When I had a Chromebook, I used to rotate the screen to better read long-form content. I hated Kindle for many reasons and that’s when the Chromebook had my heart. If you, too, want to do that for other reasons, here are two ways to answer How to Rotate Screen on Chromebook:
- Hit the key combination: Ctrl + Shift + Refresh key until you reach your desired orientation.
- Go to Settings > Device Display > Orientation and then choose whichever position you want your display to be rotated.
2 Ways to Rotate Screen on Your Chromebook
There’s a shortcut to this and then there’s a method that lets your machine remember your settings even when you restart. Choose as per your requirements.
Ctrl + Shift + Refresh–The Easy Method
Step 1: Whatever you’re doing right now on your Chromebook, press Ctrl + Shift and then Refresh simultaneously to rotate your screen 90 degrees. The Refresh key is situated on top of number keys 3 and 4. The icon looks like a circle with an arrow going through it. Remember that you may have to press these keys more than once to get to your desired rotation as the increment is only 90 degrees.
Step 2: The screen won’t rotate immediately. You’ll get a pop-up asking for your permission. Click Continue after you hit the key combination.
Rotate the Screen From the Settings
Step 1: Take your cursor to the right bottom corner and left-click on the clock you see.
Step 2: A small notification pop-up with some settings shortcuts will open. Click on the Settings icon that looks like a wheel to the top right of the pop-up.
Step 3: In the Settings, search for Device on the left. Click on it and you’ll see further options to the right.
Step 4: Under Device, click on Displays. It may come on the third slot in your OS.
Step 5: In the Displays, you’ll see an Internal Display with options. Choose Orientation’s drop-down menu. You’ll be presented with screen orientations. Select your desired one.
The OS will remember your screen orientation preference. You may have to undo these settings manually if you want the Standard orientation.
How to Rotate Screen on Secondary Display Attached to a Chromebook?
The two methods I mentioned above work for secondary displays as well. However, before going for them, make sure that you’ve taken the cursor to the secondary display. The settings will take place wherever the cursor is. Take note of this when you’re hitting the key combination.
In the second method, which is rotating the screen by going to settings, choose the secondary display mentioned under Displays.
It is also worth noting down that you can choose different orientations for different screens.
How to Rotate Screen in 2-in-1 Chromebooks?
If you have a 2-in1 Chromebook, then you don’t need to go to any setting or hit any key to get into your desired orientation. That’s because your machine can be physically changed into a tablet, tent, or laptop mode. Still, it doesn’t mean these methods won’t work. However, you won’t have to manually set the settings to Standard again as you would in a traditional Chromebook. Just flip the screen manually in tablet or other mode and you’ll be back to square one.
How to Rotate Screen on Chromebook – Conclusion
Rotating the screen on a Chromebook is easy. The first method includes hitting the Ctrl + Shift + Refresh key situated above numbers 3 and 4 keys. This rotates your screen 90 degrees. You may have to press them more than once to get to your desired orientation of 180 and 360 degrees. The second method includes clicking on the time, going to Settings, then Device, Display, and finally Orientation. These methods can change the orientation in the secondary display as well. But beware that your mouse cursor direction will change accordingly.
