Windows · Display & Sound
Enable high dynamic range on your display
HDR settings let you turn on high dynamic range on a supported display, adjust HDR brightness balance, and stream HDR video content for a wider range of colors and contrast.
How to open HDR Settings
- Open Settings → System → Display → HDR
- Toggle Use HDR for the selected display
- Adjust the SDR content brightness slider
- Run Windows HDR Calibration for finer tuning
What you should know
- Turn HDR on or off for each connected supported display
- Adjust the SDR content brightness balance while HDR is active
- Use Windows HDR Calibration for a more accurate tuning experience
- Check HDR certification and capability details for your display
HDR requires both a compatible display and cable; using an unsupported monitor or connection can result in washed-out or inaccurate colors.
Why it matters
HDR-capable displays can show a much wider range of brightness and color than standard displays, producing noticeably more vivid and realistic images in supported games, movies, and photos. However, enabling HDR on Windows sometimes makes regular, non-HDR content look washed out or overly dim by default, which is why the SDR brightness balance adjustment exists. Getting HDR configured correctly is important for anyone who has invested in an HDR-capable monitor or TV, since leaving it misconfigured wastes the display's actual capability. The calibration tool helps ensure the improvement is real rather than a color-shifted approximation.
Best practices
- Use the Windows HDR Calibration app after enabling HDR for the most accurate results
- Adjust SDR content brightness if everyday apps look too dim once HDR is turned on
- Confirm your cable and port support the necessary bandwidth for HDR at your display's resolution and refresh rate
- Turn off HDR for older or unsupported apps that render color incorrectly under it
Common problems and fixes
- Everything looks washed out or too dark after enabling HDR
- Adjust the SDR content brightness slider, or run the Windows HDR Calibration tool for a more accurate baseline.
- HDR toggle is missing or greyed out
- Confirm your display and cable both support HDR; not all monitors or connection types do.
- Games don't look noticeably different with HDR on
- Confirm the specific game has HDR enabled in its own graphics settings, since HDR must be supported at the app level too.
Tips and tricks
- Run the HDR Calibration app from the Microsoft Store for a guided, more accurate setup
- Toggle HDR off quickly from Quick Settings when working with color-critical SDR content
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a special cable for HDR?
Often yes; older HDMI or DisplayPort cables may lack the bandwidth required for HDR at higher resolutions and refresh rates.
Why does non-HDR content look worse after turning on HDR?
Standard content isn't authored for HDR brightness ranges, which is why the SDR brightness balance setting exists to compensate.
Is HDR the same as 4K?
No, they're independent; HDR refers to dynamic range and color, not resolution.
Related settings
- Display SettingsDisplay settings allow you to adjust screen resolution, brightness, scaling, and multiple monitor configurations. Proper display configuration improves visual clarity and productivity.
- Night LightNight light shifts your display's color temperature to warmer tones at scheduled times, reducing blue light exposure that can interfere with sleep and cause eye strain in the evening.
- Video PlaybackVideo playback settings control how Windows plays video content, including automatic quality adjustments, HDR video streaming, and battery-saving options for video apps.
More Display & Sound guides for Windows
- Sound SettingsSound Settings allow you to select input and output devices, adjust volume levels per app, and troubleshoot audio issues such as no sound or distorted playback.
- NotificationsNotification settings let you control which apps can send alerts, how they appear, and when Do Not Disturb (Focus Assist) is active to reduce interruptions.
- Focus AssistFocus Assist (formerly Quiet Hours) automatically silences notification banners and sounds so alerts don't interrupt you during focused work, gaming, or presentations. You can trigger it manually or set automatic rules for specific times, duplicated displays, or full-screen games, and choose whether only alarms or also priority contacts still get through.
- Game ModeGame Mode prioritizes system resources for the game you're actively playing, preventing Windows Update from installing updates or restarting the PC mid-session, and reducing background activity that could interrupt gameplay. It's a single toggle designed to squeeze more consistent performance out of the same hardware during full-screen gaming.
- Volume MixerVolume mixer lets you control the output volume of individual running apps independently, and assign specific apps to different output or input devices.
- Advanced Display SettingsAdvanced display settings show detailed information about each connected display, including exact resolution, refresh rate, bit depth, and color format, with options to change them individually.