What is the difference between a 34 and a 38 inch ultrawide?

The 38 is about 12% wider and 10% taller, about 9 cm more desk, with about 24% more screen, and usually 3,840 by 1,600 instead of 3,440 by 1,440. That is 400 more pixels across and 160 more down at almost the same density, about 109 pixels per inch against 110, so it is a bigger workspace and not a sharper one.

Why do some listings say a 38 inch ultrawide is 89 cm wide?

That is the screen along its gentle 1800R curve, 89.1 cm. Straight across it is 88.2 cm, and with its bezels the monitor is about 89.7 cm wide, or 34.7 and 35.3 inches. The curve brings the ends of the panel about 5.7 cm forward of the middle.

What desk do I need for a 38 inch ultrawide?

At least 100 cm wide, better 120 cm, and deep enough for the stand, the curve and a keyboard, which adds up to about 62 cm. A 120 cm desk takes it at 75% of the width with about 30 cm to spare.

How far should I sit from a 38 inch ultrawide?

For desk work, between about 0.6 m and 0.9 m, which is the distance at which the central 16:9 part of the screen, about 66 cm wide, fills 42° to 56° of your view. For games, between about 0.7 m and 1 m, where the whole width fills 48° to 64°.

What resolution is a 38 inch ultrawide?

Usually 3,840 by 1,600, the width of a 4K screen with 1,600 rows instead of 2,160. Spread across 89.1 cm of curved panel that is about 109 pixels per inch, the same density as a 34 inch at 3,440 by 1,440, so text looks the same size. What changes is how much of it there is.

Monitor dimensions

38 inch ultrawide dimensions

Published 4 September 2026. Updated 25 October 2026. By the DisplayScale team.

A 38 inch ultrawide is 88.2 cm wide and 37.1 cm tall (34.7 in by 14.6 in) as a picture, and about 89.7 cm wide as a whole set.

Picture width: 88.2 cm; 35.1 in
Picture height: 37.1 cm; 14.6 in
Diagonal: 96.5 cm; 38 in
Whole set width: ≈ 89.7 cm; ≈ 35.3 in

The picture is measured on the glass of a 21:9 panel; the whole-set width adds an estimated bezel.

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The 38 inch ultrawide is the one people move to after a 34 inch, and the reason is height more than width: it is about 3.6 cm taller and 9.3 cm wider straight across, with the same density of pixels.

Which size do you mean?

88.2 cm by 37.1 cm is the screen of a 21:9 panel measured straight across, the figure a desk has to match.
89.1 cm is the same screen along its 1800R curve, which some listings quote.
About 89.7 cm by 39.7 cm is the monitor with its bezels, and about 51.7 cm tall on its stand.

38 inch ultrawide size in cm, inches and feet

The size of a 38 inch ultrawide in centimetres, inches and feet
Measure	Centimetres	Millimetres	Inches	Feet and inches
Picture width	88.2 cm	882 mm	34.7 in	2 ft 11 in
Picture height	37.1 cm	371 mm	14.6 in	1 ft 3 in
Diagonal	96.5 cm	965 mm	38 in	3 ft 2 in
Body width, approx.	89.7 cm	897 mm	35.3 in	2 ft 11 in
Body height, approx.	39.7 cm	397 mm	15.6 in	1 ft 4 in
Height on its stand, approx.	51.7 cm	517 mm	20.4 in	1 ft 8 in
Stand depth, approx.	26 cm	260 mm	10.2 in	10 in
Picture area	0.33 m²	327,383 mm²	513 in²	3.6 ft²

Picture rows are exact. Rows marked approx. are typical for a monitor of this size, not one model.

What the curve costs

The curve of 1800R is gentle: it brings the ends of the panel about 5.7 cm forward of the middle. That is depth on top of a stand about 26 cm deep and 30 cm for a keyboard, about 62 cm in all, so a 38 inch ultrawide wants a desk 65 cm deep or more. An arm that clamps to the back edge gives back the stand’s depth.

Drawn to scale

A 38 inch ultrawide on a 140 cm desk, with a keyboard in front of it. One centimetre in the drawing is one centimetre on the desk.

On a 140 cm desk the monitor takes 64% of the width. It is 37.1 cm tall, which puts the top edge about 51.7 cm above the surface, a little above a seated person’s eyes at an ordinary desk, so use the lowest setting the stand allows.

Next to the sizes either side

The 38 inch solid, with the sizes either side dashed.

The 34 inch is 11% narrower than the 38 with 19% less screen, and the 40 inch is 5% wider with 13% more. The 40 inch page covers the larger size, which carries 5,120 by 2,160 pixels.

The sizes either side, and how much bigger or smaller they are
Size	Active width	Width	Screen area
34"	78.9 cm	−11%	−19%
40"	92.3 cm	+5%	+13%

38 inch against 34 inch ultrawide

The 38 inch (A) and the 34 inch (B), side by side at true scale.

Compare any two screens

The 34 inch ultrawide is 9.3 cm narrower and 3.6 cm shorter than the 38, with 19.1% less screen area. That is a bigger step than the two inches on the diagonal suggest, because the extra is in both directions. Every figure for the smaller shape is on the 34 inch page.

How much desk does it need?

Whether this size fits each standard space, and by how much
Space	Size	Fits?	Detail
Compact desk	100 cm × 50 cm	Fits	90% of the width, 10.3 cm spare in all
Standard desk	120 cm × 60 cm	Fits	75% of the width, 30.3 cm spare in all
Large desk	140 cm × 70 cm	Fits	64% of the width, 50.3 cm spare in all
Deep desk	160 cm × 80 cm	Fits	56% of the width, 70.3 cm spare in all

The body is about 89.7 cm, which uses 75% of a 120 cm desk and leaves 30.3 cm to spare. On a 100 cm desk it fits with 10.3 cm in all, technically a fit and practically a wall of screen with nowhere to put a lamp. Two side by side would need about 181.5 cm, which is more than any desk in the table.

How far to sit

Comfortable viewing distance for a 38 inch monitor, by what it is used for
Used for	Sit	In feet	Field of view
Work / productivity	0.6 m – 0.9 m	2 ft 0 in – 2 ft 10 in	42–56°
Coding	0.6 m – 0.9 m	2 ft 1 in – 2 ft 10 in	42–54°
Design	0.6 m – 0.8 m	1 ft 11 in – 2 ft 8 in	44–58°
Gaming	0.7 m – 1 m	2 ft 4 in – 3 ft 3 in	48–64°
Movies	0.7 m – 0.9 m	2 ft 3 in – 3 ft 1 in	50–66°
Mixed	0.7 m – 1.1 m	2 ft 5 in – 3 ft 6 in	45–61°

Measured from your eyes to the face of the screen, for a 38 inch 21:9 monitor 88.2 cm wide. A wider target field of view means sitting closer, not further away. Work, coding and design are judged on the central 16:9 part of the screen, 66 cm wide, because the edges of an ultrawide sit in your peripheral vision.

For desk work a 38 inch ultrawide suits a seat 0.6 m to 0.9 m away, and for games 0.7 m to 1 m. Work is judged on the central 16:9 part of the screen, 66 cm wide, which fills 42° to 56° of your view, and games on the whole width, which fills 48° to 64°. At 65 cm the whole screen spans about 68°, and at 85 cm about 55°.

3,840 by 1,600 at 38 inches

Pixel density of a 38 inch ultrawide at each resolution, and how far back the pixels disappear
Resolution	Pixels	Pixels per inch	Sharp from	Pixels invisible from
UWQHD+	3840 × 1600	109	0.6 m	0.8 m

A 38 inch ultrawide at 3,840 by 1,600 is 109 pixels per inch. That is the width of a 4K screen with the top and bottom trimmed, and the same density as a 34 inch at 3,440 by 1,440, so text looks the same size and there is more of it. Three full-height windows side by side are comfortable on a 38, and on a 34 the third is cramped. By the 20/20 convention of 60 pixels per degree, single pixels stop showing from about 0.8 m, toward the far end of the desk-work range, so up close the grid can show.

A 2025 paper in Nature Communications reported a mean of about 94 pixels per degree for fine detail, so someone who reads a lot of small text may see the grid from a little further back.

Stands, arms and mounting

A monitor this wide puts leverage on an arm, so check its rating against the monitor’s weight and choose one that reaches far enough to clear the curve. The VESA pattern, where there is one, is listed in millimetres on the spec sheet.

Who a 38 inch ultrawide suits

A 38 inch ultrawide suits someone who has outgrown a 34 and works in timelines, spreadsheets or several windows at once, on a desk 100 cm wide or more and 65 cm deep or more, with a seat 0.6 m or more from the screen.

It is the wrong size for a shallow desk, or for someone who wants sharper text and not more of it, who is better looking at the 40 inch with its 5K2K resolution. Ultrawide against dual monitors measures all three against pairs of flat screens, and what size monitor do I need works from the desk and the task.

Common questions

What is the difference between a 34 and a 38 inch ultrawide?: The 38 is about 12% wider and 10% taller, about 9 cm more desk, with about 24% more screen, and usually 3,840 by 1,600 instead of 3,440 by 1,440. That is 400 more pixels across and 160 more down at almost the same density, about 109 pixels per inch against 110, so it is a bigger workspace and not a sharper one.
Why do some listings say a 38 inch ultrawide is 89 cm wide?: That is the screen along its gentle 1800R curve, 89.1 cm. Straight across it is 88.2 cm, and with its bezels the monitor is about 89.7 cm wide, or 34.7 and 35.3 inches. The curve brings the ends of the panel about 5.7 cm forward of the middle.
What desk do I need for a 38 inch ultrawide?: At least 100 cm wide, better 120 cm, and deep enough for the stand, the curve and a keyboard, which adds up to about 62 cm. A 120 cm desk takes it at 75% of the width with about 30 cm to spare.
How far should I sit from a 38 inch ultrawide?: For desk work, between about 0.6 m and 0.9 m, which is the distance at which the central 16:9 part of the screen, about 66 cm wide, fills 42° to 56° of your view. For games, between about 0.7 m and 1 m, where the whole width fills 48° to 64°.
What resolution is a 38 inch ultrawide?: Usually 3,840 by 1,600, the width of a 4K screen with 1,600 rows instead of 2,160. Spread across 89.1 cm of curved panel that is about 109 pixels per inch, the same density as a 34 inch at 3,440 by 1,440, so text looks the same size. What changes is how much of it there is.

How we worked this out

Everything marked approx. assumes a bezel of 0.8 cm at each side, 0.8 cm at the top and 1.8 cm at the bottom, 12 cm of stand height and 26 cm of stand depth. Real sets vary by a centimetre or two, so the spec sheet of the model you are buying has the last word.

The panel is curved on a radius of 180 cm, so its 89.1 cm of picture measured along the surface spans 88.2 cm straight across, and the straight figure is the one a desk has to take.

For work, coding and design on a screen this wide, the viewing angle is taken across its central 16:9 part, 66 cm wide, because the edges sit in your peripheral vision; games and films use the whole width.

Sources

Resolution limit of the eye: how many pixels can we see? Nature Communications, 2025, checked 5 October 2026.
VESA free standards, which include the Flat Display Mounting Interface (FDMI), checked 5 October 2026.

The formulas behind these figures are on the method page. If a figure here looks wrong, tell us and we will check it against the spec sheet and correct the page.