The best monitor stand for a desk of about 75 cm height with no adjustable arm is the one that adds the right amount of height, and the IKEA stands described here each add a fixed amount. The reader assumed here works from home with a desktop monitor, or with a laptop beside an external monitor, and wants the screen higher and the desk tidier.
All four products are from IKEA India. Three are monitor risers, and the fourth is a desk organiser that does not support a monitor.
Measuring the height a riser must add
OSHA says the top line of the screen should be at or below eye level, and that the centre of the screen is typically 15 to 20 degrees below the horizontal eye line. Mayo Clinic gives the same rule in plainer words, with the top of the screen at or slightly below eye level.
Both bodies also give a distance. OSHA asks for the monitor to sit at least 20 inches away, which is 50 cm, and Mayo Clinic describes roughly an arm’s length.
At that minimum distance, a screen centre 15 to 20 degrees below the eye line sits roughly 13 to 18 cm below eye level. This is our arithmetic from the OSHA angle and distance, and it gives a target for the height of the screen centre.
Direction matters as well as distance. OSHA places the monitor directly in front of the user, keeps it within a set angle to either side, and says the head and neck should face forward. A riser does not change any of that, and it only adds height.
Three steps turn the target into a riser height. The first is to measure the seated eye line above the desk, the second is to subtract the 13 to 18 cm, and the third is to compare the result with the height of the screen centre as it stands now. The difference is what a riser has to add, and this test is our practical suggestion built on the sourced rules.
Take a hypothetical user whose eyes are 60 cm above the desk and whose screen centre is 30 cm above it. The target for the centre is then roughly 42 to 47 cm, and the riser has to add 12 to 17 cm.
The ELLOVEN and the SIGFINN are the lower pair of stands, and the LANESPELARE is the taller one at 14 cm. In the hypothetical case only the LANESPELARE falls within the range, while a gap larger than any of the three stands needs a book under the stand or a taller product from another seller.
Stand type by what goes under it
The ELLOVEN is a drawer stand, 47 cm wide, with a maximum load of 20 kg. The drawer holds stationery, and the space beneath it fits a keyboard when the keyboard is not in use.
A long bridge type stand is the LANESPELARE, which is 97 cm long, and IKEA says it fits two 24 inch monitors. Its maximum load is the same as the ELLOVEN, and the top is perforated.
Curved and small, the SIGFINN is 53 cm long, and IKEA lists it for monitors up to 19 inches. Its page gives no weight capacity.
The RISATORP is a desk organiser, and it is a separate add on. It keeps papers, stationery and chargers beside a riser and does nothing to raise a screen.
Tidiness comes from different features on each product, and the desk surface stays clearer when the keyboard, notepads and chargers have a place to go. The ELLOVEN has its drawer, the RISATORP has two compartments, the SIGFINN leaves open space underneath, and reviews quoted on the LANESPELARE page mention cable ties for hiding cables.
Choosing between the three risers
Stationery to store on a small desk points to the ELLOVEN, which adds a drawer to the riser. The drawer interior is listed as 45 x 24 cm.
On a wide desk with two screens, or a monitor and a laptop, the LANESPELARE is the stand to look at. It is the tallest and the longest of the three, and it is the only one that IKEA says takes two monitors.
One small screen on a compact desk points to the SIGFINN, within the 19 inch limit that IKEA states.
None of the three adjusts. A user who needs a lift between the fixed heights has to add something under the stand or choose a different product.
ELLOVEN and SIGFINN
The IKEA ELLOVEN in white measures 47 x 26 x 10 cm. It is a steel stand with a bamboo drawer box, and the inside of the drawer measures 45 x 24 cm.
It suits a small desk where a low riser is wanted together with a drawer for pens, notepads and USB sticks. The page lists no manufacturer warranty, and the low height may not lift a screen far enough for a taller user.
In bamboo veneer, the IKEA SIGFINN measures 53 x 24 x 10 cm and has a curved shape with a fixed height. The veneer sits over moulded fibreboard, and the space underneath is open.
It suits a compact desk with a small monitor. The page limits monitors to 19 inches and gives no weight capacity, so it will not suit larger screens.
LANESPELARE and RISATORP
The IKEA LANESPELARE in black is a steel stand, 97 cm long, 19 cm wide and 14 cm high. According to IKEA it fits two 24 inch monitors.
Its perforated top gives cable ties a place to pass through, a use that customer reviews on the page mention. The stand suits a dual monitor user, or a reader with a monitor and a laptop, on a wide desk with gear stored underneath.
At that length it needs a wide desk, and the page lists no manufacturer warranty.
The IKEA RISATORP in white measures 50 x 16 x 17 cm and has two compartments. The basket is powder coated steel, and the foot and divider are birch. It stands free on the desk and needs assembly, with the instructions provided as a PDF.
It suits a desk user who needs a place for papers, stationery and chargers beside a riser. It does not raise a monitor, and the page lists no manufacturer warranty.
Options not covered
IKEA’s desk accessories category lists other organisers, including the DRONJONS at 25 x 20 cm in mesh, the STACKSTOD at 32 x 18 x 16 cm, the FODERTRAG at 25 x 18 x 15 cm in recycled plastic and the OVNING at 32 x 26 cm in fabric.
No monitor arm with adjustable height is covered here. Portronics lists laptop stands on its site, and no monitor stands from that brand are described.