Best 4K projector 2023 - go big and bold with your display this year

The best 4K projector matches the march of progress in visual fidelity: 4K is no longer a luxury for the discerning home cinephile. It has truly replaced HD as the standard for image quality and these lights will get you there instantly - wherever you find yourself watching or playing.

The advent of the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X in late 2020 was, as console launches tend to be, somewhat of a turning point in resolution, framerates, and visual clarity. Just as Playstation 3 helped BluRay become the standard, 4K devices have now reached even more homes and we really are in the era of 4K. And the best projectors for gaming are no exception.

So if you’re looking to take your home cinema system to the next level, or looking to replace your TV with a glorious and enormous picture from one of the best projectors, then these are a handful of your best bets, covering a range of options from all the established names and to suit a range of budgets. But remember, if you can’t stretch to 4K prices, there are still quality projectors among the best portable projectors, and the best projectors for PS5 and Xbox Series X to browse which might dial it down to HD to reduce the cost, for example. 

We're also expecting to see plenty of Black Friday 4K projector deals in this year's wider Black Friday gaming deals, so be sure to keep an eye out for the models below. 

The quick list

The best 4K projector overall

Even the best 4K projectors don’t often get release hype, but Samsung’s first projectors in 10 years created quite a buzz at its release in late 2020.

Design:  The LSP9T is designed to fade into the background of your setup. This is a simple white box with bountiful ports to the rear and a wedge for the short throw image. The curved lines and subtle approach easily fits with more of a living room aesthetic than other black options and keeps things slick in the process. 

Features: It even has all the functionality you’d expect from a smart TV, with Samsung’s Tizen smart TV interface giving all your usual menus, streaming apps, and content. You can even use Samsung’s built-in Bixby system (with Alexa and Google Assistant support if you have listening devices already). As a minor gripe though, the OS can run a little slow at times.

There’s even fantastic sound with 40-watt speakers – much louder than the usual 10-20W for projectors – if you don’t have enough left in the pocket for a top gaming sound system or similar. And if the price is out of range, the single-laser Premiere SP-LSP7T is also an excellent option at just over half the price.

Performance: The innovative three laser light source delivers exceptional pictures, with a laser each for red, blue, and green lights. This means incredible brightness and colours, even with ambient light. This is true 4K, without compromise. Even more impressive is the incredible short throw, meaning you can place this close to your projection surface and achieve a gigantic picture. There are some occasional rainbow effects, and – like most projectors – you may need to tweak the picture for darker images, but these do not spoil an incredible watching experience.

Verdict: The Premiere LSP9T matches up to every bit of the hype and more to make claim to being the best 4K projector on the market today. 

The best budget 4K projector

You can sometimes end up paying for a brand when it comes to the best 4K projectors. However, if you stray from the traditional household names in home entertainment then you can find a real bargain, and Optoma is one of the brands that consistently deliver great value projectors which can go toe-to-toe with the big boys.

Design: Unlike the Samsung above, this cheaper Optoma model opts for a more traditional projector design. That means the black box carries a chunkier aesthetic, with grills running around the edges and a single silver strip cutting everything in half horizontally. There is a white model floating around for those after something a little more subtle, but it's more difficult to find at the moment. It makes up for this harsher design with a lightweight 5.2kg footprint, though, which makes it easy to mount. 

Features: You would need to keep this hooked up to a video source to run video as it doesn’t have an onboard operating system that would allow you to stream direct, but that’s a small quibble when you’re getting such a great picture for the price. The 51 model also boasts Amazon Alexa compatibility and 3D picture, though we don't expect too many to be using the latter feature.

Performance: It offers fantastic colour, with good black depths, and smooths out fast motion to keep up with the quickest of action scenes. It also upscales non-4K images beautifully and even has 3D capability (which requires the purchase of DLP link active shutter glasses) should you want to re-watch Avatar ahead of the sequels. However, despite its good light rating, this unit may need the curtains drawn to get the most out of it as it struggles slightly with a lot of ambient light.

Verdict: The UHD51 has been out for a couple of years now, which means you can find some great deals on it, although 'budget' 4K still means four figures. Still, if you're not looking to go too crazy it's an excellent investment.

The best 4K projector for gaming

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If you're after a low latency 4K projector for gaming, the BenQ X3000i is a must-see. While its super smooth gameplay features are impressive, this is a device that can handle movies and TV just as well. 

Design: The X3000i is a larger 4K projector, with a tall form factor and wide base. The height of the unit makes it bulky, but really this is quite a minor complaint and there’s a lot of technology to cram in. Still, this isn't one for mounting or tucking away into a hidden corner. It's a good thing that the aesthetic itself is so clean, then, with a crisp white plastic chassis and dark black lens panel outlined with a fun orange strip. 

Features: BenQ has offered a first with the X3000i's specs:: 4K gameplay with 16ms input lag at 60Hz (with the ability to go as low as 4ms input lag with some sacrifices to other image settings). They’ve also thought in depth about not just the needs of gamers all round but different types of gamers. The X3000i is one of the best 4K projectors but is aimed at role-playing gamers – players who want to be truly immersed in the amazing worlds that triple-A titles are focussing on so much now. The key to this is BenQ’s CinematicColour system which offers incredible colour reproduction. The depth of colour is astonishing, with incredibly rich reds, blues and greens on the landscapes of next-gen games. There’s built-in streaming through an integrated Android dongle, but as usual there are key apps missing.

Performance: The unit offers something for everyone – the low input lag means that playing first-person shooters is a smooth experience even when running through a map or moving fast to take out a horde of foes. And bright party games like Fall Guys or Mario Kart look astonishing, even in ambient light which can so often wash the colour out of other projectors. While it’s designed for gamers, watching films or TV shows is also a joy, whether a bright Pixar film or a gritty drama – the detail in the dark colours works well for picking out an enemy lurking in the shadows in a shooter or keeping track of a fight scene in a DC movie.

Verdict: BenQ has raised the bar for projectors with this range and the X3000i has produced some of the best 4K projector gaming images we have ever seen.

Read more: BenQ X3000i review

The best luxury 4K projector

The Sony VPL-VW590ES is a step up from its much-loved predecessor the VW570, mostly thanks to the incredible X1 chip which has been based on Sony’s Bravia TV technology.

Design: The VPL-VW590ES is large and heavy, but so are most 4K native projectors. However, this thing weighs in at 14kg, which can be a concern if you plan on mounting it above your head. However, its smooth corners and longer rectangular shape is a staple among high end 4K projectors, and it keeps things manageable as long as you have a sturdy bracket above. 

Features: That Bravia tech is the biggest feature here, optimised for super high-end picture and upscaling. Aside from that, though, you're also getting dynamic HDR for frame by frame rendering. A slight quibble is the lack of connectivity beyond HDMI and USB, but if you’re shelling out this much for a projector you’re likely to have an amp ready to go for this already, so not having inbuilt speakers may not be such a problem. 

Performance: The X1 is an incredibly fast processor which is constantly working to give you incredible picture quality – analysing frame by frame to ensure everything looks sharp and smooth. Bright enough to be great quality picture even with significant levels of ambient light, and with astonishing depth of colour and contrast.

It’s great for gaming with no notable input lag, and the expansive landscapes of open-world games look astonishing in a 4K image of over 100 inches – but so do the bright colours of a platformer. It gives incredible detail even in the darkest shadow, a feat few projectors manage.

Verdict: Yes, it’s pricy, but the Sony VPL-VW590ES is a cutting-edge projector which truly brings the cinema home and worth the money if you have it. 

Read more: Sony VPL-VW590ES projector review

The best mid-range 4K projector

Launched in September 2020, this is a great projector that makes Epson very competitive at this end of the best 4K projector market.

Design: The curved edges and bulbous shape of the Epson Home Cinema 3800 feels a little retro to us, but with so much tech packed into a far smaller chassis than you'll find elsewhere it feels cute rather than cheap. This is a squat design which can easily be lifted up high for ceiling mounting - though you'll need to reach for the controls which are placed at the top of the main unit. 

Features: The option of Bluetooth audio output means you don’t need to have quite so many wires trailing across the room if you’ve run a soundbar under the projected image. However, there are some practical niggles: the onboard controls are a little cluttered; and the dials for lens shift are a slightly strange way to employ this feature. But once you’ve set it up and you’re staring at the beautiful image these minor issues will be quickly forgotten.

Performance: The Epson gives a great picture which belies the mid-range price. Colors are impressive for wide landscapes or close-ups of faces, and although there are some of the problems with blacks lacking depths which projectors often suffer from you’d have to be quite pernickety to spot it. 

While there aren’t any frame interpolation options on 4K-level settings, motion blur is low and action remains smooth. Even when switched to the 1080p modes there’s a fantastic picture, plus many extra settings to reduce any blur even further at this resolution.

Verdict: If you're after a 4K projector that doesn't pack too many bells and whistles into its final price but still offers up a considerable step up from entry level, the Epson Home Cinema 3800 is your best bet.

Note: The alternative name for this model, the Epson EH-TW7100 is what the unit is sold as in the UK.

The best 4K projector for VRR

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The Acer Predator GD711 is a 4K projector for gaming if ever we've seen one. While the BenQ model above is our top pick when it comes to pure 4K quality, the Predator offers some serious gameplay chops in its feature list and performance.

Design: There's no doubt about it, this is a projector built for gaming. It's immediately obvious from the large black chassis, complete with angular lines, embossed glossy logo, and heavy grills. This is a heavy duty device with the aesthetic to match, so those working with a smaller space are going to need to find a workaround to support such a large footprint. 

Features: As well as that glorious UHD resolution, there's an ultra-fast refresh rate of up to 240Hz in 1080p for PC (120Hz at 1080p for consoles) and minimal input lag which we found makes this ideal for gaming. In our testing, games were silky smooth, without noticeable lag and even the quickest FPS stays sharp as you wildly move the camera around.

We did find the 10W speakers to be tinny and weak, but if you’re dropping this kind of money on a projector for PS5, you're likely to both want and will buy, or already have, a good audio setup. A lack of zoom control feels a bit baffling, meaning you have to set projector size by placement, and unless your room fits the throw ratio you may need a ceiling mount to get it in the right distance. Also, while there’s a wide range of colour pallets to chose from to enhance your viewing, some manual tweaks were needed to stop the picture looking a bit washed out.

Performance: Landscapes look lush, the bright game mode makes colours pop and the dark game mode keeps detail up in the shadows by using the DynamicBlack technology. Video looks amazing too and makes the most of the 4K resolution the GD711 can pump out, with a wide range of modes giving you ideal setups quickly for the perfect colour pallet. Once set up, the GD711 easily one of the best 4K projectors for gaming going.

Verdict: The Acer Predator GD711 offers a well-rounded package, save for a few practical issues. However, its motion handling and variable refresh rate are top class, making it a must-see for competitive players. 

Read more: Acer Predator GD711 review

Remember to peruse the best projector screen and best outdoor projector screen markets to ensure you have the right gear for your projected images.

And also remember that it's always worth trying to get hold of a new console for your new 4K projector so you'll need to know how to find buy a PS5 and how to buy Xbox Series X. And if you do prefer your screens TV-shaped then check out our guides to the best TV for PS5 and Xbox Series X, best 120Hz 4K TV, and best OLED TV too.