The Best TVs of 2026, According to the Reviews

Going by the reviews, the best TV of 2026 is still a 2025 model: of the six sets we checked, the LG C5 has the highest average, 9.8 out of 10 across TechRadar, Tom’s Guide, What Hi-Fi? and PCMag. The best-scored TV released in 2026 is the Samsung S95H, at 9.7 from three of those outlets, ahead of the LG C6’s 9.3; the Hisense U8N, at 8.8, is the highest-scored Mini-LED set here.

Update, 25 October 2026. All 19 scores were re-read on the outlets’ own pages, and none had changed. The Samsung S95H is new to this page: after the LG C6, it is the second 2026 set we found with scores from at least three of the four outlets, and the first 2026 set listed as a pick. The S90F’s 2026 successor, the S90H, has a score from Tom’s Guide alone so far, so it is described below rather than listed. Samsung’s US list price for the 65-inch S90F was unchanged when re-read on 25 October.

Update, 4 October 2026. This page said it showed no prices, but the Samsung S90F’s pick has always carried Samsung’s own list price, now $2,499.99, re-read on 4 October. The note on prices now says so. The Hisense U8N’s price has been removed, because Hisense does not sell it direct and we no longer had a maker’s figure for it. No score changed.

Update, 21 September 2026. Every score was re-read on the outlets’ own pages, and three did not match what we had. Tom’s Guide gives the Samsung S90F 4.5 out of 5, not 4, and TechRadar and Tom’s Guide each give the Hisense U8N 4.5, not 4, which puts the U8N above the U8QG that replaced it. What Hi-Fi?’s score no longer counts towards the U8QG, because What Hi-Fi? says the UK set it reviewed is a different TV from the US model; PCMag’s score for the US 65U8QG replaces it, and PCMag is now included for every set here it has scored. We had also said every outlet found blooming on the U8N, where TechRadar saw virtually none in its local-dimming test, and that the C5 struggles in a bright room, where Tom’s Guide found its glare-free screen cut reflections in nearly any lighting on the 55-inch and larger sizes. Corrected throughout.

The five, at a glance

Pick	Year	Outlet average	Outlets	Spread	What the outlets agree it is best for
LG C5	2025	9.8 / 10	4	1.0	Picture quality at mid-range OLED prices
Samsung S95H	2026	9.7 / 10	3	1.0	Brightness and reflection handling in a bright room
Samsung S90F	2025	9.7 / 10	3	1.0	OLED colour, if you can do without Dolby Vision
Hisense U8N	2024	8.8 / 10	4	1.0	Brightness for the money
Hisense U8QG	2025	8.3 / 10	3	1.0	Brightness and gaming

Each average is the outlets’ published star ratings converted to a ten-point scale. Spread is the gap between the highest and lowest of those scores, in points out of ten. The last column is ours — our reading of what the reviewers agreed on, not something any of them ranked. We have not tested these sets. Reviewers list the missing Dolby Vision against both Samsungs, and Samsung’s 2026 spec pages list HDR10+ in its place.

The technology still shows through the numbers. Every score for the three OLED picks is four and a half or five stars; the Mini-LED scores run from four to four and a half. An averaged score here tells you which kind of panel you are buying more reliably than which set.

Which set each score is for

Most of these scores are for the 65-inch size. At Samsung and LG, the size you buy can change the panel, so the model number decides whether a review describes your TV.

Which size suits your seat is a separate question, and TV makers’ own size guides disagree on it by as much as 24 inches at seven feet.

• LG C5. TechRadar, Tom’s Guide (OLED65C5PUA) and PCMag reviewed the 65-inch. What Hi-Fi?’s five stars are for the 42-inch, which What Hi-Fi? and Tom’s Guide both say lacks the Brightness Booster of the bigger sizes; Tom’s Guide adds that the 42- and 48-inch also lack the anti-glare screen.
• Samsung S95H. TechRadar, Tom’s Guide (QN65S95HAFXZA) and PCMag all reviewed the 65-inch. TechRadar says its measurements show a QD-OLED panel in that size, which Samsung does not confirm, and that the 83-inch uses a WOLED panel. The What Hi-Fi? review we found is of the S99H, a different model name, so it is not counted.
• Samsung S90F. TechRadar (65S90F) and Tom’s Guide (QN65S90FAFXZA) reviewed the 65-inch QD-OLED, and TechRadar says its findings apply only to that size. What Hi-Fi? reviewed the 48-inch, which has a WOLED panel. By Tom’s Guide’s account, the 42-, 48- and 83-inch are WOLED and the 55-, 65- and 77-inch QD-OLED.
• Hisense U8N. Tom’s Guide and PCMag reviewed the 65U8N, and TechRadar the 65-inch US set with Google TV. What Hi-Fi?’s 65U8N was a UK unit running Hisense’s own VIDAA software.
• Hisense U8QG. TechRadar, Tom’s Guide and PCMag all reviewed the 65-inch US set; Tom’s Guide and PCMag name it the 65U8QG. What Hi-Fi? reviewed the UK U8Q (65U8QTUK) and says the US U8QG is fundamentally different, so its four stars are not in the average.

A model number that appears in none of these reviews is not a set any of them scored, however close the name. Retailers selling their own derivative versions of a TV in November is a reported practice, and how to check a model number before the sale covers the three checks worth making.

Newer sets do not always score higher

The LG C6 arrived in March 2026 and averages 9.3 against the C5’s 9.8, from the same four outlets. TechRadar and What Hi-Fi? gave it five stars and call it brighter. Tom’s Guide gave four and a half under the headline “the best OLED TV you shouldn’t buy (yet)”, and PCMag gave four while calling it the best midrange OLED of the year. That two-point spread is the widest disagreement on this page.

TechRadar’s own best-TV guide, last updated 8 October, now names the C6 its best overall TV and keeps the C5 as its pick under $1,500, so one outlet’s ranking and the four-outlet average point different ways. By TechRadar’s and What Hi-Fi?’s accounts, the newer set launched at $2,699 for the 65-inch in the US, the older one’s launch price. The C6 is described here rather than listed because it would suit the same reader as the C5, at a lower average. Watch its model number too: TechRadar reports that the 77- and 83-inch sizes are a separate model, the C6H, with the Primary RGB Tandem 2.0 panel from LG’s G6, so none of the four C6 reviews describes those sizes. LG’s own spec sheets list the C6H with Hyper Radiant Color Tech and Brightness Booster Pro.

The Samsung S95H is the exception among the 2026 sets: at 9.7 it ties the 2025 S90F and sits behind only the C5. TechRadar calls it “top-tier at nearly everything it does” and Tom’s Guide titles its review “2026’s OLED to beat”. On Samsung’s own spec sheets, it shares 165Hz and the Glare Free screen with the S90H and starts at 55 inches. Samsung’s US list price for the 65-inch is in the pick above, read on 25 October.

The Samsung S90H, the S90F’s 2026 successor, is not listed: among the four outlets we found a score from Tom’s Guide alone, four out of five against the four and a half it gave the S90F. Tom’s Guide adds that buyers who pick the older S90F or the cheaper S85H are not losing much. One score is a citation, not a consensus.

The Hisense U8QG replaced the U8N and averages 8.3 against 8.8. At the three outlets that scored both, the U8QG never scored higher: TechRadar gave each four and a half, while Tom’s Guide and PCMag gave the U8QG four against the U8N’s four and a half. PCMag measured the newer set brighter — 3,200 nits against 2,755 on an 18% window — and also lists its higher price than its predecessor as a drawback. It stays on the list for that brightness and for gaming, which all three outlets single out.

What the scores do not cover

• The specification the review did not print. Native refresh rate and dimming-zone count decide a lot of the picture and are often missing from the box; what separates a $400 TV from a $1,200 one explains which numbers on a spec sheet are comparable.
• Brands with no pick here. No TCL, Vizio or Sony set is on this shortlist, which covers only the six sets averaged above. TCL’s series, Vizio’s ranges and Sony’s Bravia series are laid out from each maker’s own US spec pages instead, without scores.
• How long the software lasts. Samsung says up to seven years of Tizen OS upgrades and LG five years of webOS updates and version upgrades. Both Hisense sets here run Google TV in the US, and we found no Google page giving a support period for it. What each TV platform actually promises has the detail and the small print.
• What the discount is measured against. Adobe reports that US electronics discounts peaked at 30.9% off listed price last holiday season. List is not what a set sold for in October, so compare against last month’s price rather than the label.

Questions people ask

What is the best TV of 2026?

Going by the reviews, a 2025 model: the LG C5 averages 9.8 out of 10 across TechRadar, Tom’s Guide, What Hi-Fi? and PCMag, three of which gave it full marks. The best-scored set released in 2026 is the Samsung S95H, at 9.7 from three of those outlets. We have not tested any of them; these are the outlets’ scores.

What is the best new TV out now?

Of the 2026 models, the Samsung S95H has the highest average here: five out of five from TechRadar and Tom’s Guide and four and a half from PCMag, or 9.7. The LG C6 averages 9.3 from four outlets. The Samsung S90H has a score from only Tom’s Guide among the four so far, four out of five.

What are the highest-rated TVs in 2026 reviews?

Across TechRadar, Tom’s Guide, What Hi-Fi? and PCMag: the LG C5 at 9.8, then the Samsung S95H and S90F at 9.7 each, the LG C6 at 9.3, the Hisense U8N at 8.8 and the Hisense U8QG at 8.3. All six are averages of at least three published scores, converted to ten.

Is OLED or Mini-LED better?

On review scores, the OLEDs here lead: the LG C5 averages 9.8 and both Samsungs 9.7, against 8.8 and 8.3 for the two Hisense Mini-LED sets. The Mini-LEDs are the bright ones — Tom’s Guide measured 3,916 nits in HDR on the U8QG — which counts for more in a room with a window.

Should I wait for Black Friday to buy a TV?

We do not predict prices. What is on record: Adobe says US electronics discounts peaked at 30.9% off listed price last holiday season, and that percentage is measured against list, not against what a set sold for in October. A sale can also bring model numbers no reviewer has scored, so check the number as well as the discount.

Is the LG C6 better than the LG C5?

Reviewers call the C6 brighter, but its average is lower: 9.3 against the C5’s 9.8 from TechRadar, Tom’s Guide, What Hi-Fi? and PCMag. PCMag gave the C6 4 out of 5, the lowest score here for either set. TechRadar’s own best-TV guide, updated 8 October, now names the C6 its best overall TV.

Is the TV on sale the same model the reviewers tested?

Only if the model number matches. Most scores here are for 65-inch sets, and size can change the panel: Tom’s Guide says the 42-, 48- and 83-inch Samsung S90F use WOLED, the rest QD-OLED. What Hi-Fi? says the UK Hisense U8Q is fundamentally different from the US U8QG.

How long will a new TV get software updates?

It depends on the platform, not the set. Samsung says up to seven years of Tizen OS upgrades and LG five years of webOS updates and version upgrades. Both Hisense sets here run Google TV in the US, and we found no Google page giving a support period for it.