Guide: Monitor Selection
We receive many customer questions regarding monitor choices. We hesitate to steer customers toward particular brands and models and cannot stress enough the importance of visiting a physical retailer to choose a monitor that looks good to you - not one that looks good to folks on the Internet.
That being said, below we've listed a handful of monitor models that customers have had particularly good luck with and are sized to match your Surface. All models are IPS panels with excellent color reproduction for good performance across a variety of workflows. Monitor availablility changes over time so do double-check that the monitor you buy is VESA-mount capable which we feel is crucial for optimizing workstation ergonomics.
Most of these models are NOT 4K. 1440p panels tend to be much higher quality than 4K panels of similar cost. And given typical monitor viewing distances, 4K monitors will have screen contents automatically scaled by Windows 10 so the extra pixels are not particularly useful for most customers. Customers intent on advanced photo or video editing will get more value out of 4K monitors.
14-15" Surface devices
For Surface Book 2-3, Laptop 3-4, and Laptop Studio, 27" and 34" models match well:
- 34" 3440x1440 Ultrawide LG (DisplayPort)
- 32" 3840x2160 (4K) Dell (DisplayPort)
- 27" 2560x1440 Asus (DisplayPort)
- 27" 3840x2160 (4K) AOC (DisplayPort)
13-13.5" devices
For Surface Book 1-3, Pro 8, Pro X, and the Laptop series, any of the monitors specified for 15" models will work but 24" and 29" sizes match particularly well:
- 29" 2560x1080 Ultrawide LG (DisplayPort)
- 24" ViewSonic 2560x1440 (DisplayPort)
- 24" 1920x1080 Asus (DisplayPort)
10-12.3" devices
For Surface Pro 3-7+ and Go 1-3, any of the above monitors will work ok, but 21", 22" and 25" sizes match best:
- 25" 2560x1080 UltraWide LG 25UM58-P (HDMI only)
- 21-22" 1920x1080 (DisplayPort)
Cables and adapters
- Some customers will need USB-C monitor adapters
- Monitors with DisplayPort will need a miniDP->DP cable
- Monitors with HDMI will need an active miniDP->HDMI adapter (Alternate miniDP->HDMI adapter link) or a USB-C -> HDMI adapter
Custom resolution settings
Check out the custom resolution options to tune your workstation.