The Best Portable Monitors for a Second Screen Anywhere

A second screen is the productivity upgrade most people cannot give up once they have it, and then they travel and lose it. Portable monitors solve that. A good one is a single USB-C cable, weighs less than a hardback book, and turns a hotel desk or a client’s spare meeting room into a workable setup. These are the four we would recommend. For your main desk, our monitors for coding guide covers full-size screens.

What to look for

Single-cable USB-C. The laptop supplies both video and power over one cable. Check that your laptop’s USB-C port supports DisplayPort Alt Mode, which almost every laptop from the last five years does.

Weight and stand. The monitor is only portable if you pack it. Under 700 grams is the target, and a stand that does not collapse when you nudge the desk matters just as much.

Panel size. 14 to 16 inches matches most laptops and fits in the same sleeve. Larger than that stops being portable.

Brightness. 300 nits minimum. Cafes and trains have more ambient light than your office.

#1 Best overall

ASUS ZenScreen OLED MQ16AH

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• 15.6-inch OLED, 1080p
• Single USB-C power and video
• Also mini HDMI
• About 650 g

Pros

• +OLED blacks and colour in a portable
• +Light enough to forget
• +Folding cover doubles as a stand

Cons

• –1080p only
• –Glossy, so reflections outdoors
• –OLED burn-in risk with static UI

OLED in a portable monitor sounds like overkill until you compare one with an IPS panel. Blacks are fully black, colours are richer, and text on a dark editor theme looks printed. The ZenScreen is light, powers from one cable, and the folding cover props it up in landscape or portrait.

It is 1080p, which at 15.6 inches is fine for a secondary screen holding Slack and a terminal, less so for a main editor. The glossy finish reflects in bright rooms. Static toolbars for hours every day carry some burn-in risk, so vary what you put on it.

#2 Best for business laptops

Lenovo ThinkVision M14t Gen 2

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• 14-inch IPS, 2240 x 1400
• Two USB-C ports with passthrough charging
• Touch and pen
• Built-in tilt stand

Pros

• +Passes power through to the laptop
• +Touch works with Windows and most Linux desktops
• +Sturdy hinge, no flimsy cover

Cons

• –IPS contrast is ordinary
• –Pricey for the size

Lenovo’s M14t does one thing no other panel here does: it passes power through. Plug your charger into the monitor and the monitor into the laptop, and both charge off one brick. For business travellers that removes a cable and a plug from the bag.

The 2240 by 1400 panel is sharp, the hinge is a proper stand rather than a folding cover, and touch plus pen work on Windows and most Linux desktops. IPS contrast is average and the price is high for a 14-inch panel, but the passthrough charging and the hinge show more engineering thought than the rest of this list.

#3 Best for Mac users

Espresso 15 Pro

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• 15-inch 4K IPS
• Thin aluminium body
• Touch with macOS support via app
• Magnetic stand sold separately

Pros

• +Sharpest portable panel here
• +Build matches a MacBook
• +Touch on macOS is rare and works

Cons

• –Expensive, and the stand costs extra
• –Needs enough USB-C power from the laptop

The Espresso 15 Pro is the portable monitor built for people who own a MacBook and want the second screen to feel like it came from the same factory. It has a thin aluminium body, a 4K panel that is the sharpest here, and touch that works on macOS through Espresso’s app, which almost nothing else manages.

It is expensive, and the clever magnetic stand costs extra on top. It also wants a fair amount of power over USB-C, so pair it with a laptop that can deliver it or use the included power path.

#4 Best budget

ARZOPA Z1FC

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• 16.1-inch IPS, 1080p, 144 Hz
• USB-C and mini HDMI
• Built-in kickstand
• Speakers

Pros

• +Big, bright and cheap
• +144 Hz is smooth
• +Kickstand instead of a floppy cover

Cons

• –Heavier than the premium options
• –Colour accuracy is average

If you want a second screen for the price of a nice dinner, the ARZOPA Z1FC is a 16-inch 1080p panel with a built-in kickstand and a 144 Hz refresh that makes scrolling smooth. It is bright enough for a cafe window and it works over USB-C or HDMI without fuss.

It is heavier than the premium options and the colour is nothing special. For a second terminal or a Slack window on the road, it does the job for very little money.

Portrait mode is underrated

Every monitor here supports portrait orientation. A 15-inch panel turned on its side holds a long log file, a chat sidebar or a documentation page with far less scrolling than landscape. Most people never try it, and it costs nothing to test.

The short version

• Best picture in a bag: ASUS ZenScreen OLED.
• Windows laptop, want power passthrough and touch: Lenovo M14t Gen 2.
• MacBook owner, money is secondary: Espresso 15 Pro.
• Cheap and cheerful: ARZOPA Z1FC.