This One Affordable Hardware Purchase Can Significantly Improve Productivity (Dual Monitor Benefits)

One of the challenges for companies that are optimizing their technology along with their bottom line is choosing the smartest investments. This includes a balance of cost and affordability along with the savings and efficiency advantages.

If an investment is heavily weighted on cost, companies can end up with a longer payback period. A technology upgrade that is more affordable and that still offers significant efficiency improvements can lower costs quickly. This makes it possible for companies to invest in other areas of their business for further improvements.

When choosing hardware and software upgrades, one of the options that provides an excellent balance of benefits versus cost is adding a second monitor to employee workstations.

The use of a dual-monitor setup has been rising in popularity. It is not just technology firms or film editors that use it. The additional screen space impacts just about everything a user does on their computer and provides efficiency improvements across the entire workflow.

Take a look at the following studies that compare a single-monitor to a dual-monitor setup.

Dell Whitepaper on Dual-Monitor Use

Whitepaper by Dell looks at several different studies on dual-monitor use from places like the University of Wichita and the University of Utah. The overall findings were that using two displays instead of one increased productivity for text-based tasks by 44% and spreadsheet-based tasks by 29%.

Users provided details on their experiences with two sizes of single-monitor setups and two sizes of dual-monitor setups. The two-monitor setup won by a landslide on multiple fronts.

With a scoring system of 1-10 (with 10 being the best), here is how users scored several display factors:

Usefulness of Configuration:

  • Single 17” monitor: 4.5
  • Single 22” monitor: 6
  • Dual 17” monitors: 7
  • Dual 22” monitors: 7.1

Configuration Pleasant to Use:

  • Single 17” monitor: 2.6
  • Single 22” monitor: 5.5
  • Dual 17” monitors: 7.2
  • Dual 22” monitors: 7.8

Easy to Find Information:

  • Single 17” monitor: 3.5
  • Single 22” monitor: 5.5
  • Dual 17” monitors: 7
  • Dual 22” monitors: 6.5

They also studied the percentage of time it takes to do various tasks. In the University of Utah study, it was found that moving from a single 17” monitor to two 19” monitors translated into a productivity savings of 56 additional workdays per year, per employee. For a company with roughly 62 employees, that equated to an estimated annual savings of $375,000!

Jon Peddie Research Study on a Two-Monitor Setup

Over 15 years, Jon Peddie Research conducted three user surveys on single-monitor vs dual-monitor use. In the latest study, they looked at the habits of more than 1,000 users and found an overall productivity improvement of 42% when people switched to a two-screen setup.

It has also seen a steady rise in the use of dual-monitors by organizations as the productivity benefits have been realized. 


Report from Jon Peddie Research

Reasons to Consider Moving to a Two-Monitor Environment

Low Investment With Big Rewards

Monitors can cost in the neighborhood of a couple of hundred dollars. This makes it a low-cost investment with big rewards.

If you have an employee that makes $20 per hour and can work 40% faster due to the boost in productivity, that results in a payback in less than one week just because of a new monitor purchase.

Improves the Employee Experience

When employees are frustrated with their technology, it impacts productivity and it can cause a higher turnover rate. It also impacts how customers are served.

Struggling with a frustrating lack of screen space can cause problems like mistyped emails and longer response times for customer support during a customer engagement.

One-third of surveyed employees say that their company’s technology makes it harder for them to properly serve customers.

Adding another monitor to employee workstations has been proven to improve the employee experience and increase job satisfaction. This then translates to better productivity and customer support.

Makes It Easier to Do Just About Everything

The reason that adding a monitor can have such a big impact on overall productivity is that it affects the entire workflow. It doesn't matter what software or SaaS tool a person is working with.

The additional screen area translates to:

  • Ability to work with multiple windows open at a time which reduces app switching.
  • Side-by-side work becomes easy instead of being frustrating because windows can be open fully.
  • Employees can reduce the time it takes to constantly click to open their email window to check for vital messages throughout the day.
  • Information is easier to find because you have two screens that can be used. One can be used for a current task and the other can be used for the information reference.

        Find the Best Hardware for Your Needs

        Sound Computers has access to the latest hardware from multiple manufacturers. We can help your Connecticut business find the best monitors for your needs to ensure a fast payback in productivity.

        Contact us today to schedule a free consultation. Call 860-577-8060 or reach us online.

        June 1, 2021
        Sound Computers Admin