I have been using monitor arms for over 17 years and they are one of my favorite desk accessories. Recently, I decided to purchase five of the most highly rated monitor arms on Amazon to see if they actually live up to all those five-star reviews. I wanted to find out if they can hold 27” to 32” monitors while also offering stability. Keep reading to learn more about what I found.
Full Disclaimer: We are an office furniture dealer and sell some of the computer monitor arms we review. To learn more about the products we sell, our review process and why you can trust us, please visit: Why we’re different. Who is BTOD.com and The Breakroom Blog?
Amazon Monitor Arm Links
1. North Bayou Monitor Arm
This monitor arm is priced right at that $36 mark and has around 15,000 ratings on Amazon, which is the most out of any arms I tested. One of the first things I noticed was how similar it looks to the Huanuo brand arm, which is another product we will be discussing later on.
The North Bayou comes with a clamp and grommet mount system, which is virtually identical to the Huanuo arm. I also found that the finish on the arm was much better than I expected based on the price. It is constructed using a mix of plastic, steel, and aluminum. Overall, it is the nicest-looking arm out of all the products I tested.
Per the instructions, it can support monitors that weigh anywhere from 4.4 lbs up to 19.8 lbs and range in size from 17” to 30”. Through my testing, I found that there weren’t any problems supporting the 27” and 30” monitors. When I turned the 30” monitor so that it was in a vertical or portrait position, I did find that it didn’t love being tilted forward toward the user. The monitor would tend to sink back into a more upright position, but it did well in all the other positions I tested.
There is some wire management included with the North Bayou, which is another key difference from the Huanuo. On this model, it is definitely a lot easier to push the wires through the management system. I did find that the upper clip was a little flimsy and tended to sag even with just a few wires in it. Overall, the North Bayou offers good stability with the 27” monitor, but as with most arms, when it is fully extended or supporting the 32” monitor, the stability decreases and there is a little more bounce.
2. Huanuo
The Huanuo retails for $40.99, making it slightly more expensive than the North Bayou. But is Huanuo a good brand? Again, at first glance, these two products look quite similar, but I did find that the Huanuo looks and feels a bit cheaper. It uses more plastic in obvious areas, the most notable place being the upper part of the arm.
There was more of a noticeable difference in the wire management system. With the Huanuo, this component was a little less intuitive. It simply wasn’t as easy to access, but that doesn’t necessarily make it a terrible wire solution. You will have to loosen a few screws to actually access the cable management.
From a stability standpoint, these two arms are very similar. There was also a difference in the adjustment function of the Huanuo mount. It was better able to handle holding the larger monitor in place when tilted up and toward me. There weren’t any issues with the monitor sinking back, which might make the Huanuo a better option if this is how you prefer to position your screen.
The stability with both the 27” and 30” monitors was good, but the arm didn’t offer enough flexibility to easily rotate the monitor into portrait mode. However, you can tilt the monitor forward and rotate it or simply mount it in portrait mode in the first place if that is how you plan on using it.
I was able to find a documented warranty for the Huanuo and according to the company website, it does come with a five-year warranty on all of its mounts. Overall, I think the Huanuo is worth the extra $5, especially if you want a more permanent cable management system, a better hold for the monitor pivot point, and a documented warranty.
3. Mountup
You can purchase this monitor arm mount for $39.99, but this is my least favorite product out of the ones I tested. Both the Huanuo and the North Bayou have a higher-quality feel for around the same price point. The Mountup uses a lot more plastic and the finish just doesn’t look as nice.
The Mountup uses a grommet and c-clamp mount system and like the rest of the arm, it feels cheaper than the other options I tested. I didn’t have any problems with the mount holding the 27” and 32” monitors in various positions. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to use this monitor in portrait mode because it doesn’t lift up quite high enough off the desk.
This arm was also the least stable of the group, so if stability is a priority you might want to look elsewhere. With the poor stability and concerns about warranty support, I would recommend passing on this monitor arm. It just felt cheaper and for about the same money, you can get something better.
4. Vivo
This is the least expensive arm at just $32.99. But is Vivo a good monitor arm? It is also the most basic system without any gas or spring adjustment arm for height changes, but it is no surprise that this is the cheapest option in the group. I will say that I am somewhat familiar with the Vivo brand, which leads me to believe that it may be your safest option from a product support and customer service standpoint. I feel more confident about the company’s 3-year warranty than I do about Huanuo’s 5-year warranty.
If you don’t plan on making a lot of height changes, the Vivo is super solid because of the overall heavy-duty feel. Most of the arm was made from steel, which made me feel comfortable using both the 27” and 32” monitors. Oddly enough, there isn’t enough room to rotate the 32” monitor into portrait mode. However, you can easily remove and reattach the screen in the portrait position or you can tilt the monitor forward and pivot it into position.
Through my testing, I didn’t find that there were any problems holding the monitors in various positions. Unfortunately, if you do want to make a height adjustment, you will have to loosen a bolt and slide the monitor up and down the tall post.
There is also limited cable management on the post and it is missing completely from the arm that reaches out to the monitor. In this case, I chose to wrap the cables, but you could also use something like straps or velcro to keep the cables neat. I also noticed there was a bit of an issue with the range adjustment and pivoting arm system. When you try to collapse the arm back onto itself, there isn’t a lot of room. On a final note, of all the arms I tested, I feel safest placing a large monitor on this mount.
5. Wali
This is the most expensive monitor arm at just $44.99. The Amazon singe-arm mounts are super affordable and my favorite from the group based on a functional standpoint. At the same time, it is probably the ugliest of the group. The Wali is the second post-arm design in the group, but it is quite a bit different from the Vivo.
Overall, I found the Wali to be well-built and heavy. The upper arm comes with some additional plastic housing, which feels and looks a bit cheap. Still, these plastic components appear more finished than the Vivo. There was wire management for both the post and the extension arms. All the wire management was easy to use and I did really like this feature.
The Wali comes with a ton of height adjustment range allowing you to quickly move the monitor up or down or switch from landscape to portrait mode. It easily handles both size monitors and with the arm attached to the post, there is even more height flexibility well beyond the height of the post. This is great if you need some extra height range.
A couple of concerns I have with this brand is the warranty and ability to contact support. I couldn’t find any information on either of these topics. On a website they own, it simply said that the warranty was different for different products and didn’t offer any details. Also, the website contact page didn’t work. Hopefully, if you go this route, you won’t need any additional parts of help.
Bottom Line
If you are still on the fence about whether a monitor arm is a good addition to your desk setup, be sure to keep reading our posts for more tips and tricks.
