1080p, 1440p or 4K: which screen for gaming?

The screen you play on decides how powerful your PC needs to be. A sharper screen, or a faster one, needs a stronger graphics card. Choose the screen first, and the right PC follows.

What resolution means

Resolution is how many tiny dots, called pixels, make up the picture. More pixels means a sharper, more detailed picture. The three common choices are:

• 1080p (also called Full HD): the most common. Good on screens up to about 24 inches.
• 1440p (also called QHD or 2K): about 1.8 times the pixels of 1080p. Looks great on a 27-inch screen.
• 4K (also called UHD): four times the pixels of 1080p. Very sharp, on big monitors and TVs.

What refresh rate (Hz) means

Refresh rate is how many times a second the screen updates the picture. It is measured in Hz (hertz). A normal screen is 60Hz. Gaming screens are often 144Hz, 165Hz or more. A higher number makes movement look smoother, which helps in fast games like Fortnite, Valorant and Warzone.

There is a catch. A fast screen only looks smoother if the PC can draw enough pictures each second to fill it. A 144Hz screen on a weak PC looks much the same as a 60Hz one.

How the screen decides the graphics card

The graphics card is the part of the PC that draws the game. Every pixel, every time the picture updates, is work for it. So:

• More pixels (a higher resolution) means more work.
• More updates each second (a higher Hz) means more work.
• Both together means a lot more work.

That is why a 4K gaming PC costs far more than a 1080p one. The rest of the PC matters less than the graphics card here.

Which should you choose?

Choose 1080p if you want to keep the cost down, play mostly lighter games, or sit close to a smaller screen. It is a good choice for a first gaming PC or a child's PC.

Choose 1440p if you want a clearly sharper picture and smooth play in most games. For many people this is the best balance of picture and price. It needs a mid-range to strong graphics card.

Choose 4K if you want the sharpest picture, you play on a big screen or TV, and your budget is high. It needs a high-end graphics card, and even then the hardest games may need some settings lowered.

Already have a screen?

Look on the back or in the settings to find its resolution and Hz. Then buy a PC that suits it. There is little point paying for a 4K PC to use on a 1080p screen. To see which games need what, read what PC you need for your game. If you already own a PC, upgrading may be cheaper than replacing it. And for a budget 1080p PC, see the best gaming PCs for under £1,000.

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