How to increase the brightness of the PC

For many the question may seem trivial, but not for those who are new to the world of computing: how to increase the brightness of the PC ? The question arises from the need to be able to optimally visualize what is present on the computer screen, according to the times of the day and to the variation of external and internal lighting. The answer, of course, changes according to the operating system used (Windows or macOS) and in some cases also according to the make and model of computer and type (fixed or portable). If you want to know more, keep reading, you will find all the information you need in this tutorial of mine dedicated to the topic.

Index

• How to increase the brightness of the PC from the keyboard
  • Windows
  • macOS
• How to increase the brightness of the PC from the monitor
• How to increase the brightness of the PC from the operating system
  • How to increase the brightness of the PC: Windows 11
  • How to increase the brightness of the PC: Windows 10
  • How to increase the brightness of the PC: Windows 8
  • How to increase the brightness of the PC: Windows XP
  • How to increase the brightness of the PC: macOS

How to increase the brightness of the PC from the keyboard

Would you like to understand how to increase the brightness of the PC from the keyboard ? It can be done! The keys to use, however, differ depending on the operating system used. Below you will find explained how to proceed on both Windows and macOS .

Windows

If you are using Windows , to be able to increase the brightness of the PC using the keyboard, all you have to do is press the appropriate  keys for adjusting the brightness , in fact, many times until the screen reaches the level of lighting you prefer. In conjunction with the pressure of the keys you should also see a special indicator on the desktop.

The key to increase the brightness should be the one marked with the sun symbol with long rays  or the one with a colored circle or an upward arrow  and is usually placed at the top. To give a practical example, to increase the brightness of the HP laptop and to increase the brightness of the Acer PC, press the first of the keys indicated.

If nothing happens when pressing the key to increase the brightness, it is evidently because it must be pressed at the same time as the Fn key , usually also located at the top. If, on the other hand, the key for adjusting the brightness is not present you can still try to intervene on the latter from the keyboard using the combination Fn + F2 , that Fn + F8 , that  Fn + F12 or that Fn + right arrow .

macOS

If you are using macOS , to increase the brightness of the screen using the keyboard you just need to press the F2 key , many times until you reach the desired degree of illumination. In conjunction with the pressure, you will see a special indicator on the Mac desktop.

You can easily recognize the key to increase the brightness on macOS as it is the one marked by the symbol of the sun with the longest rays and you find it at the top of the keyboard.

And if you’re using a MacBook with a Touch Bar , you can increase the screen brightness from there. What you have to do is expand it by pressing on the arrow symbol to the left and press on the icon of the sun with the long rays , many times until the brightness of the screen increases according to your needs. Alternatively, quickly swipe left or right on the buttons or press the sun icon and use the slider that appears on the Touch Bar.

How to increase the brightness of the PC from the monitor

Now let’s see how to increase the brightness of the PC from the monitor , that is to say using the appropriate physical keys that when present are located on the side or below the screen. It should be noted that it is a very popular way to increase the brightness of the fixed PC .

In this case, all you have to do is press the key to  open the menu with all the monitor settings, select the option for increasing the brightness of the screen using the key to go up / forward  or the key to go  down / back  and press the button to increase it .

How to increase the brightness of the PC from the operating system

And to increase the brightness of the PC from the operating system ? How should we proceed? You can find it explained below. However, keep in mind that the steps to take vary depending on the exact OS used. Either way it’s super easy, you have nothing to worry about.

How to increase the brightness of the PC: Windows 11

If you are using Windows 11 , to increase the brightness of the PC click on the Start button (the one with the Microsoft logo ) on the taskbar and select the Settings icon (the one with the gear wheel ).

In the window that opens, select the System item from the left side menu (if it is not visible, first press the button with the three horizontal lines at the top left) and then the Screen on the right. At this point, locate the Brightness & Color section and move the slider located on the appropriate adjustment bar to the right.

If the computer you are using has an ambient light sensor, you can also make sure that the lighting level of the PC screen is adjusted automatically , by checking the appropriate option that you always find on the right and possibly also the one for the battery optimization .

In addition to what I have just indicated, you can increase the brightness of the screen of your PC with Windows 11 by opening the Quick Settings , by clicking on the Internet connection icon , on the volume one or on the battery icon that you find in the part at the bottom right of the taskbar and, in the pane that appears, by moving the cursor on the adjustment bar next to the sun icon to the right .

How to increase the brightness of the PC: Windows 10

If you are using a PC with Windows 10 installed , you can increase the brightness of the PC by acting on the system settings. To do this, first click on the Start button  on the taskbar and click on the Settings icon  in the menu that opens.

In the pop-up window on the desktop, select the Settings item and click on the word Display  on the left. Then move to the right the slider located under the heading Change the brightness of the default screen  that you find in the section Brightness and color and that’s it.

If you deem it necessary, you can also activate the automatic control of the brightness of the screen based on the ambient light, by selecting the option Automatically adjust the brightness when the lighting changes that you always find on the right side of the screen.

In addition to what I have just explained to you, you can increase the brightness of the computer screen 10 through the Notification Center . To do this, invoke the latter by clicking on the cartoon icon at the bottom right of the taskbar and move the cursor to the right next to the sun icon located at the bottom.

How to increase the brightness of the PC: Windows 8

Now let’s see how to increase the brightness of the PC on Windows 8 . To begin with, click on the Start button that you find on the taskbar , in order to access the Start Screen , then look for the Control Panel in the text field at the top right and select the relevant link.

In the window that is now shown to you, first click on the  Hardware and Sound item  (if you cannot see it, first choose the Category option  from the View by drop-down menu at the top right) and then on the  Power Options . On the next screen, locate the item Automatic brightness at the bottom, move the cursor on the relative adjustment bar to the right to make the necessary changes and that’s it. Note that these steps also apply to Windows 7 and Windows Vista .

As an alternative to how I explained to you a moment ago, you can increase the brightness of the PC on Windows 8 by clicking on the Start button , then on the Settings icon (the one in the shape of a gear wheel ) that you find in the Start Screen and on the item PC and devices on the screen displayed, then click on the Screen item and move the cursor on the appropriate adjustment bar to the right.

From the same section as above, also activate the automatic brightness adjustment, by selecting the option Automatically adjust the brightness of the screen .

Another way to adjust the lighting of the Windows 8 screen is to swipe quickly from the right edge of the screen, click the Brightness button in the bar that appears and move the slider located on the appropriate scroll bar to the right.

How to increase the brightness of the PC: Windows XP

If you have a PC with the now “old” Windows XP installed , you can increase the brightness of the PC by proceeding as follows: right-click in a point on the desktop without icons, select Properties from the context menu that opens and do click on the Settings  tab in the window that appears.

At this point, press the Advanced button and intervene on the settings relating to the brightness adjustment that you find in the screen proposed later and which may vary depending on the video card driver in use on your computer.

How to increase the brightness of the PC: macOS

If you’re using a Mac, in order to increase the screen brightness settings by acting acting MacOS you just click the System Preferences  (the one with the d ‘wheel gear ) that you find on the Dock bar , select screens in window that appears on the desktop and move the cursor on the adjustment bar next to the Brightness item to the right .

If you see fit, you can also have the brightness level be increased (but also decreased) automatically based on the light in the environment by selecting the Automatically adjust brightness option .

Another way you have on your side to increase the brightness of the Mac screen is the following: click on the Control Center icon (the one with the two switches ) that you find in the upper right part of the screen and, in the menu that opens, move the cursor on the adjustment bar corresponding to the Screen section to the right .