Ideal Monitor Height: Where Your Screen Should Sit (With the Numbers)

What is the ideal monitor height?

The ideal monitor height puts the top line of the screen at or slightly below your eye level when you sit (or stand) in a relaxed, upright posture. That is the guidance in OSHA's computer workstation eTool and in the UK HSE's good posture guidance. If you switch between sitting and standing, check the screen at both settings; our guide to standing desk height explains why.

With the top of the screen there, the center of the screen falls below your horizontal line of sight. OSHA puts the center normally 15 to 20 degrees below horizontal eye level.

Height is the first rule of monitor ergonomics. Distance, tilt and side-to-side position are the others, and this guide covers all four.

To get a starting number for your own body and screen, use the free monitor height calculator, then fine-tune it at the desk.

Why does the screen belong below eye level?

The eyes do not naturally look straight ahead when you read. CCOHS explains that at rest the eyes take a straightforward and downward line of sight. Experimental findings for how far down range from about 15 degrees to almost 30 degrees.

CCOHS also reports that field studies of people doing intense visual work found looking upward tiring, while looking somewhat below 15 degrees was not reported as particularly fatiguing. Its practical conclusion is to place the monitor at about 15 degrees or slightly lower below the horizontal.

The penalty for getting it wrong is mostly in the neck. OSHA notes that a screen that is too high makes you tilt the head and neck back, fatiguing the muscles that support the head. CCOHS adds that a monitor set too high is worse than one slightly too low.

What do monitor ergonomics guidelines say?

Here is how the major sources line up. They differ in detail, which is normal: CCOHS stresses that guidelines are starting points, not rules "carved in stone".

Source	Height	Distance
OSHA eTool	Top at or slightly below eye level; center 15 to 20 degrees below horizontal	20 to 40 in (50 to 100 cm)
HSE	Top of screen level with eyes	About an arm's length
CCOHS	About 15 degrees or slightly lower below horizontal	About an arm's length
AOA	Center 15 to 20 degrees below eye level	20 to 28 in from the eyes
AAO	Gaze slightly downward, not straight ahead or up	About 25 in (about arm's length)

OSHA adds an upper limit for very large screens: the whole visual area should be placed so the downward viewing angle is never greater than 60 degrees in any of its four reference postures.

How do you set your ideal monitor height in practice?

Set your chair first. Monitor height only makes sense once your seat height, backrest and keyboard height are right, because those fix where your eyes end up. Our guide to setting up a desk in the right order covers that sequence.

Then:

1. Sit back in the chair with your back against the backrest and your head level.
2. Look straight ahead at the screen. Your eyes should meet the top line of text or the top bezel, or a little above it.
3. Adjust the height with the stand, a monitor arm or a stable riser. Remove equipment the monitor is sitting on if it is too high.
4. Check the distance. You should be able to read all text without leaning forward. If you can't, OSHA and CCOHS both suggest increasing text size rather than pulling the screen closer.
5. Set the tilt. OSHA recommends tilting the screen so it is perpendicular to your line of sight, usually no more than 10 to 20 degrees.
6. Center it. OSHA says the monitor should be directly in front of you and no more than 35 degrees to the left or right.

A quick way to convert angles into inches

The AOA translates its 15 to 20 degree guideline as about 4 or 5 inches below eye level, measured to the center of the screen. The exact drop depends on how far away the screen is.

As a worked example: with your eyes 24 inches from the screen, a 15 degree downward gaze to the screen center works out to about 6.4 inches below eye height (24 × tan 15°). At 20 degrees it is about 8.7 inches. The further away the screen, the bigger the drop for the same angle. The monitor height calculator handles this arithmetic for you.

How far away should the monitor be?

Distance affects the eyes more than the neck. CCOHS explains that viewing close objects requires two muscular efforts, accommodation (focusing) and convergence (turning the eyes inward), and the shorter the distance, the more effort is needed.

CCOHS gives the eye's resting point of accommodation as typically around 80 cm (about 31.5 in), increasing with age. It concludes that an arm's length is usually a good estimate, adjusted for the person.

OSHA warns about both extremes. Too far and you lean forward, losing backrest support. Too close and you may tilt your head back or push the chair away and type with outstretched arms. If your desk is too shallow to get the screen back far enough, OSHA suggests pulling the desk away from the wall, using a corner, or using a keyboard tray to create more depth.

What if you wear bifocals or progressive lenses?

People with bifocals, trifocals or progressives look through the bottom of the lens for near work. With a normally placed monitor, that forces the head back, so their ideal monitor height is lower than usual.

OSHA's fixes:

• Lower the monitor below the usual recommendation, and tilt the screen up toward you.
• Raise the chair until you can see the screen without tilting your head back. You may need to raise the keyboard and add a footrest.
• Ask about single-vision lenses with a focal length designed for computer work.

CCOHS agrees that people with corrective lenses for close work may find the top of the monitor slightly below eye level more comfortable. If you have persistent eye discomfort, get an eye exam. This is general information, not medical advice.

How should dual or multiple monitors be positioned?

CCOHS splits this by how you use the screens.

If you use both monitors equally:

• Place them in front of you with the inner edges touching.
• Angle them inward to form a semicircle, so the join sits in front of your nose.

If one monitor is your main screen:

• Put the primary monitor directly in front of you, as if it were a single screen.
• Place the secondary monitor to one side, angled toward you.

In both cases, CCOHS says the monitors should be about an arm's length away and at the same height. OSHA's 35 degree side limit is a useful check on how far the secondary screen can sit.

For wide and ultrawide screens, CCOHS notes the width can force you to rotate your neck to see the edges, and moving the monitor further away may help. For portrait-orientation screens, make sure the top is no higher than eye level.

What about laptops?

A laptop on a desk almost always puts the screen too low. HSE's guidance for prolonged laptop use is to use a separate keyboard and mouse so the screen can be raised on a riser, or to connect a separate display. Once the laptop is raised, apply the same top-of-screen-at-eye-level rule.

Does monitor height change at a standing desk?

The ideal monitor height rule stays the same, but you have to reset it every time you switch. CCOHS's sit/stand desk guidance says that in the standing position the monitor should still be between horizontal and 35 degrees below. If the desk raises the keyboard and screen together, check whether the screen ends up too low when standing. A monitor arm makes this easier. More detail is in our guide to standing desk height.

How do you know if your monitor height is wrong?

Common signs include:

• Tilting your chin up to read, or craning forward.
• Neck or upper shoulder ache that builds through the day.
• Leaning toward the screen to read small text.
• Glare forcing you to shift position.

CCOHS lists eye irritation, blurred vision, dry burning eyes and headaches as effects of a poorly located monitor. Good monitor ergonomics is only part of the fix, though. Breaks and lighting matter too, as covered in eye strain remedies and the 20-20-20 rule.

Next steps

Find your ideal monitor height with the monitor height and distance calculator, make one adjustment at a time, and give each change a day or two before judging it. Monitor ergonomics only works when the chair and desk are right too, so read our computer workstation ergonomics guide for the rest of the desk.