The Best VR headsets in 2023

Though the Oculus branding has been killed off in favour of Meta, the Quest 2 is still hands-down the best VR headset you can buy. Like the original, the Quest 2 boasts standalone functionality and inside-out tracking, albeit in a smaller form factor this time around. 

The star of the show is the display; at nearly 2K per eye, the Quest 2 has one of the most detailed displays of any VR headset in our chart right now, bested only by the Vive Pro 2, which is incredible when you think about the entry-level price. There’s also Qualcomm’s Snapdragon XR2 Platform available, offering a serious improvement to performance that pushes the boundaries of the standalone apps and games available.

If that wasn’t enough, thanks to Oculus Link, you can hook up your Quest 2 to your PC and experience PC-exclusive VR titles like Half-Life: Alyx, and Air Link functionality allows you to do it cable-free if you’ve got good enough Wi-Fi. The hybrid functionality simply isn’t matched by any other VR headset available right now.

If you’re looking for a great all-round VR headset, the Meta Quest 2 is the one to go for. 

While the Meta Quest 2 has stood strong for the past couple of years, offering a great VR experience at an affordable price, the Pico 4 is here to challenge that.

On the surface, the Pico 4 looks like a next-gen Quest – it sports the same general design and colour scheme, though with Pico opting for a black glossy front to help differentiate itself. It’s impressively thin and it comes with something akin to Meta’s Elite Strap as standard.

Those slimline dimensions are mainly down to the inclusion of next-gen pancake lenses, tech previously exclusive to the extremely premium Meta Quest Pro. Pancake lenses provide a clearer viewing experience, particularly towards the edges of the lenses, and when combined with a higher resolution than both of Meta’s headsets, it’s safe to say that the VR experience on offer is crisp.

The only real issue is with content. With Meta funding many of the biggest and best VR titles on its headsets including Beat Saber, Resident Evil 4, Medal of Honor and Among Us VR, it’s unlikely that these will ever appear on a competitor’s platform. There are a few notable games on the Pico Store including Blade & Sorcery: Nomad and Into the Fall, but it’ll take some time for Pico to build up a library as large and varied as that from Meta.

The saving grace? The headset’s actually cheaper than the Quest 2 at just £379 in the UK. It’s not available in the US right now, but we’re hoping it’ll make an appearance somewhere down the line.

The Vive Cosmos isn’t the cheapest VR headset available to consumers. But, the modular nature makes the Cosmos range unique, which is why it costs a little more.

Rather than having to buy an entirely new headset when HTC reveals new tech, Cosmos owners can simply buy a new faceplate and attach it to their existing headset, offering huge savings down the line.

The Cosmos itself, with six-camera tracking, offers a decent VR experience for low- to mid-intensity VR games, but the camera tracking isn’t perfect and the loss of tracking in fast-paced VR titles can be frustrating at times.

But that’s where the Cosmos Elite comes in: for a little extra, you can grab a Cosmos with true 1:1 SteamVR tracking, but at the cost of long setup times and having to use the first-gen Vive wands. 

The Meta Quest Pro is Meta’s most advanced VR headset to date, and in fact, it’s the most capable of any standalone VR headset on the market right now – but it’s only really for a specific type of person.

You see, the Quest Pro is arguably more focused on AR than VR in its basic form, with an AR-focused open periphery design that makes it easier to see your environment, colour passthrough and improved hand-tracking capabilities. Unsurprisingly, the AR experience is strong and depending on the app, you can bring real-world elements like walls and tables into your augmented space, allowing you to, say, place a virutal paintbrush on your real-world table.

You can also play all the same games as the Quest 2, but for full immersion, you’ll have to fork out for the full light blocker as it’s not included in the box.

The face- and eye-tracking capabilities are a real boon for social VR too, providing a much more natural experience when chatting to friends than staring at an expression-less avatar.

It’s also the first standalone VR headset to make use of Qualcomm’s next-gen Snapdragon XR2+ chipset with improved performance and tracking capabilities.

It’s a stellar headset then, but the real catch is the price: at $/£1500, it’s almost four times the price of the standard Meta Quest 2. Unless you’re really invested in AR or the idea of face- and eye-tracking really appeals, we’d recommend opting for a cheaper standalone.

The HTC Vive Pro 2 might seem like the perfect VR headset on paper, boasting the highest resolution of any headset right now alongside an expansive 120-degree FOV and smooth 120Hz refresh rate, but the execution isn’t quite as impressive.

The pixel-packed display does a phenomenal job at breathing new life into much-loved VR games with added detail, and it all but eliminates the screen-door effect too – seriously, it’s an impressive panel.

The issue is the oddly rectangular FOV, with the 120-degree FOV referring to the horizontal FOV only. It makes some VR experiences feel a little more claustrophobic when compared to the likes of the Valve Index. 

The Vive Pro 2 hasn’t changed in terms of general design either, which means it’s just as heavy and uncomfortable to use over longer sessions as its predecessor, and it’s a similar story with the Vive Pro 2 wands, which remain practically the same as they were in 2016. 

It’s also incredibly expensive compared to most headsets in our chart, meaning it’s only for the most dedicated VR fan that can overlook some of the older design choices employed by the Vive Pro 2. 

Though it can’t quite match the 5K display of the HTC Vive Pro 2, the 4K display of the HP Reverb G2 will still be a huge jump forward for those still on first-gen VR headsets, offering improved textures, better visual clarity and a wider 114-degree FOV without the premium price of HTC’s option.

There’s also inside-out tracking, meaning there’s no need for external base stations like with SteamVR-powered options, although unlike options from Oculus, the Reverb G2 doesn’t perform that well in smaller spaces. 

That problematic nature extends beyond tracking too; the Reverb G2 doesn’t play well with AMD-powered PCs, and the Windows Mixed Reality platform it uses is far from the quality offered by the likes of SteamVR and Oculus, with glitches and the occasional complete crash.

If you really want the high resolution then the Reverb G2 is still a great option, but we’d steer clear if you’ve got an AMD PC. 

Interestingly, the PlayStation VR headset is the only VR headset for console gamers – Microsoft offers a way for gamers to play Xbox games through the Oculus Rift S, but it isn’t VR-enabled. Sony’s virtual reality offering features a 5.7in OLED display that’ll provide gamers with low persistence and, consequently, less motion blur when being used.

It also boasts ultra-low latency (18ms) and a 120Hz refresh rate, which is better than the Oculus Rift S and the HTC Vive’s 90Hz offering. It means that, theoretically, beautiful 120fps gameplay is possible, although we’re not sure the PS4 (or even the PS4 Pro) can handle that.

It seems that Sony had the same thought, and provides an additional box (smaller than the PS4) that handles the brunt of the graphics processing. It’ll track the position of your head, and can also be used with Sony’s (failed) Move controllers, giving the old controllers a new lease of life.

The tracking is basic though; it uses a PlayStation Camera, and the area that you can move around in is very small. It’s designed for sit-down VR experiences, and it does it well. 

With Meta successfully cornering the standalone VR headset market, HTC has turned its sights to the lightweight VR market with what it describes as its first pair of “immersive glasses”.

Let’s be honest, the Vive Flow look more like a pair of fashion-focused sunglasses than a VR headset, complete with relfective lenses and traditional arms. It’s a cool look, but it’d likely draw attention if you were to use them on public transport or long flights – which is exactly what HTC envisions.

Aside from basic VR experiences akin to those from Google Daydream and Samsung Gear VR, the main draw of the Vive Flow is the ability to mirror your smartphone display. That allows you to run apps like Disney+ and Netflix, enjoying your digital content on a virtual 100in display.

But while the idea behind it is solid, the execution is flawed to say the least.

Aside from the fact that the system is only compatible with a small number of smartphones in the wider market (and no iPhone support at all), the decision to use Miracast instead of standard USB-C connectivity means there’s input lag. That means you can’t play your favourite games via the cloud on the headset, nor can you hook it up to a laptop for work purposes.

Throw in basic controller support via a connected smartphone, the fact it gets uncomfortable to wear after around 30 minutes of use and its relatively high price point for what’s on offer, and it’s not looking good for the Flow. Oh, and we haven’t even mentioned that it requires an external battery source connected via USB-C as there’s no built-in battery. Yeah…

If you’re a very specific type of person that travels a lot and wants a better way to watch movies, the Flow is a solid option, but for everyone else, there are more capable options available at a cheaper price point.