If your room is large enough for an impressive TV with huge display real estate, then it’s also time to upgrade your TV. An 85-inch TV can be the sweet spot for getting a massive, beautiful picture without overwhelming your space. While all of the TVs on this list were tested and chosen by our tech editors, we chose the LG G4 OLED TV as the best 85-inch TV you can add to your home due to its gorgeous 4K picture quality as well as highly responsive display for fast-paced gaming.
Build an impressive home theater with the Samsung QN90D TV, one of the best 85-inch TVs you can get ... [+] right now.
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Only a step or two behind that LG G4 OLED is the amazing Samsung S90D OLED too, which offers a QD-OLED alternative if that's what you’re looking for. Don’t want to spend that much? The Hisense U8 Series Mini-LED is just as big, just as bright and offers a very vibrant picture for well under $2,000. And, of course, if you’re not 100% sure on adding a massive screen to your home, we’ve tested plenty of other smaller TVs to help you decide, including the best 75-inch TVs and the best 65-inch TVs. Here are the best 85-inch TVs you can buy in 2024.
Best for: Enjoying your favorite movies, shows, and games, on a huge screen with the power and beauty of OLED.
Pros:
Bright picture with vibrant colors
Voice assistant built-in
Hands-free control
Cons:
Audio is mediocre at best
Remote could be more intuitive
The LG G4 is LG’s flagship OLED TV, and with advances in brightness over its predecessor, the excellent G3, this is arguably the brightest OLED TV ever made. While LG doesn’t quote brightness numbers directly, it uses Micro Lens Array technology (used for the first time on an OLED TV of this size), which means it takes all the light from the self-lit pixels and redirects it to your view. This tech ensures that this TV looks fantastic and bright, whether you place it in your sunny living room or a darker space.
As a more traditional W-OLED design TV, too, it retains those pure blacks where Samsung and Sony’s QD-OLED designs lose a little of that inkiness. This TV is amazing for gaming too, with a super low input lag, very fast response time, and an impressive 144Hz refresh rate, which gives it higher frame rates with PC gaming, or up to 120Hz at up to 4K on consoles. It has four HDMI 2.1 full bandwidth ports, and supports both G-Sync and Freesync. However, you’ll want to get a dedicated soundbar with this TV; the AI Sound Pro feature sounds very tinny and is detrimental to the viewing experience.
What our editors say: Tech editor Rebecca Isaacs tested this in her home for over a month. She says, “For gaming, the LG G4 TV is a great choice. I experienced smooth, colorful graphics while playing my current game, Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga. The LG WebOS is also easy to use, and I liked that it comes with complimentary LG Channels so you can watch your favorite movies and TV shows, too. Just make sure you get a soundbar. It’s 100% worth it because the AI Sound Pro feature sounds tinny, and the other audio settings sounded too quiet during testing.”
Best for: Watching weekend sports in the afternoon.
Pros:
Very bright panel
Excellent motion handling
Powerful AI upscaling
Cons:
Contrast and colors aren’t as strong as on OLED
While the latest generation OLED TVs are much brighter than their predecessors, they still can’t get as bright as Mini-LED TVs, like this latest generation flagship QLED model from Samsung. The QN90D reportedly can reach over 2,000 nits, making it exceptionally bright and capable of looking vibrant and rich even in brightly lit rooms. It supports the most important HDR standards, though lacks Dolby Vision as do all Samsung TVs.
It’s super fast for gaming, too, with a high 144Hz refresh rate for PCs and up to 120Hz on consoles, fast response time and low input lag. Plus, Samsung TVs come with a great ambient mode and the Samsung Gaming Hub so you can play your games without the need to hook up a console (though it requires a subscription). It’s not quite as fast as OLED TVs, but it’s not far enough behind that the average gamer would notice. It has a fantastic AI upscaling algorithm, too, so if you’re watching older content like home movies or Full HD movies, it’ll look far closer to 4K than it was originally mastered to.
Best for: Watching movies at the highest possible quality.
Pros:
Incredible picture quality
Richer colors than you’ll find on traditional OLED designs
Super fast for gaming and supports Samsung Gaming Hub
Cons:
Doesn’t get as bright as other OLED panels
Samsung’s flagship OLED TV, the S95D, isn’t available in the largest of sizes, but its second-best OLED is, and it’s nipping at the heels of its more-expensive sibling, with incredible picture quality and amazing gaming features. The S90D is available in sizes right up to 83-inches and has that gorgeous QD-OLED picture quality with amazingly vibrant colors, a rich and bright picture in both SDR and HDR and some of the fastest gaming specifications on any TV out there.
It has up to a 144Hz refresh rate on high-end gaming PCs, or up to 120Hz at 4K on consoles, with multiple HDMI 2.1 ports to connect on. It also has native support for a range of smart apps on its Tizen operating system, including Samsung’s Gaming Hub, for easy game streaming. It doesn’t quite have the inkiest of blacks as traditional OLED designs, but it has much better color representation than something like our top choice, the LG G4. It also doesn’t get as bright as the LG G4. Its native sound is strong, too, with support for Dolby Atmos and object tracking sound for the best spatial audio experience.
Best for: Enjoying a huge TV without the high price tag.
Pros:
Very bright
Affordable price
Great gaming features
Cons:
Not as high contrast as OLED models
Hisense is a stellar brand for offering comparable features to the top brands at a much more affordable price. Thats what makes the newest TV from Hisense, the U8 Series, so special. It’s a gigantic 85-inch TV with a brightness as high as 1500 nits. That’s driven by the massive array of mini LEDs, giving it full array local dimming too, for not only eye catching HDR, but also nuanced HDR, so there’s very little blooming on high contrast images. Quantum dots deliver rich and vibrant colors too, and unlike many of the big brands, Hisense models support all HDR standards, including HDR10, HDR10+ and Dolby Vision.
Gaming features on this TV are excellent, too, with a fast response time and low input lag for competitive play. It also supports refresh rates up to 144 Hz for high-end PC gaming, at up to 120 Hz on consoles, and has Freesync support to make screen tearing a thing of the past. It also offers native support for Wi-Fi 6E, and can integrate with Apple Home and Apple Airplay for easy streaming and smart home functions.
What our editors say: Isaacs went hands-on with the TV and says, “For the price, the U8 Series is a great combination of affordability with intuitive features. Images and sports look smooth on the screen, and I felt the screen is bright enough to be placed in any space.”
Best for: Future-proofing your cinematic experience for years to come.
Pros:
Gorgeous visuals
Future-proof display with incredible detail
Cons:
Overkill for casual homes
Very expensive compared to 4K models
Just launched, Samsung’s top-of-the-line 8K panel, the QN900D, showcases the cutting-edge Neo QLED panel technology, that culminates in a display of unparalleled brilliance and nuanced local dimming. Because it’s a QLED panel, you get a massively bright picture; you can also adjust your settings to various modes including movie, dynamic and more to get the picture that you want on this big, detailed display. Plus, if you enjoy Ambient Mode, it offers a slew of different options so you can leave the TV on and enjoy coffee shop sounds, fireplaces crackling and more (our tester notes that this is one of her favorite features, especially with that 8K picture).
Boasting a 120Hz refresh rate (under 4K, it can go up to 240Hz), the QN900D can help gamers can enjoy their gaming experience to its fullest. A dedicated Game Mode reduces input lag, while the support for AMD FreeSync Premium Pro further enhances any gaming experience. Moreover, with four HDMI 2.1 inputs, connect gaming consoles, your favorite Roku streaming devices and more. Because it’s an 8K TV and there isn’t much 8K content (yet), the QN900D can upscale older and lower resolution content. Like other Samsung panels, it doesn’t offer Dolby Vision, but it offers Dolby Atmos as well as HDR, HDR10+ and HLG. Because it’s a Samsung panel, you also get access to Samsung’s Gaming Hub, Nvidia GeForce Now and Xbox Game Pass so you can stream your favorite games, too.
What our editors say: Isaacs tested the Samsung QN900D 8K and says, “While watching Fallout, movie mode and adjusting the settings with high local dimming made the picture look gorgeous. The speakers are also better than my own soundbar, so while I recommend adding one to your setup, it’s not a requirement with this TV.”
The Forbes Vetted tech team has years of experience writing about a broad range of consumer electronics and have the background and expertise to help you make the best buying decisions possible. In particular, this story was written by contributor Jon Martindale and tech editor Rebecca Isaacs.
Jon Martindale is a regular Forbes Vetted contributor who has been writing about tech for nearly two decades. He has bylines in digital publications including Digital Trends and PCGamer, and formerly ran his own PC hardware review website.
The tech section is overseen by tech editor Rebecca Isaacs. She is a home entertainment expert who has personally tested plenty of panels including going hands-on with a slew of gaming TVs.
She has extensive experience going hands-on with most of the devices on this list, including the Samsung QN900D 8K and the top pick, the LG G3.
We know TV trends can quickly become outdated. We recently updated this story in May 2024 to expand on testing insights, buying advice and add the new Samsung QN900D 8K TV.
How We Chose The Best 85-Inch TVs
Here at Forbes Vetted, when we’re not working, we’re gaming and streaming on our TVs. We are experts in the home entertainment area and we love sharing hands-on insights and give you a better picture as to what TV is best for your home.
We combed through the major retailers including Samsung, LG and more to narrow down our options.
From there, we carefully conducted robust research and interviewed tech analysts, diving into the latest technology in panels and what you should be considering when buying an 85-inch TV. We also combed through real customer reviews to compare the perks and quirks of each TV.
We also jumped heads-first into testing many of these panels, including the Samsung QN900D 8K, and we used our impressions of last-generaiton models, like the LG G3 and Sony Bravia XR A80L to inform our choices of the latest and greatest. In fact, tech editor Rebecca Isaacs, who spearheads the vertical, has rigorously tested many of the TVs on this list.
We carefully evaluated each TV’s resolution, refresh rate, display type, smart features and more to compile our list of the best 85-Inch TVs on the market today.
