What is the best VR headset? That depends on what you’re hoping to do with your headset, whether it’s mostly watch video, play tethered to your PC or play free-roaming games while stood up. Whatever your preference, we’ve got a recommendation for you. Sure, virtual reality is still a growing technology, but it’s at a point where there are some really fantastic games just waiting to be experienced through the right headset.
After hours of gaming, our top choice overall is the Meta Quest 3, as it combines decent visuals and a great standalone experience with a reasonable price. If you’re not keen on a Facebook-affiliated headset, though, the Pico 4 is also a great choice. Meanwhile, the Meta Quest 3S is the best budget choice. For more options, check out the full list below. Also, if you’re not sure where to start with your VR headset search, check out the How to choose and FAQ sections of this guide that explain what to look for and answer your VR headset questions.
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Best VR headsets 2025
Meta Quest 3S
Best budget headset
| Screen | 1,832×1,920 per eye, fresnel lenses |
| Refresh rate | 120Hz |
| FoV | 96° horizontal, 90° vertical |
| Tracking | Inside-out |
- Standalone and PC compatible at a great price
- Same chipset as the Quest 3 for exclusive games
- Brilliant mixed-reality experience
- Fresnel lenses limit clarity in cases
- Stepped IPD
The jump from the Quest 2 to the Quest 3 proved a bit too pricey for some gamers. Fortunately, the Quest 3S is the successor to the Quest 2 that everyone was hoping for. On paper, it sounds remarkably similar to the Quest 2, offering the same 1,832 x 1,920 resolution displays for each eye, the disappointing inclusion of Fresnel lenses, and the same FoV. However, the magic in the Quest 3S is mostly internal.
Sporting the Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 found in the standard Quest 3, the Quest 3S offers up to twice the performance of the Quest 2 – and it shows. The fact that games like Batman: Arkham Shadow and Metro: Awakening run so well on a budget headset is nothing short of spectacular, and the mixed reality is almost as good as the original Quest 3. And, the use of Quest Link or the Steam Link app makes it easy to connect to your gaming PC and dive into plenty of PC-exclusive VR games.
As much as we’d prefer the comfortable pancake lenses and improved resolution of the Quest 3, if you don’t want to break the bank with your first go at virtual reality, the Quest 3S is a brilliant option that offers very little in terms of downsides.
Read our Meta Quest 3S review here.
Valve Index
Best Steam VR headset
| Screen | 1,440 x 1,600 LCD per eye |
| Refresh rate | Up to 144Hz |
| FoV | 130° |
| Tracking | Steam VR base stations |
- Fantastic audio
- Minimal screen door
- Accurate tracking
The Valve Index is getting a bit old, and this shows in several ways. However, it’s still one of the best VR headsets for tethering to a PC.
The reasons for its recommendation are manifold. For a start, its controllers are amazing, with them able to track individual finger movement rather than just your whole hand. This brings to life games with animated hands, such as Half-Life: Alyx.
The Valve Index’s off-ear speakers are also one of the headset’s strongest features. They’re somehow both immersive and comfortably distant from the ear without any sound leakage.
All this and this headset offers effortless support via Steam. It just works, bringing you instant access to your VR-compatible games in your Steam library. You also get the slick SteamVR interface to navigate it all.
The big drawbacks, though, are that you still need to connect to your PC, which is a hassle, and movement tracking is done via external base stations, so it’s far less freeing than other standalone headsets. What’s more, the Index’s dual 1,440 x 1,600 LCD screens do offer impressively smooth motion thanks to their 144Hz refresh rate but their sharpness is lagging well behind the best alternative headsets.
All this and it’s still quite expensive, if you can even find stock. However, if you can find one secondhand it’s a great option, and if new stock does appear, it’s well worth consideration.
Read our Valve Index review.
How to choose the best VR headset
Choosing the best VR headset for PC gaming isn’t necessarily complicated, but there are some crucial factors to consider, and the first is price.
Considering that different VR headsets offer different focuses, it’s no surprise that their prices can vary considerably. The Meta Quest 3S offers budget standalone and PC gaming for just $300/£290, while devices such as the Bigscreen Beyond will set you back $1,000/£1,150 even before you get the required accessories. For anyone starting out in VR, we absolutely recommend starting with a cheaper option so you can get a sense of whether you enjoy it and what type of gaming you like, which can then help guide you when picking a more expensive option.
Next to consider is your intended use for a VR headset. If you’re only interested in PC gaming, then options such as the Valve Index and Bigscreen Beyond focus exclusively on that. If you foresee yourself using VR on the sofa or elsewhere then standalone options such as the Meta Quest 3, Meta Quest 3S, and Pico 4 will be the way to go.
Getting into the nitty gritty of VR headset specs, resolution is one of the most important factors. Some VR games do their best to create a super realistic world filled with intricately detailed graphics. If that’s the type of game that you like to play, you’ll want as high a resolution as possible. The same goes for watching realistic VR video. If you’re more interested in a casual, fun VR experience with games such as Beat Saber, though, then resolution is less of a priority.
Refresh rate is another crucial spec to look out for. Most headsets are “fast enough” with refresh rates of 72Hz or more but for the best experience – especially if you think you might be at all sensitive to motion sickness with VR – you’ll want a higher refresh rate of 90Hz or more.
For those new to VR, the ease of setup could also be a key factor. Some of these headsets are designed so that they can essentially be used right out of the box (e.g. Meta Quest 3, Pico 4) thanks to inbuilt WiFi and batteries, whereas others (e.g. Valve Index, Bigscreen Beyond) are designed to be plugged into a PC, using your graphics card and other PC hardware to power the experience. The latter can be more tricky to setup.
Along similar lines, some headsets have better in-built motion tracking than others. Most more modern headsets have so-called outside-in tracking that use sensors on the headset to track your movement but most older headsets require base stations to help the headset track you. These can be a pain to position around your room.
VR headset FAQs
What is VR?
VR simply means virtual reality and it refers to a headset or user experience where you’re presented with an image that completely fills your vision, tracking your head movement to make it feel like you’re actually inside a virtual space. Crucially, it uses slightly different views for each eye – with lenses and screens for each eye – to mimic the stereoscopic depth effect of our own vision, which is something even the largest single gaming monitor can’t replicate.
VR is distinct from augmented reality (AR) which is where a headset overlays images on your view of the world around you.
The Apple Vision Pro is an example of both, with it being a VR headset that has screens inside that fill your whole view, but its focus is on AR experiences that project the outside world back through those screens with all sorts of extra stuff shown on top. However, most VR headsets are predominantly just for VR, with them designed to let you play games or watch videos in a way that completely absorbs your vision in a virtual world.
Does VR cause sickness and headaches?
It depends on you. Yes, virtual reality gaming can lead to nausea and headaches for some, but unfortunately it’s very difficult to tell if you’ll be affected until you try it. However, there are a few steps you can take to minimize how badly you’re affected.
One approach to try is only playing for short periods of time when you start. Set a timer for yourself for 20mins, for instance, then step away for a while before jumping back in. Also, have your first few forays into VR be when sat down, rather than jumping in and playing a free roaming game. Watch some VR videos, play some simpler games, and just generally get used to the feeling before taking your first steps.
Another general point is that the quality of the headset you’re using can massively affect your nauseous feelings. If you’ve tried really basic VR before and not enjoyed it, you may find a quality headset doesn’t have the same affect. Higher resolution screens and higher refresh rates can hugely smooth out the VR effect, making it feel much more natural.
It’s also important to remember that this is just a matter of adjustment -similar to how rollercoasters make some people feel sick – and that it is not doing any permanent harm.
Is VR bad for your eyes?
No, there is no proof that using a VR headset can harm your eyes, just as there isn’t for prolonged use of computer screens or looking at phones. That said, just like with those devices, taking breaks is certainly to be advised. This should reduce any eyestrain. Having said this, VR headsets will always come with an age restriction as they are not to be used by small children who are still developing.
Is VR worth it in 2025?
Absolutely. We’d say that as each year goes by, VR headsets become more and more appealing due to ever-improving technology. There’s quite a large library of games that make use of VR now, or that are entirely built around its use. This isn’t a fad that’s going to go away any time soon and we recommend trying some of the amazing VR experiences that are currently available.
What do you need for VR?
To get started in VR these days all you need is a VR headset. The first few generations of modern VR headsets required a PC to power the graphics output. However, the likes of the Meta Quest 3/3S and Pico 4 can run completely on their own, with the Quest headsets in particularly having an impressive array of games available directly through the headset.
However, if you want to play your Steam game library, you will need a PC to stream those games from your PC to the headset. Connecting to a PC also opens up lots of other possibilities, such as transferring VR videos to your headset, streaming other non-Steam games and more.
Some headsets can connect to a PC natively via a USB-C connection while others use a DisplayPort connection from your graphics card. Meanwhile others such as the PlayStation VR 2 (PSVR 2) require a dedicated adapter to convert your PC’s output to use with the headset.
What VR headset has the highest resolution?
The Varjo XR-4 is the highest resolution VR headset you can buy right now. It has a per-eye resolution of 3,840 x 3,744 pixels. That compares to 1,832 x 1,920 for the Quest 3 and 2,160 x 2,160 for the Pico 4. However, that headset is extremely expensive and not really intended for home users. Instead, the Pimax Crystal Light with its per-eye resolution of 2,880 x 2,880 or the Bigscreen Beyond 2 with its 2,560 x 2,560 resolution are the best home user options. Even then, they require a PC as they’re not standalone headsets.
The Meta Quest 3 is our choice for the best VR headset, so if you’re picking one up we can get you started with the best Meta Quest 3 games, and the best free Meta Quest 3 games so you’re not short on ideas for what to play.