Last Updated on September 9, 2022
4K Monitors come in many shapes and sizes, with a variety of features and designs. Whether you’re looking for an attractive monitor to display on your desktop or the perfect gaming monitor for enhancing the depth of experience for your favorite games, there is a price point that most gamers can afford. With everything from detailed graphics to eye-catching action figures, the best 4K monitor under 500 offers fantastic value.
At the same time, finding the best 4K monitor under 500 is not an easy task because most brands use the latest technologies. It increases upfront costs, which directly affects the price. These technologies mainly include an IPS panel, a glare and flicker-free display, a UHD display, or a curved screen.
To cope with this, we have reviewed all the top gaming monitors below. You can have a sneak peek at all the reviews, or simply click on the specific model you like the most. It’s up to you. You can check the top picks as below or hover over the last section to get to know you for our recommendation of your next pc monitors.
Our Top Monitors 4K Under $500:
8 4K Best Monitors Under 500
Below are the reviews of the best 4K monitor under 500 in detail.
1. SAMSUNG UR59 Series LU32R590CWNXZA Curved Screen Monitor
Today’s top pick is the Samsung UR59 Series LU32R590CWNXZA curved monitor. It’s from the tech giant “Samsung,” which creates the best tech and home improvement components. Talking about the monitor, inside the box, I have got a 32” curved screen 4K monitor embossed in a W-LED panel which delivers over 1 billion colors, making it the best monitor brand on our list.
Similarly, the ultrawide monitor has a user-centric design. It surprised me with its 1500R curvature because I used it for hours and hours of streaming Netflix and games, and guess what, I felt no neck strain. The brand includes Flicker-Free and Low Blue Light technology for comfort and health. Honestly, these extras helped to eliminate flicker, and minimize UV rays to deliver a fatigue-free and eye strain-free experience of watching Peaky Blinders Season 6 for straight 8 hours.
When it comes to technical specifications of these best monitors, this monitor consists of 13ppi pixel density with a native 60Hz refresh rate, that’s quite impressive according to the price. And, a ~4ms response time makes it the best 4K monitor for work, gaming, home, I mean literally any task.
With a wide range of color accuracy features, you will experience great details and color depth in games. Also, its HDR10 makes dark colors darker and bright colors even brighter. In simple words, it allows the monitor to display realistic images with vivid colors.
The Samsung UR59 Series has 250 nits max brightness, which is slightly lower than the average 350 nits. However, you will have to compromise on something at this price, and in this case, it’s the brightness. The 2500:1 contrast ratio and multiple game mode support combine with brightness to deliver an extraordinary experience in your productive hours.
Further, it features a virtually borderless design. It helps to keep you focused on your craft without any distractions. And, you can connect a variety of devices for multi-device setup, including Xbox, PS4, Mac, and MacBook Pro.
Unfortunately, the monitor doesn’t support G-Sync or FreeSync so you can’t expect high performance either, it synced with my GPU so I can get those extra high frame rates I’d expect from a monitor like this.
2. BenQ EW3270U 32-inch 4K Monitor
BenQ’s EW3270U monitor provides good value for most applications. Due to a VA panel, it produces deep uniform blacks, so it is better suited for dim environments. In terms of productivity and gaming, its 4K resolution and large screen make it ideal.
Similarly, if you can compromise on a little ergonomics and extra-wide viewing angles, you can straightaway buy this high quality monitor due to its enormous reflection control capabilities. In fact, its ~1 ms low response time produces low input lag, which decreases motion blur, making it ideal for watching movies or playing AAA titles.
Due to the 16: 9 aspect ratio, deep 3, 000: 1 native contrast ratio, 10-bit color, and 95% DCI-P3 coverage, I got vibrant and realistic image quality. And, its 4K resolution combined with HDR 10 at 32-inches enhanced our viewing experience while watching The Blacklist on Netflix.
The BenQ’s EW3270U is one of the best 4K monitor under 500 because it features Brightness Intelligence Technology. It enables the monitor to adjust the display and contrast according to the environment. Also, it detects screen contrast and ambient lighting to auto-adjust luminance for you. Moving on, its SDR peak brightness is rated at 262 cd/m² SDR and HDR brightness at 249 cd/m² HDR.
This 60 Hz, VA panel display comes with AMD FreeSync. It helps the monitor to reduce screen tearing and stuttering for a comfortable and fluid gaming experience. The brand includes Low Blue Light technology and Flicker-Free technology that reduces eye strain for longer sessions.
Furthermore, it has a robust build quality, and it includes a solid ergonomic stand. Although almost entirely constructed of plastic, it feels sturdy and doesn’t seem to have any obvious defects. Even at this price range, you will get a USB-C port, dual-HDMI, and DisplayPort.
Under the hood, the image degrades at a certain angle, so you have to watch it straight and you don’t have any option to lay down on a bean bag and enjoy PS4 gaming.
3. Philips 328E1CA 32″ Curved Monitor
Philips monitors combine the best picture quality with advanced features, so you can read documents all day long, no matter how demanding your work is. Overall, the 328E1CA is a very affordable device that provides fantastic practical image quality for everyday use.
Luckily, its AdaptiveSync and FreeSync made it my go-to gaming or productivity beast. Its VA panel and 4K UHD display helped me achieve a 60 Hz refresh rate response in games. It delivers ~4 low input lag to minimize screen stuttering, flickering, and image tearing.
When it comes to luminance, it only glows at a maximum of 250 nits brightness with a contrast ratio of 2500:1. However, it’s low, but it adapts to your environment to deliver a pleasant experience. The Philips Curved Monitors offer real immersion. With a 32″ curved E-line monitor, our researcher and reviewers enjoyed truly immersive experience with stunning 4K UHD images.
Additionally, Philips’ 328E1CA ultra wide-color technology provides a more vivid picture by delivering a broader spectrum of colors. Using Ultra-Wide Colors, the “color gamut” is wider, which produces more natural-looking green, vivid red, deeper blue, and up to 1.07 billion colors of the spectrum.
Its 120% sRGB and 97.8% NTSC color gamut is helpful to bring colors to the life of professionals requiring extremely detailed images for CAD engineers, financial spreadsheets wizards, and 3D graphics artists.
Thanks to its integrated cable management in the extra stable stand, 328E1CA is perfectly suited for office and retail environments. It can simplify your cable management and declutter to provide a clean and sophisticated look.
The brand integrates Low Blue mode and flicker-free technology, making it convenient for longer use and the best computer monitors on the budget. Also, it has VESA mount measuring 100x100mm, and you can connect it via DisplayPort and HDMI.
All in all, you have to play with Gamma and color calibration for days to get it right. Because, it has light Gamma and low latency out of the box, which is one of the deal breakers for many of us.
4. ASUS VA32UQ 31.5” HDR Monitor 4K
You can enjoy a smooth viewing experience with the VA32UQ Monitor from Asus. There are only a limited number of black monitors available, and they come with a unique stand. In fact, it offers more screen area and fewer distractions due to its ultra-thin bezels.
It consists of a 31.5” ultra-wide display at a maximum resolution of 3840 x 2160. Aside from its gaming abilities. Due to this, y productivity got increased because of low light and less eye strain, and the way I played CS: GO was really an impressive shot. It is highly space-saving and highly effective. And, it can take care of almost any task you need it for.
The ASUS monitor supports FreeSync. It provides an immersive and realistic feel. The FreeSync also helps the monitor deliver a tear and flicker-free viewing experience. Its response time is rated at ~4 milliseconds, and the VA panel display has a 60 Hz refresh rate.
The ASUS VA32UQ VA panel boosts the contrast, which tops at 3000:1. Which means you get realistic whites and darker blacks from any angle. Another thing, its 300 nits of total brightness can fit in any environment. It sports HDR-10 that enhances bright and dark areas to deliver life-like graphics in games and character development.
The monitor also features up to 95% DCI-P3 color coverage, providing realistic colors and smoother gradation. Just like other monitors, you will experience flicker-free viewing and fatigue-free eyes due to Low Blue Light technology and an ergonomic tilt to ensure a comfortable viewing experience.
You can connect this 4K monitor with DisplayPort to your GPU for 75+ Hz, while it can be connected via HDMI. As a final bonus, you will get 2W stereo speakers built-in, so you don’t need to buy additional speakers.
Talking about the deal breakers, I noticed a glossy display out of the box which kind of irritates some users in the dark. Also, the VA Panel is not enough colorful to provide to epic response while watching a great detailed video, like watching Tiger hunting a deer on NatGeo.
5. LG 32UN550-W UHD Monitor
Among all the monitors we’ve reviewed, LG’s 32UN550-W offers one of the highest picture quality for VA panels. It is mainly due to the three-color pattern used in the monitor. In fact, this design is highly controversial among many users of this series of monitors.
LG’s 32UN550-W monitor has a 3-sided bezel, which gives the monitor an attractive and modern appearance. Additionally, the device measures 28.1 x 8.9 x 19.1 inches and features a very thin bottom bezel.
Moving on, its VA panel has high color reproduction for graphic fidelity lovers; however, it falls short of the IPS displays in the Samsung UR59 series. In comparison, if you are someone who loves contrast over fidelity, this type of panel is best for you because it can reach an up to contrast ratio of 3000:1. Luckily, it doesn’t have an IPS panel glowing and backlit bleeding issues.
For casual users, LG offers a high-end value of 350cd/m2. This ratio enables you to clearly view all the colors of the rainbow on a hot sunny day or late moon night without losing contrast.
Since it’s not a gaming-focused monitor, just don’t expect its refresh rate to cross 144Hz or 240 Hz with a ~1ms response rate. Following this, the monitor still has low input lag at ~4ms response time for casual gamers and a 60 Hz display, which is slightly subpar.
Down the road, the LG 32UN550-W UHD Monitor sports a DCI-P3 percent color gamut. It helps the VA panel to boost color accuracy and produce vibrant images with higher contrast. Also, the integrated AMD FreeSync and HDR 10 improve contrast, deep darks, and reduce image tearing and screen stuttering on this monitor.
If you are Mac user, get yourself something else, because this monitor is not nearly syncable with macOS technology.
6. ASUS TUF Gaming VG289Q1A
ASUS TUF gaming monitors series is doomed to have a ton of monitors. And, you may have seen something rare, that every new launch comes with a sleek design change. That said, the VG289Q boasts a basic aesthetic design that’s perfect for professionals and gamers.
This monitor strikes the perfect balance between gaming aesthetics and productivity since it can fit in almost any environment – clever! In addition to the ASUS logo seen on the bottom of the stand, the stand itself is finished in a chrome finish as well as additional TUF branding.
Despite being quite basic, the stand has a few unique design features, like the neo-Aztec design embossed into the base and various red accents.
The VG289Q1A’s HDR technology delivers a wider color spectrum and higher contrast than traditional monitors. It brings out details like never before, with its whites and blacks as bright as ever. Also, it provides 90% color gamut and contrast performance according to the DCI-P3 standard.
The TUF Gaming VG289Q1A’s 28-inch 4K UHD (3840 x 2160) IPS technology gives you four times the pixels of a 1080p monitor so that you can play your games in more detail. Also, it offers more onscreen desktop space for your various work windows. Its highly detailed terrain maps and highly textured elements take you into immersive virtual worlds.
Talking about the specifications, you will get a 60 Hz refresh in this IPS panel display with a max luminance of 350 cd/m² and a contrast ratio of 1000:1. It features Shadow Boost Technology and GamePlus technology, which helps in delivering realistic graphical fidelity.
The ASUS TUF series monitor consists of tilt and swivels with a wide viewing angle of 178°/178°. It allows you to find the best viewing position. The brand includes a VESA mount at (100 x 100) for wall mounting. And, its exclusive ports make it an ideal monitor, including DisplayPort 1.2 and HDMI (v2.0) x2 ports.
7. AOC U2790VQ 27″ 4K Frameless Monitor
The second last on the list is the AOC U2790VQ frameless monitor with all the features you need in the best 4K monitor under 500. That said, the monitor comes with an IPS technology panel, allowing it to display vibrant colors and accommodating a wide viewing angle.
In addition to the Low Blue Light technology, the AOC U2790VQ features flicker-free motion to provide you with better onscreen time for longer sessions. Moreover, its 10-bit color depth provides a smoother transition between colors and improved color display capability compared to other types of panels.
With its 27″ screen and 4K UHD 3840 x 2160 UHD resolutions, the AOC U2790VQ produces more than 1 billion colors for rich details, while its HDR keeps text and characters sharp. Its 5ms response time will further improve your reflexes, making it your ideal monitor for home and office use.
An excellent color gamut is needed for games like PUBG and Fortnite to avoid color explosions. Thus, the brand maintains maximum color accuracy with over 99% sRGB & 90% NTSC color gamut coverage.
The AOC U2790VQ features a frameless design that is sleek, slim, and tilt-adjustable. Gamers like me who like to lounge on their couches and enjoy leisure time will appreciate this feature even more. Additionally, this budget beast is perfect for a seamless setup, and photo editing monitor due to its three-sided frameless design.
Moving on to connectivity, you can connect this device via DisplayPort or HDMI 1.4. Luckily, you will get all the DisplayPort and HDMI cables in the box.
8. BenQ EL2870U
Last but not least, we have the BenQ EL2870U. It features a wide color gamut, many features, and an affordable price; it contains a high refresh rate, a 4K display, and eye relief to support long periods of productivity. Read on to learn more.
There is a 28-inch LCD panel fitted in a TN panel on the BenQ EL 2870U with a resolution of 4K 3840×2160. You can easily create architectures and edit your videos with the smooth graphics provided by this device.
The brand integrates HDR technology into the 10-bit display to produce vivid images with extreme color balance and brightness in these BenQ professional monitors. Similarly, with the fidelity of 1.07 billion colors, you can now see all the colors of the rainbow.
The monitor has a ~1 ms response rate, which is helpful when designing levels, and a 60 Hz refresh rate like gaming features that are useful while streaming whole seasons on Netflix. Further, it uses its B.I+ technology to optimize brightness and color temperature to reduce headaches, eye strain, and fatigue while you are using it for longer hours.
It also supports AMD Free Sync, which increases the display’s refresh rate and sharpens the texture of images and games. To provide a fluid gaming experience, it eliminates image tearing, broken frames, and choppy screenplay.
EL2870U comes with HDMI and DisplayPort connectivity. And, its built-in speaker, dual headphone jacks, and cable management system, makes you can consider it is buying today for the best gaming features it has.
I don’t recommend it for people who are going to use it as a secondary monitor due to its stand. Its really of low quality that can break easily if you put some pressure on it, which you can’t even put on any model, but its a fragile one.
Things To Consider Before Buying The Best 4K Monitor Under 500:
Viewing angle: It is the maximum angle on which a monitor can show images without tearing and stuttering. An IPS display is better than other panels because of its wide viewing angles.
Display resolution: It is the number of distinct pixels in each dimension that can be displayed. In 4K monitors, you will get a maximum of 3840×2160 pixels resolutions.
Power consumption: It is measured in watts. You should check out your input voltage according to your state before getting a monitor.
Contrast ratio: It measures the difference between the brightness of the whitest color (white) and the darkness of the blackest color (black) the monitor can produce. In 4K monitors, you should select more contrast.
Aspect ratio: Basically, it is the ratio of horizontal to vertical length. 4K Monitors usually have the aspect ratio 4:3, 5:4, 16:10, or 16:9.
Color gamut: It is measured as its coordinates in CIE, 1931. It is also known as sRGB or Adobe RGB, which means the more, the better the viewing experience will be.
Refresh rate: This is the number of times in a second that an LCD display is illuminated. LCDs have a maximum refresh rate based on their response times. It’s the vice versa of response time, meaning the higher the refresh rate, the low will be screen tearing in an excellent gaming monitor.
Response time: It is measured in milliseconds and refers to the passage of time between active (white) and inactive (black) states in the monitor. There are fewer visible artifacts on the image when the numbers are lower.
The verdict:
So, above, we have reviewed the best 4K monitor under 500. Some of them have a TN panel, while our top picks come with an IPS panel. You should also consider other considerations like contrast ratio no matter what panel you select.
If you are still looking for the best 4K monitor under 500, we suggest having another look at the SAMSUNG UR59 Series LU32R590CWNXZA curved screen monitor. It’s the best in all trades, like response time, refresh rate, and after all, it’s a curved screen under 500, could you imagine?
However, if you are looking in the budget range, opt out for BenQ EL2870U. It’s an IPS display with only ~1ms response time and a native 60 Hz refresh rate. No matter which product you go with, we hope it turns out the best for you!