How-To

How to Rotate Your Screen on Windows

By Brian Burgess

Updated October 25, 2023

You might want to change the orientation of your computer display. Whether coding or reading, you can rotate your screen on Windows using this guide.

Changing your screen’s orientation on Windows can be handy in many situations. For example, if you are a coder or need an easier way to view long documents, you might want to rotate it vertically to view the content.

Other reasons to rotate your screen include working on graphical art projects, having one screen vertical in a multi-monitor configuration, or apps that require portrait mode to work correctly. But sometimes, you need to fix the orientation when it’s incorrect.

Rotating your screen on Windows is straightforward by using Settings or keyboard shortcuts. Learn how to rotate your screen on Windows below.

How to Rotate Your Screen on Windows

There are a few different ways you can rotate your screen on Windows. First, we’ll look at how to do it via the Settings app on Windows 11. Note that the steps are identical via Windows 10 settings, but the interface looks different.

To rotate your screen via Settings on Windows 11:

1. Right-click an empty desktop area and click Display settings from the menu.
2. Scroll down to the Scale & layout section, click the dropdown menu next to Display orientation, and select the type of rotation you want.
3. Your screen will rotate, but you don’t have to keep the settings if you don’t like it. You’ll have 15 seconds to keep the Keep changes button or Revert button to go back.
4. If you don’t make a selection, the screen orientation will revert to the way it was.

Using NVIDIA Graphics Card Software

If your graphics card (GPU) includes software to manage settings and update its drivers, you use it to rotate your screen. If you have an NVIDIA GPU, you can use its Control Panel app to flip the screen.

To use NVIDIA Control Panel to rotate your screen:

1. Launch the NVIDIA Control Panel app on your PC. You can launch it from the Start menu, or it should appear on the context menu when you right-click the desktop. If it isn’t preinstalled, you can download the NVIDIA Control Panel app from the Microsoft Store.
2. In the left panel, expand the Display section and click the Rotate display option.
3. On the right, select the orientation you want to use and click the Apply button.

After choosing the screen orientation, you’ll need to accept the change or the setting will reverse back automatically.

Rotate Your Screen on Windows with Intel Graphics Command Center

If an Intel CPU powers your PC, you probably already have the Intel Graphics Command Center, an app you can use to rotate your screen.  In addition, it allows you to set up hotkeys that you can use to rotate your screen.

To use Intel Graphics Command Center, do the following:

1. If it isn’t preinstalled, download the Intel Graphics Command Center from the Microsoft Store.
2. Launch the app and click the Display option in the left panel.
3. Under the Rotation section on the right, you can choose the orientation you want to use.
4. Select System on the left if you want hotkeys and toggle the Enable System Hotkeys to the On position.
5. In the Screen Rotation section, you can choose the hotkeys you want to use to rotate your screen.

Note: When you’re setting up hotkeys, ensure it isn’t something you could accidentally hit and flip the screen. If the hotkeys aren’t working for you, or if your screen starts flickering or goes black, click the Restore to Original Settings button. Of course, you could always turn the screen rotation hotkey feature off.

If your screen doesn’t rotate using the solutions above, make sure that the Rotation Lock feature in Display Settings is disabled.

Getting More from Your Screen Settings on Windows

Rotating your screen is an excellent way to code or read long articles online. And sometimes, you just want to pull a trick on a coworker and flip their screen. Whatever the reason, using any of the options above will allow you to rotate your screen on Windows 10 or 11.

There are other important factors when considering a display. For example, if buying a new display, important considerations are monitor resolution and refresh rate. Then you can change your monitor’s refresh rate on Windows 11 or learn to change the refresh rate on Windows 10 to improve the viewing experience.

If you have a gaming or high-end laptop, you might want to enable the dynamic refresh rate feature on Windows 11 to help extend battery life.