How to Calibrate Your Monitor

Preparing to Calibrate

Understand when your monitor needs calibration. Typically speaking, high-resolution monitors that you connect to a desktop unit (e.g., a 4K display) require some calibration before they'll display correctly the colors and items on your screen. Failing to calibrate such monitors can result in washed-out or blurry textures. Lower-quality monitors (e.g., 720p ones)—especially ones used for gaming or other casual activities—don't need to be calibrated, though calibration won't hurt them. Built-in monitors such as the ones included in laptops rarely need calibration, though you're more than welcome to calibrate built-in monitors using the same process you'd follow for a separate one. Color calibration is especially important for graphics professionals, since they want to get everything to match as closely as possible to what the output product might look like. EXPERT TIP Spike Baron Spike Baron Network Engineer & Desktop Support Spike Baron is the Owner of Spike's Computer Repair based in Los Angeles, California. With over 25 years of working experience in the tech industry, Spike specializes in PC and Mac computer repair, used computer sales, virus removal, data recovery, and hardware and software upgrades. He has his CompTIA A+ certification for computer service technicians and is a Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert. Spike Baron Spike Baron Network Engineer & Desktop Support Our Expert Agrees: Not every monitor needs calibration. Typically, a monitor straight out of the box doesn't need calibrating and works fine on its own. They have a specific pre-set resolution, but you can always tweak it if you want.

Clean your monitor if necessary. If your monitor is dirty or smudged, take a moment to wipe it down before attempting to calibrate it.

Place your monitor in a neutral lighting environment. Your monitor shouldn't have any glare or direct light shining on it; for best results, make sure your monitor is in a room where it can remain unimpacted by direct natural and artificial light.

Connect your monitor using a high-quality cable. If possible, make sure your monitor is connected to your computer using a DisplayPort cable. You can use an HDMI cable instead if you don't have access to a DisplayPort option, but refrain from using a DVI, VGA, or lower connector.

Turn on your monitor for at least 30 minutes before continuing. This will give your monitor plenty of time to warm up. If your computer is set to hibernate or use a screensaver, move the mouse every few minutes to keep your screen from turning off.

Change your monitor's resolution back to default if necessary. By default, your monitor should display in the highest possible resolution, which is necessary for calibration: Windows — Open Start Windows Start, click Settings Windows Settings, click System, click Display, click the "Resolution" drop-down box, and click the "Recommended" resolution. Click Keep changes when prompted. Mac — Open the Apple menu Mac Apple, click System Preferences..., click Displays, click the Display tab, hold down ⌥ Option while clicking Scaled, select your connected display, and check the "Default for display" box.

Calibrating on Windows

Open Start Windows Start. Click the Windows logo in the bottom-left corner of the screen.

Open the calibration tool. Type in calibrate display, then click Calibrate display color at the top of the Start menu.

Make sure that the calibration tool is on the correct display. If you use dual monitors, you may need to move the calibration window onto the second monitor.

Click Next. It's in the bottom-right corner of the page.

Set your monitor to its factory-default color settings. If necessary, press your monitor's "Menu" button, then select the factory default color settings from the on-screen menu. This isn't necessary if you've never changed the color settings on your monitor (not in your computer's settings). Skip this step if you're on a laptop.

Click Next. It's in the bottom-right corner of the page.

Review the "Good gamma" example, then click Next. The "Good gamma" example is in the middle of the page. Ideally, you'll set your gamma to match this example.

Adjust your display's gamma. Click and drag the slider on the left side of the page up or down to raise or lower your gamma, making sure that the cube in the middle of the page resembles the "Good gamma" example from the previous step.

Click Next twice. It's in the bottom-right corner of the page.

Review the "Good brightness" example, then click Next. If you're on a laptop, you'll click the Skip option in the middle of the page and then skip the next two steps.

Adjust your display's brightness. Open your display's menu by pressing the "Menu" button, then select the "Brightness" section and raise or lower the brightness as needed. Your brightness should be set so that your display meets the criteria listed under the picture in the middle of the page.

Click Next. It's in the bottom-right corner of the page. Doing so takes you to the "Contrast" example.

Review the "Good contrast" example, then click Next. Again, if you're on a laptop, skip the next two steps.

Adjust your display's contrast. Using your display's menu, raise or lower the contrast until the photo in the middle of the page matches the criteria listed under the photo.

Click Next twice. It's in the bottom-right corner of the page.

Adjust the color balance. Click and drag each slider at the bottom of the page left or right until you see neutral (not green-, red-, or blue-tinted) greys in the bar at the top of the page.

Click Next, then review your changes. You can click Previous calibration to see what the monitor looked like before you made your changes and then click Current calibration to see the comparison.

Click Finish. It's at the bottom of the page. Your calibration settings will be saved.

Calibrating on Mac

Open the Apple menu Mac Apple. Click the Apple logo in the top-left corner of the screen. A drop-down menu will appear.

Click System Preferences…. It's in the drop-down menu. Doing so opens the System Preferences window.

Click Displays. This option is in the System Preferences window. A pop-up window will open.

Click Color. You'll find this tab at the top of the Displays window.

Click Calibrate…. It's on the right side of the page.

Click Continue. This option is in the bottom-right corner of the page.

Follow the on-screen prompts. Depending on your monitor, the options you see in the window may vary; however, in most cases, you'll just click Continue in the bottom-right corner of the page until you reach the password entry prompt.

Enter your password when prompted. Type the password that you use to log in into the "Password" text box, then click OK.

Click Done when prompted. Doing so saves your monitor's calibration.

Using a Colorimeter

Understand that you'll need to buy a colorimeter. A colorimeter is a piece of hardware that you place on your screen; the hardware works in conjunction with some included software to calibrate your monitor's colors and brightness regardless of ambient light and other distractions.

Select and buy a colorimeter based on your needs. Colorimeters can range from personal use at a cost of around $150 to corporate use at a cost of over $1000, so buy within your price range. The Spyder line of colorimeters is generally considered to be a reputable, high-performing brand. Make sure that you buy a colorimeter that works with your operating system. Most colorimeters should work on Windows, macOS, and Linux, but cheap alternatives may be locked to a specific operating system.

Make sure you properly prepare your monitor. If you haven't set up your monitor in a neutral environment and let it warm up, do so before proceeding. It's very important to make sure that your monitor is spotless as well, since any smudges or grit may prevent the colorimeter from working correctly.

Install the colorimeter's software if necessary. Some colorimeters will come with a CD that you'll use to install the colorimeter's software component. Depending on the colorimeter, you may need to do this after plugging in the colorimeter instead of before plugging it in. Your colorimeter may install the proper software upon being plugged in.

Plug in your colorimeter. Plug the colorimeter's USB cable into one of your computer's free USB ports. Make sure you use a USB port that's directly connected to your computer rather than using a USB hub or a USB port on a connected keyboard. You may need to turn on the colorimeter before proceeding.

Follow any on-screen prompts. Once your computer recognizes the colorimeter, you should see a pop-up window appear; follow any prompts or instructions in the window.

Place the colorimeter over the screen. The colorimeter should fit in the middle of your monitor's screen with the lens facing your screen. Most colorimeter software will display an outline that matches the shape of the colorimeter to indicate the general placement of the unit.

Initiate the calibration process. Click Next or Start (or similar) in the pop-up window to prompt the calibration software to start running. The software should run until the calibration is complete, at which point you'll be prompted to remove the colorimeter. You may have to click through some more options or follow some on-screen prompts before or during the calibration process.