How To Change Your Display Settings in Windows 10/11

Set or Change the Screen Resolution

The screen resolution of a monitor determines how much information is displayed on the screen. It is measured horizontally and vertically in pixels. At lower screen resolutions such as 640 x 480, fewer items will fit the screen but they will appear larger. At higher resolutions such as 1900 x 1080, more items will fit the screen but they will appear smaller.

The resolution modes will vary with each display based on the video card, monitor size, video driver and monitor driver where applicable.

By default, Windows 10 will choose the best display settings for your computer based on the monitor and video drivers installed. You can change the screen resolution manually for each monitor that is connected to your computer.

Change the Screen Resolution in the Settings app

It is recommended that you chose the Native Resolution, usually noted as (Recommended) for optimal resolution.

1. Right-click an empty area on your desktop, and click Display Settings.
2. Click on Display on the left pane.
3. In the right pane, scroll down and click on Advanced display settings link.
4. If you have more than one monitor connected to your computer, then select the monitor that you want to change the screen resolution of.
5. In the Resolution drop-down menu, select a screen resolution (ex: 1920 x 1080) that you want for the selected monitor.
   It is recommended that you chose the Native Resolution, usually noted as (Recommended) for optimal resolution.
6. Click Apply.
   You will have 15 seconds to select Keep Changes or Revert before it will automatically revert back to the previous settings.
7. If the selected screen resolution mode is optimal, click Keep Changes (Figure 1).
   
   Figure 1: Keep Changes
8. If you have more than one monitor connected to your computer and would like to change the screen resolution of another monitor, then repeat Steps 4 - 7.

Change the Screen Resolution in Control Panel

1. Right-click on Windows button.
2. Open Control Panel.
3. Click System (Figure 2).
   
   Figure 2: Control Panel
   
   
4. Click Display on the left navigation (Figure 3)
   
   Figure 3: Display Settings
   
   
5. If you have more than one monitor connected to your computer, then select the monitor that you want to change the screen resolution of.
6. In the Resolution drop-down menu, select a screen resolution (ex: 1920 x 1080) that you want for the selected monitor.
   It is recommended that you chose the Native Resolution suggested by Windows which is usually noted as (Recommended) for optimal resolution.
7. Click Apply.
   You will have 15 seconds to select Keep Changes or Revert before it will automatically revert back to the previous settings.
8. If the selected screen resolution mode is optimal, click Keep Changes (Figure 4).
   
   Figure 4: Keep Changes
   
   
9. If you have more than one monitor connected to your computer and would like to change the screen resolution of another monitor, then repeat Steps 4 - 7.

Adjust the Refresh Rate

1. Right-click an empty area on your desktop, and click Display Settings.
2. Click Display on the left pane.
3. In the right pane, scroll down and click on Advanced display settings link.
4. If you have more than one monitor connected to your computer, select the monitor that you want to change the refresh rate of and scroll down to the bottom, click Display adapter properties. (Figure 5)
   
   Figure 5: Advanced Display Settings Multi-Monitor Options
   
   
5. In the Display adapter properties window, select the Monitor (Figure 6) tab.
   
   Figure 6: Screen Refresh Rate
   
   
6. Select the required Refresh Rate for your monitor and click OK.
7. If the selected Refresh Rate is optimal, click Keep Changes.
8. If you have more than one monitor connected to your computer and would like to change the screen resolution of another monitor, then repeat Steps 4 - 7.
   
   
   Note: Running your computer on Refresh Rates that are not compatible with your monitor may potentially damage your monitor so it's best to check the box to hide modes that your monitor cannot display to minimize any potential issues.