Whether you’re using a high-end 4K monitor to watch movies or for work, or you prefer a higher refresh rate to get some headshots on a gaming monitor, the color calibration needs to be spot on. Even slight variations in the color settings can translate to things not looking how they're supposed to. Professionals know how important it is to ensure that the colors on their monitors are as accurate as possible to their real-life counterparts, but even for gamers, a properly color-calibrated monitor can make their games truly pop out. Thankfully, the process of color-calibrating your monitor is identical on both Windows 10 and 11, and this guide will show you how to do it.

Use the display color calibration tool on Windows

The handy, in-built color calibration tool will also help you tweak the gamma, brightness, and even the contrast of your monitor. While these settings don’t have an effect on the colors, setting them too low or too high can make your display look washed out or too bright. At every step, the tool will provide you with instructions regarding each setting and some sample images for reference. Here’s how you open and use this tool:

  1. Open the Settings app from the Start Menu. (If you can’t find it, look it up in the search bar.)
  2. Search for Calibrate Display Color and open the app.
  3. Read the instructions shown in the app and click Next.
  4. You’ll be shown another set of instructions. After you’ve read them, click Next.
  5. The first section is regarding gamma calibration. Take a look at the sample images and click Next.
  6. Use the slider to increase or decrease the gamma level of your display. Aim for results similar to the Good Gamma levels in the sample image you saw before.
  7. The next section is about the brightness and contrast of your monitor. Read the instructions and click Next. You can also choose to skip this section.
  8. Take a look at the sample images for brightness and click Next.
  9. Adjust the brightness of your monitor until the image on-screen looks similar to the sample image for good brightness. You’ll have to use the buttons on your monitor to do this. Click Next when done.
  10. For the contrast section, do the same as you did for brightness.
  11. The next section is for color calibration. Read the instructions and click Next.
  12. Use the three sliders below the grayscale bars to adjust the colors. Click Next when done.
  13. You can compare your previous and current calibration, and if you’re satisfied with the results, click Finish. If you want to revert to your old calibration, click Cancel.

Improve how the text looks on your screen

After you’ve calibrated the colors on your screen, you’ll automatically be taken to ClearType Text Tuner unless you unchecked this on the last page of the color calibration app. We highly recommend you use this tool, especially if you tend to do a lot of reading on your computer. By adding a layer of anti-aliasing, it can make the text on your screen look sharper and easier to read, therefore reducing strain on your eyes.

  1. In the ClearType Text Tuner window, you can check how the text looks with and without the ClearType setting turned on.
  2. Keep this setting turned on and click Next.
  3. You’ll be shown the name of your monitor, and the app will check whether you're running your display on native resolution. If you’re not, you’ll be given the option to change to native display resolution. Select this option and click Next.
  4. For the next five sections, you’ll be shown various text boxes on the app. Select the one that looks the best to you and click Next each time.
  5. Click Finish on the last screen, and the text on your screen should look much more legible now.

For modern monitors with HDR and high refresh rates, you’ll have to download and use the Windows HDR Calibration tool and adjust the refresh rate to get the most out of them.

Purchasing the right monitor

While color calibrating is helpful, it won't do much to improve the color accuracy of your monitor if you're using the wrong or outdated technology. If your goal is to play video games and consume media that looks good on a monitor, any good IPS panel should be more than enough. For hardcore gamers who want a higher refresh rate and buttery smooth visuals, TN panels are the right option, but the colors on these tend to look bland, which isn't ideal for non-gaming scenarios unless you go with an expensive high-refresh-rate IPS monitor. Professional photographers and video editors prefer monitors with the highest color accuracy. Such displays use high-quality IPS panels at the lower end of the price spectrum and OLED for the most premium models. The best mini-LED monitors that will give you great color accuracy and superb contrast at an accessible price.