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Playing AAA or fast-paced games requires a monitor with a refresh rate of at least 144Hz. If you want smooth and enjoyable gameplay, then investing in a 144 Hz unit is a must. When searching for a new gaming gadget, you can come across plenty of unfamiliar brands that offer budget-friendly yet excellent quality products.
In this guide, we are going to discuss all there is that you need to know about 144Hz monitors. There are also some commonly asked questions, and we compiled a list of pros and cons for you to take help from.
Make use of this guide to find the best budget 144Hz monitor present on the market.
At a Glance: Our Top Picks for Best Budget 144Hz Monitors
- OUR TOP PICK: ViewSonic XG2401 24" Gaming Monitor
- RUNNER-UP: Acer GN246HL 24" Full HD
- BEST BUDGET OPTION: BenQ ZOWIE XL2411P 1080P Monitor
Comparison of the Best Budget 144Hz Monitors
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What is a 144Hz Monitor?
Before you invest in a new monitor, you must understand what the term refresh rate means. A refresh rate is the number of times the screen refreshes the image that it displays per second.
A higher rate ensures that the unit can handle a higher frame rate and display clearer images. The refresh rate is symbolized by "Hz." So, 144Hz monitors have a rate of 144 refreshes per second.
Over the past few years, 144Hz monitors have become quite popular and affordable. They deliver more frames each second and offer a smooth and responsive gameplay experience, which means less motion blur.
Furthermore, more frames ensure more data being shown each second, which allows for better reaction time.
Although a split second might seem very little, it can make quite a difference in intense multiplayer scenarios.
Can You Really Find a Quality 144Hz Monitor That's Affordable?
In the last few years, 144Hz monitors have gained a lot of popularity. A higher refresh rate provides better visuals and allows you to get smoother gaming experience. With the demand increasing for these products, there are now many available models at affordable prices.
The advanced technology has allowed lower-priced units to have advanced features. In this article, we picked the most affordable units you can get your hands on.
Review of the Best Budget 144Hz Monitors
Finding the best budget 144Hz monitor can be very difficult, especially with such a wide variety. To help you decide this, we have combined and reviewed some of the top products present on the market.
Read on below to find the one that suits you the most.
Best Overall:
ViewSonic XG2401 24" Gaming Monitor
PROS
CONS
What Recent Buyers Report
Recent buyers claim to love this unit since it is more advanced. It is incredibly affordable, and for its price, you get to enjoy plenty of features, including Freesync technology and a 144Hz refresh. The flicker-free lighting feature met the buyer's expectations.
Why it Stands Out to Us
This monitor stands out due to plenty of reasons. It is very affordable and comes with the ultra-fast response time. It gives you a smooth and crisp image without any blurring, streaking, or ghosting. The 144Hz refresh rate ensures incredible graphics and high visual fluidity.
It comes with low input lag, which ensures that when the battlefield gets intense, it can quickly process every command. It decreases the delay between your input and allows you to react in real-time against the competitor.
The black stabilization feature for better visibility is also noteworthy. This helps in sharpening the details and makes darker scenes more visible. The features and ports present in this unit are also handy for multi-purpose uses.
Bottom Line
ViewSonic is a very well-built, durable, and long-lasting unit. It comes at a very affordable price and provides a smooth and lag-free gaming experience. Overall, it is also incredible for entertainment and professional use.
Runner-up:
Acer GN246HL 24" Full HD
PROS
CONS
What Recent Buyers Report
This Acer G22HQL is one of the most affordable monitors present on the market, according to its buyers. Many people used it for viewing movies at HD resolution and reported satisfactory experience.
It is very responsive, and the sleek and slim design gives it a top-notch look. It also has an X-shaped base that pays tribute to Star Wars.
Why it Stands Out to Us
Several features make this unit truly impressive, one of which is that it allows you to adjust the contrast setting according to your need manually. You can utilize the pre-calibrated presets that are toggled through the monitor's hotkey.
Out of the many OSD buttons, the first one on the unit can be used to navigate between different scene modes. This feature allows you to enjoy high image quality, which is very immersive regardless of the content that you are watching on your screen. The preset picture includes ECO, User, Standard, Movie, and Graphic mode.
The ECO mode allows you to save up to 68% power consumption, whereas the Movie mode makes the scene's details more outstanding and enhanced, while the Graphic mode enhances colors.
It also has three OSD buttons that help in opening the menu. Once in the menu, you can easily access the OSD timer, brightness, contrast, aspect ratio, color temperature, and other settings.
Bottom Line
To conclude, this unit by ACER has a slim design and a stylish appearance. The sleek exterior makes it look pricey, and the X-shaped base allows it to fit anywhere easily. With a tiltable screen, this product is undoubtedly one of the best ones available.
Best for the Money:
BenQ ZOWIE XL2411P 1080P Monitor
PROS
CONS
What Recent Buyers Report
According to buyers, the OSD settings of this unit are remarkable. The high-quality display allows users to play HD and 4K games with great satisfaction. The colors are bright and crisp, as reported by users. Some people also used the unit for years and said it to be durable.
Why it Stands Out to Us
We think that this BenQ Zowie is a decent 24-inch unit with a 1080p display and outstanding gaming performance. The response time is excellent, and it delivers clear and crisp images, even when displaying fast-moving characters and objects. The concise blue trail makes this one of the best units.
The peak brightness on this BenQ model is unlike any other, and the anti-reflective quality of the screen makes it an advanced yet affordable product. It also comes with Black eQualizer, which ensures good visibility in the dark, underexposed, and overexposed scenes.
Bottom Line
Overall, this BenQ unit is an incredibly impressive product and comes with a very sturdy stand that is also adjustable. The display requires some tuning so that you can personalize it according to your needs. The sleek appearance is unbeatable, considering the affordable price. The default settings are also very handy.
Best Budget 1440p 144Hz Monitor:
AOC CU34G2X 34" Curved
PROS
CONS
What Recent Buyers Report
Professional and true gaming enthusiasts used this product, and report that once you configure it properly, it works outstandingly. It provides vibrant and sharp images, with very detailed texture in games. Buyers particularly enjoyed the adjustable sharpness of the display.
Why it Stands Out to Us
Nothing beats a monitor that is an all-in-one package of high-quality images and a good response rate. This unit has a Quad HD 2460 x 1440 resolution that ensures four times the resolution of a 720p HAD monitor. Whether you are editing videos, photos, or watching movies, this model provides you with the clarity and sharpness of the image that you need.
Furthermore, the one ms gameplay and 144Hz refresh rate ensure unprecedented fluidity and smoothness to your games. Such responsiveness of the unit ensures good sync with the rest of your equipment.
Also, it comes with AMD FreeSync technology. Therefore, you can sync the display and GPU in your AMD monitor to eliminate screen tearing, input lag, and stutter.
Bottom Line
Undoubtedly, the 27-inch Quad HD display is a notable feature of this AOC model. It has exceptional features such as a rapid one ms response time and a 144Hz refresh rate. There is no tearing or stuttering reported with this product.
Best Budget 1080p 144Hz Monitor:
MSI Optix G27C2
PROS
CONS
What Recent Buyers Report
Buyers liked the frameless structure of the unit as it gave a really good look at their setup. Some even used this product for a few months and experienced no lagging issues. The matte finish of the screen made it easier to view dark images or use the unit in dark settings.
Why it Stands Out to Us
MSI Optix monitor provides you with great features that make it stand out from other units present in the market. MSI is a full-HD product and has a resolution of 1920 x 1080. It provides gorgeous images and an attractive 1800R curve that makes your field of view larger and more immersive.
Even though the colors won't pop like an IPS panel, the color output of this unit is vibrant and rich. This quality makes it incredible for basic to intermediate-level gaming. This unit also comes with good eight-bit color depth, which shows more realistic colors and provides smoother gradients.
Bottom Line
This is a very good product and comes with OSD buttons that are foolproof and simple. It provides you with good control over the display settings. For people who enjoy FPS games, this unit is perfect as it immerses you in the game and keeps you captivated.
Best Budget 144Hz Gaming Monitor:
Acer XFA240 24" Gaming Monitor
PROS
CONS
What Recent Buyers Report
Since the unit has an adjustable screen, buyers were particularly excited about customizing it according to their comfort level. People with back issues reported that the monitor helped them maintain a healthy posture. The easy-to-use settings made it a good choice for beginners.
Why it Stands Out to Us
The highly versatile and advanced features on this unit make it stand out to us. It has a flicker-less display quality, along with ComfyView technology, and low dimming. This full-HD monitor provides you with a very comfortable entertainment session that lets you beat your virtual enemies easily.
It is a space-saving unit and is ideal for people with relatively smaller desks and rooms. It also has a one ms response time, and the neck can tilt easily from -5° to 35°. Most importantly, the screen can be adjusted vertically as well, up to five inches. You can even rotate the unit up to 90-degrees easily.
Bottom Line
To sum it up, we think that the one ms response time and the exceptionally adjustable screen make this unit an ideal pick for most users. It helps enhance your gaming experience and has gorgeously vivid display colors that make your movie nights seem theatre-like.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Budget 144Hz Monitors
Just like every other product, 144Hz budget units have pros and cons as well. Let's discuss those.
Advantages
The pros of this unit are as follows:
Smooth Visuals
144 Hz gaming equipment ensures smooth visuals and more responsive gaming experience, especially when there are gaming scenes with fast actions and movements. With these models, you no longer have to see any motion blurriness, which is a prevalent issue with low hertz units.
New Refresh Rate Technologies
These products also use new and advanced refresh rate technologies such as AMD FreeSync or G-Sync. This allows users to react in real-time when playing competitive games. These technologies allow the monitor to adjust its refresh rate according to the GPU frame rate. This helps reduce lag and stuttering.
Different Modes
144 Hz units also come with different gaming and movie modes. Some models even have an ECO mode that saves power consumption.
Disadvantages
There are some disadvantages, and these are listed below:
TN Panel
Due to the advanced features they have, these models can be pretty expensive. However, there are many cheaper models readily available. To keep prices low, manufacturers use a TN panel, which has a relatively low color output.
How to Setup a 144Hz Monitor
144Hz is now a well-known term in the gaming world. Even though these units have become incredibly affordable, they require some setting up. To learn how to do this, here's a step-by-step guide:
- The first thing you need to do is find the right connectors. HDMI does not support the refresh rate, but the display port does. DisplayPort supports the G-sync and 144Hz refresh rate. You can also get a dual-link DVI cable, but it does not support G-sync.
- Now, at the back of the graphics card, you will get two DVI outputs, and it has a small number printed into the i/o. You will have to use port number one. You must run the faster gadget on the first output to get the maximum results.
- If you have your cables set up and a unit that supports 144 Hz, you can continue with your setup process. Right-click on the desktop and click on screen resolution. Then go ahead with advanced settings.
- Go in "your computer," and you will find the screen refresh rate and the different rates here. If you do not see the rates, then the cable may be broken or placed in the wrong input.
- You can then move into the video control panel, and then into configuring surround physics. Here you can see the output you are using. Select "change resolution," and you will be able to see the different refresh rates present.
This will set up your unit quickly. You can also use the video down below for a clearer understanding of setting up your gadget.
How Do I Set My Monitor to 144Hz?
To set your monitor to 144Hz simply follow the steps given below:
- Go to the "settings" page; click on display information. Go to Start, click on Settings, and then on the system.
- Click on display and then go to advanced display settings.
- You can view the refresh rate, and if it is not set to 144Hz, you can change it.
- Go to display adapter properties and then the monitor tab. Using the drop-down menu, find the 144Hz refresh rate, and click "ok."
Conclusion
By now, you have enough information to select the best 144Hz monitor for yourself. These units are worth investing in since they provide you with a crisp display and fast response time that gamers enjoy. Just remember to not pay more for a unit when you can get the same features at a relatively low cost.
People Also Ask
Even after all the information mentioned above, there might still be some questions left. We have answered these down below for further clarity of the topic.
Is a 144Hz Monitor Worth it?
Yes, a 144Hz monitor has a gorgeous display of colors and a very fast response time that makes it worth investing in. If you are a gamer or s photo and video editor, then these units will work really well for you.
What Cable to Use For a 144Hz Monitor?
The most suitable type of cable for 144Hz monitors is dual-link DVI, and HDMI 1.3 or higher.
How Much Does a 144Hz Monitor Cost?
You can find monitors on both ends of the price spectrum. They usually start at $200 and can go up to $1200. The difference usually exists due to the difference in brands and features.
How Many FPS Can a 144Hz Monitor Display?
These units can work at 120 FPS, which results in smoother games and can also handle lower V-sync caps.
How to Check if My Monitor is Running at 144Hz?
If you have Windows 10, then you need to go to settings, click on "system," and then click on "display." Move to advanced display settings and click on "display adapter properties." Next, click on the "monitor" tab and choose the monitor's refresh rate from the "Screen Refresh Rate" list and click ok. If you are using Windows 7 or 8, then simply click on the right mouse button and choose screen resolution.
