What To Look For In Standing Desks For Three Monitors

If you are trying to take your triple monitor setup vertically with a standing desk, or just want to get into the world of triple monitors at all, you need a standing desk that is up to the task. 

A triple monitor standing desk setup can boost your productivity and make your workspace a more active place to be. Heck if you throw in an under desk treadmill, you can get your work and your workouts done all in one place! Ultra productivity! 

If you are curious about how much more activity you get with standing desks and want more information on them in general, check out our article on if standing desks are worth it

In all seriousness, there are some key factors to keep in mind when shopping for a standing desk that can handle a triple monitor setup. This is exactly what we’re going to cover in this article. 

We’re going to talk about what you need to know so you can make informed desk purchases yourself! 

Important Features For Triple Monitor Standing Desks

Desk Size For Three Monitors

We cover the size triple monitor desks need to be pretty extensively in our article on the best desks for three monitors

To summarize, we talk about how different size monitors will require different overall desk sizes. Here was the table showing what three monitors of different sizes will measure when put side to side to side. 

In other words, this is the approximate overall width of three monitors that should drive the size of your desk. 

Desk Size For Three Monitors Based On Monitor Size

If you want to fit three monitors on a smaller desk than what is listed in the table above, checkout our article on clever ways to fit three monitors on small desks. If you don’t have a lot of space in your room, that article will be a game changer! 

We go into triple monitor arrangements and mounting methods that optimize spaces with limited width. 

Weight Capacity

Because modern monitors are very thin and small, weight capacity is not as critical as it once was. But only skip this consideration if you have small monitors and a light desk load. 

However, we are talking about standing desks here. These need the typical structural capacity and the lifting capacity! 

Some people like to place their desktop PC, huge bookshelf speakers, a piano, adult plants, plus triple monitors on their desk. This can result in some problems if your standing desk cant lift all this weight. 

MOUNT PRO Triple Monitor Mount, 3 Monitor Desk Arm fits Three Max 27" LCD Computer Screens, up to 19.8lbs Each, Premium Gas Spring Monitor Stand with Tilt Swivel Rotation, Vesa Mount 75x75,100x10...

Also, there are still some very heavy monitors out there. This Samsung Gaming Monitor weighs in at 20 lbs! Three of those take you up to 60 lbs without any other items. 

In our article on how much weight can desks hold, we found that typical desks can hold 150 lbs on average. In that article we also calculate the typical load on a desk and that ended up being around 80 lbs. 

Standing desk weight capacity specifically ranged anywhere from 145 to 355 lbs.

Keep in mind how much everything on your desk weighs, and ensure your standing desk can handle that triple monitor setup along with everything else. 

Standing Desk Actuation

This little tip is specific to standing desks and not so much a triple monitor setup. This can make people regret their standing desk purchase, so I like to touch on it whenever I can. 

There are three different types of standing desks that go up and down in different ways. We touch on all of the actual standing desk mechanisms here

There are three major versions that are very common. We won’t touch on gas cylinder counterbalance standing desks because those are not very flexible and as a result are not a popular option. 

Here are the major three you will likely choose from. 

Hand Crank Standing Desks

Hand crank standing desks are exactly what they sound like. You have to rotate a crank by hand to lower and raise your desk. 

I do not recommend this one because it can get pretty annoying to raise and lower your desk on days you are low on energy. This can lead to you not using your standing desk at all! What a waste! 

FAMISKY Crank Adjustable Height Standing Desk, 48 x 24 Inches Manual Stand up Desk, Sit Stand Workstation for Home Office with Handle and Splice Board, Black Frame/Greige Top

Also, you have to try and dial in your desk height every time you crank your desk. It doesn’t magically go to the correct location. You have to stop cranking, and check your position and then crank again if needed. 

They are however some of the most affordable standing desk options. So if your budget is the limitation, this could be a great choice. Prepare for getting one really strong arm! 

Single Motor Standing Desks

Single motor desks take it one step further. Instead of you doing the cranking, they put a simple motor in its place and that motor does the work instead. Thank goodness for electricity! 

This is also where the desk starts getting a little smarter. You can program the perfect sitting height and standing height on some models. Then at the press of a button it automatically travels to the programmed spot. 

Furmax Electric Height Adjustable Standing Desk Large 55 x 24 Inches Sit Stand Up Desk Home Office Computer Desk Memory Preset with T-Shaped Metal Bracket, White&Wood

The drawback of these models is that one motor can get strained pretty easily. They can be pretty slow as well. This is where the next standing desk type comes in. 

Dual Motor Standing Desks

Dual motor standing desks are peak standing desks in my opinion. They just do everything well without any real quirks. 

Two motors working to lift and lower your desk results in super smooth operation. They can also lift more weight, which might be a factor if you have a loaded three monitor desk setup. 

Higher end models even have four or five programmable heights for shared desks as well!

Radlove Dual Motor Height Adjustable Standing Desk, 63 x 30 Height Adjustable Computer Desk Sit Stand Desk Home Office Desks with Splice Board 265 lb Load Capacity Black Frame + Rustic Brown Top

Tabletop Material

We have a pretty in depth guide on how to choose the perfect desk top material. Basically it comes down to your budget, how durable you want your table to be, and the aesthetics. 

The main reason I bring this up for three monitor setups is for you to keep in mind aftermarket monitor mounting. 

MOUNT PRO Triple Monitor Mount, 3 Monitor Desk Arm fits Three Max 27" LCD Computer Screens, up to 19.8lbs Each, Premium Gas Spring Monitor Stand with Tilt Swivel Rotation, Vesa Mount 75x75,100x10...

In our article on three monitor arrangements, we touch on how aftermarket monitor mounts can give you an unlimited amount of monitor setups. It just keeps your setup super flexible whenever you want to change your three monitor layout. 

Some of these mounts are desk clamping mounts. In order to use these clamps,  you need a strong desk or else  you can cause some damage. You can always reinforce desks to use monitor mounts, but if you choose the right desk material, you won’t have to do that step. 

Here’s an example of a desk clamped three monitor mount:

Solid wood is always a great choice when it comes to desk clamp mounts. This is the most expensive material for desks though, so I like to think of it as a very long term investment. 

I’m still using my solid wood table top that I purchased back in 2016! 

Cable Management Friendly

With three monitors comes triple the power and display cables. Add that to any other cables you have for speakers, USB hubs, printers, etc. You want to make sure your standing desk has a clear method to be cable managed. Check out our article on standing desk cable management to learn more.

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Dasun

I'm a big time workspace enthusiast who is constantly experimenting with my setup. Sharing along the way to help people make their own desk setups more functional and inviting, whether it be for productivity or play!