The 4 Best AV Receivers for Most People of 2025

An AV receiver combines source switching, audio (and sometimes video) processing, speaker amplification, and volume control in one box. Think of it as the traffic cop of your audio-video system, routing video from your sources to your display and sending audio to your speakers. After you plug your source components—your media streamer, gaming console, cable or satellite receiver, or disc player—into the AV receiver’s inputs and then connect its outputs to your display and speakers, it will direct all of the AV signals to the right places and in the right formats.

AV receivers run the price gamut from a couple hundred dollars to well into four-figure territory. Our focus here is on receivers that strike a good balance of performance, features, and value, so all of our picks are priced around $1,700 or below.

The serious audio or home theater enthusiast may choose to spend more money for more power (which may be important if your speakers have low sensitivity and are difficult to drive), more amplified channels, more setup and customization options, and better build quality. But above about $1,700, you’ll find diminishing performance returns on your investment. At that point, you may want to move into the realm of separate AV preamplifiers and multichannel amplifiers.

We didn’t set a lot of minimum-spec requirements to limit which models we considered, but there are certain key specs that you should keep in mind when you begin your receiver search, to determine whether you need a budget, midpriced, or higher-end model:

How many channels of speaker amplification do you need?

A basic home theater setup is referred to as having 5.1 channels of audio. The “5” in this case indicates the number of amplified channels: two front left and right speakers, one center speaker for dialogue and on-screen sound effects, and two surround-sound speakers located behind or to the side of the main listening position.

The “.1” stands for the subwoofer, which usually has its own amplifier built in so your receiver doesn’t need to provide it with power. Many mid- and higher-priced receivers are labeled as “.2” instead of “.1,” which means they have two subwoofer outputs that you may or may not be able to set up and adjust independently. Our upgrade pick has four independent subwoofer outputs, so Denon markets it as a 9.4-channel receiver.

Most receivers priced around $500 or less are 5.1-channel designs. Moving up to a 7.1-channel receiver gives you the option to add an extra pair of surround speakers, to power a second audio zone, or to build a basic Dolby Atmos and DTS:X system with two “height” speakers—provided that the receiver has Dolby Atmos and DTS:X decoding (most newer 7.1-channel models do). Dolby Atmos and DTS:X soundtracks include overhead effects to make the audio experience even more immersive. The more height speakers you add, the more convincing the effect—but that requires more amp channels, which necessitates a more expensive AV receiver.

With Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, the channel counting gets a little more complicated. You might, for example, see designations like “5.1.2” or “5.2.4.” The first numeral refers to the number of conventional ear-level speakers that need to be amplified, the second refers to the number of subwoofer outputs, and the third refers to the number of height channels. Since the subwoofer is typically self-powered, to figure out how many amplified channels a receiver has, you simply add the first and third numerals: A 5.1.2-channel receiver, for example, has seven amplified channels and might also be referred to as a 7.1-channel receiver.

How many sources do you plan to connect?

Your receiver needs to be able to connect all the HDMI source devices you have, which could include, for example, a media streaming device, cable or satellite box, disc player, and gaming console. Five HDMI ports is probably the right number for most people, as it gives you inputs for every source you’re likely to use in your home theater, with the option to add one or two more.

You should also consider how many non-HDMI-equipped sources you want to connect and confirm that the receiver has enough digital or analog inputs to accept them. If you have a turntable that lacks a phono preamp, you may want a receiver with a phono input.

Which HDMI 2.1 features do you need?

HDMI 2.1 is the latest version of the digital connection that all modern video-based components use. Version 2.1 adds support for 8K resolution by way of an increase in the maximum bandwidth from 18 gigabits per second to a theoretical high of 48 Gbps.

Other noteworthy enhancements include automatic low-latency mode (which allows devices to automatically detect and switch to the best mode for gaming), eARC (which allows for higher-quality lossless audio over the HDMI Audio Return Channel instead of only compressed formats), variable refresh rate, and quick media switching.

An AV receiver’s specs can list various features of the HDMI 2.1 standard even if the receiver supports only one or two of them, which certainly creates confusion for shoppers. Be sure to read the fine print to pick a receiver that supports the HDMI 2.1 features you need.

What type of streaming-audio support do you want?

Even music fans with extensive physical music collections likely stream some of their music from the internet, so a receiver needs a way of supporting streaming audio apps such as Amazon Music and Spotify.

With a budget receiver, you’re likely to get only Bluetooth support. As you move up in price, you can expect a receiver to be able to connect to a home network (check for a wired or wireless network connection, if you have a preference) and to have built-in support for services like Spotify (so you don’t have to cast the audio from your phone), as well as built-in streaming protocols such as Apple AirPlay 2 and Google Chromecast.

If you already own Wi-Fi speakers that use a certain platform (such as AirPlay), you may want to look for a receiver that features the same streaming technology so that all the devices work well together.

What level of room correction are you willing to pay for?

Room-correction systems make the biggest impact on how a receiver sounds to most listeners. People rarely have perfect listening rooms, and speakers (especially subwoofers) often end up in spots where they are unobtrusive instead of where they sound the best.

Room correction helps to improve the overall sound quality by using microphones and built-in software to estimate how your room and speaker placement are distorting the sound and to attempt to compensate for those distortions.

Lots of receivers offer basic room correction, but at the more affordable end of the spectrum, the processing can do more harm than good—dulling the sound without really fixing the most egregious problems with bass frequencies. But when you invest in a more advanced room-correction technology such as Audyssey MultEQ XT32 or Dirac Live (both of which are available on AV receivers of various brands), you get the ability to customize the type of corrections and account for multiple subwoofers, and these systems do a better job of tuning the sound without making it seem overly processed.

In the price ranges we covered with our testing, we were unable to tell most receivers apart when their room correction was not enabled. We found that the type of room correction employed had the most significant impact on sound quality, providing big benefits for some receivers and only smaller improvements for others.

The better room-correction systems are those that prompt you to place the calibration microphone at numerous locations at and around the main listening area. This process gives the system a more complete snapshot of your room’s acoustics. The best room-correction systems also allow you to place limits on what the system is and isn’t allowed to “correct.”

One important distinction between Audyssey and Dirac is how they approach different tiers or feature sets. With Audyssey, the power of the room-correction system largely correlates with the price range of the receiver. Cheaper receivers have the basic Audyssey MultEQ, which doesn’t deliver the best results. Midpriced models move up to MultEQ XT, while flagship offerings typically rely on MultEQ XT32, which provides more advanced processing and more customization options.

Dirac, on the other hand, takes a more modular approach. If you buy a receiver with Dirac capabilities, you might find that it comes in a limited form that offers room correction only up to 500 Hz, which may be all that you need. In fact, it may be the best solution for your acoustical problems. If you find that you need full-range room correction, you can typically pay about $100 to unlock those capabilities. A more consequential upgrade comes in the form of Dirac Live Bass Control, which we discuss in more depth in our review of the Onkyo TX-RZ30; depending on your room, your speaker system, and the number of subs in your system, its benefits could be significant.