In 2022, the average size of televisions installed in American homes was 47.5 inches. Many people are simply no longer willing to settle for a screen smaller than 50 inches, and in fact, sales of 80- to 89-inch TVs increased 26.5% year-over-year in 2025. The largest size TV you can buy is an extreme home theater that easily takes up an entire wall in your home. Rapid advances in television technology date back to the 1970s, when virtually all home televisions came with a color screen. But for comparison, how big was a TV in the 70s?
The typical size of a home television in the 1970s was 21 inches. This is what a high-end TV looked like in the 1970s: a bulky CRT box with a 19- to 25-inch screen built into a wooden console, complete with front-facing speakers and in-device controls (remotes were a rare luxury). The picture may have been blurry and the TV may have been 25 inches at most, but the console TV was one of the key electronic devices that shaped an entire generation in the ’60s and ’70s. It was the pinnacle of entertainment, in the same way that our 75-inch-plus 4K screens are today.
When did TV screens start getting so much bigger?
Aspect ratio is an important thing to keep in mind when talking about the increasing size of TVs over the years. In the 1970s, televisions were square boxes that displayed images in a full-screen 4:3 format. With the introduction of affordable high-definition displays in the mid-2000s, widescreen televisions became common. HDTVs were also thin and light compared to their CRT ancestors, so a larger TV could easily be transported from the store to the home. That’s when television screens started getting bigger and bigger.
Once it became physically possible – and financially practical – to make larger screens, it became very easy to understand why TVs keep getting bigger. Frankly, a larger screen with higher resolution makes for a nicer picture and a more immersive experience. If a movie buff or video gamer can save money to buy a larger TV, it just makes sense to do so.
However, current trends in the TV market focus on better technology and more affordable pricing. Manufacturers are already making large TVs, so consumers are now thinking more about picture quality and longevity. It’s not just about “75 inches is better than 65 inches”, it’s also about Mini LED vs OLED and which technology is best for your living room.
