HDR settings in Windows

• Make sure your display or TV has HDR turned on. The way you get to the on-screen menu on your HDR TV, or display varies by make and model. Check out the documentation for your display or TV by visiting the manufacturer’s website.

• Go to Settings  > System  > Display  and make sure Use HDR is turned on under Windows HD Color.

• Make sure your Windows 10 PC has the required hardware to display HDR and find out if your display supports HDR10. Here’s how to do that:

  1. Press the Windows logo key  + R, type dxdiag, and then select OK.

  2. Select Yes at the prompt.

  3. In the DirectX Diagnostic Tool, on the System tab, look in the System Information area.

  4. To save the information to a file, select Save All Information, and then name and save the text file.

  5. Open the text file and look at the value for Advanced Color. This provides info about your display's HDR configuration and the status of it. Look for these values:

     • AdvancedColorSupported. This indicates that your installed display driver and display support HDR10.

     • AdvancedColorEnabled. This indicates that HDR is currently turned on for your display.

  6. Look at the value for Monitor Capabilities. This provides more detailed info about the display's capabilities.

     • If the value is HDR Supported, that indicates that your display supports HDR10. You might see additional values in parentheses.

       • BT2020RGB or BT2020YCC. One of these color spaces must appear for the display to be considered as an HDR10-capable display.

       • Eotf2084Supported. This value must appear for the display to be considered as an HDR-capable display.

     • If the value is HDR Not Supported, that indicates that the display is missing one or more requirements for HDR10.

On HDR-capable laptops, the default power settings will turn off HDR when running on battery power. To have HDR turn on, do one of the following:

• Plug in your laptop (recommended).

• Allow HDR games and apps on battery. Note that allowing HDR when running on battery power will reduce battery life.

When you first connect an external display to a laptop, Windows will duplicate your desktop on both displays by default. However, HDR isn’t supported in this configuration. To view HDR content on the external HDR monitor or TV, extend your desktop across both displays:

1. Select the Start  button, then select Settings  > System  > Display .

2. For Multiple monitors, select Extend these displays.

You might need to adjust the relative brightness of SDR and HDR content for your HDR-capable display. This is because a display interprets an HDR and SDR signal differently, and the results will vary by make and model.

1. Select the Start  button, then select Settings  > System  > Display .

2. If you have multiple displays connected to your PC, select the HDR-capable display under Rearrange your displays, and then move the Settings app window to the HDR display that you’re adjusting

3. On the Display settings screen, select Windows HD Color settings.

4. Under HDR/SDR brightness balance, drag the slider to get the right balance for brightness between HDR and SDR content.

Notes

• When you change the HDR/SDR brightness balance setting for an HDR display, the effect it has on SDR content depends on whether it’s an external or built-in HDR-capable display:

  • On an external HDR display, this setting will change the brightness of SDR content relative to HDR content.

  • On a built-in HDR display, the brightness of SDR content is controlled by a separate brightness setting, or it might be controlled automatically. Since the brightness of SDR content is already set, the HDR/SDR brightness balance setting will change the brightness of HDR content relative to the brightness of SDR content.

• For built-in HDR displays, such as on HDR-capable laptops, both the brightness setting and HDR/SDR brightness balance setting will affect the appearance of HDR content.

  • Brightness setting. When viewing HDR content in a bright area, you might need to increase the brightness setting to see the display. However, this will reduce both the effective dynamic range for HDR content in apps and the overall contrast because the darker pixels will appear brighter. To improve the appearance of HDR content, view HDR content in a darker area and use a fairly low brightness setting. If the brightness is set to a very low level, that will increase the overall contrast between the brightest and darkest parts of the content. However, there will be less details in the darker parts of the content. For example, if you have a scene in a movie that shows a dimly lit room at night, you might see less details in that scene.

  • HDR/SDR brightness balance setting. For most times, using the default HDR/SDR brightness balance setting or one close to it should work well. You could set the HDR/SDR brightness balance setting higher to help improve the overall contrast between the brightest and darkest parts of the content. However, this would reduce the details in the darker parts of the content, such as a scene in a dark room at night.

Some SDR apps appear darker on an HDR display compared to other SDR apps shown on the same display. This can happen with apps that don’t work with the HDR/SDR brightness balance setting. Here are some things to try to fix this:

• If you have multiple displays set up with both SDR and HDR displays, move the app to the SDR display.

• If you’re using an external HDR display, move the HDR/SDR brightness balance slider to a lower setting. This will make the brighter SDR content appear darker, so all the SDR content appears at a similar brightness level. Afterwards, use the on-screen menu on your HDR TV or display to increase the brightness to the level you want.
  
  Note: If you adjust the HDR/SDR brightness balance setting but the brightness of SDR content in some apps doesn’t change, try restarting the app.

• If you’re using a laptop with an HDR-capable built-in display, move the HDR/SDR brightness balance slider to a lower setting. This will make the app that appears too dark brighter, so all SDR apps have a similar brightness level.
  
  Note: If you change the HDR/SDR brightness balance setting but the brightness of some apps doesn’t change, or if the SDR content appears too bright and desaturated, try restarting the app.

• Make sure you have the latest graphics drivers (WDDM) installed. To get the latest drivers, go to Windows Update in Settings, or check your PC manufacturer's website.

• If you’re using an HDMI connection and your display supports HDR over a DisplayPort connection, use DisplayPort instead to connect your PC and display.

• If HDMI is your only option, use that, and then do one of the following:

  Reduce the refresh rate

  1. Select Settings  >System  >Display  >Advanced display settings.

  2. In Advanced display settings, for Refresh rate, select 30 Hz.

  - OR -

  Reduce the resolution

  1. Select Settings  > System  > Display  > Advanced display settings, and then select Display adapter properties.

  2. On the Adapter tab, select List All Modes.

  3. In List All Modes, select the setting that includes 1920 by 1080, 60 Hertz, then select OK.

On HDR-capable laptops, the default power settings will turn off HDR when running on battery power. This can cause undersaturated colors after restarting your PC. To avoid this, plug in your laptop before restarting it, or change the power settings to keep HDR on when running on battery.

When night light is turned on, the coloring on your display might have a red tint and content might not be readable on it. This depends on the strength that’s set for night light. Here is how you can work around this problem.

Workaround:

1. Go to Settings  > System  > Display  > Night light settings.

2. In Night light settings, do one of the following:

   • If night light is on, drag the Strength slider to the left to reduce the red-tinted coloring on your display.

   • Select Turn off now to turn off night light.

For more info about night light, see Set your display for night time in Windows.

Many HDR-capable displays support a wider color gamut than sRGB. When Use HDR is turned on, the HDR display should correctly reproduce the sRGB colors used in desktop apps. However, some HDR-capable displays don’t do this correctly. When shopping for an HDR-capable display, look for displays that are certified for HDR and read reviews that discuss color accuracy.

On an HDR-capable laptop running on Windows 10 version 1809, brightness might change unexpectedly if the power setting was changed to Do nothing when I close the lid. When you close the lid and then open it again, the brightness setting will be the same, but the actual screen brightness might be lower.

To find the power setting for When I close the lid

1. Select the Start  button, type control panel, and then select it in the list of results.

2. In Control Panel, select Hardware and Sound > Power Options > Choose what closing the lid does.

Workaround:

After opening the lid, change the brightness setting manually in Settings  > System  > Display . After that, the screen should have the correct brightness level again. For more info about how to change the screen brightness, see Change screen brightness in Windows.

On an HDR-capable laptop running on Windows 10 version 1809, the actual brightness of the built-in display and the brightness setting itself might change when you switch between battery power and AC power, or when battery saver is turned on.

Workaround:

After your laptop switches between battery power and AC power, change the brightness setting manually in Settings  > System  > Display . For more info about how to change the screen brightness, see Change screen brightness in Windows.

On an HDR-capable laptop running on Windows 10 version 1809, brightness isn't set correctly after restarting it with Play HDR games and apps turned off.

You might be able to fix this problem by updating the display driver. Check with your device manufacturer to see if an updated driver is available. To learn how to update drivers, see Update drivers manually in Windows. If that doesn't fix this problem or an updated driver isn't available, you can try the following workaround.

Workaround:

After you restart your PC, change the brightness setting manually in Settings  > System  > Display . Even a small change can restore your display to the expected brightness level. For more info about how to change the screen brightness, see Change screen brightness in Windows.