When your monitor was new, it might have come with factory calibration, or maybe you've calibrated it yourself. However, a monitor's color accuracy can change over time.

You probably calibrate your monitor monthly or even bi-monthly if you're a professional. But if you only use your computer for creative projects occasionally, you may not be doing it as frequently as you should.

So, how do you know when you should calibrate your monitor? Here are the signs to watch out for.

Signs of an Uncalibrated Monitor

uncalibrated monitor with a sick smiley face

If you're not a creative visual professional, you might not think of monitor calibration at all. However, even if you don't work with colors and prints, it's still crucial that your monitor is at least near the correct color values, so you can appreciate content the way it was meant to be.

Related: What Is Monitor Color Calibration and Why Is It Necessary?

If you don't have the software or equipment to check your monitor's color accuracy, look out for these signs that let you know when your display needs calibration.

1. A Washed-Out View

When a monitor is new, you should see vibrant colors. A monitor's color profile may change as time goes by, however. When this happens, the first common sign is seeing a washed-out effect. You will notice this when pictures on the monitor look normal, but they seem to have too much saturation when you print them.

That's because your monitor isn't showing the correct vibrancy. Therefore, when you edit an image, you're compensating for the washed-out color—hence the oversaturated printouts.

2. Oversaturation

oversaturated landscape image

This sign is the opposite of a washed-out view. When you compare printed images with what you see on your screen, the printed picture will look bland and lifeless compared to the image on the monitor.

You'll especially notice this in photographs that have vivid colors, like bright greens or dark reds and blues. When your printout looks like it's been sitting under the sun for years, that's because you were deceived by an uncalibrated monitor during editing.

3. Color Banding

For those who don't print pictures from their computers, color banding is a sign to look out for. This effect happens when your computer doesn't display gradients correctly. When you start seeing different shades of color in bands across the screen, instead of a smooth transition between colors, it's time to calibrate your monitor.

4. An Overexposed Screen

overexposed landscape image

An overexposed display means that its brightness setting is too high. This can lead to missing the details in bright pictures, extra glare from your monitor, and even eye strain. It's similar to a washed-out screen, but, when printing pictures, they'll be too dark instead of oversaturated.

To check for this, view the same image on another screen, such as your phone. If it looks all right on your phone but appears overexposed on your monitor, it's time to calibrate.

5. A Dark Display

A sign of a dark display is being unable to see details in the dark areas of your screen. This is especially true when you're playing games, or when you're watching a movie and nighttime or dark scenes look too dark. If your screen does this, it likely needs to be calibrated.

Related: How to Calibrate Your Monitor for Accurate Colors

What You Should See

perfect landscape image

If you notice any of the aforementioned signs on your monitor, a good way to confirm whether it needs calibration is pulling up images that have subtle brightness, darkness, or contrast differences. You can use the images below as a reference.

Brightness

For most of us, brightness means how much light we see from our monitor. While that is true, you need a calibrated black image to measure and set it correctly. The picture below has eight varying levels of darkness. The one on the left is the darkest, and the one on the right is the lightest.

To set your monitor's brightness to the proper levels, you should first turn the settings to the lowest possible number. From there, move it up one notch at a time until you see all eight boxes clearly.

brightness checker

Contrast

Contrast is the balance between the brightest brights and the darkest darks. Higher contrast ratios produce a better image quality and deliver more vivid images. That's why monitors these days boast high contrast ratios, such as Apple's Pro Display XDR with a 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio.

However, you still need to set a monitor's contrast ratio to the proper level. That's because if it's too high, you may lose detail in the lighter areas of your screen. Set your display's contrast to the highest possible setting, and then lower it until you can see all eight white boxes below.

contrast checker

Gamma

While brightness and contrast are based on what we see on the screen, gamma is the ratio of voltage and luminance. That's because a single voltage increase of a pixel is not equal to a single increase in brightness.

According to Scientific American:

Gamma is the relationship between the numerical value of a pixel in an image file and the brightness of that pixel when viewed on screen. The computer translates the numerical values in the image file into voltage that is sent to the monitor.

This relationship is non-linear, meaning that a change in voltage does not translate into an equivalent change in brightness. For almost all TVs and computer monitors, a change in voltage results in a change in brightness raised to the 2.5 power. The gamma for these devices, therefore, is said to be 2.5.

With that being said, you can set your monitor's ideal gamma level with the help of the image below. The pattern in the center is half white and half black, making it 50% gray. The surrounding gray color is also set to 50% brightness.

When you view it from a distance or look at it with unfocused eyes, it should appear plain gray. If you still see both the solid color and the pattern distinctly, you may have to calibrate your monitor's gamma level.

gamma checker 2

Related: How to Use an iPhone to Calibrate Apple TV Colors

It's Time to Calibrate Your Monitor

The points we've discussed here can help you determine whether your monitor displays colors correctly. Should you see some discrepancies, it's probably time to calibrate, and luckily, there are tools to help you fix it.