The Complete Guide to Monitor Mounts and Ergonomic Screen Positioning
If your monitor is sitting on its factory stand, you're probably not getting the best ergonomic position for your body. A quality monitor arm or mount lets you position your screen at the perfect height, distance, and angle — reducing neck strain, back pain, and eye fatigue throughout the workday.
In this guide, we cover everything you need to know about choosing and installing monitor mounts for your office or home workspace.
Why Use a Monitor Mount?
Standard monitor stands take up valuable desk space and limit your positioning options. A monitor arm or mount offers several advantages:
- Ergonomic positioning — Raise, lower, tilt, and swivel your monitor to the perfect viewing angle for your seated position
- Free desk space — Clamp-mounted arms remove the monitor footprint from your desk entirely
- Multi-monitor setups — Dual and triple arm mounts make multi-monitor configurations clean and organised
- Cable management — Most arms include built-in cable routing channels for a tidy workspace
- Easy screen sharing — Swivel your monitor to show content to a colleague without moving your entire desk
Types of Monitor Mounts
Desk Clamp Mounts
The most popular option for office use. A clamp attaches to the edge of your desk, with an adjustable arm extending upward and outward. These are easy to install (no drilling required) and work with most desk thicknesses between 10mm and 75mm.
Grommet Mounts
Similar to clamp mounts but attach through a hole in the desk surface. These provide a more permanent and stable installation, ideal for standing desks or heavy monitors.
Wall Mounts
Fixed or articulating brackets that mount directly to the wall. Perfect for reception areas, meeting rooms, and spaces where desk mounting isn't practical. Wall mounts keep the desk completely clear.
Freestanding Mounts
A weighted base sits on your desk with a vertical pole supporting the monitor arm. No clamping or drilling needed — ideal for glass desks or surfaces that can't support clamps.
VESA Compatibility: The Universal Standard
Almost all modern monitors use the VESA mounting standard. This is a pattern of four screw holes on the back of your monitor. The two most common patterns are:
- VESA 75x75mm — Common on smaller monitors (up to 24 inches)
- VESA 100x100mm — Standard on most 24-32 inch monitors
Before purchasing a mount, check your monitor's VESA compatibility in its specifications. Most quality mounts from Atdec support both 75x75 and 100x100 patterns.
Atdec: Australia's Premium Mount Brand
Atdec is an Australian-designed brand specialising in professional monitor mounting solutions. Their products are known for exceptional build quality, smooth adjustment mechanisms, and comprehensive cable management. Key ranges include:
- Atdec Spacedec — Versatile desk mounts for single and dual monitor setups, popular in corporate offices
- Atdec Awms — Advanced workspace mounting system with modular arms, perfect for multi-screen trading desks and control rooms
- Atdec Spacepole — Specialised mounts for POS terminals, tablets, and customer-facing displays in retail environments
Single vs Dual Monitor Arms
Single arms are ideal if you use one large monitor (27-34 inches) as your primary display, possibly with a laptop beside it.
Dual arms are essential for professionals who work across two screens simultaneously — developers, designers, financial analysts, and anyone who needs to reference information on one screen while working on another. A dual arm keeps both monitors at a consistent height and angle.
Weight Capacity Matters
Always check the mount's weight capacity against your monitor's weight. A typical 27-inch monitor weighs 4-6kg, while a 32-inch ultrawide can weigh 7-10kg. Undersized mounts will sag over time or fail to hold position, while oversized mounts may not have enough tension for lighter monitors.
Setting Up Your Monitor Ergonomically
Once your mount is installed, position your monitor following these ergonomic guidelines:
- Eye level — The top of your screen should be at or slightly below eye level when seated upright
- Distance — Position the screen approximately an arm's length away (50-70cm)
- Tilt — Tilt the screen back 10-20 degrees so you're looking slightly downward at the centre of the screen
- Glare — Position the screen perpendicular to windows to minimise glare — never directly in front of or behind a window
Monitor Mounts for Standing Desks
If you use a sit-stand desk, a monitor arm is almost essential. The arm allows you to quickly adjust screen height as you transition between sitting and standing positions. Look for arms with a wide height adjustment range (at least 300mm of vertical travel) and gas-spring mechanisms for effortless repositioning.
Explore our full range of monitor mounts, arms, and stands from Atdec and find the perfect ergonomic solution for your workspace.
