On a TV, input lag is mostly your television’s own image processing, not your console. Switch the input to Game Mode, plug into the right HDMI port, and turn off motion smoothing, and you remove more delay than any setting on the console will give you.
Do it in that order.
Game Mode is the single biggest win
Every TV runs incoming frames through a processing pipeline: upscaling, noise reduction, dynamic contrast, and motion interpolation sold under names like MotionFlow, TruMotion or Motion Rate. Each stage holds frames in a buffer.
Game Mode bypasses most of that pipeline. On many sets it is per-input rather than global, so enabling it on HDMI 1 does nothing for the console on HDMI 3.
If your set has ALLM, or Auto Low Latency Mode, the console flips Game Mode on by itself when a game launches. It only works on ports that support it.
Not every HDMI port on your TV is equal
Most TVs reserve full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 for one or two ports. The rest run slower and drop 120 Hz, VRR and ALLM.
Check the label on the panel or the manual, then move the console to that port. On many sets you also have to switch that input’s signal format to Enhanced, sometimes called HDMI UHD Colour or Input Signal Plus, before the higher modes appear at all.
Renaming the input to Game or PC is not cosmetic on some brands. It can switch on a lower-latency path and full 4:4:4 chroma, which matters if you read text on screen.
Set the console to match
Enable 120 Hz output and VRR on the console only after confirming the port is capable, otherwise the console falls back silently and you blame the TV.
When a game offers a resolution mode and a performance mode, performance mode lowers latency as well as raising frame rate. Turning off console-side upscaling helps too, since it adds a processing stage before the TV adds its own.
The mouse-and-keyboard side of this chain works differently, and we covered it separately in the guide on how to reduce input lag on PC.
The audio chain adds lag you will blame on the picture
A soundbar or receiver sitting between console and TV adds its own processing delay, and running audio out through eARC adds another path to sync.
If sound arrives late, use the TV’s audio delay or lip sync offset rather than moving cables. Bluetooth headphones paired to the TV are the worst offender here, since wireless audio latency is measured in tens of milliseconds.
Your controller is part of the chain too
Pair the controller to the console, never to the TV. Bluetooth to a television routes your input through the slowest device in the room.
Connection type matters more than expected, and 2.4 GHz dongles versus Bluetooth is broken down in our roundup of the best wireless controllers.
What you cannot fix in settings
Budget TVs without Game Mode have no bypass available, and no menu tweak will fix that. Cloud gaming is bounded by your network, so local settings barely register.
Console capability caps the ceiling too. What each machine can output is compared in our Switch 2 versus PS5 Pro breakdown.
Common questions about TV input lag
Does OLED have less input lag than LED?
OLED pixels change state faster, which reduces blur rather than lag. Processing still dominates, so an OLED left in a cinema picture preset can feel slower than an LED set in Game Mode.
Does 120 Hz reduce input lag on a TV?
Yes, when the game actually outputs 120 frames, because each frame is displayed sooner. On a 60 fps title the gain is small.
Should you turn off HDR for gaming?
Usually not. HDR adds little delay on modern sets in Game Mode, so dropping it costs image quality for a barely measurable return.
Marcus Reid writes about gaming, streaming platforms, and digital tools for 3Zebras. A lifelong gamer with over 8 years of experience in games journalism, Marcus covers everything from Roblox codes and Blooket strategies to PC gaming mods and console comparisons. He tests every game and app he reviews firsthand and focuses on practical guides that help readers get more out of their favorite platforms. Outside of gaming, Marcus covers IPTV services, streaming devices, and cord-cutting solutions for budget-conscious users.