Spending £300 on a TV in 2026 gets you more than it should. The budget end of the market has improved over the past couple of years: better panels, faster smart systems, HDR support that used to cost twice as much. The gap between a £250 set and a £500 one is smaller than most people think.
This guide covers six TVs under £300, split by size: two 32-inch sets for bedrooms, kitchens and smaller rooms, and four 43-inch models for anyone who wants a proper living room TV without spending serious money. Every price and stock status here was re-checked on 5 September 2026, and every set is one you can buy new today. No discontinued models, no marketplace-only listings at inflated prices.
A quick note on 55-inch TVs: they rarely drop below £300 unless something's being cleared out. If you need a big screen, keep an eye on our electronics deals page for when they do. For most people on this budget, 43 inches is the sweet spot.
How do they compare side by side?
| TV | Price | Size | Resolution | Panel | Smart platform | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TCL 32SF560-UK | £138 | 32" | Full HD | QLED, Direct LED | Fire TV | 4.2/5 |
| Hisense 32E4QTUK | £149 | 32" | Full HD | Direct Lit LED | VIDAA + Freely | 4.4/5 |
| Philips 43PUS8200 | £199 | 43" | 4K UHD | LED, Ambilight | Titan OS | 3.8/5 |
| Hisense 43E6QTUK | £229 | 43" | 4K UHD | Direct Lit LED | VIDAA + Freely | 4.5/5 |
| Samsung U7020H | £259 | 43" | 4K UHD | Crystal UHD | Tizen | 4.0/5 |
| Hisense 43E78QTUK | £269 | 43" | 4K UHD | QLED, Direct Lit | VIDAA + Freely | 4.4/5 |
Ratings are Amazon UK customer scores at the time of checking. Prices verified 5 September 2026.
What should you look for in a budget TV?
- Resolution: At 32 inches, Full HD (1080p) is fine. You won't notice the jump to 4K at normal viewing distances. At 43 inches, go for 4K. Every set in this guide at that size is 4K.
- Panel type: LED is standard at this price. QLED (quantum dot) is a step up, with better colour range and brightness, and two sets here offer it for surprisingly little money.
- HDR: HDR10 is the baseline. Dolby Vision is better and common now even at budget prices. HDR10+ is Samsung's alternative and does a similar job. Any of these will make a visible difference on streaming content.
- Smart platform: This matters more than you'd think. A sluggish interface on a TV you use every day gets old fast. The main options are Fire TV (Amazon), Titan OS, Tizen (Samsung) and VIDAA (Hisense). All have the major UK apps, but some are smoother than others.
- Freely support: New and genuinely useful. Freely streams live UK channels over the internet with no aerial at all. Both Hisense sets and most 2025-onward models include it.
- HDMI ports: Three is ideal. Two works if you've only got a set-top box and nothing else. At this price HDMI 2.0 is the norm, so don't expect 120Hz console features.
The 6 best budget TVs under £300
1. TCL 32SF560-UK — best value small TV (£138)
This is the cheapest set here and the one to buy if you just want a decent small TV without thinking about it too hard. It replaces the 32SF540K that used to sit at the top of this guide, and it is a genuine upgrade: TCL has put a QLED panel into a 32-inch Full HD set at £138, which was not happening a year ago.
Quantum dot colour at this size and price is unusual. It will not transform a 1080p picture, but it does give noticeably richer colour than the plain LED sets it competes with. Direct LED backlighting rather than edge-lit also helps with brightness uniformity.
The smart side is Fire TV, which is fast, familiar if you already own Amazon devices, and covers every UK app you would want. Alexa is built into the remote. You also get up to six user profiles, which is more useful than it sounds on a shared kitchen or bedroom TV.
It is a 32-inch Full HD set, so do not expect miracles: sound is thin, and the panel is not bright enough for a sunny conservatory. For a bedroom, kitchen or spare room it is hard to argue with at this money.
Pros: QLED panel at £138, Fire TV is quick and well stocked, Direct LED backlight, six user profiles
Cons: Thin built-in sound, not bright enough for very sunny rooms, Full HD only
Best for: Bedrooms, kitchens and second rooms on the tightest budget
Where to buy: Amazon (£138)*
2. Hisense 32E4QTUK — best 32-inch for live TV (£149)
Eleven pounds more than the TCL and rated slightly higher by Amazon buyers at 4.4 out of 5. What you are paying the extra for is Freely, which streams live UK channels over your broadband with no aerial connected at all. If you are putting a TV in a room with no aerial socket, that single feature settles it.
The panel is Direct Lit LED with what Hisense calls a Natural Colour Enhancer, and a deliberately wide viewing angle, which matters on a small set that people watch from odd corners of a room. Dolby Audio and DTS Virtual X handle the sound.
It is Full HD rather than 4K, which is the right call at 32 inches. VIDAA, the Hisense smart platform, is not as polished as Fire TV or Tizen, but it is perfectly usable and carries all the main UK catch-up apps.
Pros: Freely means no aerial needed, wide viewing angle, Direct Lit LED, strong customer rating
Cons: VIDAA feels a step behind Fire TV, ordinary built-in speakers, Full HD only
Best for: Rooms with no aerial socket, or anyone who wants live TV without a set-top box
Where to buy: Amazon (£149)*
3. Philips 43PUS8200 — best under £200 and the most interesting (£199)
A 43-inch 4K TV with Ambilight for £199 is the most distinctive thing on this list. Ambilight is the Philips trick of putting LEDs on the back of the set that project colour onto the wall matching what is on screen. It is a gimmick until you live with it, and then going back to a set without it feels flat. It makes the screen feel bigger than it is, which is exactly what you want at 43 inches.
Picture handling comes from the Pixel Precise Ultra HD engine, and there is Dolby Atmos decoding for the sound. The smart platform is Titan OS, which is the weakest part of the package: it covers the main streaming apps but it is less mature than Tizen or Fire TV, and the app library is thinner.
Be aware this is the lowest-rated set in the guide at 3.8 out of 5, and stock moves in and out rather than sitting permanently in Amazon's warehouse. Buy it for Ambilight and the price. If you want the safest 43-inch pick, take the Hisense below instead.
Pros: Ambilight at £199, 4K, Dolby Atmos, genuinely distinctive
Cons: Lowest customer rating here, Titan OS is the weakest smart platform, stock comes and goes
Best for: Film and TV watching in a darker room where Ambilight earns its keep
Where to buy: Amazon (£199)*
4. Hisense 43E6QTUK — best overall budget TV (£229)
If you are buying one TV under £300 and you do not want to think about it, buy this one. It carries the highest customer rating in the guide at 4.5 out of 5, it is currently reduced from £259 to £229, and it does everything competently.
The Hi-View AI Engine upscales lower-resolution content frame by frame, which matters more than the marketing language suggests when most of what you watch is compressed streaming rather than native 4K. Precision Colour uses quad-core processing for colour accuracy, and AI Smooth Motion handles fast-moving content like football without the smearing that ruins cheap panels.
Direct Lit full-array backlighting gives more even brightness across the panel than edge-lit sets at this price. Freely is built in, so live UK channels work over broadband with no aerial.
What you do not get is QLED. If colour depth matters more to you than saving £40, step up to the 43E78QTUK below. For everyone else, this is the sensible buy.
Pros: Best-rated set here, reduced to £229, strong motion handling, Freely built in, Direct Lit backlight
Cons: No quantum dot panel, VIDAA is functional rather than slick, sound needs a soundbar
Best for: Most people. The default choice under £250
Where to buy: Amazon (£229)*
5. Samsung U7020H 43" — best big-brand pick (£259)
If you want Samsung specifically, this is the one that fits under £300. It is reduced from £299 to £259 and brings the Crystal Processor 4K, PurColor and HDR10+ together with Tizen, which remains one of the best-organised smart platforms going.
Two features stand out for how people actually use a living room TV. Football Mode adjusts picture and sound for live matches, which is a more useful preset than most of the ones manufacturers ship. And the Gaming Hub gives you cloud gaming without a console attached.
The Dynamic Sound Pack with OTS Lite tracks on-screen action across the speakers. It is better than the flat stereo on most sets at this price, though a soundbar still improves things.
The customer rating is 4.0 out of 5, lower than the Hisense sets, and you are paying something for the badge. But Tizen is genuinely good, Samsung supports its TVs for years, and the build feels a class above the budget competition.
Pros: Tizen is polished and well supported, HDR10+, Football Mode, Gaming Hub, reduced from £299
Cons: You pay a brand premium, rated lower than the Hisense sets, Tizen pushes Samsung's own services
Best for: Anyone who wants a big-brand TV with long software support
Where to buy: Amazon (£259)*
6. Hisense 43E78QTUK — best picture quality under £300 (£269)
The most expensive set here and the best picture. This is the QLED version of the E6QTUK above: same Hi-View AI Engine and Direct Lit backlight, but with a quantum dot layer producing over a billion shades of colour, plus Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos.
Dolby Vision is the meaningful addition. It carries scene-by-scene HDR data rather than one setting for the whole film, and on Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video the difference in highlight detail is visible even on a budget panel. Dolby Atmos does what it can through TV speakers, which is not much, but it passes through properly to a soundbar.
At £269 you are £40 above the E6QTUK for quantum dot colour and Dolby Vision. If you watch a lot of film and drama, that is money well spent. If you mostly watch daytime TV and news, it is not.
Pros: Quantum dot colour, Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos, Hi-View AI upscaling, Freely built in
Cons: The most expensive set here, still VIDAA, built-in sound cannot deliver on the Atmos badge
Best for: Film and drama watchers who want the best panel available under £300
Where to buy: Amazon (£269)*
When is the best time to buy a TV in the UK?
TV prices follow a fairly predictable cycle. The deepest discounts tend to land at these points:
- January sales: Retailers clear last year's stock after Christmas. Older models often hit their lowest-ever prices.
- Amazon Prime Day (July): Amazon-branded TVs (Fire TV) drop significantly, and competitors often match with their own promotions.
- Black Friday and Cyber Monday (November): The biggest sales event of the year for electronics.
- New model launches (spring): When Samsung, LG and others announce their new ranges, the previous year's models get discounted to clear stock.
Two sets in this guide are already reduced: the Hisense 43E6QTUK from £259 and the Samsung U7020H from £299. Budget TV stock also turns over quickly, and models disappear for good rather than coming back cheaper. If a set here suits you, buying now is reasonable.
What about refurbished TVs?
Refurbished TVs can be decent value, but I'd be cautious with budget models. The savings versus buying new are usually small (£20-40), and you lose the full manufacturer warranty. If you're going refurbished, buy from a retailer with a proper returns policy. Richer Sounds and Amazon Renewed are both reasonable. Avoid marketplace sellers offering "graded" TVs without clear warranty terms.
Frequently asked questions
Is 4K worth it at 43 inches?
Yes, if you're sitting within about 2 metres of the screen, which most people are in an average UK living room. The difference between 1080p and 4K is visible at that distance, especially on streaming content mastered in 4K. At 32 inches, the gap narrows enough that Full HD is fine, which is why both 32-inch sets here are 1080p.
Do I need a soundbar?
Probably. Every TV in this guide has acceptable built-in speakers for dialogue-heavy content like the news, but none will impress you with a film soundtrack. A budget soundbar for £50-80 transforms the experience. The Dolby Atmos support on the Hisense 43E78QTUK only becomes meaningful once you pair it with one.
What is Freely and do I need it?
Freely streams live UK television over your broadband instead of an aerial. It carries the main channels and catch-up apps in one interface. If your room has no aerial socket, or your aerial reception is poor, it removes the problem entirely. Both Hisense sets and the 43E6QTUK have it built in. If you already have good aerial reception or use a set-top box, it is a nice extra rather than a reason to buy.
Which smart platform is best?
They all have the major UK apps, so the difference is speed and usability. Tizen on the Samsung is the most polished, though it pushes Samsung's own services. Fire TV on the TCL is fast and familiar if you use other Amazon devices. VIDAA on the Hisense sets works fine but feels a step behind. Titan OS on the Philips is the weakest and has the thinnest app library.
Can I game on these TVs?
Casually, yes. The Samsung U7020H is the best of these for gaming thanks to its Gaming Hub and Football Mode preset, and the Hisense sets handle motion well. None of these TVs are built for competitive gaming: at this price you get 60Hz panels and HDMI 2.0, so no 120Hz console modes. For single-player games and casual multiplayer they are fine.
Our verdict
Best overall: The Hisense 43E6QTUK at £229, reduced from £259. Highest customer rating in the guide, 4K with AI upscaling that actually helps on compressed streams, Direct Lit backlight and Freely built in. If you are buying one TV under £300, buy this.
Best picture: The Hisense 43E78QTUK at £269 adds quantum dot colour and Dolby Vision for £40 more. Worth it if you watch a lot of film and drama.
Best small TV: The TCL 32SF560-UK at £138. A QLED panel and Fire TV at that price is the bargain of this guide.
Best big brand: The Samsung U7020H at £259, down from £299. Tizen, HDR10+ and long software support.
Most interesting: The Philips 43PUS8200 at £199 for Ambilight, with the caveat that it is the lowest-rated set here.