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Home»Monitors»How to Connect Two Monitors to a Laptop (in 5 Steps)

How to Connect Two Monitors to a Laptop (in 5 Steps)

Bhishu AcharyaBy Bhishu AcharyaJanuary 22, 2023
how to connect two monitors to a laptop

Most of us have connected a single monitor to a laptop for extending our working space. Just like that, attaching dual, triple, or multiple screens is also extremely easy!

But before moving forward, you need to check the compatible ports and adjust the screen positions. Also, it’s important to configure the projection settings once you’ve successfully established the connection. Without further delay, let’s jump into the step-by-step guide on how to connect two monitors to a laptop.

Table of Contents

  • Check Compatibility
  • Adjust Position
  • Connect Primary Monitor
  • Connect Secondary Monitor
  • Check Connectivity & Adjust Settings

Check Compatibility

USB-C and HDMI ports in a laptop
Check compatible monitor ports in your laptop

Firstly, it’s essential to know how you will connect the two monitors to your laptop. You may directly connect to the graphics ports, daisy chain the displays, or use a docking station/adapter.

Most laptops come with just one or two output monitor ports. Among them, HDMI and USB-C are the most common interfaces. However, if you have installed a discrete graphics card, you’ll get a few more options.

If your laptop supports two or more monitor connections, you can directly attach them using the right cables and adapters. But before that, kindly check whether the monitor is compatible with the output ports on your GPU.

check monitor ports
Check if monitor is compatible with your laptop’s ports

For daisy chaining, ensure the laptop and primary display supports DisplayPort 1.2 or Thunderbolt output ports (with MST). For a docking station, the system requires a DisplayPort over USB-C (3.1) interface.

Lastly, HDMI splitters are just for duplicating screens. Thus, if you’re opting to extend the display, it’s best to get an appropriate adapter or docking station. For example, you can use a USB-to-HDMI adapter to attach one monitor and directly join another through HDMI if your output device only supports HDMI.

Note: Since Miracast only lets you connect one additional monitor, it isn’t feasible for joining multiple screens. Instead, you need to join one display wirelessly and another using a compatible cable. Otherwise, you may pick a desirable third-party application for mirroring your notebook computer.

Adjust Position

laptop in middle two screens at the side
Place your laptop in middle and monitors in the side

The second step is to position your laptop and monitors. While this is entirely based on your preference, we recommend keeping the primary screen (laptop) in the middle for better viewing and ergonomics.

You may even opt for keeping the laptop on the left-most side followed by the two external displays. This can come in handy when you want to close the lid and continue working on the dual monitor setup.

close laptop to use dual monitors
Close you laptop and use dual monitors

When talking about ergonomics, we even recommend using a laptop stand and monitor arms. This helps save your desk space and even adds aesthetics to the setup.

Connect Primary Monitor

Once you’re done adjusting the devices, it’s time to connect the primary monitor to the laptop. You may first extend your ports using a docking station or directly plug the cable into the notebook computer’s interface. For demonstration, we have used an HDMI cable to connect the laptop to the primary screen:

  1. Get ready with an HDMI cable and ensure the ports are clean.
  2. Connect the first end of the cable to the laptop’s output port.
    insert hdmi in laptop
  3. Take the other end and plug it into the primary monitor’s input port.
    primary monitor connection

Note: If you’re using a docking station, connect the device to USB 3.1 first. Then, plug the HDMI cable into its dedicated output port.
For daisy chaining, connect the DisplayPort or Thunderbolt cable to the docking station or laptop’s dedicated output port.

Connect Secondary Monitor

The secondary monitor connection can be a little different based on your choice and compatibility. In this section, we have utilized a USB-to-HDMI adapter to connect it to the secondary display. If your monitor supports a USB-C interface, you may directly attach the secondary monitor using a double-ended USB-C cable.

  1. Connect the USB-C cable to the laptop’s USB-C output port.
    insert usb c to laptop port
  2. Then, plug in the first end of an HDMI cable to the USB-to-HDMI adapter’s input port.
    insert hdmi cable to adapter port
  3. Finally, insert the other end to the secondary monitor’s input port.
    secondary monitor connection

Note: In a daisy-chain setup, directly connect the DisplayPort or Thunderbolt cable to the secondary screen. If you’re using a docking station to connect dual monitors, you need an appropriate interface that is compatible with the secondary display.

Check Connectivity & Adjust Settings

Once you’ve properly attached the two monitors to a laptop, the final step is to check whether the connection is successful. Also, you may require tweaking the projection settings to extend or duplicate the display. Kindly follow the below guide on how to do just that:

  1. First, ensure that both monitors are connected to the power adapter, and are turned on.
    monitor power connection
  2. Now, power on your laptop, and log in to Windows.
    log in to windows
  3. By default, you’ll likely see only one screen duplicates/extends the display. To change this, open Settings using the Windows + I hotkey.
  4. Then, go to System > Display.
    system display in settings
  5. You should see three screens numbered 1, 2, and 3. Select the display indicating no signal.
  6. Expand the drop-down and pick Duplicate desktop on 2 and 3 or Extend desktop to this display, as per your choice.
    extend or dupilicate desktop to this display
  7. All the screens will likely flash for a second and start working as per the configuration.
  8. Now, you may even drag and drop the displays to change their placement based on how you’ve adjusted the position.
    drag and drop display

If you wish to close the laptop and continue enjoying a dual monitor setup, here’s what you should do:

  1. Navigate to Control Panel from the Start Menu as demonstrated below.
    open control panel from start menu
  2. Here, select System and Security.
    system and security in control panel
  3. Then, navigate to Power Options.
    go to power options
  4. From the left side of the window, pick Choose what closing the lid does.
    choose what closing the lid does
  5. Next, set the ‘When I close the lid option’ to Do nothing for both On battery and Plugged in.
  6. Now, hit the Save Changes button.
    when i close the lid do nothing
  7. Finally, your laptop will turn on even if its lid is closed. This way, you can continue working on the two screens.
how-to
Bhishu Acharya
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Bhishu Acharya is a technical content writer at TechNewsToday. He specializes in monitors, laptops, storage devices, and other peripherals. Apart from computer hardware, you can also find his how-to and troubleshooting articles on Windows, internet, security, and networking. Ever since getting his hands on a personal computer, Bhishu started exploring its internal components at just 10. His growing curiosity led him to undertake the Computer Science & Information Technology degree and is just a year away from graduation. While balancing his study and work life for over four years, he has harnessed different sets of technical skills. With his expertise, he is now dedicated to helping netizens looking for hardware and software-related fixes. Today, Bhishu’s proficiency extends beyond computer hardware. In his spare time, he enjoys coding and learning new programming languages. You can contact him at bhishu@technewstoday.com

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