Backlight Bleed Test
Turn the lights off, fill the screen with black and look at the edges.
Click the screen to hide or show these controls. Press Esc to exit full screen.
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How to use this test
The backlight bleed test fills your screen with black so you can see light leaking from the backlight of an LCD screen. Bleed shows up as bright patches along the edges or in the corners, IPS glow as a hazy light in the corners that changes as you move, and clouding as blotchy areas across the panel.
Turn off the lights or wait until it's dark. Set the screen to the brightness you normally use, not maximum. Choose Black, press Go full screen and look at the screen straight on from your usual distance, then move your head left, right, up and down. Switch to 5% gray to look for clouding. Press Esc to exit.
What the results mean
Light that stays in the same place as you move your head is backlight bleed. Light that moves, changes color or fades as you change your angle is IPS glow, which is normal for IPS panels. Uneven, patchy areas across the middle are clouding. Some bleed is common on LCD screens; OLED screens have no backlight and show none of these.
Photos make it look worse
Cameras use long exposures in the dark and pick up far more light than your eyes do, so photos of backlight bleed often look much worse than the screen does in person. Judge your screen by eye, in a dark room, at your normal brightness.
Common questions
How much backlight bleed is normal?
Some light at the edges is common on LCD monitors, laptops and TVs, especially on a black screen in a dark room. If you notice it in normal use, such as dark movie scenes, and it bothers you, contact the seller while you can still return the screen.
Is it bleed or IPS glow?
Move your head. Glow changes with the viewing angle and is strongest in the corners; bleed stays in the same spot.
Can backlight bleed be fixed?
Not reliably. It comes from how the panel is put together. If it's bad on a new screen, ask the seller for a replacement within the return period.