Introduction
When I was creating my ultimate gaming setup in a new home, I knew I wanted to get a monitor that wasn’t just entry level.
A lot of people associate a small monitor to have worse refresh rate, resolution, and overall performance.
After I did some research, I found that gaming companies are actually producing a ton of small, super versatile gaming monitors for an affordable price!
This article will help you decide not only what size is right for you but also a list of the top reasons why you might want to consider a smaller gaming monitor too.
But what is the best gaming monitor size?
The most ideal size for a gaming monitor is 27 inches. Monitors this size provide gamers enough peripheral vision for both casual and competitive gamers, good refresh rate, and resolution at an affordable price ($150-250).
Top 7 Reasons To Get a Small Monitor
1. Smaller monitors are cheaper even for the same resolution display
Below is a table of the average price per size monitor and correlated resolution:
| Size | Cost | Resolution |
| 24 inch | $150-180 | 1080p |
| 27 inch | $200-250 | 1080p-1440p |
| 32 inch | 260-280 | 1080p-1440p |
The 3 main display resolutions monitors come in is 1920 x 1080p, 1440 x 2560, and 4k. These resolution displays are not related to monitor size or price. You can get a small 24 inch 4k monitor if you really wanted to.
These prices come from the most common gaming monitor brands such as Razer, Acer, Asus, Samsung, and LG. Hopefully this saved you some time on researching this on Amazon!
2. Smaller gaming monitors are easier to transport
I travel a lot for my work and sometimes I have to stay in certain parts of the U.S for up to 6 months. It’s awesome to be able to take my 27 inch monitor in my checked bag and continue gaming and being productive with a dual monitor setup while I’m gone.
If you travel a lot (road trips included), then a smaller monitor (even with 4k resolution) is worth throwing in the back of your vehicle.
Some of my friends even take their monitor to work and bring it home to game on.
The only drawback is that you have less field of view if you play visually stunning games like Skyrim Remastered.
The most ideal gaming monitor size would be 27 inches not 32. With a 27 inch you can afford to buy it with high refresh rate (144hz+) but it’s not so big that online competitive gaming is made harder by looking at too much across a screen”
Ben Hues– Best Buy Gamer Squad Expert
3. Small monitors are great for casual and entry level gamers
If you’re new to PC gaming especially, you won’t notice much of a difference between 144hz and 60hz refresh rate on a monitor.
The higher the refresh rate and resolution, the more expensive the monitor.
A small monitor puts you in the $150 price range and allows you to get something better than just entry level.
4. A small monitor can be combined with a dual setup
Dual set ups are a great way if you need to extend your display for productivity at work. Additionally, they also make it easier to stream and game at the same time. Dual monitors do not slow down your computer‘s processing ability unless the resolutions are different than each other.
Quick example: if your left monitor is running 1080 P by 1440 P and your other screen is running 4K, your computer would have a hard time displaying both resolutions at the same refresh rate.
5. Small monitors are better for budget gaming PCs
I learned this lesson the hard way by purchasing a 32 inch 1440 P monitor. I only ran a GTX 1070. The monitors refresh rate was exceptional, at 1:44 Hz. However, my gaming PC wasn’t able to output the visuals of my game enough to make it look smooth and high-quality.
Here’s what I recommend instead: purchase a small monitor if you have a budget graphics card, with the intent to upgrade in the future.
6. Small monitors last longer
I’ll share my research on this because I learned that small monitors last longer, but not for the reason you think they do.
Over time, all monitors eventually develop what’s called ”dead pixels.” These are where the pixels eventually do not turn on and they appear as a blurb spot on the screen.
Large monitors have a higher chance of developing this because they have more pixels and more screen size. Another contributing factor is whether or not the monitor has an LCD or LED display. This is the white backlighting you say around the edges of your screen when it displays dark images.
7. Professional gamers use small monitors
This fact surprised me the most. The reason is because using a small monitor reduces head movement and allows you to focus on the same information on a smaller screen.
In a competitive match on Rainbow Six Siege or Call of Duty Warzone, the amount of screen panning they have to do with their mouse is much less than someone who uses an ultra wide setup.
Conclusion
There are many great reasons to getting a small monitor. The biggest take away is that you can purchase a 4K 24 inch monitor with a great refresh rate and your computer can still keep up because the size isn’t overkill.
Thanks for reading! If you have any questions or comments, feel free to reach out at entertainmentden.ns@gmail.com and Ill do my best to respond! As always, still taking article suggestions so feel free to send those over as well. Until then stay tuned for the next article!