Whether you're looking for a portable projector for the outdoors or a home theater model with 4K resolution, these are the best projectors we've tested.
Updated Nov. 27, 2023 1:00 p.m. PT Mini Projector For Pc
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Are you interested in bringing the movie theater experience to the comfort of your own home? A movie projector is probably a better bet than shelling out money on an enormous 85-inch TV. In recent years, Home theater projectors have become easier on the wallet. A projector can give you a stunning 100-inch-plus screen to watch all your movies, shows and games while chilling in your living room. For an even more immersive experience, you can pair a soundbar to your projector to get some room-filling audio.
For a fraction of the price of a big TV , you can find a massive screen with a cost starting at around $200. Most home projector models are also portable, making it perfect for a backyard movie night with friends. Whether you're on the hunt for a projector to use on the go, something that'll make HD sources look phenomenal or you simply want a 4K projector , this list highlights the best home theater projectors we've tested.
If you're looking for impressive picture quality, good brightness in ambient light, vivid colors and a quality contrast ratio, then the Epson Home Cinema 5050UB is the best overall home theater projector.
If you want something less expensive, the best projector for the money is the BenQ HT2050A . It's worth noting that it's being discontinued soon, but its replacement, the HT2060 , is excellent and still one of our overall best projector picks.
The Epson Home Cinema 5050UB is the best all-around home projector we've reviewed. Take an excellent contrast ratio, paired with impressive brightness and accurate color, all with better detail than what's possible with a 1080p native resolution projector, and you've got all the pieces for a fantastic image. This home entertainment projector isn't cheap, but it offers a significant step up in image quality over other projectors on this list (aside from the Sony, which costs a lot more). It comes with HDMI 2.0, which lets you do 4K60p. Extensive lens shift and a motorized zoom are the icing on the cake.
The BenQ HT2060 replaces our longtime favorite, the HT2050A. It has many similarities, including 1080p resolution, lens shift and great color accuracy. The move to LEDs instead of a traditional lamp has two main benefits: First, the LEDs last the life of the projector, so no more replacing lamps; and second, it offers a rich and lifelike image with impressive color accuracy. The downsides are a reduction in brightness overall, and the HT2060 is about 25% more expensive to purchase. However, because you don't need to replace the lamps, the cost of ownership over the projector's lifetime is far lower compared with the HT2050A.
Head to head with its predecessor, the older projector still looks great, but overall the HT2060 is a little bit better. If your budget is around $1,000 and you have a light-controlled room, this is the projector to get. If you need some extreme light output, the Epson HC2350 mentioned below doesn't look quite as good but is far brighter.
The Epson HC2350 is an extremely bright 4K projector at a great price. It has lens shift, built-in streaming and a compact size. Its price has fallen since it was released, so now it goes head-to-head with another favorite of ours, the 1080p BenQ HT2060 mentioned above.
The HC2350 is impressively bright. It's one of the brightest projectors we've ever measured. However, its contrast ratio isn't great, well below average. As a result, its image is more washed out and "flat" compared with some other projectors, notably the aforementioned BenQ. While it's 4K, the HC2350 uses LCDs to create its image, so it's susceptible to motion blur. Because of that, it doesn't always look as sharp as you might expect. If you're ready for 4K and need something with extreme brightness, this is the best option anywhere near $1,000.
We wouldn't put this in the "cheap projector" bucket, but the BenQ HT2050A is definitely the best video projector you can get for the money. It produces a bright picture with great contrast and lifelike color accuracy. It's also one of the only comparable models with vertical lens shift, which makes setup a little easier. It supports most media players, gaming consoles, PCs, Macs and mobile devices with input options such as HDMI, USB and more. Plus, the projector offers a low input lag of 16ms for immersive gaming.
BenQ is discontinuing the HT2050A soon. Its replacement, the HT2060, is mentioned above. It's a little more expensive, but it uses LEDs instead of the HT2050A's replaceable lamps, so over its lifetime the HT2060 will be cheaper. If you don't want to spend more to start, or want the HT2050A's higher brightness, it's a great deal while it's still available.
The tiny P8 serves up a far bigger image than its size suggests. Though in fairness, the handheld size doesn't suggest it could project an image at all -- it looks more like a toy. But it's reasonably bright, has a built-in speaker and costs only $250 or even less. Impressive.
It doesn't have a battery, nor does it have any streaming apps. So you'll need to take that into consideration. It does have an HDMI input and a USB connection, so you can connect a streaming stick and get all the streaming apps you could possibly want. There are brighter options and better-looking options, but for the price the P8 is hard to beat. Read our AAXA P8 review.
It's smaller than a six-pack of Coke and equipped with Wi-Fi streaming, a surprisingly loud Bluetooth speaker and even a handle. It offers auto vertical and manual horizontal keystone correction. This portable mini projector powerhouse also has one thing many compact projectors like the Vimgo P10 lack: a built-in battery. This budget projector is an all-in-one entertainment machine that's darn cute, too. It lists for around $550, but you can save $70 when you pick it up from Anker directly and use the promo code WSCPCC8CGG at checkout.
The Sony VPL-VW325ES is a thoroughbred among ponies, a Porsche among Volkswagens, an absolute stunner with a price tag to match. The contrast ratio, easily the most important aspect of overall picture quality, is better than that of the Epson 5050, and significantly better than that of any projector which doesn't cost significantly more. And that's saying something, since the Sony itself costs far more than any other projector on this list. It checks the box for gaming with the input lag reduction feature. And with brightness that can go up to 1,500 Lumens, it works well in a bright room as well. If price is no object, the picture quality is incredible.
Sony has discontinued the VW325ES, but you can still find it available new online.
The Epson Home Cinema LS11000 is similar to the Epson 5050, but instead of a lamp it uses a laser and phosphor combo to create light. This means even better color, no lamp replacements, faster turn on/off and a more usable dynamic contrast ratio. A more advanced different pixel shifter means better resolution than the 5050 as well. It's more expensive to start, but over the life of the projector they should be about the same. So better picture quality for roughly the same total cost of ownership makes this well worth considering over the 5050. Read our Epson Home Cinema LS11000 review.
The EF-12 is a small, highly portable projector that looks a lot like the Anker Nebula Pro and the BenQ GS50, but it fits a slightly different niche. It's easy to tote and doubles as a Bluetooth speaker, but unlike those other two projectors, it can't run on a battery -- it requires AC power. The EF-12's light is created by Epson's "MicroLaser Array Projection Technology." Yep, laser beams, which deliver a brighter picture than LED-based models like the Nebula and GS50.
The Optoma UHZ50 uses a blue laser and a yellow phosphor to create some incredibly bright, ultracolorful images. It also has the second-best contrast ratio we've measured from a DLP projector. Also, because it's DLP, it has excellent detail. The zoom range and lens shift are fairly limited, so it won't fit in as many rooms as the Epson 5050 or LS11000, but otherwise it's very good. Read our Optoma UHZ50 Projector review.
The Xgimi Halo Plus is a relatively small 1080p projector with a 2.5-hour battery and surprisingly powerful speakers. It has Android TV built in, so streaming is far easier than with many other portables. It performs well for a portable projector but costs about the same as the BenQ HT2050A, which does a much better job. But for regular movie nights far from an outlet, it works great. Also note that you can save $130 at Amazon right now by activating the instant coupon on the product page. Read our Xgimi Halo Plus review.
The Vimgo P10's price fluctuates between $140 and $270, in the same ballpark as our favorite cheap projector, the AAXA P8. It's a lot larger than the P8. It's the largest cheap projector we've tested, actually, making it far less portable. But it's still "small" compared with full-size and more expensive projectors, however.
Picture quality is better than that of the P8 in some ways, worse in others. The Vimgo P10 has a great contrast ratio and decent brightness, but the color is remarkably terrible. The center of the image is noticeably sharper and brighter than the rest of the image. It's not great.
Best Portable Projectors For Movies But the price is. A perfectly watchable image for less than $150. It even has Netflix built in. Impressive. Read our Vimgo P10 review.