED. Thanks to its ability to display vibrant, lifelike, and bright colors, it also delivers an impressive HDR experience. The TV has an excellent local dimming feature to improve its black levels, so you get very deep blacks in a dark room, with minimal blooming around bright highlights.

It's also an amazing option for gamers since it has HDMI 2.1 bandwidth on all four ports for up to 4k @ 144Hz gaming with VRR. It delivers an impressive gaming experience but has a noticeably slower response time than an OLED like the C4, so you'll see more blur around fast-moving objects if you play fast-paced games. Still, it's a great option if you need a TV to take advantage of your modern console.

If you want something cheaper than the Samsung QN90D/QN90DD QLED without sacrificing too much, the Sony KD-43X85K is the best 43-inch TV in the mid-range category. Its reflection handling is very good, and this TV has impressive peak brightness, so it overcomes glare in bright rooms. Unfortunately, it doesn't have a local dimming feature, so blacks are raised and become grayish when highlights are also on screen. However, you still get vibrant and lifelike colors, although they're not quite as good as what you get on the top two picks.

While its picture quality isn't as good as that of the Samsung or the LG, it has many of the same gaming features, like HDMI 2.1 bandwidth on two of its ports for up to 4k @ 120Hz. It's great if you want to take full advantage of the PS5, the Xbox Series X, or a beefy PC gaming rig. However, its response time is slower than that of the Samsung model, so you see a bit more blur behind fast motion than on that TV. The 43-inch model is getting hard to find at popular retailers, so you might have to shop around to find one in stock.

If you want something in the budget category and want to save money, consider the Roku 40R2A5R/43R4A5R, also known as the Roku Select Series. Its brightness and reflection handling aren't as good as the Sony X85K, but it's still good enough to use in a room with some lights on. Fortunately, its contrast is very similar to the Sony model, so blacks aren't any grayer when highlights are on screen. Sadly, the TV isn't bright enough in HDR for an impactful HDR experience, and it can't display nearly as vibrant colors as the other options on this list.

It also has fewer gaming features than the Sony, as it's limited to a 60Hz refresh rate and doesn't have HDMI 2.1 bandwidth or VRR. Still, it has a great response time for minimal blur behind fast motion, so it's a decent gaming TV if you don't care about advanced features. It comes with the Roku TV smart platform, and you can plug headphones into the remote, a great feature at this price point. Overall, the TV is decent and provides a good user experience, especially for the price. The 40-inch model of the Roku is limited to a 1080p resolution with three HDMI ports. On the other hand, the 43-inch model is a 4k TV with four HDMI ports, making it the best 43-inch 4k TV for those with a budget, so choose accordingly. If you're struggling to find the 40-inch model, consider the Roku 40R3B5/40R3BX, which is a slightly updated model.