LG G5 TV review: Still a top high-end OLED for the money

When you buy through our links, Business Insider may earn an affiliate commission. Learn moreThe G5 earns our highest recommendation for buyers who want high-end image performance.Steven Cohen/Business InsiderWhen the LG G5 OLED was released in spring 2025, it easily stood out as one of the best TVs of the year. And even now, in 2026, it still offers some of the best image quality you can buy. A few newer models have surpassed it in certain areas, but given recent discounts, you'd be hard-pressed to find a better high-end TV for the money.Using LG's four-stack OLED panel, the G5 balances perfect contrast with high brightness, sharp detail, rich colors, and wide viewing angles. This is the kind of premium image quality that makes home theater nerds like me geek out. The G5 also has solid smarts via LG's webOS interface and some interesting perks like AI voice recognition.However, the G5 is no longer the brightest OLED on the block. That honor now goes to the Samsung S95H. LG has also released an updated model, the G6, that offers improvements in processing and handling of reflections. But while both of those newer TVs are technically superior, they also cost quite a bit more than the G5 typically sells for. While it's still readily in stock at a lower price than its 2026 rivals, the LG G5 remains my top high-end TV recommendation.The TV has an elegant design, but a stand costs extraThe G5 doesn't come with a stand, but LG sells a pedestal separately (pictured above).Steven Cohen/Business InsiderLG's G5 is available in 55-, 65-, 77-, 83-, and 97-inch sizes. For this review, I tested a 65-inch unit. With the exception of the 97-inch model, all sizes offer the same specifications. The 97-inch model uses a different kind of OLED panel, so it can't get as bright as its smaller counterparts.The G5 uses LG's One Wall design, which allows it to be mounted with virtually no gap. A bracket is included in the box, so you don't need to buy one separately. On the downside, LG doesn't include a traditional pedestal stand, so if you don't want to mount the G5, you'll need to purchase one separately. LG sells a stand for $100 (which was used for this review), and the G5 is compatible with many of the best TV stands from other manufacturers.Though the G5 looks best when mounted, its elegant style still shines through when placed on its pedestal. The display is made of premium materials and has a thin profile measuring just under an inch. The build and aesthetics are what you'd expect from a flagship display and are a clear step up from the cheaper construction of more budget-friendly models.LG also gets points for including four HDMI 2.1 ports that support up to 4K at 165Hz. Some rival brands, such as Sony, only include two HDMI 2.1 ports and use HDMI 2.0 for the remaining inputs. This is a great perk for gamers who want to connect multiple systems to the TV, as HDMI 2.1 is needed to unlock the smoothest performance on current-gen consoles and high-end PCs.The revised remote is much more comfortable to hold, but it's missing some useful buttons.Steven Cohen/Business InsiderLG redesigned its Magic Remote, and this version is mostly an improvement. It has a thinner, more traditional shape instead of the bulky body used on past LG remotes, which makes it feel better in hand. Its main selection button, which doubles as a scroll wheel, also feels sturdier, making clicks more responsive. Sadly, the remote is not backlit, which has become standard on some competing TVs from TCL, Hisense, and Roku.Like past models, the Magic Remote lets you choose between navigating with standard button presses and using motion controls (the "magic" part) to point the remote at the screen and move a virtual cursor. Unfortunately, there's no way to fully deactivate motion control if you don't like it. Clicking the directional pad temporarily turns it off, but it gets turned back on when you slide the scroll wheel, which is too easy to accidentally trigger.The remote's button layout has also been simplified, and I generally like this more minimalist approach. But there are two odd choices. First, there's no longer an input select button. To switch inputs on the TV, you have to hold down the Home button to open the smart hub menu, or scroll through the homepage to find the input you want. Second, there's no mute button. You can still activate mute by holding the remote's volume down button, but this means there's no way to quickly lower the volume without fully muting it. These are small complaints, but they just strike me as strange choices.The G5's premium image quality remains impressiveThe G5 is still one of the brightest OLED TVs on the market.Steven Cohen/Business InsiderThe G5 was the first consumer TV to use LG's four-stack OLED panel design. This type of screen offers key benefits over the standard WOLED panel used on most of LG's cheaper C- and B-series TVs. A four-stack design optimizes how an OLED produces color and light, allowing for high

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