While Consumer Reports recently indicated that a 24-inch monitor was the best size for a home office, the same reasoning doesn’t necessarily apply to gamers. Gaming requires a different range of options and specifications than productivity work, which tends to focus on static images and prioritize monitor space so you can balance multiple windows/tabs/apps. A player’s needs tend to be more diverse.
Twitchy shooters demand high refresh rates and low latency, while immersive RPGs are best presented in HDR on a beautiful OLED panel (especially now that major OLED brands offer burn-in protection). Size is more subjective, however. Although a number of expert sources such as RTING suggest that the best screen size for most gamers is around 27 inches, the ideal size for you will depend on a number of variables, both your personal taste and your gaming setup. The most important factors are how far you sit from the screen, the types of games you primarily play, and whether or not your setup also doubles as a productivity terminal.
Key Factors for Finding the Best Monitor Size for Your Setup
Let’s talk about viewing distance first. According to science, you’ll want a screen to occupy around a 30-degree field of view for mixed use, including gaming and general media (whether you’re gaming on PC or looking for a perfect monitor for your PlayStation 5). 30 degrees is also the minimum field of view a screen should occupy, according to the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (via RTINGS).
This means you’ll need about 7.5 inches of screen size for every foot away from the screen you’re sitting on. If you’re sitting three feet away from your monitor, that means a 22-inch screen will be ideal; at five feet, you’d want something between 37 and 40 inches. However, RTINGS recommends a 40-degree field of view if you’re looking for a more immersive or cinematic experience, perfect for story-rich games or games that rely on artistic design and visual experience. To achieve this goal, you’ll need about 10 inches of monitor space for every foot away from the screen.
The type of games you play is important. For example, for esports or other competitive games, a smaller screen on the order of 25 inches will allow you to quickly follow and react to the action on screen. For immersive gaming or a machine that you’ll also be doing a lot of work on, a larger or ultra-wide screen is a better choice (unless you’ve already invested in one of the best second monitors for work and gaming).
Other Considerations When Choosing the Best Gaming Monitor
Resolution is another important part of talking over a distance, and it also influences pixel density and how detailed, clearly defined objects appear on screen. First, determine approximately how far from your screen you will be seated, then determine the ideal size of a monitor based on the 30 or 40 degree calculations above. Then, when you have a size in mind, you can think about what resolution will work best.
1080p (often called Full HD or FHD) is suitable for monitors up to 27 inches, which means a pixel density of around 82 pixels per inch (PPI). Get much bigger and things start to get muddy. For a 1440p (Quad HD) monitor, you won’t want to stretch too much beyond 32 inches (around 91 PPI), while 4K gives you wiggle room to reach 42 inches with the same pixel density. All of these calculations rely on your other hardware. To drive a big 4K display, especially in the latest and most demanding triple-A titles, you’ll need a robust rig, focused on GPU power.
On the other hand, if you mainly play “Minecraft” or “Roblox” with your friends, you won’t need cutting-edge hardware to achieve reasonable frame rates, even at higher resolution. That said, the genre of the game also matters. Some competitive FPS gamers run titles at lower resolutions than their hardware can handle to ensure the action is smooth and the game is as responsive as possible.