Are you a hardcore gamer who wants crazy fast reaction times on your monitor?
Think fast-paced games such as CS: GO, DoTA2, Halo, or other FPS games where the speed of your reaction is vital to your success. You need a good gaming monitor with a perfect combination of low input lag and a high refresh rate.
The only problem?
No manufacturer publicly advertises input lag, so it becomes challenging to narrow down the choices on your own.
Fortunately, we did all the grunt work and have narrowed down the absolute best low-input lag gaming monitor for every need.
Products Considered
11
Hours Researched
8
Experts Consulted
0
Learn more about why you should trust us and how we decide.
Who is it for | Name | Highlights | Our Rating | Where to Buy |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. Best of the Best | ![]() ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q | The combination of G-Sync, 27" sharp 1440p display, 165hz high refresh-rate, and low input lag makes it the best console gaming laptop money can buy. | ||
2. Best Budget | ![]() ViewSonic XG2402 | It comes with a refresh rate of 144hz, FreeSync support, and fairly low-pricing makes it the best console gaming monitor that's also easy on the wallet. | ||
3. Best Premium (Runners-up) | ![]() BenQ Zowie XL2540 | Incredible refresh rate of 240hz, FreeSync support, and excellent motion handling helps it comes a close second to our premium pick. | ||
4. Best Budget | ![]() Dell S2716DG | 165hz refresh rate, a large 27" 1440p panel, swift motion handling and a modest price tag. | ||
5. Best Curved Ultrawide | ![]() LG 34UC79G-B | Stunning 24-inch curved Ultrawide display, high-refresh rate, FreeSync support makes for a more immersive gaming experience. | ||
6. Best HDR Gaming | ![]() Samsung CHG70 | If HDR gaming, especially on PS4 , PS4 Pro, or Xbox is your thing, look no further. 144hz refresh rate, extremely low input lag and fast response time makes it a complete package for gaming. |
1. ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q

ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q is our editors choice when it comes to the best gaming monitor. Thanks to the 27" 1440p panel coupled with an excellent low-input lag, it can please even the most demanding gamers.
So what makes this model our top choice when it comes to FPS gaming or twitch gameplay?
For starters, ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q comes with the G-Sync technology which helps eliminate screen tearing, minimize display stutter and input lag. It has an excellent native refresh rate of 144hz, which can be factory overclocked to 165hz. The high refresh rate delivers a smooth-as-silk experience .
Expert Tip
Nvidia’s G-Sync tech is supported only when connected through DisplayPort.
Hence, G-Sync is not supported on XBOX ONE.
The large size of the monitor (27”) paired with a crisp resolution of 2560x1440 IPS lets you see finer details of the game scene. The viewing angles and the gray uniformity are top-notch. Thanks to the gray uniformity, the colors look pretty uniform, which helps when you’re watching panning shots.
If you’re planning to upgrade to a dual monitor setup, its great ergonomics allow you to easily tilt or swivel the monitor in any position you like.
On the software side of things, it comes with Asus’ standard GamePlus menu. It provides hotkey access to various features that help gamers practice and improve their gaming skills.
The Crosshair feature lets you choose from 4 different crosshair types and adjust the position to match your gaming environment. The FPS counter displays the refresh rate in real-time. It enables gamers check for screen lag during the gameplay. The Timer feature is helpful when playing Real-time Strategy games like Ages of Empires and Halo Wars. It lets gamers measure their target frame rate easily.
The only downside is that it doesn’t support HDR, which means it’s a no-go for HDR gaming. If you’re looking to buy a monitor that supports HDR gaming, take a look at the Samsung CHG70. Also, non-native resolutions might have some issues, but since most graphics cards do the upscaling, it shouldn’t be much of a problem.
Input Lag | Refresh Rate & Picture Quality | Overall Rating |
---|---|---|
Pros
- Excellent motion handling
- G-Sync support
- Accurate viewing angles
- Stable at 165hz
- Best-in-class ergonomics
Cons
- ULMB mode reduces light output
- No HDR gaming support
2. ViewSonic XG2402

If you’re on a budget, the ViewSonic XG2402 is hands-down the best gaming monitor you can find you can buy without burning a hole in your pocket.
It’s swift motion handling, and quick response time results in no visible blur while you’re playing. The ViewSonic XG2402 is a FreeSync monitor, and is the excellent pick for Xbox One S/X gamers, or if you have an AMD graphics card.
Let’s dive in to find out where the ViewSonic XG2402 excels, and where it falls short.
An incredible refresh rate of 144HZ ensures that you won’t experience any screen tearing while you play. While both, G-Sync and FreeSync VRR technologies are designed to eliminate issues such as screen tearing and ghosting, the G-Sync certainly has the edge over FreeSync. You can access the wide FreeSync range over both, DisplayPort and HDMI, unlike the ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q.
If you’re playing graphically demanding games, you might typically experience a drop in the frame rate. In such cases, the ViewSonic uses AMD’s Low Framerate Compensation (LFC) technology to compensate. LFC works by doubling the frame rate when you get less than 48 FPS by showing the same frame twice. As a result, Freesync works at less than 48 FPS, which ensures that you get a tear-free gaming experience.
Being the cheapest gaming monitor on our list, the ViewSonic does lag a little behind in some areas.
The picture quality is half-decent, and the contrast isn’t upto the mark. The screen doesn’t look good especially in a dark room, so your late-night gaming sessions might not be as exciting as you’d like them to be. The viewing angles are sub-par, too.
It doesn’t come equipped with software features such as the frame rate and crosshair. However, it does come with other gaming-related software features to help you improve your gameplay. Some of them include enhancing dark object visibility in gaming scenes, controlling the red accent lighting on the back of the monitor.
One other downside is the absence of any cable management features. The inclusion of cable management features would have been nice, though I can’t complain at this price point.
Overall, the downsides aren’t necessarily deal breakers. We believe that the ViewSonic XG2402 is still the best fit if you’re looking to get a low-input lag monitor on the cheap.
Input Lag | Refresh Rate & Picture Quality | Overall Rating |
---|---|---|
Pros
- FreeSync support
- Quick response time
- Little-to-no IPS glow
Cons
- Average speaker quality
- Picture quality is subpar
3. BenQ Zowie XL2540

The BenQ Zowie XL2540 is another great gaming monitor and comes a close second to our winner ASUS ROG PG279Q. The BenQ Zowie XL2540 comes with an incredible 240Hz refresh rate, which is the highest of any monitor featured on our list.
Let’s tear down and see all the goodness in this monitor.
The motion handling is pretty excellent out of the box. To take it a notch further, BFI can be enabled. Black Frame Insertion (BFI) simulates CRT flicker which helps to clear up motion. BFI comes in pretty handy when displaying games running 60 FPS on 120Hz+ monitors.
The FreeSync tech can be used to display variable frame rates lower than its native refresh rates. It also utilizes DC dimming, which helps for a flicker-free screen experience while gaming.
The fast response time is suitable for watching fast-moving content such as racing games or watching sports.
The motion handling of the BenQ XL2540 is outstanding. It has a fantastic response time, which results in very short trails following moving objects.
Expert Tip
If you are bothered by the lighter trails following moving objects caused by pixel transition overshoot, you should use the 'AMA Off' setting.
The picture quality is a slighly off the mark out-of-the-box. Thankfully, fixing it is as easy as tweaking a few settings. Something which you can’t fix easily is the poor viewing angles, due to the TN display though. The contrast ratio is quite low compared to other monitors on our list.
One other downside of BenQ Zowie XL2540 is that the response time is a little slow. DyAc is BenQ’s proprietary tech designed to reduce motion blur. Surprisingly, When DyAc is thrown in, the strobe crosstalk (the double-image-effect) muddies the already dark image.
Overall, If mediocre color accuracy and viewing angles aren’t deal-breakers for you, the BenQ is a great low-input lag monitor that you can get.
Input Lag | Refresh Rate & Picture Quality | Overall Rating |
---|---|---|
Pros
- Incredibly low input lag
- Super-high 240hz refresh rate
- FreeSync support
Cons
- Low 1080p resolution than competitors
- Narrow viewing angles
4. Dell S2716DG

If you’re looking for a monitor that can run something visually pleasing at 165hz with an excellent motion for a modest price tag, look no further than the Dell S2716DG.
Let’s see what Dell has got in store with this beauty.
The high 144hz refresh rate, quick response time, flicker-free backlight makes it an excellent choice for gaming. Nvidia’s G-Sync support means that there’s little to no screen tearing or ghosting even for the most competitive gamers. Black Frame Insertion (BFI) simulates CRT flicker which helps to clear up motion further. BFI is pretty useful when displaying games running 60 FPS on 120Hz+ monitors.
The Dell S2716DG has a large 27" 1440p panel, which will please during almost any usage. It also has excellent low input lag, good enough for even competitive gamers.
Now let’s get to the downsides.
It comes with Dell’s ULMB feature which aims to reduce eye-tracking motion blur. This backlight flicker feature adds a little input lat, but it isn’t significantly visible.
Unfortunately, Dell doesn’t seem to work with non-native resolutions over DisplayPort. This shouldn’t be a major issue though, as most graphics cards will upscale automatically.
Perhaps the number one downside to this is the color banding problem, which is a typical TN display problem. This “color-shift” problem results in inaccurate color representation at different viewing angles.
If you’re using this monitor for gaming, the color banding shouldn’t be much of a problem. However, if you plan on doing some graphics or UI/UX work that demands color accuracy, you might want to pass this and get something like the Samsung CHG70.
The colors may appear washed-out out of the box, but they can pop with only a couple of minutes of tinkering. [best settings]
Overall, sub-par picture quality and narrow viewing angles aside, the Dell is again a great gaming monitor. If you don’t want to compromise on picture quality, we’d recommend you to go with ASUS ROG.
Input Lag | Refresh Rate & Picture Quality | Overall Rating |
---|---|---|
Pros
- Nvidia Gsync support
- Crisp 1440p resolution
- Fast 144hz refresh rate
Cons
- Washed out blacks
- Narrow viewing angles
5. LG 34UC79G-B

If you’re looking for a widescreen and immersive gaming experience with almost no input lag, the LG 34UC79G-B is hands-down the best you can buy.
So what all features makes the LG a great monitor for gaming?
LG boasts a superior 34-inch ultrawide display and packs in a low input lag, high refresh rate, and sizeable FreeSync range. This makes for a killer combination and lets you enjoy a responsive and fluid gaming experience. Its ultrawide aspect ratio is particularly great for more casual games as it makes the experience quite immersive.
Unlike the Dell S2716DG and the BenQ Zowie XL2540, the viewing angles on LG 34UC79G-B are pretty solid.
The LG 34UC79G-B has a decent picture quality. Since this monitor has an IPS panel, dark room performance is just above average, as blacks tend to look more like grays than blacks and black uniformity is disappointing. However, when the monitor is used in a bright environment like office space, the perceived picture quality is much better.
Almost all the monitors have a fast response time, but very few offer a complete package of motion features. It has got all the components for a great motion handling: a fast pixel response time, a flicker-free backlight, a high refresh rate. FreeSync variable refresh rate technology, and optional black frame insertion.
Ergonomically, this monitor could have been better regarding adjustments. The narrow range of height and tilt makes it a little challenging to adjust it to desired positions.
But perhaps my biggest gripe with this is the mediocre 1080p display on the otherwise beautiful display. A bump in resolution would have allowed taking advantage of the extra width and would have made browsing the web a charm. Also, the brightness could've been better.
It doesn’t come with support for modern wide gamuts, so it doesn't make a great choice for graphics editing work.
Input Lag | Refresh Rate & Picture Quality | Overall Rating |
---|---|---|
Pros
- Curved ultra-wide monitor
- AMD FreeSync
- Speedy refresh rate
Cons
- Mediocre 1080p display
- No speakers
6. Samsung CHG70

If you’re looking to buy a low-input lag monitor especially for HDR gaming, the Samsung CH70 is our top pick. This monitor is a great buy for anyone who has a PS4 and PS4 Pro and is looking to make use of the HDR features.
The Samsung CHG70 comes in two sizes: the 27” and 32”. Both come equipped with a 1440p resolution.
For the uninitiated, HDR gaming makes the picture more realistic and immersive by enabling a superior contrast and wide color gamut. We tried the HDR feature on various games such as Infamous First Light and Uncharted 4. The color accuracy is pretty spot on out-of-the-box, and we liked the immersive gaming experience.
Just like the LG 34UC79G-B, the t is a complete package when it comes to gaming. The high-refresh rate of 144 Hz, extremely low-input lag, excellent motion handling, fast response time, and flicker-free backlight.
It supports AMD’s FreeSync variable refresh rate technology for a tear-free gaming experience. Optional BFI mode is also supported for a smoother gaming experience.
Surprisingly, the VA-panel used in this monitor is unlike your typical VA-panels. It brings superior black levels which translates into great contrast ratio and makes the colors pop.
As already mentioned, if you’re looking to do HDR gaming on your PS4 and PS4 Pro, this monitor is a great pick. The HDR implementation on PC could have been better though. The HDMI 2.0 input makes it a particularly good choice for those that also want to use their monitor with an Xbox One X.
Some users have reported a “dirty screen effect” (DSE). For the unaware, It's basically the uniformity of grey color on display. In most cases, it’s not noticeably visible to affect.
Due to the nature of the VA panel used, the display pops when you use it in a dimly lit environment. The experience dips a bit when you use it in a brightly lit environment, but here’s a quick “hack” you can use: Adjust the black equalizer for brighter blacks.
Another aspect where the Samsung lags back: it has a bad local dimming with only eight dimming zones.
Local what, you wonder?
Let me explain.
Local dimming is a feature of LED displays that help dim the backlight behind the darker parts of the screen. If you’re watching movies or playing games with darker scenes, this feature makes the darks appear even more in-depth.
Ergonomics adjustments could have been better too.
Samsung CHG70 is not perfect, but overall, it’s a pretty great gaming monitor for the price. If you play games on your PS4, PS4 Pro, or even Xbox One X, and have a nick for HDR gaming-- this is hands-down the best monitor you can buy.
Input Lag | Refresh Rate & Picture Quality | Overall Rating |
---|---|---|
Pros
- Supports HDR gaming
- The high refresh rate for gaming
- Sharp 1440p resolution
Cons
- No inbuilt speakers
- Average local-dimming display
ASUS VG248QE: Why we don’t recommend
If you do a quick search, you’ll find many websites recommending the Asus VG248QE.
However, we don’t recommend it buying it in 2019.
Don’t get us wrong. We’re NOT saying that the Asus VG248QE is a bad pick, but there are much better 144hz monitors that have come out in 2019 or so.
If you’re looking for a great alternative to it within the same price bracket,
we recommend going with the ViewSonic XG2402.
Before you spend your money on a monitor, ask yourself...
When Does it Make Sense to Buy a low-input lag monitor?
Here are a few instances when it makes sense to buy a low-input lag monitor
- You're a hardcore gamer looking to play graphics-intensive games like Battlefield, OverWatch, halo, etc.
- You're into First-person shooter (FPS) gaming or twitch gameplay. Twitch gameplay is a type of gameplay that requires extremely quick response times. A game that requires fast reflexes. It can include shooting, sports, fighting, etc.
- You're diving into console gaming on your XBox One, Xbox X, PS4, PS4 Pro, etc.
Now that you're ready to jump on the bandwagon, here are a few factors you should consider when you're looking to buy one.
How We Test: Factors to Consider Before Buying
Our buying guide walks you through the major factors you should consider before buying one.
Alongside just listing them, we also use these factors to evaluate each product mentioned above.
1. What is Input Lag? How to Test the Input Lag of Monitors?
Input lag is the delay between the time you make an input (using keyboard and mouse) and the time it takes to see the reaction appear on-screen.
A picture is worth thousand words, right?
So we spent a couple hours designing this detailed infographic to help you understand input lag in monitors.
If you're unable to view the the image clearly, tap the image to open it in full-resolution.

The next thing you need to know is...
Manufacturers do NOT advertise the input lag anywhere, so it becomes challenging to find the actual input lag of monitors. You might often see manufacturers list 2ms, etc in the specification. A lot of people mistakenly interpret them as input lag. To be clear, this specification is for the pixel response time, which helps reduce ghosting.
Expert Tip
Manufacturers DO NOT advertise a display’s input lag either on the box or even on the manual. Read on to find out why.
Monitors and TVs often double down on post-processing features for superior image quality. Unsurprisingly, fancy post-processing takes quite some time, thus increasing the input lag.
As a result, you might often find that cheaper screen with less image post-processing features usually has less input lag than expensive ones that come with better image quality. There's no wonder why manufacturers are reluctant to publicly display the input lag.
So this begs the question...
How do you test the lag of monitors before buying one?
Well, unless you have specialized instrument and technical knowledge, measuring isn't something the avergae joe can do.
Fortunately, a few credible sources online do the heavy-lifting for us.
Here's how our top monitors in this list perform in RTings input-lag database tests.
Name | Resolution | Lag | Lag with VRR | Our Rating |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q | 2560x1440 | 4.4 ms | 4.8 ms | 4.5 |
2. ViewSonic XG2402 | 1920x1080 | 4.1 ms | 4.3 ms | 5 |
3. BenQ Zowie XL2540 | 1920x1080 | 3.7 ms | 3.6 ms | 5 |
4. Dell S2716DG | 2560x1440 | 4.4 ms | 4.8 ms | 4 |
5. LG 34UC79G-B | 2560x1440 | 4.1 ms | 4.8 ms | 4.5 |
6. Samsung CHG70 | 2560x1440 | 4.4 ms | 4.2 ms | 4.5 |
Expert Tip
For most games, a lag of <10 ms is a great value to have. Monitors usually need to have a difference of +/- 5 ms to see a substatntial and noticeable difference during gameplay.
As you can see, all the monitors featured on our list passes this test with flying colors. It's virtually impossible to go wrong with any of these, at least when only low-input lag is considered.
2. What is Refresh Rate & How Important is it for Gaming?
Refresh rate is the number of times the monitor redraws the screen. For instance, a monitor with 144hz refresh rate will redraw (refresh) the screen 144 times ever second.
Obviosuly, higher the number, the more silky smooth the motion will be.
But is refresh rate even useful? How does it matter from a gaming perspective?
It turns out; there’s a direct relationship between Refresh rate and Input lag.
Consider it this way.
The picture needs to be visible before you can react to what’s on the screen. The faster the response time of a display is, the quicker it can display an image (response time). The quicker it does that, the faster you can react to it (input lag.)
For the best gaming experience, you'll want to chose a monitor with highest possible refresh rate and lowest response time.
Name | Resolution | Refresh rate | Our Rating |
---|---|---|---|
1. ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q | 2560x1440 | 144hz | 4.5 |
2. ViewSonic XG2402 | 1920x1080 | 144hz | 4 |
3. BenQ Zowie XL2540 | 1920x1080 | 240hz | 5 |
4. Dell S2716DG | 2560x1440 | 144hz | 4.5 |
5. LG 34UC79G-B | 2560x1440 | 144hz | 4.5 |
6. Samsung CHG70 | 2560x1440 | 144hz | 5 |
3. TN vs IPS vs VA Panels: Which is the Best for Gaming?
Here's a quick recap of the available screen technologies.
- TN Panel: The fastest of all, higher refresh rates, costs less, but poor viewing angles.
- IPS Panel: Great colors and viewing angles, but might suffer from "IPS glow" and substantially add to the cost of the monitor.
- VA Panel: Combines the advantages of TN and IPS panels. Better color, viewing angles than TN. Higher response time may cause motion blur though.
As you can see, each display technology has its own trade-off.
So which is the best screen technology when it comes to gaming?
If you're playing FPS or racing games, TN panels are seemingly the best. They support insanely high refresh-rates at the cost of inaccurate colors and narrow viewing angles.
For gamers that need a immersive experience with rich colors, you may want to stick with an IPS panel. Note that the supported refresh rates will be a bit lower than a TN display.
If you use your PC for gaming and other general activities like browsing the web, watching videos, a VA panel offers a good balance.
Here's our top-rated monitors and the LCD display types they come with.
The "Our Rating" section represents the rating of the display technology used on the basis of color accuracy, viewing angles, etc. (Higher the better)
Monitor Name | LCD Display Type | Our Rating (Out of 5) |
---|---|---|
1. ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q | IPS | 4.5 |
2. ViewSonic XG2402 | TN | 3.5 |
3. BenQ Zowie XL2540 | TN | 3.5 |
4. Dell S2716DG | TN | 3 |
5. LG 34UC79G-B | IPS | 4 |
6. Samsung CHG70 | VA | 4.5 |
4. FreeSync VS. GSync
Depending on what GPU you have, you can buy a monitor with either of these syncing technologies.
The main difference between NVIDIA G-Sync and AMD FreeSync is the fact that the former is a hardware-based technology while AMD FreeSync doesn’t need specific extra hardware on the monitor to sync the frames.
All things being equal, Nvidia's G-Sync is vastly superior to AMD FreeSync. The only downside is that it increases the cost substantially.
If budget is not an issue, we recommend you invest in a G-Sync monitor.
Monitor Name | Supported Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) |
---|---|
1. ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q | Nvidia G-Sync |
2. ViewSonic XG2402 | AMD FreeSync |
3. BenQ Zowie XL2540 | AMD FreeSync |
4. Dell S2716DG | Nvidia G-Sync |
5. LG 34UC79G-B | AMD FreeSync |
6. Samsung CHG70 | AMD FreeSync |
The Bottom Line
Ultimately, input lag is one of the key factors to look for when choosing a monitor, especially for competitive FPS gaming or console gaming.
All the monitors on this list have been carefully evaluated keeping in mind the various factors that matter the most when it comes to gaming: Input lag, response time, motion handling, display resolution and quality, etc.
We'll keep updating this list as manufacturers feed us gamers with even more monitors geared towards console gaming.
What monitor did you buy?
If you still need help in deciding one, drop a comment and our team of experts will get back to you at the speed of light.