How to use an external monitor while keeping your gaming laptop closed in 2023? 

External monitors are among the best accessories for gaming laptops. A high resolution and high refresh rate display allow gamers to enjoy a better experience than the integrated panel. Ultrawide and large screens allow users to make the most of their devices.

Most external displays are significantly larger than the laptop's 13 to 16" display. Thus, it doesn't make sense to use them side-by-side. In this case, closing the laptop's lid is more sensible.

By default, closing the lid causes Windows to go to sleep, thereby not allowing users to use the PC at all. However, there is a workaround to keep the monitor on while keeping the laptop closed in Windows 11.

This guide will list the steps that will help users achieve the same.

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A guide to keeping the external monitor turned on while keeping the laptop closed in Windows 11

Windows allows customizing the user experience quite easily. The operating system has many options to choose from that benefit users with almost all use case scenarios.

Thus, users who want to use an external monitor while keeping the laptop's lid closed can easily do so in Windows 11. The steps are detailed below.

Step 1. Head over to the Control Panel.

The System Settings panel in Control Panel (Image via Sportskeeda)

Step 2. Now, go to Hardware and Sound, choose Power Options, and then System Settings. You will be greeted with a screen like the one shown in the image above.

Step 3. From this panel, users can choose what their laptop should do when they press the power button, when the sleep button is pressed, if the device has one, and even when the lid is closed. While it is possible to customize the first two simultaneously, we will focus only on the latter in this guide.

Settings that allow users to keep the laptop running while keeping it closed (Image via Sportskeeda)

Step 4. From under the "Plugged in" column, change the "When I close the lid" option from "Sleep," "Shut Down," or "Hibernate" to "Do nothing" in the drop-down menu. This will allow the laptop to keep running at its full potential and output video to an external monitor even when its lid is closed.

Users can also change the settings under the "On battery" column to "Do nothing" from the drop-down menu. However, this is not recommended since high-resolution video output results in high power consumption, which might deplete the battery quickly.

This will also reduce the laptop's convenience and portability factor. Even when the laptop is not being used, the system will be hard at work carrying out the background tasks.

However, if users want to perform basic browsing and content consumption tasks on an external monitor, they can turn this option to "Do nothing" as well.

Step 5. Once done, hit Save changes and close the window. The laptop will now remain powered on and deliver video output to an external monitor even if the lid is closed.

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A gaming laptop is best utilized with an external monitor. Keeping the laptop's display turned on simultaneously reduces convenience. Thus, the settings listed above come in handy.