How to Connect Two or More Monitors to Laptop?

We all know that multiple monitors can extremely improve our productivity and bring a great experience, especially when you’re using a laptop screen. But how to connect external monitors to a laptop? You’ve come to the right place. This article introduces an easy and clear guideline to connect two external monitors to your laptop.

For Windows
Things to check before the start
Generally speaking, most Windows laptops now support dual monitors, at least. But you need to make sure your laptop is capable to add two external monitors. And that depends on your Windows operating system, the capability of your graphics cards and drivers.

Windows XP/7/8/10 all support multiple monitors, so you just need to check the graphics card and ports on your laptop.

1. Check the graphics card
First of all, you may need to make sure your graphics card supports multiple monitors. Normally, every graphics card provides at least two outputs, but you will need to check the graphics card properties on the manufacturer’s website, find your graphics card and check the specifications to see if it supports adding two external monitors.

For example, if you are using NVIDIA GeForce graphics card, you can check it out on the official website, and click your graphics card, and check the specification, then you will see if it supports multiple monitors.
How to Connect Two or More Monitors to Laptop?
If it does not support adding multiple monitors, you may need to buy and install a correct graphics card (e.g GeForce RTX 2080) before you keep processing.

2. Check available ports on your laptop
Then you may need to check the ports on your laptop. Generally a computer or laptop should include any of these four ports:

Display Port can provide an interface with an optional audio high-definition content protection.
Digital Video Interface (DVI) is usually color-coded with white plastic and labels.
Video Graphics Array (VGA) is normally color-coded with blue plastic and labels.
High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) can connect all kinds of video devices and provide sounds through the cable.
How to Connect Two or More Monitors to Laptop?
You can check the ports on the back or on the sides of your laptop. In addition to the ports on your laptop, the monitors should have the corresponding ports as well. That will save your time and money to connect them. Otherwise you will need to buy an extra adapter, such as DVI to HDMI adapter to have them match.

If you don’t have the match ports for your laptop and your monitor
If the ports in your laptop lcd screen is not the same as the connectors in your monitor cables, don’t give up hope. There is workaround! You can try one of the methods below to continue:
1) Use an adapter, such as an HDMI to DVI adapter. This works if you have two different ports for your laptop and your monitor.
2) Use a switch spillter, such as a Display splitter to have two HDMI ports. This works if you have only one HDMI port on your laptop but you need to HDMI ports.
3) Use a docking station, and it works in various circumstances.

How to set up to connect two monitors
Since everything is ready, you can start connecting the two monitors to your laptop.
Note: Connect your monitors while your laptop is turned on. In most cases, Windows will detect when a new monitor is plugged in.
For example, I have VGA and HDMI ports on my laptop, and my external monitors have cables for VGA and HDMI ports as well:
1) Plug the cable of the first external monitor to the correct video port on your laptop. So I plug the VGA cable of the first external monitor into the VGA port on my laptop.
2) Plug the cable of the second external monitor to the other correct port on your laptop. So I plug the HDMI cable of the second external monitor into the HDMI port on my laptop.
3) On your laptop, right click an empty area of your desktop, if you are using Windows 10, click Display settings.
if you are using Windows 8/7, click Screen resolution.

How to Connect Two or More Monitors to Laptop?

4) You will see three displays labeled with 1, 2 and 3 in display mode. Generally speaking, the display 1 is the monitor of your laptop, and the display 2 and 3 are the external monitors.

5) Click the display 2, and select Extend desktop to this display in Multiple displays, and click Apply.

How to Connect Two or More Monitors to Laptop?

6) Click the display 3, and select Extend desktop to this display in Multiple displays, and click Apply.
How to Connect Two or More Monitors to Laptop?


7) Click OK to finish the settings, and you can now use the three monitors on your laptop.

Tips: You can click and drag each display (1, 2 or 3) to rearrange the display. You can also change the size of items, display resolution and orientation according to your preferences.

For Mac
You may be able to connect one or more external displays to your Mac. To do so, you need a video cable for each display, and you might need an adapter.

After you connect one or more displays to your Mac, you can choose whether to use them as an extended desktop or for video mirroring.

Connect the displays
For each display, securely connect a video cable (and adapter, if necessary) from a video output port on your Mac to the video input port on the display.

You can connect one or more external displays, depending on your Mac.

For Mac computers with the Apple M1 Chip: You can connect a single external display to your Mac. Docks don’t increase the number of displays you can connect. On a Mac mini with M1 chip, you can connect a second display to the HDMI port. See the Apple Support article Mac computers with Apple silicon.

For Mac computers with Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C): You can connect a single display to each port. If you connect multiple Thunderbolt devices to each other, the Thunderbolt 3 display must be the last device in the chain. If your Thunderbolt 3 display has USB ports, those can be used for data and power.

For Mac computers with Mini DisplayPort, Thunderbolt, or Thunderbolt 2: You can connect up to two displays. If the displays themselves have Thunderbolt ports, you can connect one display to another, and then connect one of the displays to a Thunderbolt port on your Mac. If your Mac has two Thunderbolt ports, you can connect each display to separate Thunderbolt ports on your Mac. A DisplayPort device must be the last device in a chain of connected Thunderbolt devices. See Connect a display, TV, or projector to Mac.

For Mac computers with Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C) and HDMI ports: You can connect up to four external displays to your Mac, depending on your Mac model. See the Apple Support article Connect a display to your Mac.

Note: Only the device directly connected to your Mac receives power from the computer’s Thunderbolt port. The other devices in the chain must be powered by separate power adapters.

If your Mac doesn’t detect a connected display
On your Mac, choose Apple menu > System Preferences, then click Displays .

Click the Detect Displays button. (You may need to press the Option key to see the Detect Displays button.)

Set up the displays as an extended desktop
You can arrange your displays in any configuration to create an extended desktop. For example, you can set your external display side by side with your Mac to create one large continuous desktop.

Note: You must be connected to a display to see these options.

On your Mac, choose Apple menu > System Preferences, click Displays , then click Display Settings.

Click the name of your display, then choose Extend Display from the pop-up menu.

Set up the displays for video mirroring
Video mirroring shows the entire desktop on each display.

Note: You must be connected to a display to see these options.

On your Mac, choose Apple menu > System Preferences, click Displays , then click Display Settings.

Select your display, then choose Mirror for Display from the pop-up menu.

Set up some displays for mirroring and others for an extended desktop
If more than two displays are connected to your Mac, you can specify that some displays use mirroring (showing the entire desktop) and other displays show the extended desktop (displaying the desktop across two or more displays). For example, if you have three displays, you can have two displays showing the same information and the third display showing the extended desktop.

Set up all the displays as an extended desktop.

Press and hold the Option key and drag one display icon onto another display icon to mirror those two displays.

You can also extend or mirror your display by clicking Display Settings and choosing Extend Display or Mirror Display from the pop-up menu.