pictures of lcd monitors brands

Choosing the best monitors for photo editing is important. It"s not just about your own viewing comfort and satisfaction. It"s essential that you get a proper rendition of the detail, color and contrast in your photos.

When you"re editing an image, you only have what you see on the screen to go by – and if your monitor isn"t up to the job, you can easily end up correcting the monitor"s faults when your photos are perfectly fine. Of course, the best monitor calibrators(opens in new tab) can help you to sort out your screen and ensure optimum accuracy, too.

In this guide, we"ve picked some of the best monitors on the market that prioritize resolution, color accuracy, brightness consistency and contrast to display your photos properly. If you regularly move around with your system, then take a look at the best portable monitors(opens in new tab).

If you fancy getting more specific, we"ve already got guide on the best video editing monitors(opens in new tab), the best ultra-wide monitors(opens in new tab) and even the slightly futuristic but best curved monitors(opens in new tab).

The best monitor for photo editing will obviously depend on what device you actually use. For Apple fans, the best monitors for MacBook Pro(opens in new tab) will extend your workspace and give you superb image quality.

The excellent 27-inch LG 27UL500-W might look expensive compared to budget screens you see in a computer store, but if you can afford the extra it"s well worth it. The 4K resolution is ideal for photographers, and the Color Calibration Pro tool boosts the color accuracy of the monitor, which is essential for anyone who is looking for high-end photography capabilities but at a competitive price.

With a slimline design and slender crescent-shaped silver base, the LG 27UL500-W makes most desktop monitors look comparatively clunky. The only real compromise is that, while tilt, height and pivot facilities are available, there’s no swivel mechanism built into the base.

Monitors with dependable image quality and respectable color space coverage used to cost a fortune, but this bargain HP display proves those days are long gone. Boasting 99% sRGB color space coverage and the kind of color and contrast consistence that only IPS LCD screen tech can offer, the HP M24fw gives you premium display quality at a rock-bottom price. Even the exterior looks pretty snazzy with a modern-looking stand and super-slim bezels. The Full HD (1920 x 1080) screen resolution is nothing special, but it"s high enough to keep things looking crisp on a display this size. Connectivity is limited to just a single HDMI port and an old-school VGA port, but that does mean compatibility with older computers should be simple.

Dell produces several excellent monitors for photo editing, but the U3223QE offers the best value of them all. This 31.5-inch panel can display 100% of the sRGB color space, and is capable of 100% Rec. 709 coverage and 98% DCI-P3 coverage - the latter being exceptional. Adobe RGB color support isn"t advertised though, and is the only question mark over this otherwise superbly-specced screen.

Factory color calibration ensures a Delta-E accuracy of less than 2 and the monitor is capable of displaying HDR content as it just meets the 400cd/m2 brightness needed for HDR playback.

The NEC MultiSync EA271U monitor has a slightly corporate feel to it, supporting ‘cost-saving device management’, whereby all connected NEC devices can be controlled from a central location. There’s also a wide range of eco-friendly settings.

Standard and ‘photo’ viewing modes are accompanied by text, gaming, movie and dynamic modes, but there’s no preset for the Adobe RGB colour space. Connection ports include DP, DVI and HDMI, along with a USB 3.0 hub. Unusually, the MultiSync EA271U also features built-in speakers, though with an output of only 2W each, they"re of limited aural appeal. Touch-sensitive virtual control buttons are easily accessible on the lower bezel.

Distinctive features include an HDR mode and a 1300:1 contrast ratio. On the negative side, there’s no preset Adobe RGB mode and ViewSonic only claims 77% coverage of the full Adobe RGB gamut.

4K resolution may be de rigueur these days for monitors and televisions, but this Eizo ColorEdge sets its sights a little lower at 2540x1440, resulting in a pixel count of about 3.7MP instead of 8.3MP. The pixel density is also lower for a 27-inch screen, at 109ppi rather than 163ppi, but image quality still looks absolutely super-sharp.

Ports at the rear include DVI, HDMI and DP, along with two upstream USB 3.0 ports. There are three downstream USB 3.0 ports behind the left-hand side of the case. Bundled software includes Quick Color Match, to enable easy color matching between screen viewing and printed output. It also comes with ColorNavigator software for use with independent calibration hardware (not supplied).

Color accuracy of our review sample was pretty much spot on, straight out of the box. The Eizo ColorEdge also delivers excellent gamut for both sRGB and Adobe RGB, with presets available for both color spaces, direct from the menu system. Uniformity across the screen is particularly good, and there’s very little backlight bleed.

Bigger is better, but a 27-inch screen is about as far as we"d go. It"s a good compromise between screen space and a comfortable working distance, but a 24-inch display is fine if you work quite close to the screen, or even the 21.5-inch display of a smaller iMac model.

What are aspect ratios(opens in new tab), we hear you cry. Most modern screens have a "widescreen" 16:9 aspect ratio. This corresponds to current video standards and also gives a little space at the side of the screen for tools and palettes when you"re editing regular still images. Once you"ve used a 16:9 screen, you won"t go back to an old "narrow" 4:3 display. Also consider ultrawide monitors(opens in new tab), which can give you more space to view more windows or palettes – and are an alternative to using a second screen.

Graphics card: When buying a high-end display, it’s important to make sure your computer’s graphics are up to the task of displaying 4K resolution smoothly. Most recent PCs or Macs should have the necessary firepower to run Photoshop on a 4K screen, but older computers may not.

Color gamut: The base level standard for all displays and devices is sRGB. You can’t go wrong with this because every device will support it. However, in commercial publishing, where the demands are higher, they like to use the larger Adobe RGB color space. High-end photographic monitors can display most/nearly all of the Adobe RGB gamut.

USB-C connection: this makes it easy to hook up your monitor to a computer with USB-C output. We have a separate guide to the best USB-C monitors for photo editing(opens in new tab).

Wondering what makes us qualified to judge the best monitors for photo editing? How we test and review(opens in new tab) is very important to us, and we evaluate a monitor with particular attention given to its core image quality, including brightness, contrast, color vibrancy and accuracy. While this can – and will – be assessed by the experienced eye of our professional reviewer, some manufacturer screen specs can only be definitively judged by an "electronic eye" - a monitor calibrator.

Where possible, a calibration device will be placed on the screen to verify its advertised color space coverage, brightness output and consistency, and factory color calibration accuracy. Beyond image quality, we"ll also scrutinize the monitor"s display and data ports to ensure acceptable connectivity, and will give a thorough assessment of build quality, including the range of ergonomic adjustment in its stand. Only then will we determine if a screen is worthy of use by a discerning imaging or video enthusiast.Round up of today"s best deals

LG is an international electronics company whose headquarters are in South Korea. Their monitors tend to focus more on gaming with the UltraGear lineup, but they have a few office-friendly options. While they have a few 4k monitors, they have more 1080p and 1440p options if your graphics card doesn"t support high-resolution, high-frame-rate games. You won"t get as many 240Hz monitors as other brands, but LG"s 1440p monitors are still reliable and excellent for gaming. They also offer screens in a variety of sizes, from 24 to 32 inches for 16:9 monitors and 34 and 38-inch ultrawide screens. LG has a few downsides because they offer limited ergonomics and don"t have many extra features.

The LG 32GQ950-B is the best LG monitor we"ve tested. It"s a 32-inch monitor with a high-resolution 4k screen, delivering a high pixel density that"s great for both gaming and multitasking. It"s an amazing gaming monitor with low input lag and a fast response time, ensuring a responsive gaming experience with very little blur behind fast-moving objects. It"s also great for office users in a bright room thanks to its high peak brightness, but direct reflections can be distracting if you have a lot of natural light. It also has a few convenience features built-in, including a built-in USB hub, so you can connect your peripherals to the monitor and have a single cable going back to your computer.

The best monitors for photo editing can make all the difference both for professionals and enthusiasts. Good colour coverage, uniformity and accuracy enable you to see your photos how they really look, which is essential for editing, whatever device you"re using.

Screens can vary so much that sometimes you think you"ve got an edit spot on, and then you see your edited image on a different screen or printed out and you want to start all over again. Different screens display different amounts of colours, so if your monitor is limited in its colour coverage, it won"t display all of the nuanced colours in your image. There"s also the issue of accuracy, while brightness and contrast also impact how your work looks. This can all lead to images ending up under or over-exposed or colours that look unnatural or garish on a different screen or support.

Below, we list our pick of the best monitors for photo editing based on our reviewers" experiences and recommendations from contributors. We"ve chosen displays that support wide colour spaces such as Adobe RGB and offer good brightness, colour accuracy and useful features at different price points, from relatively affordable options to expensive screens designed for professional use. In each case, we"ve either tested the monitor for photo editing ourselves or we"ve based our evaluations on the monitors" specs and opinions from working photographers (see more details about how we test and review products).

Screen outputs fluctuate over time, so even the best monitors for photo editing need to be calibrated. We"ve included some options that have their own calibration tools, but if you opt for one of the more affordable options in our pick, you"ll want to use one of the best monitor calibrator tools so that you can regularly reconfigure your screen"s output.

Most creatives today want to work on at least 4K screens, especially if they work with video as well as still images. We"ve included some here, but we also have a specific guide to the best 4K monitors if you want more options. Some of these screens will also be good for video editing, but, again, we also have a specific guide to the best monitors for video editing. If you want a tactile screen, meanwhile, take a look at our roundup of the best touchscreen monitors.

We rate the BenQ SW321C as the best monitor for photo editing overall. It"s not cheap by any means, but it"s not the most expensive screen either, offering a good balance between price and quality – because the quality is fantastic. It boasts 99% Adobe RGB, 100% sRGB and 95% P3 gamut coverage, and you can quickly switch between colour spaces thanks to a separate control unit. And the screen comes expertly calibrated, although it also offers hardware calibration independent of your computer.

We"ve found the colour precision and uniformity across the screen to be close to faultless, and when combined with the detail of the 4K display, this is a screen that allows you to view your work in glorious detail. There are plenty of other useful touches. The Paper Color Sync mode helps you create a colour space based on your printer and paper type for more accurate previewing, while M Book mode makes the screen more closely match a MacBook Pro to allow easy transition between screens. The monitor supports USB-C with power delivery up to 60W, so you can connect a laptop and get power and data over a single cable.

If a stunningly specced monitor like the BenQ screen above is way too much of an outlay for where you are in your photography career (or hobby) at the moment, then this LG monitor should appeal. It"s very reasonably priced, but there"s much to like in the specs too. It offers 98% coverage of the sRGB space, which is more than enough for many, especially if you"re not editing professionally.

Eizo has a reputation for being the ultimate professional photo-editing monitor brand, and the first time you see the clarity, vivacity and brightness of an Eizo display, it’s immediately obvious why – and why its photo-editing monitors are so much more expensive than those of competitors – and more expensive than most PCs.

The latest version of Eizo’s flagship 31-inch professional monitor, the Eizo ColorEdge CG319X boasts an unmatched 24-bit look-up table for 10-bit colour depth, supporting 99% AdobeRGB, 100% Rec.709 and 98% DCI-P3 colour spaces. It also supports a slightly wider 4K resolution of 4096 x 2160, conforming to the professional DCI 4K standard used by some professional studios.

It has a unique built-in hardware colour calibration tool that pops down with a click every time the monitor is power cycled, ensuring the colours remain in sync without needing to use a third-party colourimeter. And new to this generation are hybrid-log gamma and perceptual quantisation for working with HDR video – something that will be of most interest to studios and freelancers working with high-end imagery.

This LG monitor has a lot going for it indeed. First off, it"s a big 32-inch 4K screen packed with pixels. It offers 95% P3 colour gamut support, HDR compatibility (though the brightness is fairly low at 350 nits), and even, accurate images that look truly authentic. It also boasts great connections, including USB Type-C.

We"ve mentioned 4K monitors so far, and 4K resolution is fast becoming the norm, but you may not really need it, especially if you"re only working with stills photography and don"t need to edit video as well. Dell’s UltraSharp range always delivers a great image and, while the monitors" designs don"t exactly stand out from the crowd, the tiny bezels around this display do make it easy on the eye.

We generally recommend going for a reasonably large screen (between 27 and 34in when choosing the best monitor for photo editing, but that can be a challenge if you don"t have the desk space (or don"t have the office space for a larger desk!). But the HP M24FW is rather unique in that it"s a relatively small screen with very respectable color space coverage, and it"s also an absolute bargain, costing $150 – $200 / £120 – £150.

Ultra-wide monitors are usually aimed at gaming or general computer use, so it’s nice to see ViewSonic offering graphic artists a massive 37.5-inch 21:9 display with the VP3881. Ultra-wide displays such as this are like having two smaller monitors together on the desk, without a bezel breaking up the desktop space. It gives you space to have multiple windows open at once, boosting productivity as you can view webpages, file explorers and multiple editing applications simultaneously.

We were a little disappointed when we reviewed the new Apple Studio Display. Only a 60hz refresh rate, no HDR, and you have to pay extra if you want to be able to adjust the height. Also, while a built-in webcam of any kind on a monitor is a relative rarity, that on the Apple Studio Display is a bit mediocre.

All that aside, however, when it comes to editing photos, this monitor is not a bad choice, especially if you"re a fan of Apple products and you"re looking for an option to pair with a Mac mini or to expand the screen on your MacBook Pro. It offers decent multimedia features and consistent colour and brightness, which are the main priorities when it comes to photo editing.

There several things to consider and look out for when you"re choosing a monitor for photo editing. Some of the most important are to decide what size monitor you want. There are also minimum requirements you should look for in terms of resolution and colour accuracy. We"ll discuss some of those questions below.Why do I need to choose one of the best monitors for photo editing?Images look different on different screens because displays differ in their colour coverage and accuracy. That means that if the screen you work on has poor colour coverage and accuracy, your work could look very different on a different screen or when printed out.

Good colour coverage is especially important if you"re doing HSL adjustments and colour grading. While you can"t guarantee what screen your clients or public will use to see your photos, you can at least ensure that you"re own screen is allowing you to make the most accurate edit possible.Which is the best monitor for photo editing?The very best monitor for photo editing in our view is the Eizo ColorEdge CG319X at number three in our list above. We only place it at number three rather than at the top because we"ve also taken price into consideration, and monitors such as this are simply not an option for many enthusiasts, and even for many professionals.

We currently recommend the BenQ SW321C as the best monitor for photo editing for those looking for a balance between professional specs and a slightly more accessible price.What size monitor should I use for photo editing?One important thing to consider when buying a monitor for photo editing is the size of screen that you want to work on. Many displays come in the standard 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio, although a taller screen (or a screen that you can rotate like the LG Ultrafine Ergo in our list above) can be useful for editing images in portrait orientation.

Ultra-wide monitors will give you a lot more screen space to work on so that you can have multiple windows or panels open, but they aren"t necessarily the best for focused work. They also take up a huge amount of space. Generally, we find that most photographers like editing on a monitor that"s between 27in and 32in.What monitor resolution do I need for photo editing?Put very simply, the higher the resolution, the better the image quality, but of course, higher resolution monitors are usually more expensive. When looking to pick the best monitor for photo editing, we would recommend going for a resolution of 4K (3,840 x 2,160) if you can afford it.

Most of the screens in our list of the best monitors for photo editing are 4K displays (double check that your PC or Mac supports 4K resolution if it"s quite an old device), but we have also included an QHD and FHD screen, both much more affordable while still offering the good colour coverage you want for photo editing.What else should I consider in a monitor for photo editing?If you"re buying a monitor for photo editing, colour is vital and it"s a good idea to look for a that display supports colour spaces like Adobe sRGB. You"ll also want a uniform brightness across the screen. The best monitors for photo editing include their own calibration tools, but this is not an essential since you can also buy an external monitor calibrator to perform regulator calibration of your screen.

Connectivity is a key issue, too – many monitors have HDMI, but some also support Thunderbolt or USB-C meaning you can have a single cable going to your PC or Mac that powers it and also carries the display signal. Whichever monitor your choose, you"ll want to make sure you regularly calibrate it using one of the best monitor calibrators. And if your workspace has harsh lighting, you might want to consider applying an anti-reflective coating too.

As a designer or photographer, when you have an idea in your head you want it accurately reflected when using photo editing software - and that includes free photo editors and countless best Adobe Photoshop alternatives. This is especially important when creating printed materials.

There are a few specs you need to look out for when picking up the best monitors for photo editing. A monitor with 4K resolution will serve best, but FHD should be fine for most photo editors. One of the most critical aspects is finding a display that’s professionally calibrated - this will give you the most accurate colors you can get. Likewise, it’s worth opting for one with a wide color gamut.

But with so many screens on the market, it’s not always easy to decide which one to choose. To help you find the one that fits your project and your budget, we’re testing out the best photo editing monitors, comparing everything from resolution and screen size to connectivity and price.

This 32-inch 4K photo monitor is up a step or two in terms of both performance and usability, featuring an extensive color gamut of 99% of the Adobe RGB color space and 95% of DCI-P3.

If you"re in the cinematography or photography sphere, that"s precisely what you need. And that"s on top of all the other features this monitor boasts.

Dell"s top-end 31.5-inch 4K display packs many professional-grade features for superb color accuracy. It"s not a budget option. But then, this is a large, high-resolution screen and easily one of the best 4K monitors for photo editing.

Unlike some of the other photo editor monitors featured in our list of best monitors for photo editing, all of its ports are restricted to the back of the monitor rather than options on the site. Combined with a restrictive pivot, this doesn"t provide the most accessible access.

BenQ has added the PD3200U, which features a massive 32-inch Ultra HD display, to its Designer Monitor range. The PD3200U is best suited for creators. 3D designers, for instance, will be grateful for the inclusion of a CAD/CAM mode, while photographers and photo editors will love the factory-calibrated color accuracy and Rec. 709 adherence.

If you’re looking for a photo editing monitor cut above the 4K norms, then you’ve got the MSI Prestige PS341WU. Showing up any impeccable 4K monitor is no easy feat. Still, this monitor does so with the huge 5K2K native resolution (and 21:9 ultrawide aspect ratio) of its luscious 34-inch IPS screen.

If you want a lot of space to work on editing multiple photos at once, then you"ll want an ultrawide monitor, and the BenQ EX3501R is in our view the best ultrawide monitor for photo editing. It comes with a 3,440 x 1,440 resolution that gives you a huge desktop to work on, and its 2,500:1 contrast leads to bright and vibrant images, as well as for HDR (High Dynamic Range).

BenQ offers the most affordable full HD monitor with an HDMI connector and it doesn"t look that bad. The company embraced the Bauhaus "less is more" philosophy to deliver "a celebration of minimalist" lifestyle. Those are their words, not ours.

The Dell UltraSharp UP3218K is an absolutely amazing monitor for photo editing. It features a huge 32-inch screen and 8K resolution that equates to 7,680 x 4,320 pixels, making it perfect for photographers and video editors, and the amount of screen real estate that high resolution offers makes it an excellent productivity tool.

The screen is professionally calibrated so it looks amazing out of the box, with a tool-free assembly that means it"s quick and easy to securely attach the screen to its base. The base and neck of the monitor are made of durable-feeling brushed aluminum.

Next up, don’t be distracted by gaming-centric features like high refresh rates and ultra-low response times. They will not help with editing images. However, you do want to consider color accuracy. A useful metric involves coverage of various important gamuts, including sRGB, Adobe RGB and DCI-P3.

For any remotely serious image editing work, a screen with at least 100 percent coverage of sRGB and over 90 percent for both Adobe RGB and DCI-P3 is a decent starting point. But the higher those numbers the better. The best screens will be in the high 90s. With regard to HDR support, if you’re not already aware you need it, you probably don’t.

Native resolution is a slightly trickier topic. You don’t necessarily need an ultra-high resolution panel to edit images. But higher resolutions will allow more accurate editing and make it easier to judge details such as focus with less need to zoom in and out of images. We’d say 1440p or 2,560 by 1,440 is a decent baseline but full 4K is both preferable and now relatively affordable.

The final major concern is connectivity. At minimum, you want both DisplayPort and HDMI, the latter can be especially important for laptops which lack DisplayPort. We also highly recommend USB-C with power delivery, again especially if you have a laptop that supports it. The consequent single-cable connectivity for everything is a genuine joy.Should I choose sRGB or DCI-P3?If you’re buying a monitor for photo editing, a video editing monitor, or a monitor for graphic design, you may have come across sRGB and DCI-P3 color spaces. These are important, as it tells you how much of the color spectrum is represented on the screen - and ideally, you’ll want what you see while working to be as accurate to the finished product as possible.

Usually, these are accompanied by a percentage - so, if your photo editing monitor has 100% sRGB or 100% DCI-P3, it maintains full coverage of the color spectrum. Effectively, it’ll look the same on your screen as it does when, say, that asset is printed.

sRGB is the most common of the two. However, DCI-P3 is the more accurate. Since the latter was first developed for the film industry, it offers true-to-life colors, with deeper blacks and better contrasts.Should I choose a curved monitor for photo editing?TechRadar Pro spoke to Brett Barbour, VP at US monitor vendor, Viotek, to find out whether it makes business sense to opt for a non-flat monitor for photo editing.

When you think of the types of people that use – and love – curved monitors, three types of people come mind: gamers, gamers and gamers. But why should gamers have all the fun? Curved monitors could bring a fair bit of ergonomic benefit for office workers too. After all, our eyes have a nice curve to them. We might as well have a monitor that comes with a nice curve to match, right? Especially if we’re expected to use them at least 6-8 hours a day. Ergonomics isn’t the only benefits to curved monitors for the office.

Most of us are spending a lot of time staring at a screen, be it for work or for play. And this brings additional health risks for our eyes. Headaches. Eye strain. Eye fatigue. But research has shown(opens in new tab) that curved panels yield less eye strain and fatigue than flat panels. So they’re easier on the eyes – especially helpful if you spend most of your day in front of a monitor (or expect your employees to).

This benefit can also be further leveraged by software integrated into the monitor. For example, ASUS has their Eye Care technology; Viotek has their “Viotek Protect”; and Samsung features a proprietary “Eye Saver Mode.” These all provide a range of eye-saving benefits, including reducing the amount of harmful blue light radiation from hitting your eyes – particularly helpful when you’re looking at the screen for extended all day.

You can expect less glare and distortion with a curved monitor. Its corners are closer to you, replicating the natural curvature of the human eye. In most workspace setups, the curved monitor won’t reflect light at all, effectively reducing glare from other sources of light. The only exception being if a window is directly behind you at a certain angle. This is a rarity, but it can certainly happen.

But that"s not all; normally, how nice a monitor looks is purely a question of personal preference. You like what you like – simple as. But the reality is that a curved monitor might take up less desk real estate than its flat counterpart. It might be nominal depending on the stand that it uses, but the curved ends will definitely give you some extra space to place odds and ends on your desk, from phone charging pads, pen holder or what have you.

But Is It Really a Con? Well, for now, maybe. But the cost gap is closing quickly, as manufacturing costs are dropping fast and certain brands (Samsung, ASUS, Viotek, et al.) find ways to pack a lot of features in quality monitors without sending the price through the roof.

There"s also talks about the fact that curved monitors could hinder straight-line perception. This is another possibly niche drawback with curved monitors. It certainly won’t apply to every office. Professionals in engineering, drafting or drawing industries may find that their straight-line perception is slightly skewed because of the curvature of a monitor. There is software that can “fix” this issue, but if you’re in one of these industries, you may be better off sticking with a flat screen monitor for now.

In comparing the best monitor for photo editing we begin by looking at screen size and resolution. Screen size is measured diagonally in inches, while resolution measures the number of pixels that make up the display. But a bigger monitor doesn"t necessarily mean greater resolution; the 24-inch Eizo has a higher resolution than the 27-inch NEC, for example.

Instead, a more useful measure of the "crispness" of a display is pixel density, measured in pixels per inch (ppi). The NEC is 82ppi, the Eizo 94ppi, while Samsung and Dell weigh in at 109ppi.

Monitors increasingly offer more than just a simple display for your computer, and we"ve also looked at additional features including built-in speakers, USB hubs, card readers and multiple inputs, such as HDMI, for use with a variety of devices.

Most monitors are now capable of Full HD resolution (1920x1080) but more and more can achieve higher resolutions - many here are capable of 2560x1440, for example.

So many monitors - including several of these - are just plain ugly. Also see what people are saying about the button controls and menu system. Ensure it is usable.For more top displays, check out the best USB-C monitors and the best business monitorsRound up of today"s best deals

There’s a huge choice of monitors on the market, across a wide range of price points. In this guide, I’m going to tell you everything you need to know so you can pick the best monitor for photo editing for your needs and budget.

As well as a list of actual monitors for photo editing, I’m going to share with you the key specifications that you need to look for when buying a monitor. This means you’ll be able to get the right sort of monitor, even if it’s not one on our list.

I’ve been a professional photographer for many years, and whilst I do have a laptop for on the go edits, I prefer to do my photo editing on a large monitor in my home office. A larger screen lets me see the details of the image more clearly, as well as get a better overview of my image library.

Prior to being a travel photographer, I worked as a software developer for many years, so I also have a good understanding of computing technology in general. This article is based on my years of experience as both a photographer, and my background in computing.

Before I go through a list of the best monitors for photo editing, I wanted to share the key specifications you should be looking for when evaluating a monitor.

There are hundreds of monitors on the market at any given point, and this information will help you understand which specifications are important to help you narrow down your choice.

The first thing to consider is how big of a screen you want. This decision will vary based on your personal circumstances, including things like the size of your desk and how far from your screen you sit.

Screen size is normally measured in either inches of centimetres, and manufacturers use the distance from a bottom corner to the opposite top corner. This is the same way television screens are measured, because the diagonal is the longest distance and for marketing reasons, bigger is always better.

As well as the physical dimensions of a screen, you will also need to consider its resolution. A screen’s resolution refers to the number of actual pixels that make up the screen.

The pixels are what display the colors on the screen. As with televisions, there are a number of resolutions available. Common resolutions you will likely encounter are:

In each case, the numbers refer to the number of pixels. The first number is the number of horizontal pixels, the second number is the number of vertical pixels.

So, for example, a 1920 x 1080 display has 1920 pixels horizontally, and 1080 pixels vertically. If you multiply the two together, you get the total number of pixels for a 1080p screen, i.e. 2,073,600.

You will likely be familiar with the idea of a 4K screen as this is a popular marketing term for large televisions. A 4K screen has 3,840 pixels horizontally and 2,160 pixels vertically, giving a total of 8,294,400 pixels. That is exactly four times the number of pixels of a 1080p screen.

When it comes to pixels for a screen for photo editing, having more pixels will mean you can fit more of an image on the screen. As the monitor gets larger, more pixels also mean the image will be sharper.

For photo editing, we’d recommend a minimum of 1920 x 1080 up to 24 inches. For a 27-inch (68 cm) screen, a minimum resolution of 2560 x 1440. For screens larger than 27 inches, consider a 4K resolution screen.

I cover this topic in a lot more detail in my guide to monitor calibration. The main thing to realise is that not all monitors are created equal when it comes to the ability to display colors.

The two things to consider are the color gamut, and the color accuracy. Gamut refers to which colors the monitor can display. Most monitors can display around 16 million colors, although higher end monitors can display up to a billion colors. As a point of reference, researchers agree that most people can distinguish around a million colors.

You might therefore think that a monitor will far outperform what we can see, but unfortunately this is not the case. Having a monitor that can display 16 million shades of green for example isn’t going to be much use!

Both of these gamuts are capable of displaying up to 16 million colors, however the Adobe RGB gamut is spread out more to cover more of the green spectrum. It is often referred to as a wide gamut as it covers a wider amount of the color spectrum that we can see.

It is very important that the colors your monitor displays are actually accurate. With so many shades of each color to choose from, when you edit an image with a blue sky you want to be sure that the blue you are seeing will look the same on other devices or in print.

Of course, you can’t control the color accuracy of other devices that other people are using. The best you can do is ensure your colors are as accurate as they can be.

Monitors designed for photo editing are often factory calibrated, but it is nearly always a good idea to check and calibrate them yourself afterwards. Some high-end photo editing monitors have built-in calibration hardware. For others, you will need to use a third-party calibration tool like a DataColor Spyder.

Like many items of technology, monitors are available at a range of price points, from monitors under $300 to monitors in excess of a thousand dollars.

Your budget is of course a personal matter. However, it’s a good idea to set a budget before you start shopping, as it’s a good way to narrow the field down.

Most people will likely be happy with a good monitor in the $300 – $800 range. However, if photo editing is part of your business and you need color accurate images for print and web work, then I would probably invest in a higher end monitor.

USB-C. One of the newest standards, USB-C can transmit power, data and video information, making it a very versatile port. Found on newer PCs and Apple computers.

Most monitors will have a number of different connectivity options. Ideally it would be best to invest in a monitor which supports the newest USB-C standard for future proofing, although of course the main thing is to ensure it works with your existing setup.

At its most basic, an LCD monitor works by shining a light through a number of colored pixels to create the image you see. There are a range of different technologies (see the section on screen technology) for achieving this.

The key thing to pay attention to is the consistency of the display in terms of brightness and color uniformity. Having a monitor that is brighter, or displays color differently, in one area compared to another is going to make your photo editing process more challenging.

Most monitors perform best when viewed straight on, and then have varying performance if viewed from the side, top or bottom. So if these are common usage scenarios for you, then do consider the display’s viewing angles. These are normally linked to the technology in use.

Most flatscreen monitors on the market today use LCD technology. This technology has been around for a while. LCD stands for liquid crystal display, and the basic principle is that electricity passes through a liquid crystal substance which affects its opacity.

Light is shone through the liquid crystals onto red, green and blue sub-pixels, and by controlling the opacity of the liquid crystal, different colors can be produced. If you want to know more, there’s a good explanation of how LCD displays work in general here.

There are a number of different ways that the liquid crystals can be set up inside the monitor. Whilst this all starts to get a bit technical, the main thing to understand is that different setups lead to different performance characteristics. So it is important to understand the advantages and disadvantages of each technology, as they directly impact how well the monitor works, as well as how much it costs.

TN –stands for twisted nematic. This is the oldest LCD display technology. It is cheap, but these screens tend to have poor color accuracy and low gamut coverage, poor contrast, good brightness, poor viewing angles and low uniformity. Avoid if possible for photo editing.

There is another, newer display technology starting to appear in monitors and TV screens, which is known as OLED. OLED stands for organic light emitting diode. Unlike LCD, this doesn’t use a backlight, instead it uses organic light emitting compounds as the light sources.

OLED offers advantages similar to IPS, but with improved contrast and much darker blacks. However, it is also more expensive, and can be susceptible to “burn-in”, where leaving the same image on the screen for too long leaves an imprint.

You might be wondering if a flat screen or a curved screen is better for photo editing. Honestly, this is down to personal preference. Curved screens tend to be more popular with very wide and/or very large monitors.

The disadvantage is that they are not so good for multiple users, you need to be in the right position, they take up more desk space, they are more expensive, and they don’t work so well with multiple monitor setups. They can also affect perception of straight lines, which can make photo editing more challenging in some situations, especially architecture.

This article is focused on using a monitor for photo editing, but that is obviously only one reason to use a monitor. Whilst many of the features that make a monitor good for editing also make it good for other uses, this isn’t necessarily true of every use.

For example, many folks like to play games on their monitors. A large monitor can make for an immersive gaming experience. However, there are some features like high refresh rates and low response times that are important for a good gaming experience. These are generally not important for photo editing, but if you do want a good gaming experience, you’ll want to also consider these features as well.

For watching content, such as movies and TV shows, then many of the same features that make for a good photo editing monitor (accurate colors, good brightness and contrast) also apply. However, you might want to consider a monitor that has built-in speakers for example, so you can hear what is going on without needing external speakers or a headset.

We will now go through our guide of what we think are the best monitors for photo editing on the market today. It is worth noting that there is a huge range of monitors on the market today, however we think this list definitely features some of the best options.

Note that manufacturers often have multiple monitors, some with very similar model names. Model availability and naming can also vary depending on geographic region. So always check the features before making a purchase.

The monitor has an IPS panel which means you get excellent viewing angles. For photo editing, it covers 99% of the sRGB color space, which is fantastic for a monitor at this price point.

Note there is another version of this monitor, the HP M24fw, which doesn’t include the DisplayPort connector or speakers but is otherwise very similar. So if you are on a tight budget and don’t need the DisplayPort, that is an option to consider as it can sometimes be picked up at a lower price.

Asus make a wide range of ProArt displays. The PA278QV is somewhere in the middle to budget end of the range, however you still get a lot for your money.

This model features a 27″ (68 cm) screen and a 2560×1440 resolution. That is the screen size and resolution that I personally use for photo editing and I find it offers everything I need.

Asus aims this monitor firmly at folks who want color accuracy. It offers 100% sRGB coverage, and is factory calibrated for color accuracy. That calibration is then certified against the Calman verification standard to ensure the colors are accurate.

Like the majority of monitors in this guide this is an IPS panel so you get good viewing angles. It also has built-in speakers and a range of connection options including DisplayPort and HDMI. It also has USB ports so you can connect accessories like a mouse and keyboard to the monitor.

As with many other monitor manufacturers, you can go up and down in price in the Asus range to get different features. For less money you can get the smaller 24″ 1920 x 1080 PA248QV. Or you can spend a bit more and get the 4K 27″ PA279CV which offers a higher resolution.

Dell are well known for making high quality monitors, and their UltraSharp range is particularly focused on content creators looking for high-performing color accurate monitors.

The Dell UltraSharp U2723QE is a 27-inch (68 cm) 4K monitor with an IPS panel that offers excellent viewing angles. This is a wide gamut monitor, with 100% sRGB and 98% DCI-P3 coverage. Oddly, Dell don’t list AdobeRGB coverage.

Whether or not you need all these ports will of course vary depending on your situation, but if you are hooking this monitor up to a laptop with limited ports, it is definitely a compelling option.

When you start researching monitors for photo editing, the brand BenQ is likely going to pop up. They make a range of excellent monitors, some of which are particularly suited for photo editing.

The PD3205U is no exception. This is a 31.5 inch (80 cm) 4K monitor with an IPS display. 31.5 inches means you get a lot of screen real estate, and the IPS panel means you get great viewing angles.

BenQ states the monitor covers 99% of the sRGB gamut, and they factory calibrate it and guarantee it for color accuracy and color uniformity. To this end, it also has Pantone and Calman verification of its color accuracy.

Time for another Dell monitor, this time an ultrawide. If you’re wondering, an ultrawide monitor is one which has an aspect ratio of 21:9 rather than the more traditional 16:9 or 16:10 that most monitors have.

Of course, an ultrawide monitor takes up more desktop space. With the Dell U3821DW, the screen is also curved, which is definitely beneficial with such as wide monitor. In terms of width, this is an impressive 37.5 inch (95 cm) IPS screen with a 3840 x 1600 resolution.

You also get a raft of connectivity options, including 2x HDMI, USB-C and DisplayPort. This monitor also has an ethernet port, KVM support for two computers, a number of USB ports for peripherals as well as built-in speakers.

Eizo specialises in making high-end display products for a variety of applications, from air traffic control monitors through to medical display systems. They also have a range of very well-regarded monitors for color critical work. These are commonly found on the desks of graphic artists who need the best.

The Eizo ColorEdge monitors are specifically focused at creatives. They have two ranges, the more affordable (in relative terms!) ColorEdge CS monitors, and then their high-end ColorEdge CG monitors.

The ColorEdge CS2731 is from their slightly more affordable range. This is a 27-inch (68 cm) IPS monitor with a 2560 x 1440 resolution. It covers 100% of the sRGB gamut and 99% of the Adobe RGB gamut.

It is also designed and calibrated to offer excellent color uniformity across the whole screen, with special circuitry built in to ensure uniformity of color and brightness.

That isn’t all. The monitor is compatible with Eizo’s range of monitor hoods, which can reduce glare. It also ships with Eizo’s ColorNavigator software to allow color calibration, and which works with Eizo’s external color sensor (sold separately) for ongoing calibration.

Time for a slight curveball, in the shape of Dell’s Alienware branded curved ultrawide OLED gaming monitor. Yes, this is marketed as a gaming monitor. However, as you will see, it is more than capable as a monitor for photo editing.

This is currently the only monitor in our round-up that uses an OLED panel. These have been rising in popularity in laptops, and the Dell laptop I use for photo editing has an OLED screen. I love the incredible colors it is capable of, and how deep the blacks are compared to a normal IPS, where black can often seem a bit more like a dark grey.

You might be wondering why, if OLED is so great, everyone isn’t making them. Well, OLED is still a relatively new technology, and that means that it has been expensive. However, prices are finally coming down, and the issue of burn-in has largely been resolved thanks to some clever engineering.

With that in mind, I wanted to include this monitor on our round up. I know that a lot of folks (myself included), do more than photo editing on their monitor. In my mind, this is the best all round monitor for everything from photo editing to gaming to watching movies.

Specification-wise this monitor is a curved 34-inch (86 cm) ultrawide with a 3440 x 1440 resolution. It covers 149% of the sRGB gamut, 99.3% of DCI-P3 and 95% of Adobe RGB, with excellent color accuracy. It’s also HDR enabled.

Honestly though, the main thing about this screen is the blacks. OLED panels allow for black to be truly black, which is a revelation when you realise how grey other monitors make black seem.

Sitting at the top of BenQ’s range of monitors for photo editing is the superb SW321C. This is a 32-inch (81 cm) IPS panel with a 3840 x 2160 (4K) display.

If you do a lot of printing, this monitor has a feature called Paper Color Sync. This allows you to configure the monitor based on the paper and printer you are using, to get an accurate representation of what your prints will look like.

There have been a few Dell monitors on our list, all of which are good contenders. However, if you want the best from Dell’s lineup, and your budget stretches to it, then the UP3221Q is the one to look at

This is a 31.5-inch (80 cm) 4K HDR IPS monitor which uses a technology known as mini-LED. Whilst this still uses backlight technology, as with other IPS LCD displays, the backlight is made using 2,000 mini-LEDs. Most LCD displays use a number of backlights to light the individual pixels making up the monitor, but not thousands of them.

The advantage of using so many LED’s is that you get around the issue of reduced contrast and poor black levels that are traditionally associated with IPS panels. In fact, mini-LED technology performs more similarly to OLED technology in that regard.

All that technology adds up to a monitor that offers superb color uniformity and deep blacks. This is a wide-gamut monitor with 93% AdobeRGB coverage.

Another awesome feature of this monitor is that it has a built-in Calman hardware calibration and colorimeter. So you don’t need external hardware (although that is also supported via a dedicated USB port on the monitor) to calibrate the display.

Eizo make exceptional monitors, and this is one of their flagship models. It’s a monitor that you will find gracing the desks of professional creatives the world over.

First, this is a 31-inch (79 cm) IPS wide-gamut panel that offers 99% of the AdobeRGB color space as well as HDR support. Interestingly it offers a 4096 x 2160 resolution screen, which is slightly higher than 4K, and a 17:9 aspect ratio. It also has built-in hardware calibration and colorimeter for ongoing color accuracy.

At this price, you would expect this monitor to be color accurate out of the box, which of course it is. Display uniformity and viewing angles are also excellent.

We’ve covered a lot of monitors and monitor information in this post. We appreciate that many of you might just want some recommendations at particular price points.

To that end, we’ve put together what we think are the best monitors in a range of categories that we would pick. So whatever your budget or preference, the following should help you decide which monitor is right for you.

That’s it for my guide to the best monitor for photo editing! If you found this useful, you might enjoy some of my other photography related content. Here are some articles to get you started.

We are big fans of getting the most out of your digital photo files, and do to that you will need to shoot in RAW. See our guide to RAW in photography to understand what RAW is, and why you should switch to RAW as soon as you can if your camera supports it.

You’re going to need something to run your photo editing software on. See our guide to the best laptops for photo editing for some tips on what to look for.

Since launching the course in 2016, I’ve already helped over 2,000 students learn how to take better photos. The course covers pretty much everything you need to know, from the basics of how a camera works, through to composition, light, and photo editing.

You get feedback from me as you progress, access to webinars, interviews and videos, as well as exclusive membership of a Facebook group where you can get feedback on your work and take part in regular challenges.

Who this is for: A dual-monitor setup is usually the best option if you want to have a bunch of app windows open at once. But an ultrawide model might be a better choice if you need a ton of unbroken horizontal space, or you don’t want monitor bezels in between windows.

Why we like it: The Dell P3421W has a sturdy adjustable stand, lots of ports (including a USB-C port that can handle power, display, and data over a single cable), and a three-year warranty. And it has a built-in KVM switch that allows you to easily swap your keyboard, mouse, and video between two computers. The 1440p display has a 60 Hz refresh rate, which is great for typical office work, web browsing, and casual gaming.

Flaws but not dealbreakers: If you use your display in direct sunlight, this monitor might not be bright enough for you. It can also provide 65 W of power over USB-C, but some laptops require more. If you have a laptop with an Nvidia GeForce RTX GPU or an Intel Core i7 processor, you might need to keep the laptop plugged in to a separate charger or use a Thunderbolt dock that can provide the extra power.

Most ultrawide monitors are also curved. This design helps minimize viewing-angle problems—when you’re sitting centered, things on the far edges of the screen won’t look as washed out as they would on a flat display of a similar width. But this also makes ultrawide monitors inaccurate for precision tasks requiring straight lines, such as drawing, photo editing, or similar design work.

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When it comes to computer monitors, you’re nothing if not spoiled for choice. Screens of all shapes and sizes are available to suit almost any budget. If that’s the good news, the problem is knowing how to choose between the various technologies and options. 4K or QHD? IPS and VA. sRGB versus Adobe RGB. Look-up tables, colour channels and GPUs. It can all be absolutely overwhelming.

You might think a bigger screen is simply a better screen. But that isn’t necessarily so for image editing. You also want pixels and a lot of them. A large LCD monitor with a low resolution won’t allow you to see the full detail of the images you’re processing. On the other hand, a small monitor with a super-high res can be suboptimal, too.

We’d recommend either 27 inches and 1440p resolution (2,560 by 1,440 pixels and also known as QHD) or 32 inches at 4K (3,840 by 2,160 pixels). Larger 40-inch-plus 4K monitors are also available and often aren’t expensive. But the larger panel size offers few advantages for image editing. On the contrary, such screens are often based on HDTV panels and while they look large and punchy, they typically aren’t great when it comes to colour accuracy.

The simple answer is no. But not only does 4K offer several advantages, it’s no longer terribly costly. The most obvious benefit is desktop space. More pixels make for more working space, though bear in mind 4K on smaller screens below 30 inches may force you to increase scaling and lose some of that benefit.

The other obvious upside is the ability to view images at – or at least closer to – their full resolution. Admittedly, everything from an average smartphone to a top-end DSLR can far exceed 4K in terms of resolution these days. But you’ll get a much more accurate idea of the detail and sharpness of a very high resolution photo with a 4K monitor.

TN, VA and IPS are the three most broadly available LCD panel technologies. Each has its own characteristics, strengths and weaknesses. But only one is optimal for photo editing. Put simply, that’s IPS. Most significantly, IPS offers the best colour accuracy. IPS also has better viewing angles, which in practice means it maintains that accuracy regardless of whether you’re viewing the panel dead on. The next best choice for image editing is VA. It’s not quite as accurate as IPS, but does offer better colour fidelity than TN.

Adobe RGB theoretically offers more colours and greater saturation which can be particularly relevant for printing. However, without full end-to-end support for Adobe RGB, the result can actually be duller colours. Short, answer? If in any doubt, stick with sRGB.

Strictly speaking, for full precision image editing with 10 bits colour per channel, you’ll need a professional class graphics card, which means either Nvidia Quadro or AMD Radeon Pro. In practice, you’ll also need full end-to-end 10-bit support, including from your monitor, to achieve that. Thus, for all but the most advanced photographers, a non-professional Nvidia GeForce or AMD Radeon board will be fine.

As for what level of performance you need, the likes of Adobe’s Creative Cloud suite does utilise some GPU acceleration via the graphics card. But your mileage will vary according to the plugins and filters you use. Meanwhile, high end graphics cards are very pricey. So for most, the best bang-for-buck is probably in a mid-range board, for instance an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 from Nvidia’s last-gen ‘Pascal’ series of graphics cards.

Bit depth in the context of computer displays and image processing refers, ultimately, to the range or depth of colours on offer, in this case from each of the primary red, green and blue (RGB) colour channels. Put simply, the more bits per channel, the more colours a screen can display. Do the maths, and you end up with just over a billion colours from 10 bits per channel. Which is a lot.

In practice, it’s not always that simple. Many monitors that claim 10-bit colour support do not do so natively. Instead, the use a technique known as dithering to increase the native 8-bit capability of the panel (or 16.7 million colours) to simulate 10-bit colour courtesy of introducing noisy transitions between colours. But 10-bit via dithering does not truly deliver the full one billion colours of a native 10-bit panel.

The term LUT or look-up table in the context of image editing and screens can be confusing. That’s because look-up tables are used not only internally in image and video editing software to map colour spaces. Look-up tables also essentially do the same job in a monitor, mapping the video input signal to the real-world capabilities of the screen’s LCD panel.

Confusingly, an LUT with greater precision than the panel itself is required. For image editing, a 10-bit LUT and an 8-bit panel would be a minimum ideal specification. But 12-bit and 14-bit LUTs will give smoother tonal transitions, particularly in low-light images, even with an 8-bit LCD panel.

There’s a lot to be said for buying a UHD (Ultra High Definition) display. It’ll enable you to see more of your images when zooming in to check details, and to view the 4k movies that can be captured with a growing number of cameras as nature (or at least technology) intended.

All of our top five choices below have 10-bit colour depth, theoretically enabling good coverage of both the sRGB and extended Adobe RGB colour spaces, when driven from a compatible graphics card.

They’re also all based on IPS (In-Plane Switching) display technology, which is the best choice for photo editing and viewing, in terms of colour accuracy as well as viewing angle width.

The stands supplied with all of our chosen monitors enable tilt, height and pivot adjustments, supporting both portrait and landscape orientation viewing. Apart from the LG monitor, they all enable swivel adjustments as well.

The BenQ SW270C is by no means cheap compared with a run of the mill display, but when you compare the specs and quality against dedicated photography monitors that are twice the price, you can’t fail to be impressed.

While the display, build quality and usability are fantastic, the feature set is reflected in the price. Firstly the resolution while useful doesn’t stretch to 4K, to get that boost on a monitor of this quality you’re going to have to pay double.

At this price, few other monitors come close to the SW270C. Would I buy one to replace the now-retired Apple 30-inch Cinema display? Do you know I think I will.

It’s a workhorse, one that sits in the studio for years, and despite all of its advanced options and settings, you don’t need to give it a thought because those features are perfectly integrated.

ColorNavigator 7 Software completes the display package enabling you to switch display environments quickly. It is then an easy decision, looking for a monitor for stills and video then you really can’t go wrong with the CG319.

Another large scale monitor that’s perfectly suited to the photography market. What appeals about this technology giants offering is the price and balance of features.

Importantly for a photography monitor, it has exceptionally high colour gamut with 99.5% AdobeRGB coverage. It also features built-in SD card reader and plenty of ports for connecting other devices.

This monitor has been designed for the creative professional specialising in stills and video. Featuring HDR gamma support and with the ability to display 98% DCI-P3 and 99% of AdobeRGB, you can be assured that your images will be displaying their maximum content.

Helping to cut down on time and worry about the monitor always displaying the correct colour, EIZO has incorporated an automatic self-calibration sensor into the top frame of the monitor.

This Eizo monitor is simply brilliant for photo editing, delivering highly accurate colour and tonal reproduction in its preset sRGB and Adobe RGB modes. Unlike most current competitors, it has a 2560×1440 native resolution, rather than the 3840×2160 of ‘4k’ screens, equating to a lower pixel count of 3.7Mp compared with the 8.3Mp of a 4k screen.

Like some other top-end photographic monitors, the Eizo comes complete with a shading hood. Smart bundled software includes ColorNavigator for use with third-party calibration hardware, and Quick Color Match, jointly developed with Adobe, Canon and Epson, to streamline colour matching between the screen and printed output.

Launched in March 2021, the BenQ PhotoVue SW271C boasts an Adobe 99% RGB colour space and 100%sRGB colour space, promising a greater range of colour reproduction than the average monitor. To improve its RGB colour accuracy, the PhotoVue SW271C also offers a 16-bit 3D LUT and the company’s BenQ AQCOLOR technology which is based on ICC and ISO colour standards.

What’s more, the SW271C supports two HDR formats (HDR10 and HLG) for more precise colour grading. Videographers can preview the HDR effect of the video content for intelligent brightness and contrast control.

BenQ’s Paper Colour Sync software also allows photographers who use specific papers with the Canon Pixma Pro-10 or Pixma Pro-100 Epson SureColor P600 or SureColor P800 printers to match the preview on their display to the final print.

The SW271C also supports CalMAN and LightSpace video calibration software and contains the latest USB-C port for high-speed video/audio/data transmission.

In use, the BenQ PhotoVue SW271C gives a great view of your images and video, with pl