G-Sync Gaming Monitors that'll Make the Most Out of Your Nvidia GPU

03/10/2021

There are few things worse in gaming than having your powerful system connected to a great looking monitor only for the two of them to sync up poorly and render your games a sloppy mess as the screen draws partial frames during each refresh. That’s just what can happen without some sort of syncing technology enabled. A G-Sync monitor paired with an Nvidia graphics card will do a better job than just about anything else at avoiding that scenario.With the proper setup, a G-Sync monitor will slow down and speed up (to an extent) its refresh rate to match whatever framerate your computer is able to deliver. It thereby ensures each frame your computer sends will be shown in its entirety on your screen. What does that mean for you? Clear imagery in your games regardless of your computer’s ability to keep a stable frame rate. G-Sync also manages to avoid the issues of standard V-Sync, which can introduce noticeable latency.

So, if you’ve got a PC running on an Nvidia graphics card, you owe it to yourself to check out a G-Sync monitor. Below, you’ll find everything from ultra-fast, 240Hz monitors to more affordable FreeSync displays that can support G-Sync nonetheless. In addition, for those of you in the UK, click here to see where you can get all the monitors mentioned.

TL;DR – These are the Best G-Sync Gaming Monitors:

1. ViewSonic Elite XG270QG

Best G-Sync Gaming Monitor

Our Pick

ViewSonic Elite XG270QG

See it on Newegg

If you’re getting a G-Sync display, you ought to be sure you’re getting a lot of other goodies at the same time. That’s why the ViewSonic Elite XG270QG is such a standout monitor. It offers up that G-Sync goodness on a display that can refresh at up to 165Hz. It uses an IPS panel for great viewing angles, but still offers a 1ms response time. When it comes to high-speed gaming, this monitor is incredibly ready.

That all wouldn’t be good enough if the display was small and low resolution, but the ViewSonic Elite XG270QG is neither. It has a 27-inch panel with a 1440p resolution, hitting a sweet spot for games. The latest high-end graphics cards from Nvidia can readily push high frame rates at 1440p.

2. ViewSonic Elite XG270

Best Budget G-Sync Monitor

See it on Newegg

Not only is the ViewSonic Elite XG270 a fairly affordable alternative to its sharper sibling that tops this list, but it actually manages to have a few edges on the 1440p model. The ViewSonic Elite XG270 has a 1080p, IPS display, giving it good color and modest sharpness. But, where it manages to truly impress at its price point is in its speed and brightness. This monitor musters a 400-nit peak brightness, which is fairly high for a budget display, and gives the XG270 room to offer HDR10 support (albeit not in all circumstances).

The XG270 becomes extra exceptional when we take into account the 240Hz refresh rate. That’s blisteringly fast, with very few monitors going any faster than that. Landing that clear IPS picture with support for G-Sync and the insane 240Hz is great, but getting it for under $500 is even more impressive.

3. Samsung CRG5 Curved Gaming Monitor

The Best 1080p G-Sync Monitor

Samsung C27RG5 Curved Gaming Monitor

Unlike the majority of 240Hz gaming monitors out there, Samsung CRG5 Curved Gaming Monitor uses a VA panel, which means super-fast response times and high refresh rates without having to sacrifice wide color gamut and wide viewing angles. It’s pricey for a 1080p monitor, at $400, but it’s well worth it.

To get the most out of this blisteringly fast 1080p gaming monitor, you’ll want to pair it with a high-power graphics card and get those super-high frame rates. G-Sync will also help you maintain the smoothest gameplay possible.

4. Alienware 27 Gaming Monitor (AW2721D)

Best 1440p G-Sync Gaming Monitor

See it on Amazon

There’s a lot to like about 1440p. It delivers a much sharper image than 1080p but it’s not nearly as hard to drive as a 4K image. But, for some time now, you were stuck with 1080p monitors if you wanted to really cruise. That changes with the Alienware 27 Gaming Monitor AW2721D. This beast gives you the 1440p resolution you want alongside the 240Hz refresh rate you crave. There hasn’t been a combination this sweet since the combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell

The Alienware 27 Gaming Monitor is rich with other features too. You’ll be getting an IPS Display with G-Sync Ultimate, so you don’t have to worry about poor viewing angles or screen tearing marring your visual experience. With a 10-bit color depth and DisplayHDR 600, you’ll also be getting into serious HDR territory, so your competitive games will look great and your AAA games will look even better.

5. LG UltraGear 27GN950-B

The Best 4K G-Sync Gaming Monitor

With the latest Nvidia RTX 3080 offering more performance in 4K than its predecessors, there’s more reason than ever to consider a 4K monitor with G-Sync. The last thing you’d want is to have your otherwise immaculate 4K picture marred by screen tearing. So, to give you both a 4K resolution and official G-Sync compatibility, you’ll want the LG UltraGear 27GN950-B (read our review). This premium monitor is ready for whatever you can throw at it, as its 4K IPS panel can run at 144Hz. Heck, you might not max out the display’s capabilities even with a future RTX 40-series graphics cards when they come out.

Over DisplayPort, you’ll have support for the full 4K/144Hz signal with a 10-bit color depth, G-Sync, and even HDR. Don’t sleep on that HDR either, as the UltraGear 27GN950-B’s 600-nit peak brightness can offer far more stunning visuals than a typical gaming monitor. A pair of HDMI ports will let you connect the monitor to the latest consoles while enjoying FreeSync as well.

6. LG UltraGear 34GN850-B

Best Ultrawide G-Sync Monitor

See it on Newegg

LG’s UltraGear 34GN850-B is a great gaming monitor if you want a crisp display that’s going to nicely wrap around your field-of-view. It has a 34-inch screen with a cinematic 21:9 aspect ratio, giving you more picture than your standard 1440p monitor but a similar level of clarity. That big picture can run at 144Hz as well, so you’ll get smooth gameplay to add to your sense of immersion. And, though this is a FreeSync monitor, it also carries official G-Sync Compatible status.

Beyond the speed and resolution, LG is also delivering a bright picture to earn DisplayHDR 400 certification. Between that high level of brightness and the display’s support for 10-bit color depth, you should have no trouble enjoying some basic HDR content now and then.

7. Asus TUF Gaming VG27AQL1A

Best FreeSync Gaming Monitor for G-Sync

Asus TUF Gaming VG27AQL1A

True G-Sync comes at a price, but there’s a lot to be said for FreeSync monitors that support G-Sync. In that regard, the Asus TUF Gaming VG27AQL1A is the monitor to beat. It’s not only ready to game smoothly on AMD graphics cards but also on Nvidia cards, as it’s officially G-Sync Compatible. And, just how smooth are we talking? Well, it boasts a 170Hz refresh rate at maximum. But to use G-Sync, you’ll need to dial it down to 144Hz, where it can offer an adaptive refresh rate from 48Hz to 144Hz.

That speed and sync is only half the picture. You’re also getting a bright IPS panel with a 10-bit color depth. Those specs will lend themselves not only to easier visibility but also to some basic HDR performance. The monitor earns DisplayHDR400 certification and supports HDR10. This all makes it a great contender to serve as your gaming monitor for both your PC and the latest consoles.

8. Asus ROG Swift PG35VQ

Best HDR G-Sync Gaming Monitor

See it on Newegg

The Asus ROG Swift PG35VQ is pretty much the ultimate G-Sync gaming monitor you can buy right now. This display offers a nearly endless font of high-end specs including a 3,440 x 1,440 resolution, 200Hz refresh rate, 2ms response time, and 1,000-nit peak brightness. As if that all wasn’t enough to make this gaming monitor super desirable, it also features 512 local dimming zones, which work just like they on high-end 4K TVs to display deep blacks right next to burning bright hot spots on the screen.

Unfortunately, this poster child for Nvidia G-Sync Ultimate gaming monitors comes at the hefty price of $2,499, which you easily could use to build a powerful enough gaming PC to take full advantage of all the visual glory this display promises.

9. Asus ROG Swift PG43UQ

Best Big Screen G-Sync Gaming Monitor

If you game on PC and on consoles, you don’t actually need to have a separate monitor and TV. The Asus ROG Swift P43UQ effectively splits the difference, as it has some of the size and picture of the TV but all the clarity of the monitor. This 43-inch display offers up a 4K picture at a speedy 144Hz, so you’ll have super clear visuals.

The picture clarity will only help you better enjoy its quality. This display can achieve a 1,000-nit peak brightness and support a 10-bit color depth, so you can enjoy HDR the way it’s meant to be viewed. And, because this display uses a VA panel, it can deliver a solid contrast ratio, helping you see more detail in light and dark scenery. Topping it off, this display is officially G-Sync Compatible.

10. Asus ROG Swift PG259QN

The G-Sync Gaming Monitor for Esports

If you’re serious about your esports, you probably want to do everything possible to get more speed out of your gaming system and monitor. So, for the monitor half of that equation, the Asus ROG Swift PG259QN is what you’re going to want. While everyone else is chasing down 120Hz, 144Hz or maybe even 240Hz, the Asus ROG Swift PG259QN has zoomed past the competition with a 360Hz panel for all the speed your gaming rig can deliver.

It’s not just the refresh rate that makes this a killer monitor, though that’s the key aspect. In addition, it has a Full HD resolution with support for 10-bit color and a high enough brightness level to offer an HDR picture. So, you’ll be able to game at high speeds with a heightened bar for quality. And, thanks to true G-Sync, you can rest assured that you’ll get a tear-free experience even if your system isn’t hitting a constant 360fps.

Where to Get the Best G-Sync Monitor in the UK

Thankfully all of the best monitors listed are also available to pick up in the UK. The retailers will certainly be different, but each and every one of the G-Sync displays we’ve mentioned can be purchased on the other side of the pond as well. Typically, most of these can be found on sites like Amazon, Currys PC World, Overclockers, and more. Funnily enough, Dell even stocks its own products, such as this 24-Inch Gaming Monitor, one of the best options for those on a tight budget.

What to look for in a G-Sync Gaming Monitor

A little background: G-Sync is Nvidia’s proprietary technology for variable refresh rate (VRR) monitors. The company embeds a display controller in the monitor (which makes it cost a little more) and then it can sync the monitor’s refresh rate with the frame output from any modern Nvidia graphics card (Kepler or newer). If you’ve got an AMD graphics card, a G-Sync monitor will just act like a normal monitor and you’ll need a FreeSync display instead.

So what is VRR? Basically, a normal monitor is locked to a single refresh rate—that’s the number of times per second that it changes the color and brightness of the pixels on the screen. Your graphics card draws a frame and then waits until the monitor’s next refresh cycle to display it. This has the effect of making your game jump frame rate between even multiples of the display’s refresh: with a 144Hz monitor, your games will run at 144fps, for example (if you have the right hardware or powerful enough prebuilt PC, of course).

With VRR technology, the monitor refreshes whenever the graphics card is done drawing the next frame.

Disabling Vsync will also allow your graphics card to run as fast as possible on any monitor, but it produces an ugly visual artifact called tearing, where the monitor displays partially-drawn frames on top of the previous frame. With VRR technology (G-Sync or FreeSync), the monitor refreshes whenever the graphics card has drawn the next frame. So your monitor and game might max out at 60Hz, but if your game is running at 52fps, the monitor will refresh at 52Hz, drawing the frame immediately instead of waiting for the next 60Hz cycle. So you’ll see the frame rate your graphics card is capable of, not a big downgrade to 30fps.

As a final reminder: there are two VRR technologies gamers should know about: G-Sync and FreeSync. G-Sync is Nvidia’s proprietary technology and only works with Nvidia graphics cards. FreeSync is AMD’s brand for a VRR technology built on top of the VESA standard and only works with AMD GPUs. G-Sync requires extra hardware in the monitor, driving monitors costs up but maintains consistently high quality. FreeSync requires no special hardware and thus monitors are typically cheaper, but quality control is a little less consistent.

G-Sync on a FreeSync Display?

At CES 2019, Nvidia announced its intention to encroach on AMD’s turf with its G-Sync Compatible initiative. Basically, Nvidia is testing existing FreeSync equipped monitors with its latest G-Sync drivers.

The new driver went live in January with 12 FreeSync monitors certified as G-Sync compatible, and thanks to another three being added during Computex the number of G-Sync compatible monitors on the list has increased to 28. That’s huge news for anyone running a FreeSync monitor or looking for a less expensive solution to G-Sync. More importantly, if users find themselves playing games with an RTX- or GTX-powered gaming PC and an Xbox One X, they won’t have to choose between either a G-Sync or FreeSync display, since each of the monitors we’ve included on this list work with either variable refresh rate technology.

There are also more G-Sync compatible FreeSync monitors than Nvidia has tested. You can manually set most FreeSync monitors to work with Nvidia GPUs and G-Sync. One such display is the Viotek GFT27DB, which we recently reviewed. It isn’t on the compatibility list, but it played nice with G-Sync during testing.

If you’re looking to get the most out of your PC’s display, be sure to check out our guide to the best 4K gaming monitors, the top graphics cards of 2019, or for absolutely blazing frame rates, our guide to the best 240hz monitors.

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Mark Knapp is a regular contributor to IGN and an irregular Tweeter on Twitter @Techn0Mark

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