Get More Desk Space With These Mounted Monitor Arms

"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links."

Regardless of the size of your desk, there never seems to be quite enough space to keep it from feeling cluttered. Even with a few office organization tools, it’s tough to keep your desk clear enough to provide a working space next to your computer. Monitor arms change that.

A monitor arm mounts your laptop, monitor, and sometimes even your keyboard above the desk surface, providing ample room underneath for any other office supplies or gadgets you need. Adding a monitor arm to your desk will not only clear up your desk, it will also make your workday much more comfortable. You can use it to position your monitor closer to eye level to help reduce hunching your neck and back.

The Best Monitor Arms

• Best Overall: MountUp Gaming Monitor Arm

• Best Value: VIVO Monitor Desk Mount Stand

• Best for Heavy Monitors: 3M Dual-Swivel Monitor Arm

• Best for Multiple Monitors: MountUp Triple Monitor Stand Mount

• Best for Laptops: WALI Monitor Stand with Extra Laptop Tray

What to Consider

Monitor Size

Many monitor arms are virtually universal, supporting a range of devices, brands, sizes, and orientations. Most arms provide a range of dimensions they can support, so measure your monitor before making your final decision. These arms also have a maximum weight, but that shouldn’t cause a problem unless you have an incredibly heavy monitor.

Articulation

The more adjustable the arm is, the easier it will be to find the perfect height and angle. Arms that can move vertically are common, but some monitor arms can also articulate more, moving from side to side, rotating, and tilting to suit your seated or standing position. This allows you to personalize your workspace better to your comfort and posture, including minuscule adjustments throughout the day as you sit in various positions.

Mounting System

To save the most space, you can mount your monitor arm to the wall—make sure to use a stud finder to make sure it won’t pull out the drywall once you put the monitor on it. Another good space-saving option is a freestanding monitor arm that uses weights to stay stable on the ground or desktop.

If you don’t have a stud nearby or want to keep installation simple, find an option with a heavy-duty clamp that attaches to your desk. With this type of monitor arm, make sure the edge of your desk can accommodate a clamp—if your desk has a tapered or rounded edge, you might not be able to find a secure fit with a clamp-style monitor arm.

Vesa Support

Most monitors have a Video Electronics Standards Association, or VESA, standard mount on the back. This is a secure mounting system that ensures your monitor won’t fall forward or tilt undesirably when mounted.

All of the mounts we recommend are compatible with VESA standard mounts, so unless you have a non-standard monitor, you should be able to use any of these options.

How We Selected

We narrowed down our choices through extensive research and based our final decisions on a number of factors including weight capacity, versatility in movement, and mounting design. We also made sure to find monitors that fit a variety of preferences and budgets, while ensuring all of our recommendations are durable and truly enhance your desk space.

Gaming Monitor Arm

Spiff up your battle station with this gaming monitor arm from MountUp. This arm can hold gaming monitors up to 32 inches and 17.6 pounds. The super sleek red and black color scheme and hydraulic-like style is what really sets this option apart, and makes it a great option for gaming setups.

It also adjusts to 19.2 inches in height, rotates 180 degrees, swivels 90 degrees in both directions, and tilts 90 degrees down and 45 degrees up. This flexibility gives you a large range of motion and allows for more precise adjustments for an optimal gaming (or working) experience.

Monitor Desk Mount Stand

If you need a basic, affordable option that can pretty much do it all, the VIVO Monitor Desk Mount Stand will work perfectly fine. This no-frills option allows you to mount monitors up to 32 inches in size and 22 pounds in weight, which is sturdier than a lot of other options we recommend.

The arm also allows you to adjust to landscape or portrait orientation, lift up to 16 inches in height, tilt 90 degrees in each direction, and swivel 360 degrees—a boon for collaboration with others in your workspace.

Alongside its affordable price tag, this monitor arm comes with a respectable 3-year warranty, so you can trade it in for a replacement if it breaks during that time period.

Dual-Swivel Monitor Arm

If you’ve got extra hefty monitors to support, your best option is something like this 3M dual-swivel monitor arm. You may know 3M for its heavy-duty adhesives, but the company makes lots of other sturdy, reliable desk accessories. This arm lives up to the 3M name, holding monitors up to 30 pounds.

This arm is also built to handle screen sizes of up to 27 inches, adjust to heights of up to 19.5 inches, and clamps to desks up to 4.25 inches thick. The swivel arm also allows for tilt, rotation, and distance adjustment, which is handy if you have a standing desk that doubles as a regular desk.

Triple Monitor Stand Mount

For the monitor maximalist, there’s the MountUp Triple Monitor Stand Mount. This mount can support up to three monitors up to 27 inches and 17.6 pounds at once, so you can run a multi-screen office setup without compromising on desk space.

The two outer arms can tilt 35 degrees in both directions, swivel 90 degrees in each direction, and rotate 180 degrees in each direction. Meanwhile, the center arm can lift up close to 17 inches in height.

In short, this triple mount lets you organize and adjust your three monitors in a myriad of ways to fit your workspace best. If you like to keep a monitor for messaging, one for working, and one for previewing, this arm is a great bet.

Monitor Stand with Extra Laptop Tray

Many people use their laptops when they work, but your desk height probably means your laptop is far below eye level, which leads to hunching. This stand comes with an arm for your monitor along with an attached tray for your laptop, so you can use both screens in conjunction.

The laptop tray is well ventilated and can hold laptops up to 17 inches (the largest Apple laptop is 15.6 inches, for reference). Meanwhile, the monitor arm can hold monitors up to 27 inches and 22 pounds.

The arm can also adjust up to 16 inches in height, rotate 360 degrees, and tilt 90 degrees in each direction. The laptop tray also tilts up to 15 degrees, which is an often overlooked (but important) feature in laptop stands.

LX Desk Mount Monitor Arm

One of the highest quality options you can buy, this monitor arm from Ergotron is built to last. Alongside a sturdy arm that holds monitors up to 25 pounds, this also comes with a generous 10-year warranty.

This monitor arm also articulates in nearly every direction, providing endless adjustability. That being said, it is a costlier option than other, comparable monitor arms, so unless you’re ready for an upgrade, you can save a few bucks on a cheaper pick.

Single Monitor Arm Mount

Without overspending, this monitor arm gives you a solid, adjustable stand at a price worth noticing. The monitor length of 30 inches is slightly above the average, though the maximum weight falls short, making this a good pick for slim, lightweight monitors.

This monitor arm has is gas springs that can be used over and over, and the lightweight aluminum frame also serves as an easy-to-adjust, sleek exterior built to stand up against scratches.

Extra Long Monitor Arm

One big plus of using a monitor arm is that it lets you stand up while you’re working. But if you’re tall, sometimes the standard option doesn’t quite reach to where you want it to.

If this sounds like an issue you’ve had, this VIVO extra long monitor arm has you covered. This arm extends up to 27.5 inches in height, which is about ten inches taller than most other options we recommend.

This arm also has 45-degree tilt, 180-degree swivel, 360-degree rotation, and the ability to hold screens up to 32 inches at 17.6 pounds.

You Might Also Like

• The Do’s and Don’ts of Using Painter’s Tape

• The Best Portable BBQ Grills for Cooking Anywhere

• Can a Smart Watch Prolong Your Life?