Best Portable Monitors 2024
Connecting your laptop to one or more external displays is cheap and easy if you have a large, permanent desk at your home or office. However, if you’re on the go, you can’t lug a 27-inch monitor in your bag, nor can you likely fit it on a tiny hotel or co-working table. That’s where the best portable monitors come in to save the day.
Portable monitors usually range from 13.3 to 17 inches, and most come with a 1920 x 1080 resolution, though some can hit 4K, and the cheapest models may be just 1366 x 768. These monitors weigh just a couple of pounds, and many of them draw power directly from your laptop’s USB ports, meaning you don’t have to carry yet another power brick in your bag.
Most portable monitors are designed for productivity work, providing a useful second screen for your laptop that’s often the same height as its built-in display. However, people also use portable monitors for console or PC gaming, with some operating at up to 144Hz. You can even connect one that uses HDMI to your Raspberry Pi.
Below, we’ve listed the best portable monitors you can buy right now. If you want to stay productive on the road, don’t leave home without one. For your permanent desk, check out our lists of best gaming monitors, best 4K gaming monitors and best budget 4K monitors.
The Quick List
Best 17-inch Portable Gaming Monitor
High-refresh rate panels aren’t exclusive to desktop monitors. Nexigo’s NG17FGQ hits 300Hz refresh with a USB-C cable versus 240Hz over HDMI). The 17-inch 1080p IPS panel produces excellent image quality once properly calibrated.
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2. Asus ROG Strix XG16AHPE
Best 15-inch Portable Gaming Monitor
The Asus ROG Strix XG16AHPE is a jack of all trades regarding portable monitors. It has a fast 144Hz refresh rate and 1080p resolution, and it also incorporates a built-in 7,800 mAh battery with a street price of just $349.
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3. Asus ZenScreen Go MB16AWP
Best Portable Wireless Monitor
Asus stands out from the pack by giving its ZenScreen Go MB16AWP wireless connectivity. Thanks to Wi-Fi support and an integrated battery, you can mirror a screen to the ZenScreen Go MB16AWP without wires. However, you must have a USB-C or HDMI cable to extend your PC’s workspace to the monitor.
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Best Value for Portable OLED Monitors
The InnoCN 15A1F represents a remarkable value among portable monitors. Not only do you get a brilliant 15.6-inch 1080p OLED panel and an integrated kickstand, but it won’t break the bank either. It has excellent color, a sturdy aluminum chassis and sells for less than $200.
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Best Dual Screen Portable Monitor
The Limink LK14 transforms your laptop into a triple-screen threat. The dual screens of the LK14 are bright and colorful while adding useful boosts to your productivity thanks to the added screen real estate. Throw in a high-quality aluminum chassis and you have a winning combination targeting a narrow segment of the portable monitor market.
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6. Asus ROG Strix XG17AHPE
Best Portable Monitor for eSports Gaming
The Asus ROG Strix XG17AHPE is the big brother to the XG16AHPE and features a 17.3-inch IPS display, 144Hz refresh rate, USB-C and HDMI connectivity and an integrated 7,800 battery that was good for up to two hours per charge in our testing at 144Hz (4.5 hours at 60Hz). It’s pricey at $470, but if offers a lot of features for that price.
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The Best Portable Monitors You Can Buy Today
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Best 17-inch Portable Gaming Monitor
The Nexigo NG17FGQ achieves a feat that we don’t often see in the portable monitor realm: it offers a tantalizing 300Hz refresh rate in a 17.3-inch form factor and connects to a laptop or desktop via HDMI or USB-C (DisplayPort Alt-Mode).
However, you’ll need to connect the monitor to a PC with a USB-C cable to reach that 300Hz threshold. Connecting via an HDMI cable limits you to 240Hz, which is still not bad for a portable monitor.
Thanks to its good build quality, excellent color representation, and great performance while gaming, the NG17FGQ is hard to beat for mobile gamers looking for a step up in performance. If that wasn’t enough, a remote is included in the box to make it easier to navigate the OSD (instead of fumbling with sometimes poorly-placed physical buttons on the actual monitor) along with built-in speakers.
More: Nexigo NG17FGQ Review
Best 15-inch Portable Gaming Monitor
The Asus ROG Strix ROG XG16AHPE is a gaming-centric portable display that supports a 144 Hz refresh rate and Nvidia G-Sync compatibility from its IPS panel. That’s a nice departure from the standard 60 Hz panels typical in this class. The ROG XG16AHPE also is formidable on the endurance front, thanks to its built-in battery.
The ROG XG16AHPE measures 15.6 inches diagonally and has the typical 1920×1080 resolution. Thankfully, the IPS panel provided excellent viewing angles in our tests, but it features a rather odd kickstand that cuts diagonally across the back of the monitor. However, we found that this unorthodox design allows the ROG XG16AHPE to easily transition to portrait mode.
The aforementioned built-in battery’s capacity is 7,800 mAh and is rated for 3 hours when operating at 144 Hz. In our testing at 144 Hz, our runtimes managed to come in right around Asus’ factory estimate.
The Asus ROG ROG XG16AHPE doesn’t come cheap at $399, but its gaming and color performance is commendable. The built-in battery also comes in handy if you want to cut down on the number of cables needed when operating out in the field.
More: Asus ROG Strix ROG XG16AHPE Review
Best Portable Wireless Monitor
Asus pulled out all the stops with the ZenScreen Go MB16AWP, which is an impressive 15.6-inch Full HD portable monitor. At first glance, the ZenScreen Go MB16AWP seems like your run-of-the-mill entry in this segment with its Full HD IP panel and 60 Hz refresh rate, but Asus has baked in plenty of features that make it unique.
For starters, there’s an integrated 7,800 mAh battery that is good for three hours of runtime before a recharge is needed. Our testing also showed that the battery could be juiced from 0 percent to 100 percent in just over two hours. The other standout feature of the ZenScreen Go MB16AWP is integrated Wi-Fi connectivity.
With Wi-Fi enabled, you can mirror your device’s screen to the ZenScreen Go MB16AWP without plugging in a USB-C or HDMI cable. When you couple this with the integrated battery, you have a completely wire-free experience with this portable monitor. Asus provides broad compatibility, with support across Windows, macOS, Chrome OS, Android and iOS operating systems.
Other features include a built-in accelerometer that allows the ZenScreen Go MB16AWP to switch from portrait to landscape mode with ease, two USB-C ports, and a single Mini-HDMI port. Throw in excellent color performance across sRGB and DCI-P3 color spaces, and it’s hard not to recommend the ZenScreen Go MB16AWP.
At $469, the Asus ZenScreen Go MB16AWP doesn’t come cheap, but it offers a lot of bang for the buck when it comes to features and performance.
More: Asus ZenScreen Go MB16AWP Review
Best Value for Portable OLED Monitors
The Innocn is a mold-breaker in the portable monitor space. We typically expect OLED panels to come with a hefty price premium over their IPS rivals, but the Innocn 15A1F delivers OLED goodness for under $400. Not only is this pricing comparable to IPS panels in the 15.6-inch size class, but the color, brightness, and contrast are far superior on the 15A1F.
The 15A1F measures 15.6 inches diagonally and features a 1920×1080 resolution with a refresh rate of 60Hz. Brightness is rated at 400 nits, and we came remarkably close to that figure in our instrumented testing. sRGB and DCI-P3 color gamut performance were admirable, and it’s hard to beat the contrast made possible with an OLED panel.
On the other hand, we weren’t too thrilled about the ever-present reflections with the glossy panel and the large bottom bezel might be off-putting to some. But with an MSRP of $349, those downsides are easy to overlook. The monitor has even dipped below the $200 price point in recent months, which makes it an unbeatable value in this space.
Read: Innocn 15A1F Portable Monitor Review
Best Portable Monitor for Productivity
Limink truly has a standout product with its LK14 portable monitor. While we’re used to seeing single-screen portable monitors in various sizes, the LK14 bucks that trend with dual screens. You get multiple screens flanking your laptops, and the whole unit is built with high-quality materials and precision.
Each 14-inch monitor offers a 1920 x 1200 resolution, 60Hz refresh rate, and a maximum brightness of 400 nits. In addition to providing excellent overall image quality, the LK14 is also actually useful as an everyday accessory for your laptop. You get a huge increase in available screen real estate for your daily productivity needs.
Even though Limink bills the LK14 as a portable monitor, its 3.22-pound weight blunts its effectiveness there. However, the unit at least folds up into an easily transportable package and slips into a nice, book-style pleather case.
However, the Limink LK14 doesn’t come cheap, given its $700 MSRP. However, regular sales see the LK14 dip below $600 for those who can truly take advantage of its capabilities.
Read: Limink LK14 Review
Best Portable Monitor for eSports Gaming
For most gamers, 144 Hz is more than adequate, particularly for a portable monitor. However, if you’re an eSports gamer and need even more speed, the Asus ROG Strix XG17AHPE is a great choice, because it can do up to 240 Hz.
If you thought that the Asus ROG Strix ROG XG16AHPE was brawny, you haven’t seen anything yet. Its overachieving sibling, the ROG Strix XG17AHPE dives deeper into enthusiast gamer territory with a larger 17.3-inch IPS display.
The monitor has two USB-C ports (DisplayPort Alt-Mode supported) and Micro-HDMI for connectivity, features a 3ms response time, boasts a maximum 300 nits brightness, and a contrast ratio of 1,000:1.
Given its size, the Strix XG17AHPE is a bit on the hefty side, weighing in at 2.3 pounds. However, that added weight includes a 7,800 mAh battery, which recharges over USB-C with Power Delivery 3.0 support.
In our testing, the monitor lasted roughly 2 hours per charge when running full-bore at 144 Hz at 80 percent brightness, with the speakers blaring at full volume. On the opposite end of the spectrum, pegging the refresh rate at 60 Hz with 50 percent brightness saw runtimes extend to four and a half hours.
If you’re looking for a portable monitor that can handle output from a laptop, gaming console or even a Raspberry Pi, the ROG Strix XG17AHPE is an excellent choice.
More: Asus ROG Strix XG17AHPE 240Hz Portable Monitor Review
Shopping Tips for Best Portable Monitors
- Make sure it connects to your device(s). Some monitors connect over standard HDMI, which lets them work with almost anything, while others use USB-C’s alternate mode. A select few provide DisplayLink connectivity, which allows them to plug into any USB 3.0 capable port, even an old-fashioned type-A connector.
- Pay close attention to monitor kickstands. A kickstand can be a make-or-break proposition for some portable monitors. The best portable monitors have a built-in kickstand that allows you to easily adjust the display for the best possible viewing angles. On the other hand, some monitors have separate, magnetic origami-style covers that double as a kickstand. These are rarely (if ever) better than a good built-in kickstand and can ruin an otherwise good display experience.
- Battery or no battery? Most modern portable monitors draw power over USB-C, either via a dedicated wall charger or by drawing power directly from your laptop. However, some models, like the Asus ROG ROG XG16AHPE and XG17AHPE, have a built-in lithium-ion battery that allows you to game without being plugged into a wall. So, if you prefer to connect to your laptop via HDMI, you could do so with just a single cable with battery-equipped monitors.
- Productivity or Gaming? Most portable monitors come with a standard 60Hz refresh rate, which is perfectly fine for productivity tasks and suits most consumers. However, some alternatives like the Asus ROG ROG XG16AHPE and ViewSonic VX1755 offer up to 144Hz refresh rates and support for Adaptive-Sync technologies for those that want to game on a portable display that’s larger than what their laptop natively offers.
For more guidance picking a monitor of any resolution – gaming or otherwise – check out our PC Monitor Buying Guide and list of the Best Computer Monitors.
Discounts on the Best Portable Monitors
Whether you’re shopping for one of the screens that made our list of best portable monitors above or something else, you may find savings by checking out our best monitor deals page, along with our lists of Dell coupon codes, Lenovo coupon codes, LG coupon codes, HP coupon codes, Monoprice coupon codes and Newegg promo codes.
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