Best VR Headset 2025: Fantastic virtual reality headsets from Meta, Vive, Pico and more

No company has cornered the VR market quite like Meta and while the company now has several great VR headsets for consumers to choose from, it’s the Meta Quest 3 that offers the best overall experience for most people.

The Quest 3 already had a tough act to follow in its predecessor but Meta has managed to build upon what made the Quest 2 great with better performance across the board and some much needed quality of life tweaks.

Most of the Quest 3’s upgrades can be chalked up to the new Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 chipset which allows everything to run a great deal faster this time around, and ensuring excellent performance across the board in VR and AR applications.

Speaking of AR, this is the biggest leap forward for the Quest 3. Because of a much improved passthrough mode, the Meta Quest 3 is able to interact more seamlessly with your surroundings and support the latest crop of augmented reality apps and games.

There’s also a new Depth Sensor that comes into play, which allows the Quest 3 to more accurately establish a boundary around you, keeping you protected while you play whilst also incurring far fewer accidental warnings as you move around your allotted space.

As if all this wasn’t enough, the Quest 3 even features higher resolution 4K+ screens – everything looks better than before, with text now at the level where it’s easy to read without any signs of blurring. There’s also Wi-Fi 6E support as well for faster downloading and streaming with a compatible router.

The one main downside to the Quest 3 is that it costs considerably more than the Quest 2, which might be the better option for VR enthusiasts on a budget. Still, if you can afford the added expense, you’ll absolutely love what Meta has managed to achieve here.

For the longest time, this spot was occupied by the excellent Oculus/Meta Quest 2, but with the release of the Quest 3S, Meta has raised the bar on what to expect from a more budget friendly VR headset.

In fact, folks who are still sporting the Quest 2 will likely be impressed to know that the 3S’s Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 chip boasts double the graphical power. It’s the same chipset that features in the more expensive Quest 3, so from a value perspective, you’re not missing out on the core gaming performance by opting for the affordable pick.

Of course, the real allure of the Meta Quest 3S for anyone looking to get into VR is that Meta still boasts the widest catalogue of apps, games and experiences, and the list keeps growing. Quest exclusives like Batman: Arkham Shadow make the platform tempting enough on its own, but optimised versions of streaming apps like YouTube and Prime Video are the icing on the cake.

To consider that you can dive into all of this with a device that starts at £289.99/$299.99, there isn’t really another VR headset out there that can compete at that price level. Even the Meta Quest 3, with its higher price tag of £469.99/$499.99, is a far greater investment and likely more than what the average consumer would be willing to spend.

With that said, there is a reason why the Quest 3S is able to undercut the standard Quest 3 on price and it’s partly due to a few small (but potentially meaningful) compromises. The most important change is the use of a fresnel lens which results in less detail around your peripheral vision, and the same 1832 x 1920 per eye resolution found on the Quest 2.

Even with that working against it, we never found that apps running on the Quest 3S were an eye-sore, so the decision over whether or not to get the 3 over the 3S will come down to an appreciation of visual fidelity. For pure value however, the Meta Quest 3S can’t be beat.

The PlayStation VR 2 headset has a number of impressive features. It has a 4K OLED display, eye-tracking technology and built-in haptic feedback to increase the immersion tenfold.

It is important to note that this headset requires a PS5 to function, and doesn’t offer the wireless freedom that the Meta Quest 3 and Pico 4 do. But on the bright side, the PSVR 2 can leverage the power of the PS5, offering high quality experiences like Horizon Call of the Mountain.

The PSVR 2 is a big upgrade on its predecessor too, with more ergonomic controllers and a streamlined setup that only requires a single USB-C connection.

But is the PlayStation VR 2 worth the steep price when the Meta Quest 3 is available at a lower fee? That will depend on its game support; if PlayStation can keep pumping out first-party games like Horizon, this may well become the best VR headset on the market.

The Vive Pro 2 provides the very best virtual reality experience of all the headsets on this list, with a super-sharp 5K resolution, faultless tracking performance and a huge selection of immersive VR games and apps.

But with the headset retailing for over £1000 when bundled with the required accessories, it’s only really worthwhile for hardcore VR enthusiasts or those already invested in the Vive ecosystem. The need for external tracking sensors also means you basically need to take up an entire room to maximise your enjoyment with the Vive Pro 2, which simply isn’t possible for everyone. And let’s not forget the need for a high-powered PC to plug the headset into.

If you adore VR and are happy to look past those obstacles, then you’ll be treated to one of the best VR experiences currently available. During testing, we were incredibly impressed with the likes of Half-Life Alyx and Paper Beast, with pinpoint-accurate tracking.

The 120Hz refresh rate and 5K resolution ensure you’re getting the absolute best visuals from a VR headset, even with the lack of an OLED screen. So if you want a top-notch VR headset and money is no issue, then the Vive Pro 2 is an awesome option.

The Pico 4 offers the closest experience to the Meta Quest 3 headset, with an all-in-one design that doesn’t require any cables or external PC to function. It even surpasses the Quest in certain areas.

Firstly, the Pico has a better design. Weighing just 295 grams, it’s lighter than every other headset on this list. The use of a plastic headband also ensures a secure fit, so you shouldn’t have to worry about adjusting it on your head every few seconds. Overall, this results in a more comfortable experience.

The Pico 4 also has a superior screen resolution compared to the Quest 2, though it’s matched more closely by the newer Quest 3. Our testing showed that this helped to create sharper images, with individual pixels becoming less noticeable. The headset even features colour passthrough, allowing you to see your surroundings even when the headset is hugging your face.

The only major thing holding the Pico back from beating the Quest is its substandard game library. It’s missing a number of VR game gems, including Beat Saber, Resident Evil 4 and Moss. As a result, we suggest you check out the Pico game’s library before you commit yourself to a purchase of the headset.

The Pico 4 Ultra is the Pico 4’s bigger brother, surpassing the entry-level standalone headset with a few key features that lets it better compete (and even excel against) the popular Meta Quest 3.

This includes higher-resolution 32MP RGB cameras and a new depth sensor for better passthrough and mixed reality capabilities, while the newer Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 chipset and 12GB of RAM massively boosts performance for better visuals in VR experiences.

However, the key selling point of the Pico 4 Ultra is undoubtedly its full-body tracking capabilities. In addition to redesigned ringless controllers that are more comfortable to hold, the Ultra model also offers trackers to be worn on the ankles for true body tracking. This provides a much more realistic experience not only in social VR apps, but combat games, though they need to be purchased separately as an additional accessory.

Like the regular Pico 4, the only real drawback of the Pico 4 Ultra compared to the Quest 3 is its standalone game library; while the offering has improved since the launch of the Pico 4, it’s nowhere near as extensive as Meta’s offerings, some of the best of which are exclusive to Meta’s platform.