The best monitors for graphic artists and graphic designers can make a big difference to the experience of working with visual art and design in creative software. Good colour accuracy and image quality can ensure you see you work as it really looks, while a decent selection ports allow you to connect the peripherals you need.
We've tested and reviewed a wide range of monitors using both benchmark tests for colour coverage and accuracy as well as practical hands-on testing, including using them with the best digital art software and graphic design software. We've picked out those that the performance and supporting features to make them suitable for graphic designers and artists with different needs.
Below, we evaluate the pros and cons of each, picking options for difference price points, from budget to professional displays. For more gear for your setup, also see our guide to the best laptops for graphic design.
Quick list
We'll begin with a quick overview of our top picks. Scroll down for more our full evaluation of each option.
We think this super-cheap 27-inch display is practically a steal. You sacrifice 4K resolution and the brightness and colour gamut are hardly spectacular, but the price is incredible. Read more below
This premium screen provides top-tier performance, excellent contrast and colour coverage, solid connectivity, and an included calibration tool. Read more below
Offering 40 inches of exquisite screen space with solid color accuracy and great connectivity, this is a brilliant screen for artists and designers that want more space to work with. Read more below
If you're in the Apple ecosystem, and have the budget, this Apple Pro Display XDR remains an excellent choice for art and design work with incredible HDR peak brightness, superb colour reproduction and quality features. Read more below
A portable external monitor can be handy for working on the move, and this OLED display takes the concept up a level with solid brightness and colour coverage for visual art and design. Read more below
The best monitors for graphic artists in full
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✅ You want the ideal balance of size, quality and price: We think this monitor is priced just right while providing solid specs for creative work.
✅ You want a 4K display. 4K resolution provides a more detailed picture on larger screens, and we find 32 inches to be the ideal size for the resolution.
✅ You want a versatile display: We love the ease with which it's possible to switch to portrait mode and to change colour modes with the Hockey Puck control
Don't buy it if:
❌ You're on a tight budget: We think this monitor is good value for the specs, but at around $1,000 it isn't cheap.
❌ You want a smaller display: 32 inches may be too large if you have a very small desk.
❌ You want the best Adobe RGB coverage: If you work in the Adobe RGB colour space, the ASUS ProArt display covers 99% compared to the 83% of this display based on our own testing.
The bottom line
🔎 BenQ PD3220U is an excellent monitor for graphic artists. We think it provides the perfect size for most workflows and an optimum balance between display quality and price. Colour coverage and image quality is solid and the design and ports make it a practical and versatile choice. ★★★★★
What you need to know:
The BenQ PD3220U is a monitor that was clearly made with designers in mind. In our review, we discovered a rich feature set, superb image quality and broad color representation.
Design and build: We liked the flexibility of this display. The stand had a bit of wobble but it was very highly adjustable. The screen can pivot 90 degrees, and the portrait mode automatically adjusts for that to give you a vertical screen to work on. We also liked the handy disk-shaped wired remote control Hockey Puck G2 for access to menus for easy adjustment. This will be particularly useful for designers working in difference colour spaces since it allows colours modes to be switched quickly. There are connectivity options provided too, including two Thunderbolt 3 ports. These can allow you to daisy-chain another monitor, and one of them delivers 85W of power, so you can charge your laptop off it too, helping to reduce trailing cables.
Display: We find 4K on a 32-inch screen is the sweet spot in terms of resolution, and this was no exception. Image quality was superb in our testing, and colour coverage was sound, surpassing the stated specs in our own tests to provide 98% DCI-P3 as well as 100% of sRGB and 100% Rec.709. Adobe RGB coverage was naturally more limited at 83%, which may be of concern to the most demanding creative who need to match colours for print (we recommend the Asus ProArt display at number 3 if you know you need more).
We found the preset color modes to be accurate and east to use. Other handy features that could simply some creatives' workflows include picture-in-picture and picture-by-picture modes, allowing you to display visuals from two inputs. We also got more than the stated typical brighteness of 250 nits, but it's still not the brightest monitor, offering around the same brightness as the average for a consumer laptop.
Pricing: We think the BenQ PD3220U is a great-value package for graphics artists and designers. At around $1,000 / £1,000, it occupies a mid-range price for screens designed for creative work, but it offers specs that could cost more.
If you're not yet working in graphic art or design professionally, you might not be ready to splash out on a high-resolution display with pro specs. If you want a screen to get started with, we think the Acer Vero RL272 is best budget monitor for graphic design, and the cheapest monitor for art that we can recommend.
Display: FHD resolution has its limits, but it's not as much of an issue for static art as it is for video. We found that brightness and colour coverage weren't exactly anything to write home about either, but they're good enough for non professional use, providing 200 nits and 99% of sRGB coverage.
Pricing: It's hard to stress how good value this monitor is. At little over $200, it's a fantastic buy for those who are starting out.
Color space coverage: 100% sRGB, 80% rec. 2020, 99% DCI-P3, 99% Adobe RGB
Connections: 3x HDMI (v2.0), 1x DisplayPort (v1.4), 1s USB-C (DP Alt mode, 65W power delivery), 4x USB-A
Brightness (max): 500 nits
Reasons to buy
+
Accurate presets for all color formats
+
Class-leading color and contrast
+
Auto-calibration feature
Reasons to avoid
-
Only a 60Hz refresh rate
-
Costs the same as several of the others on the list combined
What you need to know:
If you're a professional graphic artist looking to upgrade your setup with a premium screen, this is one of the best we've ever tested. The Asus ProArt OLED PA32DC is 4K-plus 32-inch display that shines when it comes to colour accuracy – and it comes with an auto-calibration feature to make it easier to regularly calibrate in order to maintain that accuracy.
Design and build: The monitor comes with a monitor hood to help reduce reflections and glare, and plenty of ports for peripherals. Technical and capability grumbles are very minor, and the refresh rate is a pedestrian 60Hz, but this gaming is designed for work not gaming.
Pricing: The only real problem with the ProArt OLED PA32DC as a monitor for graphic artists, and the reason it isn't at the top of our guide, is the price. At over £3,199, it's the second most expensive monitor we've included after the Apple Pro Display XDR. Considering how good the BenQ DesignVue PD3220U is at number one our our list, only those who really need the extra features and specs will want to consider spending $2,000 more for this beautiful display.
Good range of ports and features for multi-taskers
Reasons to avoid
-
Curve might make work look skewed
What you need to know:
If you work across multiple programs or panels or you like to be able to compare your work side by side, the extra space provide by an ultrawide can be a huge benefit. Just note that some creatives feel that a curved screen can distort the appearance of their work. It's a subjective thing, but you might want to test the experience to check how it work for you.
Design and build: We found this 4K option from Dell to have the specs for for creative work, boasting 100% sRGB, 100% Rec. 709 and 98% DCI-P3 color coverage. It has plenty of ports too, including Thunderbolt 3.
Pricing: An ultrawide with these specs never comes cheap, and at around $1,600 / £1,600, this is 50% more expensive than the top pick on our list.
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Dell UltraSharp Curved U4021QW scorecard
Attributes
Notes
Rating
Design and build
Immersive curved display.
★★★★★
Display
Good colour coverage.
★★★★★
Pricing
More expensive than smaller screens with comparable specs
Those looking to keep everything within the Apple family should look at the Apple Pro Display XDR screen. It's an investment, but we found it to be a stunning monitor for graphic design.
Design and build: This expensive monitor has the sleek design and finish that we expect from Apple device, it Its Thunderbolt 3 port ensures it can be hooked up easily in a Thunderbolt chain, and there are a bunch of USB-C ports for accessories too. Its price tag bites hard, and the fact that the official stand will cost you a chunk extra does sting.
Display: The screen itself is hard to fault despite it being several years old now. In terms of specs, the numbers are impressive: 6K resolution (6016 x 3384) HDR peak brightness of 1,600 nits (typically this is 'only' 1,000) and near 600 dimming zones. In practice? We found brightness and contrast to be simply superb. We also appreciated the specific modes for DCI P3, sRGB, NTSC, BT.709, to name but a few, and found it to be a perfect companion for a MacBook Pro ensuring that work will look the same if you have the two side by side.
Pricing: By far the biggest downside of this as a monitor for graphics artists, the price is frankly astronomical. It starts at around $5,000 / £5,000 (without the stand) and there are rarely big discounts.
Most portable monitors make decent productivity devices but aren't so hot for creative work. This is a very welcome exception.
Build and design: A portable 16-inch OLED display is a niche device. It only makes sense if you regularly work on the move, for example in cafes, hotel rooms, co-working spaces or clients' offices. For situations like that, the option to slip something into a bag and connect to a laptop using just one cable comes into its own. We found it to be a flexible device that's equally suitable for graphic art and design as writing or coding.
Display: ASUS claims 95.5% of sRGB, and we got 100% in our tests, as well as 96% of Adobe RGB and 98% of P3 and Delta E < 2 colour accuracy. We didn't manage to get the 400 nits of brightness that Asus claims using USB-C (the alternative is to use mini HDMI), but the OLED screen was still very bright for a portable monitor and able to overpower most reflections in the office at 80% brightness. With a dongle, it’s possible to use this port to connect game consoles, a Raspberry Pi, or even a streaming stick, and the 60Hz refresh rate gives a smooth picture.
Pricing: At around $350 / £350, the ASUS ZenScreen MQ16AH represents quite good value. There are cheaper portable monitors, but not with the specs for graphics work.
How to choose the best monitor for graphic artists
There are several things to consider and look out for when you're choosing a monitor for graphic design or art. One of the most important is to decide what size monitor you want. A larger monitor means that you can see your work at a larger size, and it can also make it easier to see all of your work if you have lots of layers or to navigate multiple windows, which is handy if you're jumping between different programs or if you're checking an image against a reference. However, a larger screen takes up more space.
One of the most important factors in a monitor for visual art and design is colour coverage and accuracy. There are no minimum requirements that you should look for, but if you're producing work for digital uses, you'll want the highest sRGB colour space coverage, ideally 100%, and good coverage for other colour spaces such as Adobe RGB may also be preferable depending on your workflow.
How we tested the best monitors for graphic artists
We have chosen the best monitors for graphic artists based on our writers' experiences when carrying our our own hands-on tests and reviews. We have also taken on board recommendations and feedback from working artists and customer reviews.
When reviewing monitors, we conduct benchmark tests to check brightness and contrast levels, colour coverage, accuracy and uniformity. We also use the monitors over several days in real-life use cases, including for creating graphic design and digital art in programs such as Illustrator, Photoshop and CorelDRAW. As well as the quality of the display itself, we also evaluate build, ergonomics, connectivity and price. We then seek to identify the best monitor for different needs and budgets.
What is the best monitor for graphic artists and designers?
We think the best monitor for graphic artists is the BenQ PD3220U. It takes our top spot as an exceptional all-around package that meets the needs of most graphic artists and designers, with solid colour coverage and overall image quality, generous screen space and good connectivity for a very reasonable price.
However, each of our picks for the best monitor for graphic designers here has its merits and will perform very highly in many circumstances depending on what you're looking for. What suits one graphic artist perfectly may not be the ideal choice for another. The best monitor for you will depend on the kind of work you do, how you like to work, and on your budget, which is why we've included a range of options.
Do you need a 4K monitor for graphic art and design?
The best monitor for graphic artists or designers doesn't have to be 4K since resolution isn't as important for static design as it is for video. That said, your work will look better up close since details will be clearer, so 4K is generally worth the extra outlay if you have the budget.
Deputy Editor, TechRadar Gaming; Tech, hardware and games writer
Rob is the Deputy Editor at TechRadar Gaming, and a writer on games, gaming hardware, and tech, and also gardens and landscapes. He has been in the gaming and tech media industry for more than six years with bylines at the likes of Eurogamer, PCGamer, RockPaperShotgun, GamesRadar+, and more. Previously to being at TechRadar Gaming, he had a short but successful stint as Games Editor at WePC, and prior to that spent more than four years at GamesRadar+, building its hardware team up from scratch to great success. Elsewhere, he is merging his passion and expertise in both gardens and landscapes and video games by crowdfunding a book on video game landscapes that you can back and pre-order now.
