Habits & desk health
Monitor viewing distance calculator
Enter your screen size and resolution to get a comfortable eye-to-screen distance and see from how far the pixels stop being visible.
Measure from your eyes to the screen surface. Ultrawide screens are sized by their height, since you turn your head to the side areas.
How the viewing distance is calculated
The range comes from the angle the screen fills in your field of view. The calculator first works out the screen width from the diagonal and the aspect ratio of the resolution. The near limit is the distance at which the width fills 50 degrees of view, the far limit is where it fills 35 degrees: distance = (width ÷ 2) ÷ tan(half the angle). The near limit is never set closer than 50 cm, in line with the OSHA advice to keep a monitor 20 to 40 inches (50 to 100 cm) away.
The second figure is pixel density. PPI = √(horizontal pixels² + vertical pixels²) ÷ diagonal. A viewer with 20/20 vision separates details down to about 1 arcminute, so pixels merge at pixel size ÷ tan(1/60°), roughly 3,438 × the pixel size. Worked example: a 27-inch 2560 × 1440 screen is 59.8 cm wide. Near limit 29.9 ÷ tan 25° = 64 cm, far limit 29.9 ÷ tan 17.5° = 95 cm. Its density is 2,937 ÷ 27 = 109 PPI, a pixel is 0.233 mm, and pixels blend at about 80 cm.
| Screen | Width | Recommended distance | In inches |
|---|---|---|---|
| 21.5 in, 16:9 | 47.6 cm | 51–75 cm | 20–30 in |
| 24 in, 16:9 | 53.1 cm | 57–84 cm | 22–33 in |
| 27 in, 16:9 | 59.8 cm | 64–95 cm | 25–37 in |
| 32 in, 16:9 | 70.8 cm | 76–112 cm | 30–44 in |
| 34 in ultrawide | 79.7 cm | 64–94 cm | 25–37 in |
Choosing a distance that works
Within the range, sit closer for detailed work such as photo editing or spreadsheets with small cells, and further back for long reading sessions, where a smaller angle means less eye and head movement. If you find yourself turning your head to read the corners, you are below the near limit. If you lean forward to read text, either move closer or increase the display scaling rather than straining.
Resolution decides whether the pixel grid shows. A 24-inch Full HD panel has 92 PPI, and its pixels only disappear beyond about 95 cm, which is why text on it can look soft up close. A 27-inch 4K screen at 163 PPI is sharp from 54 cm, so it is usually run at 150% scaling. Ultrawide models are treated as a 16:9 screen of the same height, because you glance at the side areas rather than taking in the whole width at once. Keep the top of the screen near eye level, and if you need reading glasses or varifocals to see a monitor clearly, an optician can suggest a lens for this distance.
Frequently asked questions
How far should I sit from a 27-inch monitor?
About 64 to 95 cm (25 to 37 inches) for a 16:9 screen. With a 1440p panel, pixels blend together from about 80 cm; with 4K, from about 54 cm.
Is it bad to sit too close to a monitor?
Sitting very close makes your eyes and neck work harder to take in the screen and can add to eye strain, but it does not damage your eyes. Keep at least an arm's length, around 50 cm.
What does PPI mean for a monitor?
Pixels per inch: the number of pixels along one inch of the diagonal. Higher PPI means smaller pixels, so the screen looks sharp from a closer distance.