Triple Screen vs VR: A Real Cost Comparison

Choosing the best display solution for your sim racing setup really varies from user to user. There are many factors to consider, from the size of the display and room available, through to your own preference. One big decision point when choosing any part of a sim racing setup, is the price and budget. And that certainly applies to your display choice.

Many sim racers will start out racing using a TV and console, or a simple desk setup and monitor. However, the slippery slope of sim racing can soon grab you, evolving to complete sim racing cockpits, ever expanding sim rigs and peripherals.

In these scenarios, a dedicated display is normally required, and there are three key choices;

• Do you opt for a single monitor, either large or ultrawide.
• Try to maximise your field of view (FOV) with triple monitors that wrap around you.
• Or the increasingly popular third option. Do you forgo a monitor in place of a VR headset for maximum immersion.

In this guide, I’m going to explore two of the most hotly debated solutions. Triple screen monitors vs VR headsets. I’m going to primarily be looking at the cost of entry for both options, as well as comparing costs for premium options.

I won’t touch on whether triple monitors or VR headsets are better for sim racing. I’ll save that for another day, but we do have guides already comparing triple screens and ultrawide displays, as well as recommending the best VR headsets.

Triple screen vs VR headset cost overview

I’ll start by breaking down some rough cost overviews of triple screen monitors compared to VR headsets. Then I’ll jump into some more detailed cost comparisons using our recommended gaming monitors and headsets.

As with any purchase, both VR headsets and gaming monitors come in a range of price points. Entry level options include the Meta Quest 3S and monitors from brands such as AOC or X=. These stretch all the way up to the most premium options such as the Pimax Crystal Super OLED and LG Ultragear monitors.

Below is an overview of VR headsets and triple screen costs at an entry-level, mid-range and premium price point.

	VR Headset	Triple screen
Starting price	£289	£150 per monitor £450 total cost
Mid-range price	£720	£349 per monitor £700 total cost
Premium price	£1700	£699 per monitor £2097 total cost

As we can see from our cost comparison, prices are relatively comparable across some price points, with the triple screen monitor option coming in higher at both the budget and premium ends.

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What does this mean – which option is better value?

At the mid-range price point, both VR headsets and a decent triple screen setup are almost identical in price. For this example, I selected the Pimax Crystal Light for our mid-range VR headset and the Alienware 27inch monitor. Both of these products offer high-quality sim racing gameplay, without breaking the bank.

Entry point for VR headsets is much lower

Despite the mid-range options being very comparable in price, the entry point for either VR or a triple screen setup is vastly different. This is because budget headsets such as the Meta Quest 3S are competitively priced.

In comparison, budget gaming monitors have a minimum price attached. It’s hard to find a reputable 27inch gaming monitor under £150. This, paired with the fact that you need to buy three monitors, means the lowest price point will generally be higher than a budget VR headset.

Of course, there is the argument that a budget VR headset such as the Meta Quest 3S may not be suitable for VR sim racing. And this is extremely valid. The clarity of the image and compatibility can suffer at this budget end, and is one of the key reasons we wouldn’t generally recommend a super budget VR headset like the Quest 3S.

Monitors don’t really suffer from this problem. A budget gaming monitor will be able to display a nice image, regardless of price, as long as your GPU can handle it. You will be missing certain features at the budget price range such as G-Sync, a high quality display type, OLED etc. However, a competent budget gaming monitor far outperforms a budget VR headset for sim racing.

Premium VR headsets can be a cheaper option than a premium triple screen setup

That leaves the premium end of the scale. At this price point you can choose high-end VR headsets such as the Pimax Crystal Super at £1300, or even the OLED variant at £1700. I reviewed the Crystal Super headset, and was blown away with the clarity and smooth image.

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VR sim racing with a premium headset is truly an incredible experience. The immersion is next level, and even beyond what a premium triple monitor setup can deliver.

When it comes to premium gaming monitors for a triple screen layout, I’d recommend a monitor like the LG Ultragear 27inch. This is a £699 gaming monitor that offers everything you need. It is an OLED panel with a 240Hz refresh rate, G-Sync compatible, and a refresh rate of just 0.03ms.

The problem being, once again, you’ll need to buy three of these monitors to complete your sim racing setup. This leads to a price of over £2000, over £700 more expensive than the Crystal Super, and even £300 more than the OLED Crystal Super.

That amount isn’t something to be sniffed at, as £700 could buy you a new wheel base, pedal set, or even a pretty good sim racing cockpit upgrade.

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The best options for triple screens and VR headsets

Now I want to look closer at our recommendations for the best VR headsets and triple screen monitors. I’ll show you our pick of the bunch while also sharing my picks at each price point.

The best VR headsets

Budget	Mid-range	Premium
Wouldn’t recommend	Pimax Crystal Light £718	Pimax Crystal Super £1239

As mentioned earlier, when it comes to sim racing using a budget VR headset, your options are really limited. You do have the Meta Quest 3S, however, it really isn’t powerful enough for immersive sim racing. For this reason, I’d skip it and opt for the Pimax Crystal Light as the best entry VR headset.

The Crystal Light is the smaller sibling of the Super, and offers huge bang for you buck. Priced at around £700, you get dual 2880×2880 lenses with a minimum refresh rate of 60Hz, stretching up to 120Hz. It makes a fantastic option for sim racing, and comes with just a few compromises such as a lower resolution compared to a premium headset.

Talking of premium VR headsets, what would be my recommendation for the best VR headset for sim racing. It would have to be the Pimax Crystal Super. The Chinese tech brand have really got a monopoly on the VR sim racing space right now, with very little competition.

The Pimax Crystal Super really delivers on everything you’d want out of a VR headset, especially for sim racing. It boasts a resolution of 3840×3840 across both eyes, with a refresh rate of 90Hz. It comes in either a QLED or OLED version, with the OLED being the more premium of the two.

Whichever option you choose, you’ll get an extremely high quality image that is very smooth when racing on the track. I reviewed the QLED variant, and have been using the OLED version for a little while, and these headsets have really changed my thoughts on VR sim racing in general.

Both the Pimax Crystal Light and Super offer a lot of neat features that allow them to sit at the top of the sim racing VR market. Beyond performance, they offer incredible comfort, with a lot of adjustability.

The Super headset includes eye tracking that lets you optimise performance with foveated rendering. This is the art of just rendering where you are looking in full detail while lowering the resolution in your peripheral vision.

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The best gaming monitors for triple screen sim racing

Budget	Mid-range	Premium
AOC 27G4XED £219	Alienware AW2724HF £349	LG Ultragear 27GR95QE £699

Choosing a good budget, mid-range and premium gaming monitor for triple screen sim racing presents a lot more choice. There are so many more brands in the gaming monitor market, finding a good option isn’t as tricky as with a VR headset.

Due to the large number of headsets, you can also afford to shop around, compare prices and even wait for sale events. Doing this will often allow you to save money on your triple screen setup.

Best budget and mid-range triple screen monitors

At the time of writing, there are a few standout monitors to choose from. For a budget pick, I’d recommend a monitor like the AOC 27 inch. AOC is a budget brand, however, their products are certainly worth considering when first stepping into the world of triple-screen sim racing.

You will be forgoing with a lot of premium features at a sub-£200 price range. I’d recommend looking for a 27inch gaming monitor. This is the ideal size for stacking three monitors next to each other, although you can go larger if you have the space and budget.

Another great monitor option is the Alienware 27inch. This will set you back more than a brand like AOC, however Alienware is a much more premium brand in the gaming space.

My pick for the best premium monitor would be the LG Ultragear 27GR95QE. This is an OLED, 240Hz gaming monitor that really is class leading. With three of these next to one another, you’ll have one incredibly beautiful image when hitting the track.

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• Written by Rich Article updated on April 24, 2026 Tags: Buyers Guide, Pimax, Sim Racing Product Guides

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