Considering mounting your monitors? You'll want to consult the VESA mounting standards first.

With the number of monitor and display manufacturers globally, consumers will run into compatibility and interoperability issues among their devices. Thus, the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) was born for consumer convenience.

This group ensures their products are compatible with each other, so consumers can use different brands without encountering difficulties. One such standard is the Flat Display Mounting Interface (FDMI) or VESA Mounting Interface Standards (MIS).

More popularly known as the VESA mount, this ensures screens from different brands fit across different display mounts. So, let’s take a deep dive into the various VESA mounts and what they mean.

The current standards consist of five parts, B through F. Some parts also include subvariants. This table shows all the possible VESA mounting standards, corresponding size and weight limits, and the required screw specifications.

You should note that display weight takes precedence over the minimum diagonal size. So, if you have a 27-inch screen that weighs 60 pounds, you must use a part F mount to install your monitor safely.

If you’re going to mount your screen on a wall or a desk, the center-mount VESA standard is typically used. This layout allows you more freedom and flexibility with your display, especially mounting it on an arm. Furthermore, its central stability allows you to rotate the display if you prefer a portrait view.

Aside from the usual central mounting position, where the bracket is placed right at the center of the display rear, companies can also apply VESA mounts at the screen’s top, bottom, left, and right sides (also known as edge mounts).

This variance allows manufacturers the freedom to create displays for various applications. For example, public announcement monitors, such as those used in airports and hospitals, would probably have top or side-mounted brackets. These placement options allow the customer the freedom to install them so that passers-by can easily see the screens.

Do note that some center-mount brackets (D 75 x 75 mm, D 100 x 100 mm, and E 100 x 200 mm) can also be used as edge-mount variants (D 50 x 75 mm, D 50 x 100 mm, and E 50 mm x 200 mm), provided they have ready mounting holes for screws.

The VESA Part F standard can only be center-mounted but has several screw pattern layout variants. These variants allow users to install heavier and larger screens on a single mount. However, you should note that VESA doesn’t regulate the maximum capacity for this standard.

These are the minimum number of holes required by the VESA standard to support a display. If the manufacturer deems it necessary, it may add more holes to support the monitor’s weight.

The VESA Mount merely pertains to the bracket that connects to the display’s rear. As such, the bracket manufacturer may use different kinds of stands and mounts to hold a display.

For example, some display makers include fixed and adjustable stands to their products which attach to the central or edge VESA mount. You can also find mobile mounts, desk mounts, wall mounts, and even ceiling mounts for various applications.

Furthermore, there are fixed mounts which means the display stays fixed where it’s installed, pivot mounts, which allow for limited turns, and articulated arm mounts, which offer up to three degrees of movement freedom. You can even find mounts that accommodate up to three monitors at a time.

As for the bracket, there are three ways the display manufacturer can prepare their mount—flush, recessed, and raised. A flush mount means the VESA bracket sits right on the surface of the display’s rear, while the recessed mount puts the bracket below the monitor’s rear. Alternatively, the raised mount puts the mount above the surface, as if it’s on a platform.

Of course, if you’re buying a new VESA mount-compliant display and want to get a separate arm for it, you must know how to read its label. That way, if you know its VESA specifications, you can confidently purchase a VESA mount for it even if it hasn’t arrived yet.

Given those specifications, you should see the label on your mount as VESA MIS-D, 100, Y, 4, 90. It means that it can accommodate a display with a minimum of 12-inch diagonal size and a maximum weight of 30.8 pounds. It can also rotate or mount a display in portrait mode and turn 90 degrees from side to side.

As long as your monitor fits within these limits, this mount is compatible with your display.

These VESA standards ensure you can mount any display efficiently. As long as the monitor manufacturer complies with these requirements, you can ensure any VESA-compliant bracket will support your device.

Furthermore, these standards increase safety by ensuring that the mounts will adequately carry the weight of the display. That means you don’t have to worry about your screen falling off and injuring someone because of an unreliable mount.

Jowi is a writer, a career coach, and a pilot. He developed a love for anything PC ever since his father bought a desktop computer when he was 5 years old. From then on, he has been using and maximizing technology in every aspect of his life.

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