Without a doubt, multiple monitors will help you improve your computer experience. You get more space to view and work. Plus, it improves your productivity and allows you to keep track of multiple things at once. However, if you haven’t used a multi-monitor setup before, I’ll share with you some of the best multi-monitor setup tips for Windows. So you can enjoy the best computer experience.
How to choose monitors depending on the video card of your PC
Before setting up a dual monitor setup or a multi-monitor setup, it’s very important to find out if your computer can handle all monitors. How many ports are on your PC? What are the types of ports like DVI, HDMI, VGA or DisplayPort?
Number of supported ports:
If you are connecting monitors directly to the motherboard and not to the GPU. Then the internal graphics of most motherboards can only handle two monitors. If you want to connect three or more monitors, you will need a dedicated graphics card with that many ports.
Also, in most cases, even if you see multiple display ports, your graphics card only supports two monitors at a time. To find out, you can go to “Control Panel”> “Device Manager”> “Display Adapters”and write down the name of the card. Then search the web for information about the adapter and check how many monitors your GPU can support.
Permission:
The next thing you need to figure out is the maximum resolution supported by the GPU. If your video adapter supports a lower resolution and you buy a higher resolution monitor, it won’t be worth the money. You also need to check out other features like HDR, DLSS and more.
Best Tips for Setting Up Multiple Monitors for Windows
- Monitor Locations and Layout
- Display scale, resolution and color configuration
- Endless wallpaper
- Different wallpapers
- Change monitor settings
- Windows Binding Feature
- Hotkeys
1] Monitor placement and layout
The first thing you can start with is to change the display order. Windows will automatically detect the displays and number them. So you can quickly deal with your monitors.
To identify a monitor, you can go to Settings > System > Display > Identify and multiple monitors connected to your monitor will appear with a number assigned to it.
If the connected monitor is not showing up, you can detect it by going to Start > Settings > System > Display > Multiple Displays > Detect.
To arrange the monitors, you can change their position. This is very useful if you want to have them installed in your home or office.
You can do this in the display settings. Select and drag the display to the desired location. Do this for all displays you want to move. When you’re happy with the layout, select Apply.
You can also change display options. For example, you can change the resolution, screen layout, and more. You can find all these options in the “Settings”section. Select System > Display. You can also change the monitor orientation by doing the following:
- Go to settings.
- Go to System > Display.
- Then click “Display Orientation”and select “Portrait”.
2] Display scale, resolution and color configuration
If you are using monitors from different companies, it might be a good idea to change your monitor settings a bit. For example, you can customize the display scale, resolution, and color configuration. And for that you can follow these steps:
Select Settings > System > Display.
Zoom: Select a display to zoom. From here, choose how much you want to zoom in. (100, 125, 150 and 175) according to scale and layout.
Resolution: You also want to make sure that all of your monitors are using the exact screen resolution. However, you can choose another one to make sure both look almost the same. So the combination of Scale and Resolution will help you here.
Color Management
Another thing you can do is adjust the color for all your monitors. You can find this setting under Settings > System > Display > Advanced Display > Display Adapters Properties.
Now a small window will appear. Click the Color Management > Color Management tab and another window will pop up. Go to “Advanced”, click on “Calibrate Display”and follow all on-screen instructions.
3] Endless Wallpaper
You can also use the same wallpaper on both monitors by stretching it. And it’s very easy to do. All you have to do is download a cool 3840×1080 wallpaper and set it as your wallpaper, and Windows will take care of the rest. It’s best if you have the same monitors.
- Open Windows Settings and go to Personalization > Background.
- Next, you need to select a wallpaper that is the size of the combined resolution of all monitors.
- In the “Background Settings”section, select an image and then select “Tiles”from the drop-down list.
Also, you can save different wallpapers on both monitors. Or you can use the default Windows wallpaper. But having your own wallpaper is a great thing.
4] Different wallpapers
Speaking of different wallpapers, Windows allows you to store other wallpapers on a different monitor. This will help you distinguish between your monitors. This way you won’t get confused between the primary and secondary monitor.
All you have to do is go to Personalization > Background, select a photo, and select your monitor to apply the wallpaper to.
5] Change monitor settings
In Windows 11 or 10, it’s very easy to play around with your monitor settings. It doesn’t matter if you want to manage color, use advanced mode, set screen resolution, or whatever; it’s super easy.
All you have to do is go to Settings > System > Display and you will find all the settings. For example, you can keep the taskbar on only one monitor or more.
6] Windows Link Function
You can also split the screen when using multiple monitors. You can easily bind applications using keyboard shortcuts. You can use Windows Key + Left Arrow or Windows Key + Right Arrow to move the application window around the monitor.
For example, if you press Windows + Left Arrow, the window will snap to the left side of the main screen.
Alternatively, you can move Windows to another monitor by pressing Windows+Left Arrow again. If you press Windows+Left Arrow again, the window will return to its original position, but on the secondary monitor. More on this in the Snap & Arrange feature.
7] Basic keyboard shortcuts
If you want to become super productive and use your computer efficiently. Then learning some keyboard shortcuts won’t hurt you. There are a bunch of keyboard shortcuts that make your overall experience pretty awesome. These keyboard shortcuts are:
- Win + Left and Win + Right: Snap the active window to the left or right side of the current monitor. Also, you can press the buttons again to move it between monitors.
- Win + Up and Win + Down: Maximize or minimize the current window. If the window is currently anchored, it will also resize it from its anchor position.
- Win + Home: This will minimize all windows except the one you are currently working on. This way you can free yourself from the apps you don’t use.
- Shift + Win + Left and Shift + Win + Right: This will move the active window to the next monitor without snapping it to the edge.
- Shift + Win + Up: This will enlarge the window vertically.
Conclusion
So these were some of the best tips for setting up multiple monitors for Windows. I hope this helped you with your request. If you have any further questions, please let us know via the comments.
What software can I use to set up dual or multiple monitors?
If you are not already using DisplayFusion, you should. This is a third party application designed for multiple monitors.
With this tool, you can get more control over your monitor settings. For example, you can set wallpapers, create keyboard shortcuts, and align windows to the edges of any display. In addition, you can automatically dim an inactive monitor. So you won’t be distracted.
The software is full of features. In addition, a free version of the software is available. So you can download it and play around with the settings. Also, if you need additional settings, you can always purchase the program.
What is the best layout for two monitors?
In a dual monitor configuration, you should place the main monitor in front of your body and at eye level. The secondary monitor should be placed at a height parallel to the main display. Thus, you will get rid of neck and eye strain. In addition, you can work in a comfortable position and look at both monitors without any problems.
How big should my desk be for two monitors?
For a dual monitor setup, it’s also important that you have enough desktop space. Ideally, your desk should be about 55 inches wide and 25 inches deep to accommodate two monitors.
Or you can opt for a larger desk if you want to add more monitors. Also, a table that is 60 inches or larger will be long enough to accommodate computer peripherals and other accessories fairly quickly.
In case you don’t want to invest in a big table. Then you can also buy a monitor stand. They allow you to fit two monitors or more in a small space.