TVs had an excellent year in 2025, and I’ve been lucky enough to test the best TVs from the biggest brands. While every TV I’ve tested this year has its own strengths and weaknesses, this year’s crop overall is among the best I’ve ever tested.
OLED has been particularly competitive in 2025, with flagship models from LG, Samsung, Panasonic and Sony all vying for the title of the best OLED TV. The mini-LED TV category has also become more competitive than ever, with high-value TCL and Hisense models starting to creep past Samsung as a go-to choice.
I’ve looked back on all the TVs I’ve tested this year and picked my favorite five models. These TVs cover a range of budgets and use different display tech, which just goes to show how diverse 2025 has been.
LG C5
It should come as no shock that the LG C5 appears on this list. The LG C series has become a reliable all-rounder, delivering stellar picture quality and a full range of smart and gaming features at an affordable price. The LG C series almost always receives significant discounts during sales season as well.
I awarded the LG C5 five stars in my review because it is that good. Its picture quality is vibrant, with good brightness for a mid-range OLED. Contrast is strong with deep blacks and punchy highlights, and detail is impressive regardless of what you’re watching.
The C5 is also one of 2025’s best gaming TVs, with four HDMI 2.1 ports supporting 4K 144Hz, VRR (FreeSync and G-Sync), HGiG, ALLM and Dolby Vision gaming. Its 9.2ms input lag time means gaming is smooth and responsive, as I found playing games like Battlefield V, where ultra-fast gameplay is constant.
There is one elephant in the room to address: the C5 is not that different from its predecessor, the LG C4. Other than some new AI features and a slight brightness boost, it’s essentially the same. But, with stock of the C4 now running low and the C5 priced roughly the same, or even cheaper, those minimal differences no longer matter. The C5 is still one of the best TVs I’ve tested in 2025.
Panasonic Z95B
The battle for the best flagship OLED TV was a tightly fought contest in 2025. I tested LG, Samsung, Panasonic and Sony’s flagship OLEDs side-by-side, and my favorite ended up being the Panasonic Z95B.
The Z95B doesn’t have the brightness of its rivals when set to its most accurate picture presets, Movie and Filmmaker Mode, but elsewhere it really is elite. It uses the new Primary Tandem RGB OLED panel, which delivers exceptional pictures with powerful contrast. Its color reproduction is accurate and rich, making colorful movies such as Wicked and The Wild Robot really pop on screen. Picture detail is superb, and blacks are wonderfully deep, as you would expect from a flagship OLED TV.
The Z95B’s other real strength lies in its built-in audio. An external front speaker array delivers sound that is direct, punchy and clear. Bass is powerful with plenty of rumble, and thanks to the Z95B’s 5.1.2-channel configuration, it has convincing height channels and virtual surround, making it immersive for movies.
What most surprised me about the Z95B this year was its price. Panasonic’s flagship OLED model is typically pricier than its rivals, but the Z95B has been cheaper than its rivals (in the UK at least), making it a much more enticing option.
TCL C7K (QM7K)
The TCL C7K (QM7K in the US) is one of the most impressive and budget-friendly TVs I’ve tested this year, and for good reason.
There are good reasons why the C7K sits on our best TVs UK list and the QM7K on our best TVs US list. Not only is it packed with features, including support for both Dolby Vision and HDR10+ high dynamic range formats, but its picture quality is great for the price. Colors look bold and rich, and the solid brightness (we measured it at 1,790 nits peak) results in punchy HDR highlights. This TV’s effective local dimming also means that blacks look deep and contrast is strong, with only minimal backlight blooming.
Gamers should also take note of the C7K (QM7K), as it offers 4K 144Hz, FreeSync Premium Pro, ALLM and Dolby Vision gaming, all for a budget price. I also found gaming to be very smooth when I tested it, as it easily handled the fast-paced battles of Battlefield V.
You can get the 65-inch C7K/QM7K for as little as £799 / $799, which is a phenomenal price for a TV with this level of performance. If you’re on the hunt for a good, budget-friendly TV, it doesn’t get much better.
LG B5
I’ve written about the LG B5 frequently this year because it’s a good example of why you don’t have to spend a fortune to get a good OLED TV. (It also had the best deals on Black Friday.) When I tested the LG B5 against the LG C5 and even side by side with the LG G5, the B5 more than held its own.
I was impressed by the B5’s strong contrast, which suited dark movies like Alien: Romulus, and its rich color, which made movies such as Elemental and The Sound of Music look great in my testing. Picture detail is also superb, making textures look true-to-life. The B5 doesn’t have the brightness of step-up OLEDs, but this is the only downside.
The B5 carries an extensive list of gaming features such as 4K 120Hz, FreeSync and G-Sync, HGiG, ALLM, and Dolby Vision gaming. A super-low 9.1ms input lag time also means gaming is fluid and smooth when playing intense games such as Battlefield V.
But it’s the B5’s affordable price that really earns its place on my list. We saw the 48-inch LG B5 drop as low as $529 / £674 / AU$1,064 during Black Friday, which is a fantastic price for an OLED TV. It was a similar story with larger B5 screen sizes as well.
Samsung S95F
The Samsung S95F was voted as TV of the Year in the TechRadar Choice Awards 2025. While it isn’t my personal favourite OLED of the year (that award goes to the Panasonic Z95B), it is still easily one of the best I’ve tested in 2025.
I gave the S95F’s predecessor, the Samsung S95D, five stars in my review, and a big factor there was its OLED Glare Free screen, which was highly effective at eliminating screen reflections.
The S95F introduces a next-gen Glare Free screen that eliminates reflections while displaying black levels much more accurately than on the S95D. Its high brightness results in powerful contrast, which helps to make dark movies like The Batman look fantastic. The S95F also delivers striking, rich colors that benefit movies like The Mask and Elemental, and it has a Real Depth Enhancer Pro feature that helps to give pictures a 3D-like look.
The S95F also has a full suite of gaming features, such as 4K 165Hz, FreeSync and G-Sync (the latter a first for a Samsung TV), ALLM and HDR10+ gaming support, and its 9.5ms input lag time means intense games such as Battlefield V feel smooth.
While it is a premium-priced TV, the Samsung S95F is worth the investment. It’s a phenomenal OLED that delivers across the board and holds its own against its rivals, which is no easy feat considering how stacked the OLED TV field was this year.
The best TVs for all budgets
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james.davidson@futurenet.com (James Davidson)
