Discover the Ultimate Selection of Online TV Shops - Ranked by Experts

Buying a newsmart TV doesn’t have to be daunting; online shopping makes it easier to compare deals, prices, and shipping options to get the best value. Stores like Walmart and Best Buy have websites that offer accessible shopping experiences with convenient options like free site-to-store shipping and even same-day pickup if you can’t wait to get your new TV.

Check out our top picks for online and in-store retailers below to see which has the best options for you.

Our Top Picks

Amazon

Courtesy of Amazon.com

There is no secret here–Amazon is one of the top destinations for online shopping. It seems like nearly everyone has ordered something from the online giant before. Amazon has a great variety of electronics. Its easy-to-use customer interface allows you to sort and filter by different features, including size, price, and the constructive average customer review. If you’re torn between a few choices, reading the reviews can help you discover the best set for your needs.

Moreover, Amazon offers helpful customer service and easy returns – most television orders will ship for free. When you’re looking for a new TV at a great price and the convenience of shipment right to your door, don’t overlook Amazon.

Walmart

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Courtesy of Walmart.com

Walmart is another retailer that most Americans know. However, while you may regularly visit to stock up on pantry staples, paper goods, and other household items, you may not realize that Walmart is also a great place to buy a television. Search their website online for your desired size or favorite brand; Walmart boasts everything from compact televisions ideal for a dorm room or RV to huge flat screens and has selections from top brands, including Samsung, Vizio, Sharp, Philips, and RCA. Walmart offers LED, LCD, 3D, 4K televisions, sleek curved-screen televisions, and convenient smart TVs.

Purchase new or score a great deal by browsing refurbished products. Walmart also offers value bundles that include popular accessories, making the buying process even more accessible. Plus, Walmart gives you a generous 90 days to return a television, and they accept returns in-store if you don’t want to deal with the hassle of shipping an item back.

Best Buy

Courtesy of BestBuy.com

For many people, the television is the center of their home entertainment system, whether they watch their favorite shows or sporting events, stream music, or gaming. If you’re ready to pick up a new television, Best Buy has many electronics products, including great TVs from brands such as Samsung, LG, Sony, Hisense, Toshiba, and others.

Need a new TV fast? On Best Buy’s website, you can sort by items that are available that day for in-store pickup. Many items ship free or have a price-match guarantee to help you get the best deal. Browse new or open-box products or even request help with installation from Best Buy’s tech team.

Overstock

Courtesy of Overstock.com

Founded in 1999, Overstock began as a startup but is now a billion-dollar retailer offering everything from home goods to furniture and electronics. The website has an easy-to-use sort and filter function that allows you to tailor results by screen size, resolution, price, or category.

Overstock has televisions as small as under 20 inches and as large as over 60 inches and offers a wide variety of television types and price options. While the selection can vary depending on what they have at the time you are looking, Overstock occasionally offers fabulous deals that would be hard to score anywhere else since they frequently offer coupons, sales, and other promotions.

Costco

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Courtesy of Costco.com

Members sing the praises of Costco for its huge bulk-purchase selections. Stroll through the aisles at your local store and browse everything from necessities such as toilet paper and paper towels to little luxuries like shelled nuts and wine. However, they’re also a great place to consider when looking for a new television – and you don’t have to be a member to access all of its great deals or even go to the store, thanks to its online shop.

Costco offers competitive pricing and a generous return policy that gives you a 90-day window to return a TV. They allow you to return in-store for an immediate refund. Do you live in an apartment or townhome? Costco is one of the only online retailers that offer free delivery that includes up to two flights of stairs. The main downside is that Costco only offers TVs from four brands – Samsung, Vizio, LG, and TCL – and some deals will only be available to members. However, this still gives customers a decent selection and the chance to score a great deal online.

B&H Photo, Video, and Pro Audio

Sony KDL-48W650D 48-inch 1080p LED/LCD TV. Image courtesy of Amazon

B&H Photo began in 1973 and is a trusted online home electronics retailer. The retailer’s website lets you browse new and certified used televisions to find a model that fits your budget. Shipping is free with orders over $49, and with a 30-day return window and included return labels, shopping for a new TV is about as hassle-free as possible. The website’s main page has easy-to-find contact information for customer service and corporate offices, so you can quickly ask questions about buying, shipping, and returns if you need to.

They also have a page dedicated to daily deals; this is a great way to see if you can save a little extra money without looking for promo codes or coupons. If browsing the site on the weekend, you should note that the company observes Shabbat and all Jewish holidays. So, if you put something in your cart on Friday evening, you won’t be able to checkout until after sundown on Saturday or when the holiday observance ends. They have an alert system that emails you when checkout re-opens, allowing you to pick right back up where you left off.

With so many brick-and-mortar and online retailers, shopping for a new TV can be a slog. Even though many big box retailers now allow for online shopping, you can still spend hours, days, or weeks scrolling through inventory selections, comparing brands and models. Shopping online for television can be daunting in its own right since you can’t physically see the TV; this makes it difficult to visualize it in your space and challenging to know the picture and audio quality.

But sometimes, shopping in-store is difficult or impossible; maybe the store doesn’t have the model you want in stock, or they have a limited television inventory. In this guide, we will walk you through some essential things to consider when shopping for a new TV in-store or online. We’ll talk about inventory and brand selection, price matching policies, shipping and delivery options, and even how to utilize user reviews to choose the best TV for your home.

How to Buy a TV For Your Home in 2024

Visit a Brick and Mortar Store if You Can

To help you decide before you buy, don’t be afraid to do a bit of in-store shopping to see a potential buy in action; you can check out and compare the picture quality and hear the audio clarity for yourself as you browse the display models for each brand, giving you valuable information that may be difficult to find online.

Sometimes, you can find a great deal while you’re there, but going back home to buy online can frequently allow you to take advantage of online-only rebates or coupons.

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Brand Selection

The number of brands available in-store or on a retailer’s website is essential when considering a new TV for your home or dorm. You should check if the store carries major brands like Sony, Samsung, and LG and smaller brands like Hisense, Vizio, and TCL. Various brands give you a better selection of screen sizes, smart features, and price points. More well-known brands tend to run pricier, while smaller brands are more affordable. However, while choosing the cheapest option to save money may be tempting, you may get burned with lackluster warranties and poor customer support.

If you’re thinking of springing for the most expensive television, you may be paying for features you don’t need and won’t use. It’s important to consider what you want your new television to do and where you’ll have it in your home. Will it be the primary television in your living room or home theater? You’ll want a decent-sized screen and plenty of smart features to binge-watch your favorite shows and movies. Will it be a secondary TV in your bedroom or kids’ playroom? Look at smaller televisions and models without streaming capabilities to monitor what your children are watching.

Samsung Frame TV - TV Viewing Mode. Image provided by Samsung

Price Matching

Have you ever bought something in-store or online, only to find the same thing at a different place for a better price? Many retailers have a price matching policy; if you find the same television model at one of their competitors for a better price, they’ll match it to keep you as a loyal customer. To take advantage of this, you often need a copy of the sale ad or promotional price to show as proof, and the sale price usually has to be the most recent to claim a price match.

Price matching can be a great way to save money and get a good deal on a new TV if store loyalty is essential to you. It’s also great for customers who live in areas where there are only a few retailers; for example, if Walmart is the only big box store near you, but you’ve found an excellent TV sale price at Best Buy an hour away, you can take the sale ad to Walmart and still get a good deal. Not all stores offer this policy, so it’s essential to ask an associate or customer service representative beforehand.

Home Delivery and Site-to-Store Shipping

If you have a smaller vehicle or can’t borrow a van or truck from a friend or family member, you may want to consider buying from a home-delivery retailer. You can ask customer service about having a TV that was purchased in-store delivered to your home; some stores even have staff who will help you set up your new TV and make sure everything works before leaving, making returns easier. It eliminates awkward and dangerous driving with a larvae TV box half hanging out of your trunk.

Many retailers now offer site-to-store shipping. You can order a television from the retailer’s website, have it shipped to the store for free, and pick it up the next day or at your convenience. It’s an excellent option for people who live in apartment buildings or are worried about having a high-priced item shipped directly to their home. Shipping to the store for pickup later means that your new TV will be kept safe from theft and damage from bad weather.

Image provided by Getty Images - Glow Images, Inc - Collection: Glow - 142547173

In-Store Expertise and Customer Reviews

If you have trouble deciding between brands or models, you can always ask in-store associates for an explanation or advice. Many stores have dedicated electronics staff who can answer your pricing, size and features questions. They can also explain store returns and exchange policies if you end up with a dud. If you’re shopping online, customer reviews are the best place to see if a particular brand or model is worth buying. But don’t just read the 5-star reviews; sometimes, reading the 1- and 2-star reviews first can give you an idea of common problems you may encounter with a model.

You can also get a feel for how many dead-on-arrival (DOA) units a manufacturer has let slip into the market. At the same time, getting a TV set up and realizing you have a dead unit is frustrating. Unfortunately, it happens. Quality Assurance departments work hard to ensure that top-notch, working products reach the hands of customers, but they can’t catch every bad unit. It’s also important to focus on negative reviews about the television rather than a poor shopping or shipping experience. A broken screen from rough shipping and handling and rude store staff are inconvenient, but these complaints don’t indicate how the TV works or malfunctions.

How to Buy a TV For Your Home in 2024

FAQ

• Is OLED better than QLED?
  An OLED television uses cutting edge technology and organic substrates to create the picture you see. With this tech, an OLED TV is capable of a wider range of colors, better detailing, and deeper contrasts, giving you unparalleled picture quality. A QLED television uses traditional LED back or side-lighting and panels. While it isn’t quite as good as an OLED, you can still get a great picture with a QLED television.
• Is it worth buying an 8K TV?
  In all honesty? No. Televisions capable of native 8K resolution are insanely expensive right now, some costing as much as a brand new car, and no streaming, cable, or over-air services offer native 8K content. It will probably be a few years still before we begin to see 8K video available for streaming or with cable, satellite, and over-air broadcast channels, so it’s best to wait before investing in an 8K television.
• What is a laser TV?
  A laser TV works like a projector; it uses LED laser bulbs to create a picture in 1080p or 4K resolution. The difference between a laser TV and a standard projector is that a laser TV has an incredibly short throw distance, with some needing just 6 inches of space between it and the wall! This means you won’t have to have a huge room in your house or outdoor theater in order to use one. Check out our article that explains laser TVs in-depth.

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