After considering over 50 of the best VR headsets on the market, we bought the most compelling models available today for extensive side-by-side testing. We look at the best standalone and tethered headsets, comparing their interactiveness and visual immersiveness, as well as their overall user-friendliness, comfort, and ease of setup. We also have avid video game enthusiasts try out each headset and give their opinion about gameplay and the enveloping nature of the VR world created by each product. Keep reading to see which VR headset is the best overall, which is the top tethered model, and which is the superior standalone model.
Tethered or Mobile: Untethered and tethered | Field of View: 92°
REASONS TO BUY
Versatile
Highly immersive and interactive
User-friendly
Optional tether
Great price
REASONS TO AVOID
Snug fit
If you're on the hunt for an excellent headset that doesn't need to be tethered to a PC, our top recommendation is the Meta Quest 2. This VR headset offers a top-tier interactive and highly immersive virtual reality experience. It's intuitive and easy to use, and its motion tracking is by far some of the best we've seen. The Quest 2 is one of the most versatile options out there because you can use the included tether or connect to a PC over WiFi via its Air Link feature, which greatly expands the available VR experiences. Best of all, this unique product offers an excellent VR experience at a price that makes virtual reality approachable for most folks. It's not the best VR headset ever, but it is the best for most people.
We have very few gripes about the Meta Quest 2. It fits slightly tighter than other models, so it did not earn top marks for comfort. Wearing glasses with the headset on can be somewhat problematic, even with the included insert. Additionally, this option doesn't quite compare to the premium models in terms of interactiveness and visual immersiveness. Yet it is not so far behind that most folks would prefer to fork over the extra hundreds of dollars those premium headsets cost. Considering all that, we can't stress enough how much we recommend this product. It's one of our absolute favorites, and we think it's the perfect option for anyone who wants a hassle-free standalone headset.
Tethered or Mobile: Tethered | Field of View: 120°
REASONS TO BUY
Incredible tracking
Best in class visual quality
Built-in headphones
REASONS TO AVOID
Very expensive
Multi-sensor setup
If you're entering the VR market and excited for the complete premium experience, look no further than the Vive Pro 2 Headset. Topping the charts in three of our five metrics, this headset is easily the strongest performer we tested. With this model, you'll get massive play areas, fantastic tracking, a streamlined design that caters to users with glasses, and, not to mention, gorgeous visuals. When the Vive Pro 2 shines, the premium offering is genuinely incredible.
However, in the ever-innovating world of VR headsets, even the premium experience does have a few issues. The Vive Pro 2 suffers when it comes to setup. Requiring sensors to achieve fantastic tracking, there is a requirement to set up an array around your play area. And if the price was not already high, the entry-level for this headset is a high-performing PC, which most laptops will not meet. Overall though, if you can meet the PC and financial requirements for the Vive Pro 2, it offers the best VR experience available.
Tethered or Mobile: Tethered | Field of View: 114°
REASONS TO BUY
Great visuals
Easy to set up
Fluid tracking
REASONS TO AVOID
Incompatible with glasses
Strong PC needed
It's incredibly easy to recommend the HP Reverb G2, thanks to its consistently high performance across our testing metrics. This headset offers fluid tracking, great visuals, and user-friendly functionality. Moreover, the virtual desktop provided in the Mixed Reality portal blurs the line between real and simulation which may intrigue those who frequently use Windows operating tech. And while the Mixed Reality is exciting, the entire experience that the HP Reverb G2 offers is finely crafted and immersive.
However, the HP Reverb G2 is held back from overall greatness by a few issues, the most glaring of which is the complete incompatibility with glasses. Throughout our tests, our testers who wear glasses found them crammed against their faces and exceptionally uncomfortable, showcasing a deal-breaking flaw for those who can't play without them. Also, a strong PC setup is a requirement to run this headset, which may further alienate some. And while it's the best headset offering Mixed Reality today, this budding technology certainly has room to improve with future iterations. However, with such exceptional gaming quality and the uniqueness of the Mixed Reality, those who can comfortably use it will be in for a treat.
The HP Reverb G2 offers a strong showing as one of our highest-scoring VR headsets.
Credit: Laura Casner
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VR headsets ready for testing.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Why You Should Trust Us
We set up a dedicated room just for our VR testing and spent hundreds of hours testing and playing games with the different VR systems. We specifically graded each headset in 25 different side-by-side tests to determine the scores, with interactiveness taking the heaviest percentage of the scoring. We convened a panel of judges to try each headset to get a better opinion of how the lenses worked for different people and the fit on different faces, including those who wear glasses.
Our testing of VR headsets is divided across five rating metrics:
Interactiveness (35% of total score weighting)
Visual Immersiveness (20% weighting)
Comfort (20% weighting)
User Friendliness (15% weighting)
Ease of Setup (10% weighting)
We bought all of the VR systems in this review at retail prices. We don't ever accept any free or sample products from manufacturers. Our lead tester, Austin Palmer, has been playing video games for nearly three decades. He has played many generations, if not all, of the major platforms — even some of the more obscure, including the Nintendo Virtual Boy and the Tiger Electronics R-Zone that somewhat resemble VR headsets. Austin is also very adept at PC gaming, always engaging in the most difficult end game content available, consistently reaching leaderboards, or completing games 100%.
We looked at the interactiveness and visual immersiveness of each headset when determining scores.
All of our judges weighed in on each area of performance for these headsets. The Vive Cosmos Elite proved to offer exceptional visual imagery and immersiveness.
We extensively tested all the top VR headsets out there to help you find the best.
Analysis and Test Results
To find the best VR headset for every user, we grouped our tests into five weighted testing metrics — Visual Immersiveness, Comfort, User Friendliness, Ease of Setup, and Interactiveness. We also assess the value of each headset when you compare cost to performance.
Value
There are a few different classes of VR headsets that span an enormous range of prices. The priciest models are tethered headsets like the Vive Pro 2, Vive Cosmos Elite, and Valve Index. These headsets alone are expensive, but when you also consider the cost of the powerful PC required to use them, the overall price can easily double. The Meta Quest 2 splits the difference, costing considerably less than the top tethered models and requiring no additional PC hardware to access its marketplace of hundreds of standalone games and experiences. However, for those with the PC hardware to take advantage of it, the Meta Quest 2 can also partake of more graphically rich experiences when tethered via the included cable. It can even be connected to a PC through its Air Link capability for the ultimate range of motion and increased immersion. Tremendous versatility and value make it a very attractive option.
The accuracy of the motion tracking on the Vive Cosmos Elite very much impressed us.
Credit: Laura Casner
Interactiveness
Our Interactiveness metric is the most significant of our testing process. In this rating metric, we focused on how easy and intuitive each product makes it to interact with your virtual environment. Specifically, we looked at each headset's interface, the accuracy of the motion tracking — both of the headset and the hand controllers, if the headset had any — and if there are any limitations on where you can use each product, such as limited sensor coverage or the length of the tether.
The Vive Pro 2, Valve Index, and the HTC Vive Cosmos Elite displayed phenomenal performance when it came to creating an interactive experience.
The Valve Knuckles convey your movements extraordinarily well.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
The Valve Index offers 6-DOF (Degrees of Freedom), and its stock sensor configuration can easily cover an area larger than you can reach with the tether. It relies on outside-in tracking, using a series of external sensors — either mounted on the wall or a tripod. We had almost no issues with these sensors losing track of our position — even when we turned completely around and were facing away from the sensors. We found the Valve Index to be exceptionally accurate when it came to the position of the hand controllers.
The Vive Pro 2, like the Valve Index, relies on an array of sensors to provide a fluid level of tracking. Using tripods, wall mounts, or clamp sensors, plus the possibility for play areas reaching 10 x 10 meters, the tracking elements allow for an ultra-realistic experience. We were really pleased by the nearly negligible amount of quirks this system provided. The custom controllers had no issues throughout our testing.
We never had any issues with the Vive Pro 2 controllers.
Credit: Laura Casner
The HTC Vive Cosmos Elite performs almost the same as the Valve Index and Vive Pro 2. It has very comfortable and easy-to-hold controllers that the sensors tracked practically perfectly. It is also a 6-DOF headset with an impressively large area that can be tracked by its sensors.
The Vive Cosmos Elite is quite convenient and easy to use after you have the initial install complete.
Credit: Laura Casner
Just behind the top performers in this metric are the Meta Quest 2 and HP Reverb G2. The Meta Quest 2 headset comes with two handheld controllers, with only power and volume adjust buttons on the headset itself. This headset has 4 wide-angle cameras for an inside-out sensor system, which can accommodate a play area of up to 25' x 25', with a 6.5' x 6.5' area being the recommended size.
We found the motion tracking on these controllers to be excellent complements to the Quest 2.
Credit: Laura Casner
Overall, we were very impressed with the motion tracking of the Quest 2 and found it to be very accurate. The headset almost always followed our gaze perfectly, and we never had any noticeable issues with it. We also were very impressed with the hand controllers. Even when holding them out of view of the camera, we found them very adept at mirroring our movements on screen. We even turned off the ambient lighting and found that the controller's motions were still tracked without issue.
Comparably scoring to the Quest 2, the HP Reverb G2 performs well in interactivity through a comfortably sized play area and really fluid tracking. The general tracking, relying only on onboard cameras--no sensors-- is really great, but there were slight issues tracking the controllers. However, our testing showed that as long as the controllers pass in front of the onboard cameras with relative frequency, the kinks work themselves out. Otherwise, the HP Reverb G2 is a strong contender in the VR field.
As long as the controllers pass in front of the onboard cameras relatively often, the HP Reverb G2 has great tracking.
Credit: Laura Casner
Visual Immersiveness
Visual Immersiveness evaluated the realism of the virtual environment that each headset was able to create. To measure it, we considered overall viewing quality, the size of the field of view, image sharpness, and how well each headset sealed out ambient light.
By far the strongest performers in our Visual Immersiveness metric are the Vive Pro 2 and the HP Reverb G2. Just barely edging out the latter, the Vive Pro 2 offers up a powerful level of immersion. With 2488 x 2488 pixels per eye, and a field of view of up to 120°, the fruit of the technical specifications bequeath the user a breathtaking visual experience.
2488 X 2488 pixels per eye contributes to the Vive Pro 2's incredible visual immersiveness.
Credit: Laura Casner
Just slightly behind, the HP Reverb G2 follows up with strong performance as well. 2160 x 2160 pixels per eye and a field of view range of 114° pair nicely with gorgeous visuals that greatly expands immersion. The headset does a great job blocking out external light as well, and the HP Reverb G2 was one that did not get affected by different nose sizes. The one thing that keeps this headset from overtaking the Vive Pro 2 is a minor amount of visual fuzziness along the peripheries. However, it is a minor nitpick for a great experience.
The HP Reverb G2 boasts an impressive level of visual immersion.
Credit: Laura Casner
The Valve Index and the Meta Quest 2 performed strongly in our Visual Immersiveness metric, too. They both do a great job of blocking light from leaking in, either keeping the interior completely dark or, depending on the shape of your nose, letting in just a sliver of light. However, none of our judges ever found this to be enough to degrade the VR experience.
The fit on the Quest 2 is definitely on the tighter side, but it seals out light effectively for our testers.
Credit: Laura Casner
The Valve Index has a resolution of 1440x1600 pixels per eye and uses LCD panels that supposedly give you clearer images due to their subpixels than OLED displays. The Quest 2 has an exceptional resolution of 1832x1920 pixels per eye — even higher than the Valve Index.
The Valve Index provides the widest field of view of all at 130 degrees, while the Meta Quest 2 has one of the narrowest fields of view (92 degrees). We didn't mind this so much when playing with the Quest 2, but it's worth noting.
The Vive Pro 2 has a FOV of 120 degrees.
Credit: Laura Casner
Comfort
While all the headsets will feel slightly awkward and foreign at first, this feeling dissipates rapidly with the more comfortable headsets. Others, however, never cease to feel foreign on your face. They would be fine for a short experience or two, but would severely detract from the virtual reality experience if worn for long periods. To determine scores for this metric, we compared how each headset felt on your face, whether or not it made your face sweaty, and if it left sufficient room to wear glasses underneath.
The Vive Pro 2 snagged the top spot for comfort, receiving the highest, though still reserved, praise. Somewhat weighty on the face, though still usable, the foam and fuzzy material which covers the headset elicited mixed responses from our testers. Some didn't mind it, while others found it to be somewhat uncomfortable on bare skin. However, the Vive Pro 2 really succeeds with its ability to comfortably work over glasses, allowing spectacled users the same great experience as their non-lensed counterparts with this device.
Although the material comfort comes down to personal preference, the Vive Pro 2's emphasis on glasses compatibility is a huge plus.
Credit: Laura Casner
Next, the Vive Cosmos, the Vive Cosmos Elite, the Meta Quest 2, the HP Reverb G2, and the PlayStation VR all received modest praise in our comfort test. The rest of this group all have a form-fitting cushion that makes them comfortable to wear for extended periods.
The Meta Quest 2 is comfortable, especially when in untethered play, while also sporting a streamlined design.
Credit: Laura Casner
The PlayStation VR leaves sufficient room for glasses to be worn, the HP Reverb G2, the two HTC Vive Cosmos models, and the Meta Quest 2 are quite cramped when worn with glasses, especially with larger frames. The Quest 2 even comes with a glasses insert to help alleviate this, but we didn't find it to be all that effective. The HP Reverb G2 is all but unusable when wearing glasses, according to our testers.
Some headsets can be a little tight getting on, especially if you wear glasses.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
User Friendliness
This metric assesses the overall experience for the user while using the headset. Whether built-in or connected to external headphones, we compared the audio system of each headset, how much work it took to get the headset ready to use, and whether or not it was easy to hit buttons inadvertently.
For their exceptionally convenient and hassle-free use, taking home the top scores out of the entire group were the Meta Quest 2 and the HP Reverb G2. The Quest 2 proved to be the easiest to use and more user-friendly headset of any we have seen. You can use it without any extra hardware and it also includes an integrated speaker. All you need to do to get this headset going is to power it up and put it on. If you haven't used the headset in the room previously, you will also need to spend an additional minute or two defining the playable area by creating a "Guardian."
Overall, we think the Quest 2 is one of the more user-friendly options out there.
Credit: Laura Casner
The HP Reverb G2 comes equipped with integrated headphones that hover over the ear, allowing you to hear your surroundings both real and simulated. Getting the headset on is as simple as tightening and loosening the array of straps that criss-cross across your skull. Once set up, our testers found it to maintain its fitting without continued readjustments. A setting for altering interpupillary distance is equipped on the headset's back.
Strap adjustment is one of the few steps required to set up the HP Reverb G2.
Credit: Laura Casner
The Valve Index also has integrated headphones, circumventing the need to attach an external pair. Once the initial setup has been completed, it's exceptionally easy to use, only requiring you to don it in view of the sensors. However, we didn't love the head strap system on the Index. The adjustment knob is on the small side, and it takes a little bit of effort to get all the straps adjusted so the image is in focus and the headset is situated comfortably on your head. The Valve Index forgoes any controls on the headset, eliminating the possibility of accidental presses.
Ranking behind the Meta headsets, the Vive Cosmos, the HTC Vive Cosmos Elite, the Vive Pro 2, and the PlayStation VR all performed admirably. The PSVR has an audio port to plug in external headphones if you want the full VR experience but will also play sound through the computer or TV speakers when headphones are not connected.
The HTC Vive Cosmos and the HTC Vive Cosmos Elite both have integrated headphones, making setup much easier than the others when you want to play. You can also remove them to substitute your own pair if you like. However, this only applies to its audio. We found that it took a little more effort to get these models adjusted properly on your face, struggling to get them both comfortable and focused.
It can take a little bit of time to get the Cosmos adjusted comfortably.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
The initial setup and installation process of the Vive Cosmos can be a bit time-consuming. The Elite version of this device is even more time-intensive during setup.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Ease of Setup
Finishing out our review, we compare the difficulty of the initial setup for each VR system. This metric is based on how much effort it takes to set up the hardware for each system and install the software, as well as what the hardware requirements are to properly run each headset.
The setup for the Meta Quest 2 is quite minimal and our favorite among the headsets we tested. You do need a smartphone to download the app and create an account using a Facebook login, but that's about it.
The overall setup process for the Quest 2 is very quick and easy.
Credit: Laura Casner
Of the remaining tethered headsets, the PlayStation VR and the HP Reverb G2 are the easiest to set up for the first time. It only took about 10 minutes to set them up, requiring us to plug in a handful of cables and make sure the cameras were pointed in the correct direction. For the Playstation VR, the setup process prompts you through the steps and includes a quick tutorial on how to use everything. This model does have limited compatibility because it only works with a Playstation and Playstation camera. PS Move controllers are also necessary for some games. For the HP Reverb G2, wearing the headset isn't required for crafting the play area, which makes the whole process really convenient.
You don't need to wear the HP Reverb G2 to set up the barrier perimeter.
Credit: Laura Casner
The Valve Index and Vive Pro 2 are by far the most difficult to set up of all the headsets we tested, predominantly due to the need to install external sensors. The sensors need to be mounted on the wall or on top of two tripods. There is also quite a bit of time involved to set up the software and configure these products. All in all, this was a much more intensive setup process than the others and would probably be quite a struggle for users who aren't the most tech-savvy.
The sensors for the Vive Pro 2 are available as tri-pods, wall mounts, and clamp variants.
Credit: Laura Casner
Conclusion
Hopefully, you have found this to be an informative and helpful analysis of the best VR products currently available and you feel ready to make your next headset purchase, whether you want a high-end VR powerhouse, or a versatile, user-friendly model.
GearLab is founded on the principle of honest, objective, reviews. Our experts test thousands of products each year using thoughtful test plans that bring out key performance differences between competing products. And, to assure complete independence, we buy all the products we test ourselves. No cherry-picked units sent by manufacturers. No sponsored content. No ads. Just real, honest, side-by-side testing and comparison.
