Because of the higher pixel density of small 4K monitors, most people believe that it is hard to read text on such small 4K monitors. They believe that the text will be too small to read on a small 4K display.
In order to clear this confusion, in this article we discuss how 4K monitors affect text readability.
Here’s Whether It Is Hard To Read Text On 4K Monitors:
4K monitors don’t make the text less readable compared to lower-resolution monitors. On the contrary, thanks to their higher pixel density, 4K monitors can make text sharper and more readable. However, in smaller 4K monitors, you have to use display scaling to make text larger and more readable.
Table of Contents
Is It Difficult To Read Text In A 4K Monitor?
It is not difficult to read text on a 4K monitor. 4K monitors can actually make text sharper and more readable than lower-resolution monitors of the same size.
However, you have to scale up the Windows UI to make the text larger on a small 4K monitor. Otherwise, the text will be too small and hard to read.
This scaling, done by the operating system, won’t reduce text quality. Actually, it makes text look sharper and less blurry compared to a lower-resolution monitor.
The same physical text size will have more pixels on a 4K monitor than on a lower-resolution monitor. Therefore, 4K monitors with display scaling will cause less aliasing in text and make the text more readable.
Do Larger 4K Monitors Make Text More Readable?
Larger 4K monitors don’t necessarily make the text more or less readable. They might not need UI scaling to make the text larger. Because of their lower pixel density, they will have a large enough text size without scaling.
However, this is not an advantage of a larger 4K monitor over a smaller 4K monitor. Even with a smaller 4K monitor, you can use display scaling to make text larger and more readable without losing text quality. Therefore, with scaling, text on a smaller 4K monitor is similarly readable compared to a larger 4K monitor.
On the other hand, large 4K monitors can show more text content on a single screen because they need less scaling. Smaller 4K monitors with higher display scaling, can only show a small amount of text or media on a single screen. Therefore, some people consider larger 4K monitors to be more productive.
Which 4K Monitor Size Is Best For Text Readability?
The size of a 4K monitor doesn’t matter for text readability. If the text is too small on a smaller 4K monitor, you can use display scaling to make the text larger.
However, if you like to have more text or media on a single screen for better productivity, it is better to get a larger 4K monitor that requires less scaling.
For example, you will not need display scaling on 40-inch or larger 4K monitors. Because they don’t need scaling, they can fit more content on a single screen and make you more productive.
How To Make Text More Readable On Your 4K Monitor
If the text size is too small on your 4K monitor, you have to use Windows display scaling to make the text larger and more readable.
In Windows 10, you can change display scaling as described below.
- Click Start.
- Click Settings (gear icon).
- Click System.
- Click Display.
- Scroll down to Scale and layout.
- Under Change the size of text, apps, and other items select the scaling percentage (eg: 150%).
Conclusion
It is not hard to read text on a 4K monitor compared to a lower-resolution monitor. On the contrary, 4K monitors can make text sharper and more readable than lower-resolution monitors.
In smaller 4K monitors, you have to use OS display scaling to make text larger and more readable. With larger 4K monitors, you don’t have to use too much scaling.
So larger 4K monitors can fit more text and media into a single screen, making you more productive.