The 5 Best Gaming Monitors Under $100 Reviewed

Gaming is exactly the cheapest hobby. As soon as you’ve upgraded your CPU to run new games in high quality, you need to fork out on a new compatible motherboard, not to mention a quality cooling system.

Then comes all the peripheral hardware like graphics cards and extended memory…it never ends.

By the time you finally decide your janky old monitor can’t keep up with your modern equipment, you’re already empty of pocket and tuckered out from doing so much complex product research.

Well, we’ve got your back. We’re here to tell you that you don’t need to remortgage your home to get a quality monitor. You won’t even have to break the $100 mark.

Now, before we get started, these monitors aren’t exactly going to be top of the range, but we’re going to dig around for those diamonds in the rough that even the pickiest gaming maestro couldn’t turn their nose up at.

So, without further ado, let the miraculous monitor mayhem commence!

Best Gaming Monitors Under $100

1. Acer SB220Q bi 21.5” Full HD 1080p Monitor

Our first pick is such a freaking steal, you’ll feel like a shifty criminal after buying it, even though you paid in full.

One of the most important criteria for a high performing gaming monitor is a decent refresh rate, and let us tell you, this thing’s got refresh rate coming out the wazoo. At 75Hz, you shouldn’t have any problems with lag or stutter no matter how demanding the game is.

75Hz is at the lower end of the spectrum these days, but to put it in context for you, the average gamer is probably running a 60Hz system. This monitor puts you a cut above the rest for a price you won’t believe.

In terms of response time, Acer impresses again with an uber-fast 4ms. That’s more than fast enough to eliminate ghosting and motion blur in fast-moving gaming and video sequences.

During edge of the seat gaming moments, this color efficiency might be the difference between a triumphant victory and a devastating loss.

You’ll also be stoked to learn that it has AMD Radeon freesync technology that allows for completely fluid gameplay, so say adios to screen-tears, au revoir to stutters, and welcome, welcome to ultra-low input latency, woop!

There’s also plenty to get excited about in terms of design as well, most notably, the edge to edge display. When you’re shopping for budget monitors, one of the painful compromises you accept is a smaller display.

This Acer with its zero-frame perimeter helps to dull that pain and create a truly immersive gaming experience. It’s so thin you can barely tell where your room ends and the vast plains of Fortnite begin.

Connectivity-wise, you get a pretty standard setup for this price point with a single HDMI port and a single VGA port. Structurally speaking it’s not the most flexible build, but it does allow for 5 – 15 degree tilts.

Ultimately, spec-wise, the SB220Q is holding its own against monitors up to twice its price, existing at an intersection between quality and economy.

2. Asus VP228HE 21.5” Full HD 1080p Gaming Monitor

Our number two spectacular budget-friendly monitor is designed specifically with gaming in mind, so if you’re looking for a dedicated, single-application monitor, this may be what you’re looking for.

With a refresh rate of 60Hz (the standard for gaming), you can expect some really impressive graphical performances. This is on the borderline of what we’d consider great for modern gaming. It’s proficient enough to handle demanding titles without any drag. Perfect!

Leaving us fairly shell shocked, the VP228HE boasts a 1ms response time making it even more impressive on this count than our top pick. Due to the slightly reduced refresh rate, your picture won’t be as soft as the Acer, but the pixels will definitely outperform our number one spot in terms of color transitions.

We’ve all been there, emerging from a significant session, hissing like Dracula at the sun and blinking through the day. Well with Asus’s eye-friendly display dressing and flicker protection, natural light after lengthy gameplay will no longer be your enemy.

It reduces the emission of blue light to a non-hazardous level and prevents brightness spikes, saving our poor pupils from too much abuse.

Structurally speaking, the VP228HE isn’t quite as sophisticated as our number one pick. It has a much wider frame which will make the 21.5” display feel a little smaller, but it’s not a deal-breaker.

You get the same two ports: one HDMI, and one VGA. What you do get with this monitor that you don’t with our top pick are built-in speakers. They’re not fantastic, but they’re better than nothing.

3. HP Pavilion 21.5” Full HD 1080p Monitor

Bringing your games to life, at our number three spot, we have a somewhat surprising contender with a luscious color profile, just scraping into our $100 budget.

HP isn’t exactly famous for its gaming products, which is why we were shocked when we gave this little one’s specs a look over. With a 60Hz refresh rate, it’s more than capable of running advanced games in a soft and crisp manner, offering a performance that can keep up with your skills.

Moving on to response time, the Pavilion clocks in at a fairly respectable 7ms. Gamers typically aim for between 1 – 5ms, but there will be very little dip in performance between 5 and 7ms.

Anywhere from 8 or above will most likely have minor ghosting and motion blur issues. 7ms may struggle a little with really demanding games that require lightning-fast color shifting, but for the most part, it shouldn’t be a problem.

It’s not often something you see when it comes to monitors, but the Pavilion was designed to be especially energy-efficient. If you’re an energy guzzler when it comes to gaming, this monitor might be the relief your bank account is craving.

We really appreciate the design of this monitor. The frame is slightly thinner than the Asus VP228HE, which is great, but the best feature is the unique dual-arms that fix it to its foot. They offer a really stylish and minimal look, although it prevents any pivot or swivel function.

HP has really cobbled together something special in here. Yes, it’s great for gaming, but thanks to their broader outlook on computing applications, it’s also a solid work or leisure monitor.

The only problem we could dig up is that some customers noticed a reduction in picture quality after around a year, but these are pretty isolated cases.

4. BenQ GW2283 22” 1080p Monitor

Coming in at number four, we have another great all-rounder, but this one has some extra special abilities that are really impressive for the price.

What really stands out with the GW2283 is its intelligent brightness technology. Integrated sensors assess the presence of natural light and alter color temperature and display brightness automatically to offer optimal clarity in any situation.

This is a really cool function, but we worry that it might get a little annoying, especially if the sensor starts acting up.

Much like our last two picks, you can expect a 60Hz refresh rate from this BenQ monitor, perfect for some quality gaming with very little drag, if any. It’s rare that you find a gaming monitor with a refresh rate any faster below $100, but it’s nothing to worry about.

Your eye acclimatizes to whatever you use the most, so if you’re used to 60Hz, going significantly higher may actually cause your eyes some discomfort.

This BenQ has a really solid 5ms response time which should be more than fast enough to streamline intense games and movie sequences, and the impressive 3000:1 contrast ratio keeps colors vivid and defined.

The GW2283 is similar to our second pick in regards to eye-care. You’ll find almost identical flicker proofing and blue light filters in place, preventing any irritation or strains. This is one of the reasons this is a fantastic all-rounder computer.

You could spend all day in front of it working, then spend your evening gaming without causing your eyes too much stress.

An ultra-slim bezel is the key design component here, and we’d be remiss if we didn’t specify that this is the largest display on our list, only by half an inch, but screen real estate is a valuable thing.

You also get pretty impressive connectivity with dual HDMI ports. This means you can plug your console and your PC into it and switch between them at the press of a button.

Overall, this is a really impressive gaming monitor, even if it is marketed for office use.

The simple, sleek design might be exactly what you’re looking for, and the slightly larger display is a lovely bonus considering the price.

5. Sceptre 20” E205EW 16003R Monitor

Cinching the final place on our list is a super affordable monitor for those of you willing to compromise on a few performative qualities in order to get the best price possible.

The first thing we took into account here is the fact that it has a pretty outdated resolution. 1080p is the standard this day and age, and even that is slowly giving way to 1440p.

A lower resolution ultimately means that your monitor isn’t going to be as clear, but depending on your other tech, it might actually be preferable.

Say, for instance, that your GPU maxes out beneath the capacities of 1080p, trying to use 1080p monitors is going to cause some pretty annoying blur as it tries to accommodate a foreign resolution.

Now we’ve confronted the blurry elephant in the room, we can move on to telling you just how great this monitor really is for gaming. Giving our top pick a run for its money, the Sceptre has a 75Hz refresh rate, which is the absolute max you’re going to find below $100.

The Sceptre doesn’t stop trying to prove itself in terms of response times either, boasting a 5ms rate, which is nuts considering the price of this thing. Even with the slightly lower resolution, this monitor’s going to facilitate some amazingly smooth and enjoyable gameplay.

The screen is a little smaller than we’d like, especially for those games that have infinitesimal writing and annotations such as the Dragon Age series, but that’s a pretty specific hang up. When it comes to lower resolutions, sometimes a smaller display can actually be beneficial as it tightens pixels up a bit.

Despite this monitor’s setbacks, we do appreciate the general design. The thin bezel really helps to make the screen look as big as possible, and the oval foot sits way back, allowing you to get your eyes and keys as close to the screen as necessary.

With dual HDMI ports, one DVI input, and one VGA input this is actually the most versatile monitor on our list in terms of connectivity.

The E205EW really feels like the little monitor that could. It’s dirt cheap, and if it wasn’t for the slightly reduced resolution, it’s specs go some way in competing with monitors way over twice its price.

If you’re just starting your PC gaming life, maybe with some older games, you absolutely can’t go wrong with this thing.

Conclusion

That’s this list over and done with. We think we’ve covered all the bases here. Did you find one of these super cheap monitors enticing, or have they convinced you to save for a bigger budget?

People often get wrapped up in talk and speculation when it comes to monitors.

Discussing the cold hard specs can lead to a lot of people discounting cheaper options like the ones on our list, but performatively, all of these monitors are fairly spectacular.

Our top pick, the Acer SB220Q, holds its own against some pretty stacked competition, and even our final super affordable Sceptre pick has some really awesome gaming qualities.

Unless you’re a stone-cold gaming pro that needs lightning-fast everything in order to defeat your foes, any one of these monitors will provide you with an immersive and enjoyable gaming life.

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