How to rotate the screen on Windows 11

2 min read · 5 steps · Updated 2 October 2026

Short answer

Open Settings, click System, then Display, and choose Landscape or Portrait in the list next to Display orientation. Click Keep changes. If the picture is upside down or sideways by accident, choose Landscape there to put it right.

A screen turned on its side is handy for long documents and code. And a picture that has suddenly turned sideways, after a stray key press or a cat on the keyboard, is fixed in the same place.

These steps are for Windows 11. The pictures are simplified diagrams of the Settings window, not screenshots, so colours and spacing on your PC look a little different.

Step by step

  1. – ▢ ✕SettingsSystemBluetooth & devicesNetwork & internetAppsAccountsTime & languagePrivacy & securityWindows UpdateSystemDisplaySoundNotificationsPower & battery

    Open Settings, System, Display

    Press Windows + I and click Display. Or right-click an empty part of the desktop and choose Display settings.

  2. Select the screen

    If more than one screen is connected, click the one you want to turn in the picture at the top.

  3. – ▢ ✕SettingsSystemBluetooth & devicesNetwork & internetAppsAccountsTime & languagePrivacy & securityWindows UpdateDisplayScaleDisplay resolutionDisplay orientation

    Choose the orientation

    Under Scale & layout, open the list next to Display orientation. Landscape is the normal position. Portrait turns the picture by 90 degrees. The flipped versions turn it the other way round.

  4. Click Keep changes

    If you do nothing, Windows goes back to the previous orientation after a few seconds. That protects you from a setting you cannot read.

  5. Turn the monitor itself

    For Portrait, the monitor has to be rotated physically on its stand. Not every stand allows that.

Good to know

On a sideways picture the mouse moves in unexpected directions. Take your time, or open Settings with Windows + I and use the Tab and arrow keys. Choosing Landscape puts everything back.

On tablets and 2-in-1 laptops, the picture turns by itself when you turn the device. A Rotation lock switch in the quick settings and under Display stops that.

On some PCs, Ctrl + Alt + an arrow key rotates the screen. This shortcut comes from the graphics driver and does not exist everywhere.

For size and sharpness of the picture, see how to change the screen resolution and text size on Windows 11.

In short: Settings, System, Display, Display orientation, choose Landscape or Portrait, Keep changes.

Sources
  • Microsoft Support: Change your screen resolution and layout in Windows

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