Monitor Height and Position Guidelines

What height should my monitor be relative to

my eyes?
There are several competing schools of thought
on this issue, however, we at ErgoCanada
recommend that the top of the viewable screen of your monitor should be at the same
approximate height as your eyes. Since most of the time you are focused in the middle of
your monitor, you will be looking slightly downward at a 10 - 15 angle, on average. And
the monitor should be slightly tilted back (about 10 - 15) so that when you are looking at
the center of the screen your line of sight is perpendicular to the surface of the screen. At
the very most the bottom of the viewable area of your monitor should never be more than
25 - 30 below your line of sight.

Why not set up my monitor at a lower height?

The biggest problem with locating the monitor at a lower elevation is that it will result in your
eyes looking downward. When you look down, even slightly, your head will have an
automatic tendency to tilt downward, putting strain on the neck muscles. If you maintain
that position, over time you will start bend your entire body over and lean forward
subconsciously to relieve the tension on your neck. This will put you in a poor posture
which can lead to increased strain on other parts of your body (a back support on a chair
can't help you if you are leaning forward in your chair).
A normal relaxed position for your head is anywhere from completely vertical to as much as
10 looking downward - any 'tilt' larger than that can lead to the issues noted above. While
you may have a tendency to start leaning forward when looking as the taskbar at the
bottom of the screen, that will correct itself when you need to target on a menu at the top of
the screen if your monitor is at the correct height. However, when even the top of the
viewable area is below your 'straight ahead' viewing angle there is nothing to correct the
subconcious tendency to curl into a 'hunched' position which is anything but ergonomic.
What about bifocals?
Bifocals can significantly affect how your monitor should be positioned. If only the lower
portion of your glasses will allow you to see the monitor in focus, then obviously the monitor
should be located at a height that will allow you to maintain your head at a comfortable
vertical position which does not go beyond 90 (i.e. bending your head back). This will likely
mean placing the monitor at a lower elevation than for someone with contacts or normal
vision. An excellent option is to put an LCD monitor on an articulating arm and adjust it at a

45 angle so that the bottom of the monitor is just above the keyboard (likely hanging
slightly over the front edge of the desk). Arms such as IOP's Deluxe LCD Monitor Mount
with Internal Cable Management will permit this type of adjustment.
What about the example I always hear about "Hold a piece of paper and read it - you
don't hold it up at eye level, do you?"
This argument is flawed on several fronts. The reason we read a piece of paper in a low
position is that our arms are not designed to maintain an extended position for any period
of time at or near shoulder height - lactic acid starts to build up almost immediately when
arms are extended. It is more comfortable to hold any object with arms relaxed at our sides
and bent at the elbow. When viewing a monitor, the arms are not involved, so the
comparison is inappropriate at best.
In general humans act and react to our environment from a vertical position walking on two
legs and sitting in an upright position. Our hunting ancestors and modern day human
pedestrians as a rule default to scanning the horizon to make sure that they are safe. We
only occasionally glance down to avoid tripping on objects - and with those occasional
glances our vision and attention returns to the horizon. In other words our eyes are
designed to be used at the orientation of looking straight ahead as opposed to looking
down 30 to 45.
How do I raise (lower) my monitor to the correct height?
Raising a monitor is quite simple - old phone books, stacks of paper, anything sturdy can
be used to elevate a monitor. Using monitor risers (such as the VuRyte line of monitor

risers) will allow you to utilize the space under your monitor for storage, and ensure a firm
elevated platform which won't make your IT department nervous about a monitor being on
something potentially unstable. If you have a multi-user workstation, an easily adjustable
LCD monitor arm such as IOP's Deluxe LCD Monitor Mount with Internal Cable
Management is an option to provide a range of adjustability from mounting point to 18"
above the worksurface.
If you need to lower your monitor, that can be more difficult - apart from creating a 'cutout' in
your desktop, the only other option is to replace your desk or raise yourself (but then you
need to raise your chair, provide proper foot support, raise the keyboarding/mousing
surface, etc.).
How far away should my my monitor be relative to my eyes?
This depends on an individuals visual capabilities, a good rule of thumb is you should be a
minimum distance equal to the diagonal monitor width (i.e. for a 20" monitor, your eyes
should be at least 20" away from the monitor). If you find yourself squinting or leaning
forward, and you are at the correct distance, have an eye exam performed. If you are using
the appropriate corrective lenses and are still finding difficulty in seeing the screen,
consider reducing the resolution on your display.
Make sure to locate the monitor directly in front of you i.e. you shouldn't have to turn in your
chair (or at your neck) to see your monitor when you are working on your keyboard and
mouse.
What display resolution (pixel size) should I use on my monitor?

Resolution is how many dots (or pixels) are displayed on the screen and expressed as
horizontal by vertical i.e. 800 x 600. The term 'display resolution' is somewhat inaccurate as
when you change the 'resolution' on any given monitor you are essentially changing the
size of the pixels. People who are having trouble working on their computer after
positioning it at the correct distance and ensuring they have appropriate corrective lenses
on should reduce the display resolution (i.e. increase the pixel size) which enlarges all the
content on the screen.
The table below shows the normal display resolution used with each size of monitor; note
that most monitors can display in many different resolutions (including wide screen
resolutions which are not shown in the table below) i.e. a standard 19" monitor will usually
offer 640x480, 800x600 (recommended in most cases), 960x600 (widescreen version of
800x600), 1024x768, 1152x864, 1280x768 (widescreen version of 800x600), 1280x1024.
Name

Horizontal Pixels

Vertical Pixels

Monitor Usage

VGA

640

480

17"

SVGA

800

600

19"

XGA

1024

768

20"-21"

SXGA

1280

1024

22"-23"

UGA

1600

1200

24"

QXGA

2048

1536

25"+

ErgoCanada.com's Guide to Ergonomics is a work in progress. If you have any

comments on our existing content or additional material which we could add, please
let us know!
We hope you found this general information helpful - for more specific information
for your unique situation, we recommend getting an assessment by an ergonomic
professional.
Please bookmark this site and check back often, as we are adding new products and
services regularly.

Ergonomics Portal: ErgoCanada.com

P.O. Box 9022 Saskatoon, SK, Canada S7K 7E7
Phone: (306) 382-5995 Fax: (306) 382-4995
Toll-Free: (866) 335-3746 (ERGO)
Email: sales@ergocanada.com
CLOSE ALL
Why should we worry about positioning the monitor?
The monitor is an integral part of a computer workstation. When placed in the wrong
position it can force the operator to work in a variety of awkward positions. Working with
one's chin tilted upwards, and the head and upper body bent forwards or sideways is
common wherever the monitor is improperly situated. Such forced working body positions

significantly contribute to the operator's discomfort, and can potentially lead to work related
musculoskeletal injury (WMSD). Other adverse effects of a poorly located monitor are eye
irritation, blurred vision, dry burning eyes and headaches, collectively called eyestrain.
Common complaints among computer operators include discomfort, aches and pains in the
neck and shoulder, but also eyestrain. The sheer number of such complaints indicates that
the proper position of the monitor has not received enough recognition as an important
factor in the arrangement of a computer workstation.
What factors decide the proper position of the computer monitor?
Postural discomfort and the consequent aches and pains result from the effort to view the
monitor when it is set at the wrong place in relation to the operator's position. Two factors
come into play: viewing angle and viewing distance. Viewing angle refers to the degree
above or below an imaginary horizontal line at the level of the viewer's eyes and the centre
of the object being looked at; in case of a computer work it is the centre of the screen. See Figure 1. Viewing distance refers to the space between the operator's eyes and the
screen. - See Figure 1. Clearly these factors are critical for correct placement of a computer
monitor. A poor angle leads to postural (neck and shoulders) discomfort, while the wrong
distance can contribute to eyestrain.

Figure 1
The existing guidelines and recommendations on both viewing angle and particularly on
viewing distance differ, sometimes significantly from one another. For this reason they
should not be taken as a commandment "carved in stone" but merely as guidelines. As
such, they can be used as a starting point for tailoring any given situation.
What should you know while setting up an appropriate viewing angle?
Researchers agree that at rest, the eyes naturally assume a straightforward (see Figure 2)
and downward cast (see Figure 1) - a normal line of sight. How far downwards, however, is
not clear. Experimental findings range from about 15 degrees to almost 30 degrees. People

engaged in visually demanding tasks limit their downward eye movements to about half of
the whole available range of 60 degrees.

Figure 2
Therefore, for comfortable viewing of images on a computer screen it is probably
reasonable to place the monitor at about 15 degrees (or slightly lower) below the horizontal
line. Such a location creates a preferable visual zone of 30 degrees (+ 15 degrees to -15
degrees from the normal line of sight).
Numerous field studies among people doing intense visual work indicate that looking
upwards (above the horizontal) is tiring. On the other hand, looking downwards, that is,
lower than 15 degrees below the horizontal, was not reported as particularly fatiguing. This

finding allows one to extend the visual zone downward by another 15 degrees (an
acceptable visual zone) for a total of 45 degrees. See Figure 3.

Figure 3
Warning one

Occasionally monitors are placed on top of the computing module commonly called CPU. A
monitor located that high is a source of discomfort and, in the long run, can cause
musculoskeletal problems in the neck and shoulder area. At a workstation where the desk
and chair heights are properly adjusted, the monitor should be placed at the same level as
the keyboard. The fact that discomfort caused by a monitor which is too high (above the
horizontal) is worse than one which is slightly too low (below an acceptable visual zone)
should be kept in mind while arranging a monitor at any workstation.
Warning two
When using a larger monitor (17", 19" or larger) or one that is oriented to the "portrait"
position, make sure that the top of the screen is not at a level higher than the operator's
eye.
What should you know while setting up (selecting) a proper viewing distance?
Looking at far distances does not cause eyestrain - it is the muscular effort required to
focus on objects at close distances that strains the eyes. The distinction between "far
distance" and "close distance" is never "razor sharp". It is not only individual but it also can
change over time, for example, due to age.
Accommodation* and convergence** are the two main functions, which govern the viewing
of objects at closer distances. The shorter the viewing distance, the greater the muscular
effort required for accommodation and convergence, and which, in turn, increases the risk
for eye discomfort. A greater viewing distance, on the other hand, eliminates the risk for
eyestrain but can make the resolving of the finer images or characters displayed on the

computer screen more difficult. Consequently, the right viewing distance is the one at which
the computer operator can easily read the screen without experiencing eyestrain.
The eyes have a default accommodation distance, called the Resting Point of
Accommodation (RPA) and a default Resting Point of Vergence (RPV). In practical terms,
at distances greater than the RPA and RPV, there is no need for either accommodation or
convergence. Under these conditions, individuals with perfect (20/20) vision or those with
properly corrected vision are not likely to experience eyestrain (assuming they take
appropriate eye "rest breaks" from focussing on the screen).
Numerical values of RPA -- around 75 cm (about 30 in.)-- and RPV -- around 80 cm (about
32 in.)-- are close to each other which makes setting the right viewing distance simple. The
viewing range 40 cm to 70 cm (about 15 - 27 in.) provides visual comfort for majority of
computer users. In the situation where the recommended viewing distance is too great for
the operator to see images clearly it is better to increase the font size (images) than to
force a shorter viewing distance.
* Accommodation is the automatic adjustment of the eye for focusing on near objects. The
eyes achieve this by changing the convexity (or shape) of the lenses.
** Convergence is the automatic inward (toward the nose) turn of the eyes when viewing
close objects.