Best TVs under $500: Low-budget, high-quality TVs in every size

Upgrading from LED to QLED on a budget? TCL continues to improve on its beloved budget QLEDs, which offer the biggest mini LED and QLED-lit screen size without going over the $500. (That's the 55-inch one, but the 65-inch model is also often on sale for under $500.)

Compared to the slightly more expensive TCL 6 Series QLED, the 5 Series omits gaming features like HDMI 2.1 inputs and a 120Hz refresh rate. But this watch-and-play experience still leaves that of other $500 TVs in the dust. The 5 Series packs a quantum layer on top of its backlight to expand the range and intensify the hue of colors, with that panel itself made up of a ton of mini LEDs for better-curated brightness in each scene.

We all know someone who has purchased this exact TV as their first "nice" TV. (That person might be you next.) The 4-Series isn't particularly amazing in any category but spreads the love to each basic box for an improvement you'll notice compared to your ancient HD TV.

A fancy lighting panel is clearly absent here, but the 4-Series still nails picture quality with a fantastic contrast ratio, excellent gradient handling, and good upscaling capabilities. All of these make it the perfect choice for people who will mainly be watching movies or shows in the dark.

Samsung's entry-level 4K TV from 2020 continues to hold its own against newer contenders in the budget market. The Crystal UHD line harnesses direct-lit lighting from a VA panel that fine-tunes colors for extra accuracy through PurColor technology.

It has some of the best black uniformity and contrast in this price range, too, which are especially noticeable in game mode in a dark room. For the cost, the huge 65-inch display should somewhat mitigate wide viewing angle woes.

After years of outsourcing the Fire TV platform to brands like Insignia and Toshiba, Amazon finally dropped its very own smart TV in the fall of 2021. Though every tier of the in-house Fire TVs is budget-friendly compared to other brands, the best balance of specs, size options, and price comes from the Omni.

The upgrade pick over Amazon's basic 4-Series is brighter and offers a slightly more accurate picture. Its color doesn't compare to that of its sibling, the Omni QLED, but it is still remarkable for the price range — sizes up to 55 inches fall under $500. Fire TV is arguably the easiest to navigate of the smart platforms, and it runs particularly smoothly on the Omni.

Walmart-exclusive brand onn. was introduced in 2019 with an unspoken agenda: to help people bring the 4K experience home at the cheapest price possible. At full price, onn. is one of your only ways into an XL 70-inch TV under the $500 budget. (A 70-inch QLED version can often be found on sale for just $528.)

Because 70-inch TVs under $500 are rare, this onn. is only the "best" in its category by default. But customer reviews at Walmart confirm it is a solid performer if your expectations are in check. The screen is immersive due to size alone, with imagery that's clear and decently colorful. Roku being built-in is a plus — we appreciate the familiar platform over having to learn the ropes of some self-branded smart interface.

TBH, Hisense's U6H is a bang for your buck whether it's on sale or at its usual $799.99. But it's even more of a steal when rocking the $499.99 price tag, as it locks in specs that other TVs skimp on to keep prices down.

The peak brightness levels here are reason enough to wait for a sale, especially if you do a lot of watching or gaming in the daytime or care about HDR. This is a rare time you'll be able to pin down a 65-incher with full-array local dimming at your $500 budget. For gamers specifically, the U6H has auto low latency mode and supports variable refresh rate.

43 inches is typically the smallest most 4K screens will go, so there is no shortage of OK options under $500. But if your 43-inch TV is your main TV — maybe for a cramped living room situation or binge-watching in bed — don't settle for crappy picture just because of the size.

If you can spend $50 more, you can enjoy Samsung's colorful quantum dot technology with the $549.99 43-inch Q60B. (It's frequently on sale for way less than that, anyway). Compared to competitors, the Q60B is more trustworthy in both bright and dark rooms, pushing light through a quantum dot filter that amplifies color saturation and illuminates HDR content.