Looking for the best gaming monitor under $300? We have five great options for you to put on your list.
They say the CPU is the brain of a computer but have you ever thought about the face?
If you guessed monitors, you are probably right. Monitors are the second most crucial part of a computer as they are the basis of real human interaction with PCs. This makes upgrading monitors just as important as the CPUs.
So, the next time you upgrade your gaming PC, don’t forget to buy yourself a new monitor.
Gaming Monitors have been in demand since the next-gen PC Games hit the market. They quickly grew in popularity to become the best monitors on a computer table because of their exceptional usability and hardware features.
You are at the right place if you have been searching for the best gaming monitor under $300. Here are five of the best gaming monitors for you to choose from,
- ASUS TUF Gaming Monitor 27″ VG27AQ – Best Overall
- Z-Edge 32″ Curved Gaming UG32P – Best Value
- Sceptre 27″ E275B-FWD240 – Best Price
- KOORUI 27″ QHD 27E6QC – Best Display
- AOC 27″ CQ27G2 – Honorary Mention
With the surge in gaming, budget monitors have become a shopping category of their own as nobody wants to own conventional monitors anymore. Competitive gamers do not want to spend much on new ones, either.
Read on to learn more about the best gaming monitor under $300 further in this list.
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How To Choose The Best Gaming Monitor?
There is no “best gaming monitor” to be recommended for everyone. Depending on their interests, people are unique and often require personalized monitors that best suit their gaming needs.
For example, a particular person may prefer picture quality over framerate, while another may want both and a curved gaming monitor. For this reason, it is best to know what the best gaming monitor under $300 classifies in terms of features.
Wondering how you’ll do that? We have included a special section to help you choose the perfect gaming monitor for yourself.
Here’s how to choose the best gaming monitors.
Display Resolution
The first thing you will want on the checklist before finalizing any monitor under $300 is the monitor’s resolution. Never settle for anything below the screen resolution of 1920*1080p.
Anything below that category will be too blurry and not worth it. Especially considering the $300 range, which is a reasonable price, you have plenty of great options further in the article.
Generally, a higher resolution provides a more immersive gaming experience as they brag a high pixel density and better viewing angles.
Another great thing about high resolutions is that they make things easier for you to spot, giving you a competitive edge.
Screen Refresh Rate
The next major thing on this list of the best gaming monitors is the screen refresh rate which has become a whim in these recent years as players demand more and more FPS.
Gone are the days when 60hz, 75hz, or 90hz monitors were enough. Nowadays, anything north of the 144hz refresh rate gaming monitor provides a decent gaming experience as they have a much higher pixel response time.
However, with the advancement in competitive gaming, even the staggering 240hz refresh rate has become the new normal. Typically, you will easily find a 240hz gaming monitor under $300 in 2023.
Screen Size
The third most noticeable thing about any gaming monitor is its screen size. For PC Gaming, the bigger the screen size, the more leverage you have over your enemies. Therefore, always aim for a gaming monitor with a bigger screen size.
Curved gaming monitors under 300 are also available on the market with a decent curved screen that makes all the difference.
HDR Support
HDR Content is readily available everywhere; however, you must have HDR to watch it on an IPS panel.
Since most gaming monitors in the market only use an IPS Display, it becomes increasingly difficult to watch HDR videos and play games for a tear free gaming experience.
Therefore, always prefer a gaming monitor with HDR as it will significantly benefit you if you love color accuracy and overall image quality.
Response Time
A decent response time significantly reduces the input lag and helps you execute inputs faster. A 1ms response time is a must-have for any best gaming monitor as it registers your inputs more quickly and assists you in gaining a clear advantage in fast paced games.
That is pretty much everything you need to look out for when choosing a gaming monitor for competitive gaming.
Bonus: Panel Technology
Panel technology refers to the type of panel used in the monitor’s display. Usually, AMOLED or OLED can be regarded as the best displays, but most screens on the market are LCD monitors that come with IPS technology.
This choice is more of a personal preference, but AMOLED is thought to provide a more immersive gaming experience in real-life scenarios. However, LCD monitors are not bad either.
What Is The Best Gaming Monitor Under $300?
Now that you know everything about gaming monitors and what makes them stand out, it is time to showcase our recommendations.
ASUS TUF Gaming Monitor 27″ VG27AQ – Best Overall
ASUS is notoriously well known for its extended gaming peripherals and monitors list. They are a gaming company that facilitates gamers with new and competitive gaming machines in all aspects.
As you read this article, they have a wide variety of gaming monitors. However, the ASUS TUF Gaming Monitor stands out from the competition even within its parent company’s listings under $300.
The ASUS VG27AQ boasts a wide viewing angle of about 178 degrees and a comfy screen size of 27 inches, along with AMD Freesync technology and HDR support in its IPS panel. The display is powered by HDMI 2.0 and DisplayPort 1.2, ergonomic VESA Mounts, and a built-in set of speakers with decent audio quality.
Additional features like extremely low motion blur and great viewing angles make it highly desirable for a competitive gamer.
Not only that, but the monitor also features a high-quality 2560*1440 resolution (high pixel density) with a 1 ms response time. The pictures run around with g-sync support and a native 165hz refresh rate (the monitor also supports a 144hz refresh rate.)
The ASUS eye care technology ensures your eyes are not strained when playing games. This monitor can easily be regarded as one of the best overall gaming monitors under 300 USD.
Here are some great features of ASUS TUF Gaming Monitor 27″ VG27AQ at a glance.
Pros and Cons of ASUS vg27aq
As nothing can be perfect even in the world of gaming monitors, here are some pros and cons of ASUS VG27AQ for you to be a better judge.
PROS
- High Refresh Rate
- Modern, Sleek Design
- 1ms Response Time
- Built-in speakers
- QHD+ Resolution
Cons
- Is not a curved gaming monitor
- Viewing angles suffer in some scenarios
We place the ASUS TUF Gaming Monitor 27″ VG27AQ as the best gaming monitor under 300 overall.
Z-Edge 32″ Curved Gaming UG32P – Best Value
Editor’s Words: A somewhat underrated competitive gaming monitor yet a high deliverer of performance in game mode and casual gaming. The most highlighting feature of this monitor is its curved LED panel with 240hz, which is absolute overkill for any IPS gaming monitor.
Z-Edge is one of the reasonably unheard gaming companies that strive to provide you with the best gaming monitors for the best value.
The Z-Edge 32″ Curved Gaming Monitor features an expansive, frameless, 16:9 32-inch display with FHD+ resolution and an industry-leading 240hz refresh rate (say good-bye to input lag). With AMD Freesync combined with LED technology, you are all set for the best image quality and an immersive gaming experience.
Even though the display lacks a QHD+ resolution which would have made it an absolute overkill, the native FHD+ resolution feels pretty decent with a graphics card. The display supports a variable refresh rate (being g sync compatible) which is pretty much everything a competitive gamer wants.
There’s also a set of high-quality inbuilt speakers, so you won’t have to spend extra money on external speakers. Unfortunately, the gaming monitor has little to no eye protection. Therefore, we recommend using a blue light filter.
By far, the Z-edge UG32P is the best curved gaming monitor under 300USD for fast paced games as well as great picture quality.
Here are some other features of the Z-edge UG32P.
Pros and Cons of Z-Edge UG32P
Here are some pros and cons of Z-Edge UG32P.
PROS
- Extremely High Refresh Rate
- Curved Screen
- Large Screen Size
- 1ms Response Time
- Built-in speakers
- Three connectivity ports
Cons
- Does not have eye-protection certification
Conclusively, the Z-Edge UG32P is one of the best monitors in terms of value for money. For its price, it offers tons of features with great user reviews.
Sceptre 27″ E275B-FWD240 – Best Price
If you are not a fan of curved screens, this monitor under 300 USD might just be the perfect choice for you.
The Sceptre E275B-FWD240 is a great 27-inch gaming monitor with a standard 1080p resolution and a very high refresh rate of 240hz. The monitor comes with an ergonomic monitor stand and can be easily mounted on a desktop or wall frame. (VESA Ergonomic stand)
That said, the gaming monitor also has a set of inbuilt speakers that are not top of the line but useable. Sceptre has one of the most optimized implementations of AMD freesync technology in its monitors and the E275B-FWD240 model is no less.
Design-wise, the monitor follows modern trends and features a sleek borderless outlook. They have also used flicker free technology in the IPS panel.
Here is some additional information on Sceptre E275B-FWD240
Pros and Cons of SCEPTRE E275B-FWD240
Here are some pros and cons of SCEPTRE E275B-FWD240.
PROS
- 240hz Refresh Rate
- Great viewing angles
- 1ms MPRT Response Time
- Adaptive sync technology
- Good image quality
Cons
- No headphone jack
- Not g sync compatible
In the end, the SCEPTRE E275B-FWD240 is easily the most economical gaming monitor to buy for a responsive gaming experience considering its high refresh rate and other features.
KOORUI 27″ QHD 27E6QC – Best Display
Koorui is another underrated gaming peripheral company that is quickly capturing the market with their g sync compatible affordable gaming monitors. Consider it like this, what is the best selling point of a monitor? It’s display.
That’s where Koorui is excelling with its 27″ QHD 27E6QC gaming monitor under 300 USD. You can easily use them to play games with a decent graphics card or set-up multi monitor setups.
The monitor uses a curved screen with a high-quality 2K resolution and a decent pixel density with incredible image quality. Their monitors are also well known to resist screen tearing which is fairly common in an IPS or LCD monitor.
The 144hz refresh rate just kicks the ball out of the park especially with some of the best viewing angles on this IPS panel.
You will also find support for motion blur and low 1ms response time paired with AMD Adaptive sync/freesync technology. The color accuracy on this gaming monitor under 300 USD is great thanks to the support of DCI-P3 Wide Color Gamut.
Oh, and before you go, the good old headphone jack on this monitor adds more to the gaming features.
Here are some other features of KOORUI 27″ QHD 27E6QC.
Pros and Cons of KOORUI 27″ QHD 27E6QC
Here are some pros and cons of KOORUI 27″ QHD 27E6QC.
PROS
- 144hz Refresh Rate
- Best viewing angles
- 1ms MPRT
- AMD freesync
- Ergonomic stand
- Headphone jack
Cons
- Not g sync compatible
All in all, the best monitor in terms of display and one of the most optimized hardware considering the monitor’s refresh rate can be found in KOORUI 27″ QHD 27E6QC.
AOC 27″ CQ27G2 – Honorary Mention
Securing a position on our honorary mention spot is the AOC 27″ CQ27G2 gaming monitor. This is a 1440p super curved screen gaming monitor under $300 with AMD FreeSync, 1 ms response time, and a great blue light filter for eye protection.
The height of the monitor is also adjustable which accounts for the great ergonomics. Even though the monitor is calibrated with the standard sRGB template, the colors are plentiful and bright with deep blacks.
The low pixel response time further lowers the latency of the screen and significantly reduces the motion blur. Complementing the 2K resolution, is the high pixel density of the display which dimishes screen tearing and promotes smoother picture flow.
Here are some further features of the AOC 27″ CQ27G2 Gaming Monitor
Pros and Cons of AOC 27″ CQ27G2
Here are some pros and cons of AOC 27″ CQ27G2.
PROS
- 144hz Refresh Rate
- 1ms response time
- AMD FreeSync
- Super Curved display
- 1440p resolution
Cons
- Not g sync compatible
- No multiple connectivity ports
The AOC 27″ CQ27G2 deserved a mention on this list because of the great value it provides to gamers and its promise of three years of warranty to the buyers.
Conclusion: The Best Gaming Monitor Under $300?
By now, you’ll have a complete understanding of the options you might have to consider when selecting the best gaming monitor for yourself. Just keep in mind to explore other options in the market and make an educated decision based on the guidelines mentioned at the beginning of this list.
In any case, remember that we are not sellers of any of the products mentioned in this article. If any problems arise, please get in touch with the manufacturer. However, we are always looking out for any suggestions or feedback.