5 Best Budget Gaming Monitors in 2024

Every serious gamer knows the importance of having a good monitor, but there is no doubt that a good solution often costs quite a bit. Unfortunately, not everyone can afford the top solutions, which can cost as much as several thousands of dollars. If you happen to find yourself in a situation where you need a good monitor, but you can’t or don’t want to pay a lot for it, you can do the next best thing, and get the best budget gaming monitors. There are quite a few solutions out there that are more than decent, and we will present you with a few of them right now.

Best Budget Gaming Monitors

1. HP Pavilion 22cwa

Believe it or not, we can go even cheaper than what we have seen so far. You can actually purchase a great IPS gaming monitor for less than $100, and HP Pavilion 22cwa is the best example of this. It is definitely the best budget gaming monitor, with full HD resolution at 1920×1080, and an aspect ratio of 16:9. The monitor itself is relatively small, having around 21.5 inches.

However, it is capable of producing some rather impressive visuals, and its picture quality is excellent. With it, you will always have a sharp image, with rich, vibrant colors. Not only that, but it has an excellent viewing angle, it is sturdy and well-built, and it can be mounted on a VESA adapter. You will have to buy the adapter separately, though, and expect it to feel a bit wobbly, but nothing more than that.

In terms of connectivity, you get an HDMI port, as well as a VGA port, but that is about it. It also doesn’t have built-in speakers, so you will have to rely on the external ones.

Now, its response time is not as good as the previous models that we have talked about. In fact, it is 7ms. This is still pretty decent, as is anything below 10ms, but it is not the best choice for games where you need to respond quickly. Additionally, it has a 60Hz refresh rate, which is not that impressive for a hardcore gamer.

But, that is where its cons end. So, the biggest issues are slow response time and a slow refresh rate, which do not make this the best option for competitive online multiplayer games. Apart from that, there is nothing else to criticize so that it will serve you perfectly well for any other kind of gaming.

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2. AOC C27G1

Then, we have AOC C27G1, which is a curved budget monitor, designed to provide an excellent gaming experience. It comes with numerous features, and it will likely be more than enough to satisfy all of your needs.

This is a 27-inch monitor, and it features a 1800R curvature, which gives it a modern and rather beautiful look. Another thing that we loved about it, design-wise, is the fact that you can easily adjust its height, and that it has quite a good viewing angle.

In terms of resolution, it is excellent with 1920×1080 pixels. It also has excellent brightness, and a refresh rate of 144Hz. The part that we liked the most is that this model also has a response time of 1ms, which is very rare among monitors, and we managed to find three in a row that will cost you less than $200 per monitor.

AOC C27G1 seems to be doing everything just right, and we are quite satisfied with its contrast ratio, color support, and it even has decent connectivity, with two HDMI 1.4, one DisplayPort 1.2, and one VGA.

In the end, this is a beautiful monitor that has nothing to criticize. It has an excellent price, and while it may lack some of the features present in more expensive models — expecting anything else to find its way to a monitor that can be bought for less than $200 would be way too much. It will clearly let everyone know that it is a gaming monitor, and it will fit in perfectly in your gaming setup, so do consider it.

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3. Acer XFA240

Another solution in a similar price range comes in the form of Acer XFA240, which is a monitor that offers quite a lot of excellent features, and can easily be mistaken for a high-end solution. It has a 24-inch display, with its resolution being 1920×1080, which is definitely a mark of a more serious, expensive monitor. It also supports AMD FreeSync technology, meaning that you won’t have to worry about lag or similar problems while playing.

Not only that, but it has a refresh rate of 144Hz, which is definitely something that we liked. Best of all, it has a response time of only 1ms, just like the previous solution on our list. All of these features combined mean that you will get some truly amazing visuals, which will allow you to really enjoy immersion to the fullest, while avoiding all of the typical problems.

The benefits don’t stop there either, as this model features a Flicker-less design, which will really help your eyes. And, thanks to the blue light filter — you also won’t exhaust your eyes while playing in the dark, which makes it perfect for late-night gaming sessions, as well as for enjoying an evening movie, and alike.

The monitor also comes with a number of adjustment options, including swivel, height, tilt, and pivot, which is perfect for those who plan to use it for playing with others, have spectators, and alike. Finally, in terms of audio — there are two 2W built-in speakers, and they are quite average. As for ports, you get one DVI port, one DisplayPort, and one HDMI.

In conclusion, this is a pretty great monitor which offers a lot of benefits that can only be found in expensive, professional monitors. However, this one provides the same combination and costs a lot less. True, it doesn’t offer all of the features that you can get with an expensive monitor — but it definitely costs a lot less than what the company could have charged for a monitor like this.

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4. Asus VG245H

The first on our list is ASUS VG245H, which is generally considered to be one of the best solutions when it comes to budget monitors. It will cost you less than $200, and it actually offers quite a decent performance in return. This has made it a popular choice for most gamers who don’t want to pay that much and still enjoy a pretty good image while playing their favorite game.

This is a 24-inch TN monitor, which has an incredible response time of only 1ms. This is exceptional speed which beats even some of the best expensive monitors out there. With an ultra-fast response time like that, this monitor is ideal for online multiplayer games.

Next, it features AMD FreeSync, and has a refresh rate of 75Hz, which is something that belongs to this price range. With the right GPU to accompany it, you can have a quite decent visual experience. Of course, this monitor also has a version that goes up to 144Hz, which might be interesting to those who already have (or plan to buy) a higher-end GPU, although that one will go beyond $200.

The monitor also comes with an adjustable stand, which is pretty sturdy too. However, it does have bad viewing angles, which is a typical issue for TN monitors. In other words, if you are looking for a monitor with better color accuracy and better viewing angles — you might be better off finding an IPS solution, instead of a TN monitor.

However, the response time is amazing, this model is a Full HD monitor which can be obtained for an extremely low price, which are some excellent features that give this solution a clear advantage. In terms of connectivity, it features two HDMI ports, but not much else. It also has two built-in speakers, although they are nothing special, and you might be better off buying external ones for the best experience.

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5. LG 25UM56P

Last, but definitely not least — we have LG 24UM56P. Now, this is a monitor that will definitely impress you with its widescreen, rich features, and the fact that you can get it for less than $150. It already sounds impressive, so let’s take a closer look at what it has to offer.

First, of all, let us point out that this is an ultra-widescreen monitor, which features a 25-inch display, and a resolution of 2560×1080 pixels. The screen’s aspect ratio is 21:9, which is a significant stretch, when you consider that a regular aspect ratio is 16:9.

Of course, this is not a great solution for all games. Sometimes, stretching the picture may result in the loss of your view of the top and bottom, so keep that in mind. But, if you know what you are doing and why you want a wide monitor — this is a perfect budget solution for you.

LG 24UM56P also features a LED screen, with LG’s Dynamic Action Sync, which will eliminate lag and allow you fast movement with no technical issues. Not only that, but it also offers a Black Stabilizer feature, which will have a strong impact on the quality of your visuals.

In other words, there is not much to criticize here. The same issue with losing the top and bottom of your games is encountered with pretty much all wide monitors, so it is not a problem of this particular model — only something to keep in mind. other than that, we are rather impressed by the features and the price, which is why we chose this monitor to close our list.

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Best Budget Gaming Monitors Conclusion

With that, the list is done, and we are more than satisfied with the solutions that we have managed to find. All of these monitors offer some excellent features, and come at extremely low prices. Of course, each of them has their lacks of some high-end features, which is perfectly understandable, considering that these are not high-end monitors.

All that remains now is to go through the list, consider each of the models, realize what it is that you are looking for in your gaming monitor, and take your pick.