Screen (display panel)Usually an LCD lit from behind by LEDs.
BezelThe front frame round the display. Screen size is measured inside it.
Stand baseHolds the monitor upright on a flat, stable surface.
Stand neck (column)Joins the base to the back of the panel.
Power buttonTurns the monitor on or off.
Power indicator (power LED)Shows whether the monitor is on, receiving a signal or in standby.
Menu buttons (control keys)Open the on-screen menu and move through its settings.
On-screen display (OSD) menuA menu laid over the picture for brightness, contrast and input.
Built-in speakersOutput audio. Most computer monitors have none.
Back view 12
Power socket (AC in)Takes the power cord from the wall outlet.
HDMI portCarries digital video and sound in one cable.
Headphone jack (audio out)Sends the monitor's sound to headphones.
DisplayPortDigital video link made for computer displays. Can carry audio too.
VGA port (D-sub)Older 15-pin analog video connector, largely displaced by digital ports.
USB-C portReversible connector that can carry video, data and power.
USB downstream ports (Type-A)Plug peripherals in here. The monitor acts as a USB hub.
USB upstream port (Type-B)Links the monitor's USB hub to the computer.
VESA mount holesFour threaded holes in a square for a stand or wall mount.
Stand release buttonPress it to take the monitor off its stand.
Security lock slotA cable lock fits here and ties the monitor down.
Cable holderHolds the monitor cables together behind the stand.
The 4 stand adjustments 4
Height adjustment slideRaises or lowers the screen along a track in the neck.
Tilt hingeTips the screen forward or backward to the viewing angle you want.
Swivel jointSwivels the screen to the left or to the right.
Pivot (portrait rotation)Rotates the screen 90 degrees between landscape and portrait.
Panel layers, LED strip to front 10
Backlight LED stripA row of white LEDs at the edge lights the panel.
Light guide plateClear plate that spreads the edge light evenly across the whole screen.
Reflector sheetA mirror behind the light guide sends all light forward.
Diffuser sheetSpreads the backlight uniformly across the screen.
Prism sheetRidged film that steers light toward the viewer.
Rear polarizerPasses light of one polarization and blocks the rest.
TFT layer (thin-film transistors)Gives each pixel its own dedicated transistor switch.
Liquid crystal layerVoltage changes its molecules' twist, and so how much light passes.
Color filterRed, green and blue filters make the three subpixels of each pixel.
Front polarizerCrossed with the rear polarizer; blocks light the crystal did not rotate.
How this list was compiled: Part names and every detail line were checked, for facts only and with nothing copied, against pages read on 2026-09-20. Two makers' user guides, used for names only and not named on the page: https://www.eizoglobal.com/support/db/files/manuals/03V28046C1/UM-03V28046C1-EN.pdf (chapter 1-2, Controls and Functions: operation switches that display menus, power switch, power indicator and what its states mean, speakers that output audio, security lock slot, lock button that removes the monitor from the stand, headphone jack, USB downstream and upstream connectors and the USB hub function, cable holder that holds the monitor cables, stand that adjusts height, tilt and swivel, power connector, D-Sub, DisplayPort, HDMI and DVI input connectors; specifications: height adjustment, tilt, swivel and vertical rotation of 90 degrees), found from https://www.eizoglobal.com/support/db/products/manual/EV2460; https://manuals.viewsonic.com/VG2756-2K (display screen, control panel keys, power LED and button, security slot and its use with a locking device, USB Type A downstream and Type B upstream ports, the Type B plug described as square with 2 cut corners, AC IN, HDMI, DisplayPort and USB Type C ports, the stand's base and neck, the quick release tab, VESA mounting holes on a 100 x 100 mm pattern with four M4 screws, height, swivel and tilt adjustment, screen orientation adjustment called monitor pivot with a 90 degree turn from landscape to portrait, the On-Screen Display (OSD) Menu with contrast, brightness and input select). Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_monitor (typically an LCD with LED backlight; connected by DisplayPort, HDMI, USB-C, DVI or VGA; an indicator light shows powered, receiving a signal or standby; most monitors do not include integrated speakers; stands offer height adjustment, swivel and landscape or portrait orientation; the VESA mount is typically four threaded holes on the rear; screen size is measured without the bezel); https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flat_Display_Mounting_Interface (FDMI, also called the VESA Mounting Interface Standard or a VESA mount; a family of standards for mounting flat-panel displays on stands or wall mounts; most sizes have four screw holes in a square and the device has matching tapped holes; the original layout was a square of 100 mm; the screws are M4); https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/On-screen_display (an image superimposed on a screen picture; an OSD menu for setup is found on many computer monitors); https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kensington_Security_Slot (a small hole reinforced with metal for attaching a lock-and-cable apparatus); https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/bezel (computing sense: the area on a computing device's front that surrounds the display); https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HDMI (one cable carries video and digital audio; used on televisions and computer monitors); https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DisplayPort (a digital interface from a video source to a display such as a monitor, which can also carry audio); https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VGA_connector (15-pin, analog, largely displaced by DVI, HDMI and DisplayPort); https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB-C (24-pin reversible connector that carries data, audio and video to displays, and power); https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB_hub (a hub expands one USB port into several). Panel layers, all from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquid-crystal_display: liquid crystals do not emit light and use a backlight; two polarizing filters whose axes are in most cases perpendicular, and without the liquid crystal the light passing the first would be blocked by the second, crossed one; in a twisted nematic cell the molecules twist, and a large enough voltage untwists them so the light is no longer rotated; color filters generate red, green and blue subpixels; in an active-matrix panel each pixel has its own dedicated transistor; an edge-lit panel has a row of white LEDs at one or more edges; a light guide plate, of PMMA plastic or special glass, spreads the light evenly across the whole display; a diffuser sheet on each side of the prism sheet spreads the light uniformly, and a mirror behind the light guide plate sends all light forwards; the prism sheet gains the light into the desired viewer directions. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polarizer (an optical filter that lets light of a specific polarization pass and blocks the others). The plan names the VESA FDMI standard itself as a source; the standard is sold by its publisher, so the two Wikipedia articles and the second maker's mounting table stand in for it. Re-checked on 2026-09-30: all 35 names found again in two or more independent sources. The two makers' user guides above (fetched again) and Wikipedia's wikitext for Computer monitor, VESA mount, On-screen display, Kensington Security Slot, HDMI, DisplayPort, VGA connector, USB-C, USB hardware, Liquid-crystal display, Backlight and Polarizer. A third maker's user manual, https://archive.org/details/bn-81-19669-c-03-web-t-45-f-na-latin-eng-241028.0 (stand neck, stand base, the cable holder on the stand), which gives the stand neck and the cable holder a second maker. US Environmental Protection Agency, Desktop Computer Displays: A Life-Cycle Assessment, https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2014-01/documents/computer_display_lca.pdf (front bezel; polarizers, color filter, liquid crystal, backlight light guide, diffuser and reflector of an LCD monitor), which gives the bezel a second source beside Wikipedia. Because Wikipedia's articles count as one source, the panel layers were also read in LCD Backlights (Wiley, SID series), https://archive.org/details/lcdbacklights0000unse (light guide plate, diffuser sheet, prism sheet, reflector sheet, rear polarizer, LED backlights), in the LCD structure figure of https://archive.org/details/inkjetbasedmicro0000unse (polarizer, diffuser sheet, reflector sheet, light guide plate, prism sheet, TFT array) and in https://archive.org/details/electronicinform0000nels (front polarizer and rear polarizer). Licence: own work
The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry; own work, nothing traced or copied. Licence: own work
How it works
The parts of a monitor sit in three places: the front you look at, the back where the cables go, and the panel itself, a stack of thin sheets. A fourth view shows the four ways the stand moves.
Read the full guide
Parts of a monitor and their functions
From the chair you see the screen inside its bezel, with the menu buttons, the power light and the power button on the bottom edge. The menu buttons open the on-screen display, a settings menu laid over the picture. Every socket is in one row on the back.
What the 10 panel layers do
A row of white LEDs shines into the edge of the light guide plate, which spreads the light across the screen while a reflector sends it forward. Each pixel's transistor sets the twist of the liquid crystal. The color filter tints the light red, green or blue, and the front polarizer blocks what the crystal did not rotate.
Pick Ports and sockets to drill the 8 sockets alone, from the power socket at the left to the USB downstream ports at the right.
Questions and answers
What are the main parts of a computer monitor?
The screen, the bezel round it, the stand base and neck, the power button, the menu buttons, the power socket and an HDMI port. Those 8 are the group Start here. The other 27 are ports, the mount, the stand adjustments and the panel layers.
What are the four holes on the back of a monitor?
They are the VESA mount holes, part 18: four threaded holes in a square, 100 mm on a side in the original layout. A wall mount or another stand fastens there with M4 screws.
What is the difference between tilt, swivel and pivot?
Tilt tips the screen forward or backward. Swivel turns it to the left or right. Pivot rotates it 90 degrees, from landscape to portrait. Height adjustment, the fourth, slides the screen up or down the neck.
What is the square USB port on a monitor for?
It is the USB upstream port, part 17. A cable from it to the computer turns the monitor into a USB hub, and the flat downstream ports beside it then take a mouse, a keyboard or another USB device.
Is a monitor an input or an output device?
An output device: it displays the pictures and text the computer sends. A touchscreen monitor is an input device as well, because touching the screen is a way to give commands.