PC setups with multiple monitors are cool and increase one’s productivity. However, when using multiple monitors, one common issue that many faces are that the display settings aren’t always correct. Sometimes, you get different resolutions on different monitors. The second screen displays everything wider than it should be and whatnot.
However, fixing these issues is pretty straightforward because of incorrect monitor settings and driver issues. So let’s go ahead and talk about the fixes below:
Why Secondary Monitor Display Settings Are A Mess?
There are multiple reasons for a mismatch between your primary and secondary monitor. The most common reason is the lack of drivers. There is a good chance that your monitor drivers are outdated or corrupted, or it failed to detect the secondary monitor and update its settings.
Another reason could be a resolution mismatch. If you use two different-sized monitors, resolution mismatch is common. You must set up the correct resolution for each monitor to fix this.
Fixed: Second Screen Displays Everything Wider Than It Should Be
Display issues with multiple monitor setups are pretty common. Fortunately, fixing them isn’t a tricky thing. You can do so by following the below steps:
- Check Aspect Ratio Settings
- Adjust Display Resolution
- Change Scaling Settings
- Update Display Driver
You will need to use an administrator account to execute these suggestions.
1] Check Aspect Ratio Settings on the Second Screen
You can also adjust aspect ratio settings on your secondary monitor. For this, you are required to access your monitor settings.
Most monitors come with their OEM software that lets you adjust different aspects of a monitor. If your monitor has no such software, use the monitor buttons to see if there is any aspect ratio option.
If there is, then play around with it – try different aspect ratios and see which one works for you.
2] Adjust Display Resolution
Next, you should try adjusting the display resolution for both monitors. The popular screen resolution for most computer monitors is 1920×1080. However, Windows may suggest the perfect screen resolution depending on your monitor size.
To adjust it, follow these steps:
- Right-click on your Desktop.
- Go to Display settings.
- On top, you should see two different monitors – select one of the monitors.
- Scroll down to Display resolution, and from the dropdown menu, select the suitable resolution. Also, Windows might list a resolution as Recommended. If you haven’t selected the recommended one, then do it.
- Finally, see if your second screen display still shows everything wider.
3] Change Scaling Settings
You should also check your display’s scaling settings. Display scaling settings adjusts the text size, icons, and other navigation elements. So it will be easier for you to see and use your computer. So you can try changing your scaling settings to scale up the overall Windows icons and other elements or reduce the scaling.
To access this feature, follow these steps:
- Right-click on your Desktop.
- Go to Display settings.
- Next, select your monitors one by one.
- Scroll down to scroll and use the dropdown menu to adjust the Scale settings.
4] Update Display Driver
One of the common causes behind the problem is outdated or corrupted drivers. It is also possible that the existing drivers cannot recognize the second monitor and update its settings.
There are multiple ways to update the Display driver on Windows. However, it would be best to consider downloading the monitor driver from the OEM’s website. For instance, if you have a Dell monitor, go to Dell’s website, search for your monitor’s model number, download the available drivers, and install it.
If the issue occurred because Windows automatically updated the driver, then you need to roll back and use the version that was working earlier. Once you fix that, disable the driver update via Windows.
Conclusion
So that was all about the fix for the second screen displays everything wider than it should be. It would be best to start by updating your driver and changing the resolution and scale settings, which should fix the issue. Alternatively, you can reset your monitor’s settings to factory defaults and run Windows Troubleshooter for additional help.