What HDMI Black Level Means – And How To Adjust It Correctly

On select TVs and monitors, you can change the HDMI black level, which essentially adjusts contrast to ensure dark scenes are as dark as possible. The setting may also boost brightness, making color and vibrancy pop more. It's more commonly found on Samsung TVs and monitors, originally intended to help "correct the image degradation and contrast" caused by legacy equipment like DVD players or cable boxes.  The setting compensates for the black-level range of an HDMI input and works with devices like consoles and media players, too. HDMI black-level settings also appear on displays from brands like Acer, LG, and others, though it may have a different name on your specific TV.

Generally, there are two settings available: high and low. Low is best used on a PC monitor or a TV when the source's RGB range is set to Limited. High is best for when the RGB range is set to Normal or Full. That's because the latter modes match the visual output to what the display expects, delivering true blacks. In other words, the signal coming in from the HDMI device either matches the monitor's true color range or doesn't. Setting these wrong can result in a washed-out picture with greyish-black colors or artifacts in dark scenes. That's also why it's one of the few smart TV settings that can fix washed-out colors, alongside picture mode, brightness, and RGB range.

Certain Samsung displays and those from other brands may expand available options to include Off, which disables enhancements, and Normal or Medium for a mid-tier choice. In the end, it's best to go with the setting you believe looks correct.

You should fiddle with the HDMI black levels on your display when you see a grey, washed-out picture or subtle bright spots when watching a movie, show, or playing a game with dark, pitch-black scenes. For the most part, you shouldn't see brighter colors or artifacts in a dark scene. However, it also depends on the type of display technology you have. OLED displays tend to have deeper blacks because individual pixels can be turned off. Something called light bleed-in can affect LCD, IPS, VA, and TN panels, because they rely on a bright backlight even in dark scenes. In fact, that light difference is one reason why people choose OLED vs. IPS panels when buying a new display. You'd be surprised how much you can tell the difference between cheap and expensive OLED panels by looking at black-level performance.

Overall, it's relatively easy to change on the displays that support it. Adjusting to check the color, contrast, and brightness in dark scenes won't hurt anything. You can swap through them to see which looks best to your eyes. You should be able to find the option in picture settings, but do note it is tied to HDMI, so you may not see it for non-HDMI sources.

To change the setting on a Samsung TV, you must press Menu on the remote and navigate to Picture Options > HDMI Black Level. On other displays, you may need to find a similar Picture Settings option or adjust settings for the HDMI input. While you're in there, you may want to fiddle with some of the other TV settings Consumer Reports says you should change ASAP.