Your MacBook does not have to be placed in a perfectly horizontal position on your desk. If you want to lessen the strain on your neck, try to keep the screen at eye level. Alternatively, you can hold the laptop in a dedicated stand that helps keep your desk tidy and keeps your MacBook plugged in nearby.
The MacBooks produced by Apple are excellent, but using any kind of laptop, including Apple’s, can be taxing on your back and neck.
The constant bending of the head forward in order to see a screen can cause stiffness in the neck as well as a condition known as spinal stenosis. This condition can cause blood vessels and nerves to get displaced, so cutting off blood supply to the brain. That is not a positive development.
Your display ought to be set at a reasonable height that does not require you to stoop forward or hunch your shoulders in order to see it. While ensuring that your back is straight, it is important to check that your eyes are aligned properly with the screen.
This is particularly helpful while making video calls, as it prevents the other party from looking up your nostrils during the conversation. Additionally, it makes the use of a second keyboard and mouse a lot less difficult. Check out our rundowns of the top Mac keyboards and mice for more information.
And when you’re done using it, you can tuck your keyboard away under the elevated stand on some of them.
If you have connected external displays to increase the size of your screen—learn how to set up a second screen for a Mac—some stands raise the laptop to eye level, and others—known as “vertical stands”—just keep the MacBook closed for minimal desk disruption. If you want to learn more about how to set up a second screen for a Mac, click here.
The eye-level laptop stands will also be more ergonomic. They will raise the MacBook screen, preventing strain on the muscles in your neck, shoulders, and back. It should also lessen the glare that comes from the screen, which should result in reduced eye strain and fewer headaches.
Invest in a vertical laptop stand in order to declutter your workspace and make room on your desk for other items, such as a charger for your iPhone, a backup hard drive, or a mug of coffee.
Both varieties of stands ought to be able to lift the notebook computer, thereby elevating it off the table and allowing more air to circulate around it. When a laptop reaches an unsafe temperature, its performance is likely to deteriorate.
The number of ports and slots that are accessible to you and the size of the displays that can be used simultaneously can both be increased by using a MacBook docking station, which works well with a laptop stand.
There are even some stands that come with their own built-in USB-C hub, which is a very ingenious feature.
The greatest laptop stands for MacBooks that we could locate have been compiled in this article. The majority of them try to replicate the sleek metal lines of the MacBook lineup, but others take a different approach.
Twelve South Curve Flex is a beautiful MacBook stand.
There are a lot of fixed laptop stands on the market that don’t offer much mobility. This constraint is addressed and remedied by luxury accessory manufacturer Twelve South’s Cuve Flex, which features adjustability for both height and tilt.
It can raise your MacBook screen and camera by up to 22 inches (56 cm), bringing them closer to your line of sight and allowing them to be aligned with an external screen, if you happen to have one. The increased mobility benefits not just your neck and back, but also your eyes. The keyboard on the MacBook can be tilted in any direction between 0 and 45 degrees.
The Curve Flex is not only bendable, but also portable thanks to its design. It has a weight of 28 ounces (795 grammes), folds up into a compact size, and comes with a cushioned neoprene travel sleeve.
Although it is more expensive than the Curve and a good number of the MacBook stands that were evaluated here, the additional cost is justifiable due to its adaptability and portability.
White and matte black are the colours that are offered for the Curve Flex.
Additionally, Twelve South offers a companion stand that can be used with any external monitor that is connected to a MacBook. The Curve Riser will bring your second screen up to a height that is comparable to that of your laptop, and it also features a shelf that can be used for a docking station or another type of device.
Best portable MacBook stand is Satechi Aluminum Laptop Stand
The Aluminum Laptop Stand from Satechi is one of the most transportable options available due to its capacity to fold up and its low weight (17.1oz, 485g).
When you need to travel with it, all you have to do is fold it up and put it in your backpack or luggage.
Although it does not elevate the laptop to the same degree as the Twelve South Curve or the Beststand Cooling Stand, it does bring the screen closer to eye level than it would if the laptop were sitting flat on the desk.
Although it has been designed to look good with MacBooks and is offered in silver, gold, rose gold, space grey, and black, it is compatible with any laptop measuring between 12 and 17 inches.
The bottom is made of rubber so that it won’t slide around on your desk.
Urmust Laptop Stand – Best for tiny desks
Many people are being forced to operate in confined places as a result of working from home and participating in remote learning. Additionally, even in these more secure times, the coffee shop in question is convenient, but it is not optimal for working on a laptop in a healthy manner.
The laptop may be raised to a more ergonomic height with the aluminum-alloy Urmust Laptop Notebook Stand Holder, which can be adjusted between 0 and 90 degrees. This frees up the small bit of desk space you have for you to spread out documents and books, and maybe even room for that cup of coffee.
Because the feet are made of anti-slip rubber, they should not scratch the surface they are placed on, and they will not move around while in use. It can support up to 15.6-inch computers and 4 kilogrammes of weight.
Due to its extreme narrowness, it is ideally suited for use in confined areas. In addition, it is easy to transport because it is lightweight and foldable, allowing it to be concealed while it is not in use or brought along wherever you go. It comes in a total of seven different colours, including Silver, Black, Rose Gold, and Grey, as well as Red, Blue, and a Blue-ish Grey colour.
Hyperdrive 7-in-1 USB-C Hub Laptop Stand – Best portable USB-C hub
This ingenious USB-C hub serves as both a laptop stand and an expansion of the ports available on the linked MacBook. It comes with a variety of connectors.
It has a USB-C connector with a data transfer rate of 5Gbps, two USB-A ports with a data transfer rate of 5Gbps, slots for both SD and microSD cards, and an HDMI socket for attaching an external display, which will also help you attain a more ergonomic position.
If you like, you can connect memory sticks or other external storage devices. If you want, you can also install a wired mouse or keyboard. The connection is a USB-C one rather than a Thunderbolt one, which means it does not provide the maximum bandwidth; nonetheless, it is still compatible with contemporary MacBooks.
The Hyperdrive stand connects to your MacBook (13-16in) using its own integrated USB-C cable, leaving the separate USB-C port on the hub free for other devices or, more likely, a USB-C PD wall charger. Some competing hub/stand combos do not include the built-in cable, so you need to use another of your laptop’s Thunderbolt ports to keep it charged. However, you do not need to do this with the Hyperdrive stand because it connects to your MacBook (13-16in It is able to provide up to 100W of charging power for MacBooks.
It may be folded up into a smaller size, weighs only 308 grammes (11 ounces), and can be utilised in five different ergonomic postures.A layer of padding made of silicon is included into the base, which maintains a stable position for your MacBook.
- A pair of USB Type-A 3.0 ports (5Gbps)
- HDMI – 4K at 30Hz UHS-I SD and microSD card ports for the addition of reasonably priced, transportable storage
Ugreen X-Kit: Lightest laptop stand with USB-C hub
The X-Kit hub-stand from UGreen can function as both a stand and a USB hub simultaneously. It is a compact laptop stand that folds up and can accommodate laptops ranging in size from 11 to 16 inches. It also includes a docking station and a 5-in-1 USB-C hub.
It has a fantastic X-shaped design and is finished in an awesome Obsidian black. The hub is what truly makes this stand, er, stand out from the crowd. It weighs only 283 grammes, which is equivalent to 10 ounces, and when folded up, it is compact enough to fit into a carry-on bag.
You may connect storage devices, memory sticks, a wired mouse and keyboard, and an external display to the hub in a tidy manner using the USB-C cable that is provided in the package. There is no need for a dongle to be left hanging around.
It is compatible with laptops that use either Thunderbolt or USB-C, although the speed of the 40Gbps Thunderbolt 3 and 4 laptops will be reduced to 5Gbps whenever they interact with any devices that are connected to the X-Kit.
It offers four different height settings, each of which should provide ergonomic benefits to alleviate pressure on the neck and wrists.Your portable workstation’s steadiness is maintained with slip-resistant silicone bands and protecting hooks.
Because of its open design, it should also be able to help dissipate heat.The aluminium Hub-Stand offers ports that are compatible with Mac and Windows laptops, iPad Pro, Air, and Mini, as well as Android tablets. These ports include the following:
- a pair of USB Type-A 3.0 ports (5Gbps)
- HDMI support for 4K video at 30 frames per second; UHS-I SD and TF card ports for adding more inexpensive and portable storage