We’ve had our RTX 3060 Ti for a few days now and have been busy putting it through its paces. Whilst the $400 Price tag means this is a GPU almost anyone can afford, the performance on offer puts it firmly in the High Roller category! This GPU is insanely capable at the price, matching the last generation RTX 2080 Super in almost all areas. Of the Ampere cards released so far, it’s the one that’s impressed us most on the basis of its performance at the price point. However, this GPUs talent is wasted if you don’t pick a worthy monitor. In this article we’ll guide you through our recommendations for the best monitor pairings with the RTX 3060 Ti, taking value and performance into consideration.
For an RTX 3060 Ti the monitors that will work best are 1080p high FPS for eSports and competitive gaming, 1440p 144Hz for general gaming and productivity, or 1440p ultrawide for light or occasional gaming and general use. If you need a 4K monitor for other purposes but want to game occasionally the RTX 3060 Ti even has you covered there too. It’ll handle the most demanding titles at 4K with reduced but acceptable settings.
Things to consider when choosing your perfect monitor:
The monitor you use defines many characteristics of the PC. Primarily resolution dictates how well matched it is to the GPU power, with the higher resolution being more demanding to run but giving a sharper image. If you use the PC for productivity then opting for a higher resolution will be a bonus, but comes at a cost when you’re gaming.
Refresh rate and Adaptive sync:
Refresh rate is important because high frame rates give a smother and more responsive gaming experience, but need more GPU power to render frames fast enough. You can trade resolution for framerate to an extent: A RTX 3060Ti will run 1440p monitors faster than 4K because there are around half as many pixels per frame, but will provide the highest framerates at 1080p.
Not all games will run at 144 FPS or more even with the power of an RTX 3060Ti. To combat this we’d recommend choosing a high refresh rate monitor with adaptive sync technology. This refreshes the monitor when there is a new frame ready to display, smoothing out framerates and eliminating ugly tearing in the image as you play. This technology ensures optimum performance, and it has evolved over the years. Nvidia GPUs like the RTX 3060 Ti now support Freesync monitors even though it’s an AMD standard, so you have a free choice. Many monitors as now certified as ‘G-sync compatible’ which means that whilst they use the AMD Freesync standard they are in fact certified to work well with Nvidia GPUs.
Panel type
Monitor panel technology is evolving all the time, but the most common types of gaming monitors are ‘VA’ and ‘IPS’ types. Both can produce excellent panels for gaming. VA panels have better contrast and deeper blacks, but cheaper models may suffer ghosting or smearing in fast action as they are not as responsive as IPS. IPS panels have vibrant colours and excellent response times but sometimes struggle to show true blacks and may have some minor backlight bleeding on cheaper panels. It really comes down to preference as either can be fantastic when properly implemented. There are also variants on these types and ‘OLED’ as used in LG and Samsung monitors. Whilst TN has long been popular thanks to its very fast response times, the lack of vibrancy and poor viewing angles make us hesitant to recommend it as a showcase for a high-end GPU like the RTX 3060 Ti.
Additional features
There are also other features you may want to consider such as whether the monitor has speakers, if you need an inbuilt USB hub to tidy up peripheral cables, how many inputs it has, and that it has VESA mounting options is you intend to mount it on a monitor arm. So, let’s move on to our monitor recommendations for the RTX 3060 Ti:
Best Monitors for RTX 3060 Ti – Our Recommendations
Best 1440p All-round Monitor for RTX 3060 Ti
If you enjoy a wide range of titles, the RTX 3060 Ti really shines at 1440p. It will deliver smooth consistent framerates even at this demanding resolution and in graphically complex games. You can expect 100FPS upwards even in titles like Shadow of the Tomb Raider, whilst DLSS will help you achieve good frame rates in compatible-AAA titles like Cyberpunk 2077. For all-round gaming, we recommend the Gigabyte G27QC. It uses a VA panel for vibrant colours and deep blacks, and whilst response times aren’t cutting edge they’re plenty fast enough for AAA gaming and general use. It has 165Hz refresh rate and is ‘Freesync Premium’ certified meaning you get great adaptive sync performance. This eliminates screen tearing and smooths out frame delivery for a fluid gaming experience even if you’re not quite hitting 165 FPS. The response times are excellent at max refresh rate with a ‘balanced’ setting providing best results without smearing or ghosting. As for physical features, there’s a 2 port USB hub, handy for connecting your headphones or other peripherals close to hand. The stand is basic but functional with height and tilt but no twist. A curved vs flat panel is a matter of personal preference but for gaming and general use the 1500R curve leads a degree of immersion, whilst thin bezels look slick and makes a multi-monitor set up seamless. 27” display size is the sweet spot for pixel density for this resolution, making text easy to read without pixels becoming individually visible at standard viewing distances. Make sure you use the display port connection for the full 165Hz refresh rate as HDMI can’t carry the necessary bandwidth.
Best 1440p IPS Monitor for RTX 3060 Ti
This 27” 1440p monitor from Viewsonic, the Elite XG270QC, combines a host of useful features with a great IPS panel. It sports a fast 165Hz refresh rate with Freesync Premium Pro and G-Sync compatible specification for the ultimate in high refresh rate, tear free gaming. They’ve also worked hard to give quick response times and very low input lag, making this a great choice if you are a competitive player (or just want to deny yourself excuses!). The stand is fully adjustable and there’s a VESA mount if you’d prefer to put it on an arm. There’s also a handy 3 port USB 3.0 hub in the back, so you can run keyboard, mouse and headphones direct to the monitor and just have 1 USB cable onwards to the PC. Image quality is excellent although it is biased towards gaming rather than creative work, it will still work well for productivity tasks.
Best 1080p High FPS Monitor for RTX 3060 Ti
The 3060 Ti is a highly capable card, and at 1080p with the right supporting system, it produces exceptionally high frame rates in esports and first-person shooters. We’ve seen in excess of 200FPS in COD Warzone on high settings and 400FPS average in Rainbow 6 Siege. To take advantage of that we recommend the high-performance MSI MAG 251RX for competitive online play. This monitor has a 240Hz refresh rate and is G-Sync compatible for the ultimate responsiveness very low lag. It uses an IPS panel, again cutting latency whilst keeping a crisp vibrant image. It uses a host of gamer specific features like smart black tuner to enhance areas of darkness and reveal detail, and has a slick frameless design. This is a monitor that makes sure the RTX 3060 Ti is fully utilised in esports and fast paced shooters, giving you the competitive edge.
Best 1440p Ultrawide Monitor for RTX 3060 Ti
The 3060 Ti is powerful enough that it’s quite happy to drive the extended resolution of a 1440p ultrawide, so long as you are willing to make a slight compromise in frame rates in exchange for the greater immersion and working space of an ultrawide monitor. Our testing shows that it will exceed 60FPs in ultra settings in Red Dead Redemption 2, and approach 100FPS in high settings in Shadow of the Tomb raider at this resolution. To take advantage of this, the MSI Optix MAG341CQ has a 100Hz refresh rate and Freesync to smooth frame delivery and eliminate tearing. The VA panel gives rich colors and good contrast, and the 21:9 curved panel wraps around you to pull you into the game. The 110% sRGB color spectrum support makes it ideal for color sensitive work like photo editing or video editing, and the wide versatile workspace lends itself to productivity well. A timeline or multiple documents can be allocated wherever you want on screen, with no bezel dictating window size or location. The aspect ratio, curve, high refresh rate and adaptive sync make this model a fantastic all rounder for work and play, whilst the price is in keeping with the incredible value offered by the RTX 3060 Ti.
Best 4K Monitor for RTX 3060 Ti
Whilst we wouldn’t recommend an RTX 3060 Ti for 4K gaming, if you need $k for other applications but want to game on the side or use the 3060 Ti’s prodigious rendering power for productivity, it’s a perfectly viable option. This 4K IPS panel from Samsung, the U28R550, mixes businesslike aesthetics with a high-quality panel, and just a smidge of gaming features to apply itself there too. It has good color accuracy thanks to the panel, There are 2 HDMI and one Displayport input and this panel is VESA mountable. To help out when gaming, Freesync allows adaptive sync from 40-60 FPS. That may not seem like much but for a demanding resolution that makes all the difference and will help eliminate tearing when you’re not hitting the full 60FPS. This monitor strikes a great balance between panel quality, versatility and of course cost. If you need a 4K monitor to pair with your RTX 3060 Ti, the Samsung U28R550 is a good place to start.