Best TV settings for Xbox Series X|S

The TV and console settings that make an Xbox look and respond its best — game mode, VRR, ALLM and HDR calibration.

Updated Sep 25, 2026

An Xbox Series X or S out of the box, connected to a television left on its default picture mode, is not showing you what it can do. Twenty minutes of setup changes more than most hardware upgrades. Menu names vary by TV brand; every setting below exists on nearly all modern sets.

1. Turn on Game Mode

Before anything else. Game Mode disables the television''s picture processing, which is the largest source of input lag. The same set can go from around 100ms to under 20ms with this one switch.

If your TV supports ALLM, the Xbox triggers it automatically when it starts — but check that ALLM is enabled in the TV settings, since it often ships off.

2. Turn off motion smoothing

Sold as TruMotion, Motionflow, Auto Motion Plus and similar. It adds lag and makes motion look artificial. Game Mode usually disables it; verify that it actually did.

3. Use the right port and enable full bandwidth

Connect to an HDMI 2.1 port and use the cable that came with the console. Then enable full HDMI bandwidth for that port — called HDMI Deep Color, HDMI UHD Color, Input Signal Plus or Enhanced Format depending on brand. It is off by default on most televisions, and without it you get no 4K 120Hz, no VRR and no proper HDR.

4. Run the Xbox display setup

Go to Settings > General > TV & display options. Set resolution to 4K UHD if your TV supports it. Then open Video modes and enable:

Allow 4K
Allow HDR10
Allow auto low-latency mode (ALLM)
Allow variable refresh rate (VRR)
Allow Dolby Vision for gaming, if your TV supports it — Xbox is the console that does this

Options that your television does not support appear greyed out, which is itself a useful diagnostic: if 4K 120Hz is unavailable, the port or the bandwidth setting is usually why.

5. Calibrate HDR

Xbox has a built-in calibration tool: Settings > General > TV & display options > Calibrate HDR for games. It walks through a few screens adjusting brightness and detail. Run it in the lighting you normally play in, and run it again if you change the TV''s picture mode.

Skipping this is the usual reason HDR looks washed out or too dark.

6. Picture settings inside Game Mode

Turn off dynamic contrast, noise reduction and contrast enhancers — in games they remove detail rather than add it. A warm colour temperature is more accurate than the default cool one, even though it looks yellow for the first day.

7. Audio

Under Settings > General > Volume & audio output, set the HDMI audio correctly for your setup. If you use a soundbar or receiver over eARC, choose the bitstream option so formats like Dolby Atmos pass through.