The Best Small 4K TVs for 2024

Even though it seems like TVs are only getting bigger and bigger, with the most popular TVs sitting around 60 inches, smaller TVs are still an excellent option for a lot of folks. Whether it’s for a bedroom or a smaller living room, a 4K TV that is not gigantic is a fantastic investment for higher-resolution viewing experiences with a small footprint.

Key Factors For Picking The Best Small 4K TVs

Choosing the best small-sized 4K TV can be easy when users consider the following key features:

• Size: When looking for a small TV, size is an essential factor. The definition of small can vary from person to person, but for the most part, a TV stops being considered small at around 42 inches. Of course, there are much smaller TVs than that, but when it comes to 4K options, the smallest option available is 32 inches. It is just hard to fit 4K resolution into a TV much smaller than that.
• Picture Quality: Specs like audio and smart features can easily be upgraded on a TV, but the most important spec that cannot be upgraded without buying a new TV is the picture quality. The perk of having a 4K TV is the better-looking display, but not all 4K panels are built equally. So, finding a TV with excellent color performance, accurate dimming zones, and a decent refresh rate is essential to a quality viewing experience.
• Price: The best TV out there is not automatically decided by the highest price tag; users should aim to find a balance between the performance they want and the price of the TV. This can look different for everyone, but deciding on a budget beforehand will make the shopping experience much easier.

The Best Small 4K TVs

The LG C2 is an excellent option for anyone wanting a smaller OLED TV that produces vibrant and accurate colors and has a premium build quality while being reasonably affordable. While OLED TVs are not the first choice for some people, even people looking for QLED panels will be impressed with the picture quality that the LG C2 produces.

The LG C2 produces very accurate colors (with a Delta-E score of 1.7) and has an impressively wide color gamut of 134.45% of the Rec 709 color space. The only TVs that come close to these numbers are in a much higher price category and are typically way bigger. Watching movies and playing games on this TV is a joy with its rich, vibrant colors. Even during fast-paced motion, subjects are clear and easy to pick out.

When it comes to audio performance, the LG C2 is a little bit lacking. Sound is not quite as full or clear compared to TVs like the Samsung S90, but given how thin this TV is, Game Rant is willing to give it a bit of a break. While it is not necessary, a good soundbar will definitely improve the viewing experience of this TV.

For fans of Amazon Fire TV or people looking for an incredible budget 4K TV that can easily fit into smaller spaces, the Toshiba C350 Fire TV is an excellent choice. This 43-inch TV is a bit bigger than some of the other TVs in this guide, but it is hard to complain about an extra inch or two at this price point.

Naturally, with the lower price tag, the C350 doesn’t have all the fancy bells and whistles that higher-end TVs have, but it does support Dolby Vision and HDR10. The HDR is not the best available, but it’s also not going to detract from the viewing experience at all. Whether users want to use this TV for watching content or for gaming, the color performance and decent peak brightness combine for excellent screen quality that can even be enjoyed in direct sunlight.

Audio-wise, the C350 produces power pretty much equivalent to the size of this TV. Dialogue is clear and easy to pick out even with background noise; however, the bass is somewhat lacking. Action scenes feel a little lackluster, but again, for under $300, it is hard to complain.

The Vizio MQ6 Series QLED TV is an example of excellent balance between price and performance. Using a QLED panel, this TV is able to produce fantastic picture quality, but to keep the price reasonable, it cuts down on the opulent features that some of the more premium TVs offer. The MQ6 focuses on what is most important for a well-performing TV: excellent color reproduction and picture quality, a good app selection, and smart features that fulfill the needs of most users.

One of the features that this TV had to cut is the local dimming zones, which is not ideal, but the picture quality surprisingly retains outstanding quality despite this. Details are crisp and clear even when looking in the shadows, and even though the shadows and dark scenes are not as inky black as OLED displays, this TV is a joy to view both HDR and SDR content on. In testing, the MQ6 reproduced 99.96% of the Rec 709 color space, which is not quite as much as the LG C2, but this TV is also about half the price.

While the MQ6 can be great for gamers, it is missing a couple of features that would make it one of the best. With a response time of 13.7 milliseconds, this TV seems like a perfect choice, but the 60Hz refresh rate blocks gamers from using the 120 Hz refresh rate that the PS5 and Xbox Series X offer. Of course, this is not as big of an issue for gamers using older consoles or a Nintendo Switch.

In the same lineup as the LG C2, the LG C3 Evo is an excellent option for people with a slightly larger budget and who want a brighter panel with marginally better color performance. At the same size as the LG C2, this 42-inch panel on the LG C3 Evo is absolutely stunning and can easily fit into a smaller living room or even a dorm room.

Unlike most OLED TVs, the LG C3 Evo does an excellent job of rendering vibrant and accurate colors in light-controlled environments and rooms with direct sunlight. Bright lights in scenes actually make viewers want to squint, and shadows are dark and inky while still making it easy to pick out details.

With a sub-one millisecond response time and 120 Hz refresh rate, gamers will love this TV. Plus, with AMD Freesync and Nvidia G-Sync support, gamers can even hook their PC up to this TV and game on the big screen. But for most console gamers, these features and specs are a bit overkill; something like the Sony X85K is a more reasonable option.

The Samsung Q60C is an extraordinary TV; not only is it one of the smallest 4K TVs available, but it also has exceptional picture quality, uses a QLED panel, and is reasonably priced. The Q60C is perfect for anyone who needs a TV smaller than 42 inches, but doesn’t want to give up any visual performance.

Samsung’s commitment to beautiful color performance shines through with the Q60C; this set covers 99.5648% of the Rec. 709 color gamut and has a very impressive Delta-E score of 1.6547. The color gamut doesn’t cover quite as much as the LG C2, but the color accuracy is pretty much spot-on. While watching content, users aren’t going to be dazzled by the light, like by the LG C3, but the somewhat dim peak brightness does make up for itself with surprisingly vibrant scenes.

Gamers might want to steer clear of the Q60C which, with a refresh rate of 60 Hz and no support for HDMI 2.1, has somewhat mediocre gaming performance. However, it is made up for with a very low input lag of under nine milliseconds.

Of course, many gamers looking for a small 4K option will probably turn towards a bigger desktop monitor. However, for those who still want the TV experience, the Sony X85K is an excellent option with features like a 120 Hz refresh rate, HDMI 2.1, and variable refresh rate.

For being an LCD panel, this TV displays deep blacks and has decent peak brightness in HDR mode. Comparing the X85K to the OLED or QLED TVs in this guide, the color production is clearly lacking, but when this TV is not being compared side by side with another one, it offers a fantastic viewing experience.

Regardless of its somewhat lacking color performance, when it comes to gaming, the X85K absolutely shines. With HDMI 2.1 and VRR support, this TV can provide the full experience to Xbox Series X and PS5 users. Plus, with G-Sync support, the X85K is also an excellent option for PC gamers. Whether it is fast-paced competitive games or slow, visually stunning games, the Sony X85K feels right at home.

FAQ

Q: Can you get a 32 inch 4K TV?

A couple of years ago, getting a 4K TV as small as 32 inches seemed impossible, but now there are a couple of options that offer stunning picture quality at 4K resolutions, all within a tiny form factor of 32 inches.

Q: Is 4K worth it on small TV?

For those who value high-quality images for watching movies or playing games, a 4K TV is definitely worth picking up. However, for people who sit a reasonable distance away from their TV, a small 4K TV might not be as much of a difference when compared to a 1080p TV of the same size.