The best monitors for video editing need to do several things well. Be large enough. Be colour-accurate. Be sharp enough. Get those three things right and it'll make a big difference to your overall workflow.
To help you buy the right one, we spend a lot of time with monitors. Our expert reviewers don't just run tests, but spend proper hands-on time to assess them for colour accuracy and responsiveness, using them in real-world conditions. That's exactly what we also did for our list of the best monitors for graphic design.
Our current top pick for video editors is the BenQ PD3226G: a 32-inch 4K display with a 144Hz refresh rate, professional colour accuracy and excellent Thunderbolt 4 connectivity. It's an expensive choice, though, so we've also picked out options at every level of the market.
The best monitor for video editing overall
What you need to know: BenQ has crafted this monitor specifically crafted for creative professionals who demand top-tier performance, and it's done a fantastic job. Released this year, its high refresh rate and professional colour accuracy make it perfect video editors, animators and motion graphics artists, making it our top pick, although it comes with a high price to match.
Design and build: The PD3226G boasts a sophisticated silver metallic finish that wouldn't look out of place in a high-end design studio. The reflection-free Nano Matte Panel is TÜV certified and provides comfortable viewing over extended periods. The modern stand offers comprehensive ergonomic adjustments including height (150mm), swivel (±30°), tilt (-5°/20°), and crucially for a 32-inch monitor, pivot capability. Cable management is handled through an integrated clip system, keeping workspaces tidy.
Display: The 32-inch 4K panel delivers impressive image quality with corner-to-corner uniformity and professional colour accuracy straight out of the box. The 144Hz refresh rate sets it apart from typical creative monitors, providing exceptional motion clarity that's invaluable for animators and video editors working with dynamic content. Pantone and Pantone SkinTone validation ensure colour authenticity, whilst the 95% P3 wide colour coverage meets professional standards. The monitor maintains Delta E ≤ 2 accuracy, making it suitable for colour-critical work.
Pricing: At $1,099 / £1,099.99, the PD3226G sits at the premium end of the market, positioning itself as a monitor for serious professionals and successful studios. Whilst the price is substantial, it reflects the monitor's professional-grade specifications and build quality. The all-in-one Thunderbolt 4 connectivity alone adds significant value, particularly for MacBook users who can charge their device whilst maintaining high-speed data transfer through a single cable.
Read more: BenQ PD3226G review.
"Exceptional resolution, colour accuracy, and far-reaching connectivity will have creative professionals drooling. It just so happens that these specs also make it a more than capable gaming monitor."
The best budget monitor for video editing
What you need to know: Looking for a 27-inch 4K monitor without spending a fortune? Then here's our top budget pick. Our testers found it offers solid colour reproduction and smooth performance, and while it's a little light on features, it provides all the fundamentals video editors need.
Design and build: The Dell 27 Plus 4K impressed our reviewer with its clean aesthetic, featuring an attractive ash-white finish and ultra-thin bezels that maximise screen real estate. It's solid and well-constructed, with a sturdy metal stand that provides reassuring stability. Ergonomically, the monitor offers comprehensive adjustability with height, tilt, swivel, and pivot functionality, though the pivot action can feel somewhat clunky as the screen nearly touches the base when rotated. The setup process is refreshingly straightforward with a tool-free stand assembly, and cable management is handled neatly with a snap-on cover and cable routing cut-out. However, connectivity is somewhat limited with just two HDMI 2.0 ports and one DisplayPort 1.4; notably missing the USB-C connectivity that would benefit most laptop users.
Display: 4K delivers the crisp, detailed visuals that are essential for video editing work, allowing you to see fine details in your footage. The 120Hz refresh rate provides smooth motion rendering, which is particularly beneficial when scrubbing through timelines or playing back high frame rate content. IPS panel technology ensures excellent viewing angles and consistent colour reproduction across the screen. With 99% sRGB coverage, the colour accuracy is surprisingly good straight out of the box, making it suitable for most video editing tasks without extensive calibration. The monitor includes ComfortView Plus technology designed to reduce blue light emissions during long editing sessions, whilst HDR support enhances contrast with deeper blacks and brighter whites. At 350 nits brightness, it performs well in most indoor environments.
Pricing: At $277 / £288, the Dell 27 Plus 4K represents exceptional value in the 4K monitor market. For video editors just starting out or those working with limited budgets, this monitor provides the essential specifications needed for professional work, without the premium cost of more specialised displays.
Read more: Dell 27 Plus 4K review
"The Dell 27-inch Plus is a good all-round monitor that will suit professionals, creatives or everyday users. And if you spend long hours in front of the computer, features like a fully adjustable stand, IPS display and ComfortView Plus make it a smart choice."
The best premium monitor for video editing
What you need to know: OLED has finally arrived in a monitor aimed squarely at creatives, and it's arrived in style. The ASUS ProArt PA32UCDM combines the perfect per-pixel lighting of QD-OLED with pro features including Thunderbolt 4, hardware calibration and Dolby Vision support. It's not without its limitations, but for video editors who need true HDR performance, it's the most exciting display in years.
Design and build: The stand supports height adjustment, tilt and pivot to portrait mode, and build quality is excellent throughout. Connectivity centres on dual Thunderbolt 4 ports with display daisy chaining and 96W Power Delivery, plus an HDMI 2.1 port with full 48Gbps bandwidth. On the downside, the absence of a dedicated DisplayPort is a minor frustration, and the USB hub is on the slim side, limited to one USB-A and one USB-C output, with no 3.5mm audio out.
Display: The 32-inch 4K QD-OLED panel delivers a stunning picture when conditions are right. Bright details on dark backgrounds pop with total precision, free of the light bleed or halos that plague backlit LCD alternatives. Colour rendering is vibrant and dynamic, accentuated by the glossy panel coating, and HDR performance is exceptional, reaching up to 1,000 nits of local peak brightness. Full-screen brightness is limited to around 250 nits, though, which can be a drawback in bright ambient light. Factory calibration is slightly over-saturated and crushes some shadow detail, but this is easily addressed via the built-in hardware 3D LUT or third-party tools such as Calman Autocal.
Pricing: At $1,899 / £1,599, the PA32UCDM isn't cheap, but it's more affordable than Apple's Pro Display XDR at $4,999 (without a stand). For video editors who've been seeking a pro-grade OLED display, the price is justifiable.
Read more: ASUS ProArt PA32UCDM review
"At last, ASUS brings us an OLED panel for creative pros. The benefits are perfect per-pixel lighting, eye-popping HDR highlights and excellent colour coverage."
The best curved monitor for video editing
What you need to know: Our reviewer found this 32-inch curved OLED provided exceptional colour accuracy and a fluid user experience right out of the box, although it does need some initial configuration to reach its full potential. Its fast 240Hz refresh rate makes it an excellent choice for both gamers and video editors who need smooth performance.
Design and build: The X32X impressed our reviewer with its sleek OLED display, which is surprisingly thin at the edges and relatively lightweight for a 32-inch monitor, making assembly refreshingly straightforward. The gentle 1700R curve gives it an imposing presence that makes it appear larger than flat screens of similar size, with the curved edges sitting closer in your peripheral vision. The stand features a broad footprint with two extending toes that provide excellent stability, though they do require substantial desk space.
Display: The OLED panel delivers exceptional picture quality with deep blacks and vibrant colours that are immediately apparent. After proper calibration through the menu system, the display achieves impressive colour coverage of 98% P3, 94% Adobe RGB, and 100% sRGB, making it suitable for professional video editing work. The 240Hz refresh rate provides incredibly smooth motion rendering, particularly beneficial when scrubbing through timelines or working with high frame rate footage. However, the monitor does require some menu navigation to unlock its full potential: HDR mode needs to be activated and the "Max Brightness" setting enabled to achieve optimal 230-nit brightness and colour accuracy.
Pricing: At $1,199 / £1,099, the Predator X32X sits competitively within the 32-inch OLED monitor market, priced similarly to offerings from Gigabyte and Samsung whilst undercutting premium options like ASUS ProArt and the smaller Apple Studio Display. While significantly more expensive than IPS alternatives, the OLED technology and professional colour accuracy justify the premium for video editors who value exceptional picture quality.
Read more: Acer Predator X32X review
"This curved OLED from Acer is going to attract gamers, but with the Acer Predator X32X QD-OLED's top-end colour reproduction, there's a lot to like for studio dwellers, too"
The best value monitor for video editing
What you need to know: In our testing, colour reproduction on this 32-inch 4K monitor was excellent, making it ideal for video editors who demand precise colour rendering. While purpose-built for creatives rather than gamers, the U32U3CV provides all the essential features video editors need at remarkable value for money.
Design and build: The AOC Graphic Pro U32U3CV showcases thoughtful engineering with its 32-inch 4K IPS panel housed in a three-sided frameless design that keeps focus on the display itself. The metal stand is well-constructed and visually striking, featuring two flowing lines that extend from the display to the desk, adding an aesthetic touch that'll appeal to creatives. However, the stand does protrude further forward than ideal, potentially encroaching on desk space, though this is somewhat mitigated by the rear-facing port layout that allows close wall positioning. Ergonomic adjustability includes height, tilt, swivel, and rotation, though the swivel range is limited to just 15 degrees in each direction. Overall, it throughout feels solid and premium, befitting a monitor designed specifically for professional creative work.
Display: The 4K IPS panel delivers outstanding performance straight out of the box, with factory hardware calibration achieving impressive Delta E<2 accuracy for sRGB content. Video editors will particularly appreciate the comprehensive colour space coverage of 98% DCI-P3, 100% sRGB, and 100% Rec.709, ensuring accurate colour reproduction across different video standards. The monitor includes Calman Ready functionality for quick fine-tuning when needed. VESA DisplayHDR 400 certification provides 400 nits of brightness, which performs well even in bright environments, though the lack of local dimming means extreme blacks and whites aren't quite as pronounced as higher-end displays. The 60Hz refresh rate is adequate for video editing workflows, though animators working with motion graphics might prefer higher refresh rates.
Pricing: At $549 / £499, the AOC Graphic Pro U32U3CV represents exceptional value in the professional monitor market. When compared to competitors like the BenQ PD3225U at £1,000, the U32U3CV delivers comparable colour accuracy and professional features at half the price. This pricing makes pro-grade colour accuracy accessible to a much broader range of video editors, without compromising on the essential specifications needed for quality video work.
Read more: AOC Graphic Pro U32U3CV review
"The AOC Graphic Pro U32U3CV is a high-performance monitor for creatives that offers more value than its competitors. If you have £500 to spend on a monitor, then you won't get much better than this."
The best monitor for video editing on MacBooks
What you need to know: The BenQ MA270S is a serious alternative to the Apple Studio Display, offering a 5K Nano Gloss panel, Thunderbolt 4 connectivity and deep Mac integration at a significantly lower price. It's been designed with Mac creatives in mind, with features including colour-matched M-Book mode, FocuSync and Smart KVM, but it's also a genuinely excellent display for any creative professional who needs a screen they can rely on.
Design and build: The MA270S follows the clean, minimal aesthetic of BenQ's Mac-focused range, with thin black bezels and a sturdy silver base. The stand reaches 150mm of height adjustment: more than enough to open a MacBook fully underneath it. It can pivot to portrait mode and swivel 15 degrees either way, and the tilt range runs from -5° to 20°. Connectivity is well thought out, with two HDMI ports and two Thunderbolt 4 ports to the rear, plus two USB-A ports and a USB-C downstream port at the front for easy access. The Nano Gloss panel, which appears to be a deliberate design choice to mirror the finish of Apple's own displays, is an immediate highlight: true blacks look deep, highlights are clean and bright, and contrast holds up even at wider viewing angles.
Display: The 5K resolution is the headline here, and it delivers. MacOS scales perfectly and text is exceptionally crisp, genuinely rivalling a MacBook Pro's own display. The Nano Gloss panel makes everything look vibrant and well-defined, and at 450 nits it's bright enough for most working environments. BenQ's M-Book colour mode matches the MacBook display's colour profile with impressive accuracy, making the transition between laptop screen and external monitor seamless. The ambient light sensor adjusts screen brightness automatically, a particularly useful feature for Mac mini users whose machine doesn't include one.
Pricing: At $999 / £899, the MA270S is significantly cheaper than the Apple Studio Display, which starts at $1,599 / £1,499. For Mac creatives who want a 5K display without the Apple price tag, that's a compelling saving for comparable performance.
"The BenQ MA270S is one of BenQ's best yet. If you're a Mac user, this is simply one of the best monitors you can buy right now."
The best gaming monitor
What you need to know: The Alienware AW2725D is primarily a gaming monitor, but its QD-OLED panel, excellent colour coverage and premium build quality make it a strong option for video editors too. It's not 4K, but the colour accuracy is on par with displays costing twice as much.
Design and build: Alienware's aesthetic is present here, with an RGB-lit logo and off-blue coating to the rear. The front is more restrained, with slim bezels on three sides and only a slightly thicker strip along the bottom bearing the Alienware nameplate. Build quality is reassuringly solid throughout. The OSD is controlled via a joystick on the underside of the screen, which houses a range of colour presets alongside standard brightness, hue and refresh rate settings. Adjustability includes height (110mm), tilt (-5° to 21°), swivel (-20° to 20°) and pivot (±90°).
Display: The QD-OLED panel delivers functionally infinite contrast and deep, true blacks, with measured colour coverage of 102% sRGB, 104% P3 and 98.4% Adobe RGB. Overall brightness sits at around 250 nits, with local peak brightness reaching 1,000 nits, making HDR content genuinely impressive. The 280Hz refresh rate is excessive for most creative workflows, but the OLED panel's 0.03ms response time and smooth motion rendering make it particularly satisfying for work involving animation, motion graphics or high frame rate playback. The built-in OLED care function prompts regular diode-refresh cycles, which is good for the panel's long-term health but can interrupt work at inconvenient moments.
Pricing: At $549.99 / around £500, the AW2725D is remarkable value for an OLED display with this level of colour coverage. It offers comparable gamut performance to some £1,000 OLED screens, and while the aesthetic leans gaming-oriented, the display itself is a genuinely capable tool for creative work.
Read more: Alienware AW2725D review
"The Alienware AW2725D is a much more inspired creation than its functional name indicates. Marketed as a high-performance gaming monitor, it has a claim to creatives' attention too, with its sharp and bright OLED panel and premium design."
The best 8K monitor for video editing
What you need to know: If you're working with 8K or high-resolution footage and need to view it at native quality, this is the monitor you need. It's hugely expensive and clearly intended for large media companies rather than individual freelancers, but the Mini-LED panel delivers spectacular brightness and colour reproduction. Bear in mind you'll need a seriously powerful GPU to drive it, though.
Design and build: The PA32KCX is big, heavy and solid. The stand offers tilt, swivel, pivot and height adjustment, though the height range isn't quite sufficient to swing it into portrait orientation comfortably. The chunky bottom bar houses a flip-up built-in colorimeter, a fan system to manage heat and a direct mains connection via a standard kettle lead, which means no external power brick. A five-part screen shade is included, but it's fiddly to assemble.
Display: The Mini-LED panel is the real highlight here, with 4,032 local dimming zones delivering precision and brightness that rival or surpass OLED in the right conditions. Measured SDR brightness reached 965 nits at full brightness, and ASUS's colour gamut claims hold up: testing in AdobeRGB mode produced 100% sRGB, 95% Adobe RGB and 100% P3 coverage. DisplayHDR 1000 and Dolby Vision support make this one of the most capable displays available for HDR playback and grading. At 60Hz it's clearly designed for creative work rather than gaming, and you'll need a GPU with HDMI 2.1 or DisplayPort 2.0 output, or a Thunderbolt port capable of emulating one, to push 8K to the panel. The built-in calibration system, combining the on-board colorimeter with ASUS's ProArt Calibration app, makes maintaining accurate colour straightforward once you're set up.
Pricing: At around £8,000, the PA32KCX is extraordinarily expensive: you could buy seven BenQ PD3225U monitors for the same money. This, then, a screen for large media companies working at 8K production scale rather than individual freelancers (unless you've won the lottery). If you need 8K at a more manageable, though still substantial, cost, the Dell UltraSharp UP3218KA is available at around £2,780.
Read more: ASUS ProArt Display PA32KCX review
The best ultrawide monitor for video editing
What you need to know: The Acer Predator Z57 is a massive curved gaming monitor that required a special desk to even be set up. This gives a clear idea of its enormous size, which essentially combines the screen real estate of two 4K monitors into a single display. If you have the space for it, there's a lot to appreciate here.
Design and build: We've gone on about the size enough, so let's take a more general look at the Acer Predator Z57. It draws you in with its 1000R curvature and panoramic 32:9 aspect ratio, enabling you to really immerse yourself in your editing projects. Setup is easy enough once you've managed to lift the thing out of the box and onto the desk, and there's a decent range of height, tilt and swivel options – though naturally these are a bit less useful on a curved monitor than they are on others, as you're more restricted in how you can actually use it.
Display: Our reviewer called this "one seriously high-performing monitor". The brightness is punchy and powerful, up to 1,000 nits or 1,411 in HDR, and the colour coverage is pretty impressive – not quite enough for top-grade professional colour grading work, but excellent for most editing tasks. Having a resolution of 7680 X 2160 pixels feels pretty luxurious, and when our reviewer was working on a video editing timeline, he enjoyed being able to have multiple panels open at once. But you do have to be okay with the curve – and it is a pretty significant curve.
Pricing: Priced at £2,199.95 / $1,999, the Acer Predator Z57 is certainly an investment (again, it's essentially two monitors in one). It's hardly a casual investment, but if you've got the space and love the idea of luxuriating in a big, immersive display, it could well be worth it.
Read more: Acer Predator Z57 review
"ASUS has crammed 32 million pixels into a 32-inch Mini-LED screen. It produces excellent detail, brightness and colour, but there's no getting away from the fact that, at this price, 8K might be a step too far for many creatives who don't work for a multinational company."
Also tested
How to choose the best monitors for video editing
There are certain factors you'll want to bear in mind while looking for a monitor for video editing. First up, consider screen size. How big do you need to go? You may find that a small screen that's more portable might suit you better if you don't have a dedicated setup space. If you can afford it, then a bigger screen will enable you to see your creations in more detail, easier.
You'll need to decide whether you want a 4K screen or not, we'd say go for 4K if you can, as 4K video footage is becoming the norm. You also need to look at colour accuracy, Delta E < 2 or better, a colour gamut of at least 95% DCI-P3 are ideal and you'll want a high contrast ratio and brightness level (nits of 400 and above are best, or 1,000 for HDR).
If you can afford HDR support, that's also another plus. Price will of course be a factor: we've included a range of here to suit everyone who wants the best video editing monitor on the market to those with a more limited budget.
Don't forget to also look at number of ports, think about how many you'll need for your setup and look at a monitor that can match your needs (although one of the best docking stations for MacBook Pro can help). For other uses, also see our guide to the best monitors for graphics artists.
How we test
We've made our picks of the best monitors for video editing based on our own tests. Our contributors are working creatives and test each screen for video editing and other creative work over several weeks, carrying out a number of projects as well as testing for everyday use. We've also taken into account recommendations and feedback from other creatives and customer reviews.
We look at various things in our tests, and try to go beyond just specs to look at how fast the monitor responds, how easy it is to set up and use, and the accuracy with which it displays colours. We also test it out with footage that uses a range of colours to see how well they display.
We also know that generally if a monitor works for gaming, it's also good for creatives, so we've picked out some of the best gaming monitors we've tried and included them when relevant here.
FAQs
IPS vs OLED? What's the best monitor panel type for video editing?
The two common types of monitor – both represented on this list – are IPS (In-Plane Switching) and OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diode). IPS monitors are an evolved form of the old LCD monitors, which use a backlight to produce an image. OLED displays are made up of individual pixels that produce their own light, meaning a backlight isn't required.
Which is better for video editing? The answer isn't cut and dry, and neither is a bad choice. We'd say that IPS panels have a slight edge in terms of colour accuracy and also offer better brightness, due to the backlight. OLED panels, meanwhile, are faster and more responsive (hence their popularity with gamers), and also display beautiful deep blacks. Overall, IPS monitors are a slightly better choice for video editing specifically, but it’s not enough of a difference to rule OLED monitors out completely, and other features of each individual monitor will likely prove more decisive.
LED vs LCD monitor?
This is essentially the same question as above, since IPS panels are type of LCD monitor, and OLED monitors are a type of LED. Once again, we’d say that getting yourself an IPS LCD monitor is generally the best choice for video editors. While colours look more vivid and punchy on an OLED, the IPS display will give you greater accuracy, which is very important. You don’t want the footage to look significantly better on your screen than it does on others, as this will make it difficult to effectively colour grade.
What monitor size is good for video editing?
The general consensus is that you want a monitor at least 27 inches in size for video editing – though if your space and budget permit a larger monitor, it’ll be even better. Trying to edit video on a display that is too small to display your timeline and tools is an immensely frustrating experience. Also, looking for one with a 16:9 aspect ratio is handy, as this is the same aspect ratio that most of the content you’re editing will be in.
Is a 4K monitor good for video editing?
Resolution isn’t everything when it comes to choosing the right monitor for video editing. But, if you’re hoping to produce content in UHD, you’ll need to be able to see your work in its native resolution. So, having a monitor capable of 4K resolution isn’t just good, for most video editors, it’s necessary. Just keep in mind that you’ll need a computer powerful enough to be able to deliver that high resolution content to a 4K monitor.
Are curved monitors good for video editing?
It’s not necessary to have a curved monitor to do great work on your video editing projects. But, curved monitors do offer a few advantages. Since they make the whole screen equidistant from your eyes, they’re easy to work with since you won’t have to strain as much to see the corners of your screen. And, many curved monitors come in a wider 21:9 aspect ratio, meaning you’ll have more screen real estate and can work on projects in their native resolution while still having instant access to your editing tools. However, you do have more limited viewing angles compared to flat displays. If you need to show your work to colleagues, they might not see an accurate representation of your project.
Is Hz important for video editing?
While refresh rate is crucial for video editing, just about every contemporary monitor comes with at least a 60Hz refresh rate. And, considering that most video is shot at 30 or 60 fps, having a faster refresh rate won’t make much of a difference. Of course, if you’re also doing animation or are hoping to game on that same display, having a speedier refresh rate becomes a bit more of a priority.
What is a HDR monitor?
HDR monitors have better contrast ratio than non-HDR ones, meaning that there's a bigger difference between bright and dark areas of an image. For video editing, this is helpful as it helps you more accurately see your footage. Note that switching to HDR will only work where a monitor has a wide range of colours, high contrast levels and ample brightness.
