TV makers save most of their best technology for bigger screens, so a great 50-inch TV takes some finding. These are the 48- and 50-inch TVs worth buying on Amazon, based on RTINGS' lab tests, for bedrooms, smaller living rooms, and gaming setups.
The best 50-inch-class TV is the LG C6 OLED 48" (~$1,000): perfect blacks, Dolby Vision, four HDMI 2.1 ports, and up to 165Hz for gaming.
For a bright room, get the Samsung QN90F 50" (~$1,098), a very bright Mini LED TV with a matte anti-glare screen. The Sony BRAVIA 3 II 50" (~$698) is a good everyday Google TV for less.
TV makers now save their best technology for 55 inches and up, so the choice at 48 to 50 inches is thinner than it used to be. RTINGS, which buys and lab-tests dozens of TVs a year, picks only four TVs in this size range, and two of its budget picks are store exclusives: the TCL QM5K is sold only at Best Buy, and the Vizio Mini LED Quantum 4K only at Walmart.
So our picks are the best 48- and 50-inch TVs you can buy new on Amazon. If picture quality matters most, the 48-inch LG C6 OLED is in a different league. If you want a bright, glare-resistant screen for a sunny room, or just a good everyday TV for less, the Samsung and Sony below cover it. Our picks follow RTINGS' measurements; where RTINGS tested a different size of the same TV, we say how the 50-inch model differs.
| TV | Size | Panel | Refresh | Best for | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LG C6 OLED | 48 in | OLED | Up to 165Hz | Best picture, gaming, movies | ~$1,000 |
| Samsung QN90F | 50 in | Mini LED | 120Hz+ | Bright rooms, sports | ~$1,098 |
| Sony BRAVIA 3 II | 50 in | LED (VA) | 120Hz | Everyday TV, Google TV | ~$698 |
RTINGS' best 48-inch TV, and the best TV in this size range by a wide margin. OLED pixels light themselves, so blacks are perfectly inky and colors are vibrant, with no blooming around bright objects. The smaller size isn't as bright as the bigger C6 models, but it's still bright enough to make HDR highlights stand out in movies and games. Its wide viewing angle keeps the picture consistent from the side, which helps when friends are spread across a couch.
It's also a superb gaming TV. All four HDMI ports are HDMI 2.1, it runs up to 4K at 165Hz, supports every type of VRR, and motion is crystal clear. Many people use the 48-inch C6 as a large PC monitor.
Worth knowing: it's a bit too dim to fight glare in a well-lit room, so it's best in a dark or moderately lit space. It's 2 inches smaller than a 50-inch TV, which you won't notice from the couch. For a sunny room, the Samsung QN90F below is the better choice.
Check price on Amazon Prices change often — verify current pricing on Amazon.The best 50-inch TV for a room with lots of windows. RTINGS found the QN90F gets extremely bright, and its matte coating does an amazing job with direct reflections, so lamps and sunlight don't wash out the picture. That makes it great for daytime sports and shows. Mini LED backlighting keeps blacks deep, and all four HDMI ports are HDMI 2.1, with VRR and a high refresh rate for consoles and gaming PCs (the 55-inch and larger sizes reach 165Hz).
Worth knowing: RTINGS tested the 75-inch model. The 50-inch uses Samsung's Neo Quantum HDR rather than HDR+, which means it's likely not as bright or as colorful as the larger sizes, and it has simpler 40W 2.2-channel speakers. Like all Samsung TVs, it doesn't support Dolby Vision; it uses HDR10+ instead. Blacks aren't as deep as the OLED's in a dark room.
Check price on Amazon Prices change often — verify current pricing on Amazon.A well-equipped 50-inch TV with Sony's excellent processing, which RTINGS found does a great job cleaning up low-quality streams and cable. Google TV has a huge app selection, and it's surprisingly good for gaming, with 4K at 120Hz and VRR for the latest consoles. It also has good format support for physical media collectors.
The 50-inch size is a better buy than the one RTINGS tested. RTINGS tested the 65-inch, which uses an IPS panel with low contrast, and rated it mediocre overall. The 50-inch has been confirmed to use a VA panel instead, which has much better contrast, so blacks should look far less gray in a dark room.
Worth knowing: the 50-inch has a glossy screen, not the matte coating on the 65- and 75-inch sizes, so it handles reflections worse. The VA panel also has a narrower viewing angle, so the picture fades if you sit far off to the side. There's no local dimming, so it won't match the OLED or the Samsung for movies at night.
Check price on Amazon Prices change often — verify current pricing on Amazon.We couldn't find a cheap 50-inch TV we're happy recommending on Amazon. RTINGS' best budget pick, the TCL QM5K, is a Best Buy exclusive, and its cheapest pick, the Vizio Mini LED Quantum 4K, is a Walmart exclusive. RTINGS' named alternative, the Hisense QD7QF, was unavailable on Amazon when we checked in November 2026, and it's a basic TV anyway: 60Hz, blurry motion, and Fire TV. Most other cheap 50-inch TVs skip local dimming, so blacks look gray and HDR has little impact.
If your budget is tight, the Sony BRAVIA 3 II above is the least expensive 50-inch TV we recommend. A slightly bigger TV can also be better value: our best 55-inch TVs include the budget TCL QM6K, which has local dimming, and our best TVs under $1,000 cover more sizes.