How should I set up my desk if my hands hurt?
Quick answer: Set your chair so your feet are flat and your elbows are bent about 90 degrees. Keep your wrists straight, with the keyboard and mouse close in front of you. Put the top of the screen at or just below eye level. These changes can make work more comfortable, but the research on them is mixed, and no setup guarantees recovery. Changing position and taking breaks matter as much as the setup.
Health note: This page is general information, not medical advice. If you have numbness, weakness, night pain or symptoms after an injury, see a doctor first. When to see a doctor
Does an ergonomic setup help hand pain?
It can help comfort, but it is not a cure. A Cochrane review of 15 trials with 2,165 office workers found inconsistent evidence for arm supports and alternative mice. Note that it tested prevention, in workers who mostly did not have these problems yet, not treatment of existing pain. It found no effect of workstation adjustment or a sit-stand desk on upper-limb pain (one study each), and 14 of the 15 studies had a high risk of bias. A 2025 Cochrane update on work breaks found that additional breaks may make little or no difference to new neck or back pain, though the certainty was very low (9 trials, 626 workers).
A 2026 Cochrane news release on workplace ergonomics in general (training, sit-stand desks and equipment, not one product type) quotes its lead author. People with pain may still choose to adjust their setup.
"Our findings suggest that, on current evidence, these measures alone shouldn't be expected to reduce pain or sick leave in the short term." — Dr Poonam Mehta, lead author, University of Technology Sydney, Little evidence that common workplace ergonomics help with pain (Cochrane news release), October 2026
That does not mean your setup is irrelevant. It means you should fix obvious strain, then look at the rest of the picture: how long you type, how often you move and what else is going on in your hands.
| What | What the evidence says | Evidence label |
|---|---|---|
| Arm supports | Results are inconsistent | mixed evidence |
| Alternative mice | Results are inconsistent | mixed evidence |
| Extra breaks | 2018 review: very low-quality evidence of less discomfort; 2025 review: may make little or no difference to neck or back pain, very low certainty | little research |
| Training alone | No clear effect found | little research |
| Chair, desk and monitor adjustments | Given as guidance by OSHA and CCOHS; in the Cochrane review, workstation adjustment and sit-stand desks (one study each) showed no effect on upper-limb pain | little research |
How do I set chair and desk height?
Start with the chair. CCOHS says to keep both feet flat on the floor, or use a footrest if they do not reach. Set the backrest to fit the hollow of your lower back. If the armrests lift your elbows, remove them.
Then set the work surface. Your elbows should be bent about 90 degrees, and CCOHS accepts 90 to 110. OSHA gives 90 to 120 degrees. Your forearms should be roughly level with the floor and your shoulders relaxed. If the desk is too high for that, raise the chair and use a footrest. If it is too low, raise the desk.
Where should the keyboard and mouse go?
Put the keyboard directly in front of you, near the front edge of the desk but not on it. Keep your hands, wrists and forearms in a straight line. Do not rest your wrists on the desk edge while you type, because CCOHS warns that the pressure may add to contact stress.
The German federal occupational safety agency BAuA describes why awkward positions matter (translated from German):
"In general, extreme joint angles, especially at the wrist and in the fingers, long static postures and arm-holding work put strain on employees' bodies." (translated from German) — Bettina Lafrenz, human factors and ergonomics, Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (BAuA), Hand-Arm-Belastung bei Computerarbeit: Auf die Haltung kommt es an, Sicherheitsbeauftragter, September 2020
Keep the mouse next to the keyboard so you do not reach. CCOHS notes that a shorter keyboard (about 14 inches instead of 18) frees about 4 inches beside it for the mouse. Reaching past easy range can cause discomfort. If a full-size keyboard with a number pad pushes your mouse away, a shorter keyboard may help.
Keyboard and mouse type matter too. See the keyboard guide and the mouse guide.
Where should the monitor go?
OSHA says to put the top of the screen at or slightly below eye level. Center it about 15 to 20 degrees below your eye line. Sit about 20 to 40 inches (50 to 100 cm) away. CCOHS gives arm's length as a good starting point. Do not put the monitor on top of a computer case, which is usually too high.
If the text is hard to read, make it bigger instead of moving the screen closer. If you wear bifocals or progressive lenses, a slightly lower screen may be more comfortable. CCOHS adds that a screen set too high can cause neck and shoulder problems.
What about laptops?
A laptop joins the screen and the keyboard. If the screen is at eye level, the keyboard is too high for your wrists. If the keyboard is at the right height, the screen is too low. None of the sources used for this page gives laptop numbers, so this is our reasoning from the rules above, not a sourced recommendation. One way to apply them is a separate keyboard and mouse, with the laptop raised on a stand or books so the top of the screen is near eye level. A physio or occupational therapist can check what suits you.
Should I stand, and should I change position?
Changing position matters more than finding one perfect position. OSHA says even good posture becomes harmful when held too long, so vary your position through the day. It suggests small chair adjustments, stretching your hands and arms, and standing or walking for a few minutes.
A sit-stand desk makes this easier. CCOHS says recommendations range from sitting for about an hour and standing for about 5 minutes to switching every 20 to 60 minutes. Standing too long can cause foot, knee, hip and back problems. When you stand, set the desk near your standing elbow height so your wrists stay straight.
What about lighting and glare?
Place the monitor at a right angle to a window. Tilt the screen 10 to 20 degrees so ceiling lights do not reflect in it. Brightness and contrast should be easy to adjust.
Quick checklist
| Check | Aim for |
|---|---|
| Feet | Flat on the floor or on a footrest |
| Elbows | About 90 to 110 degrees, close to your body |
| Wrists | Straight, in line with the forearms, not resting on the desk edge |
| Keyboard | Directly in front, near the front edge |
| Mouse | Next to the keyboard, no reaching |
| Screen top | At or just below eye level |
| Screen distance | About 20 to 40 inches (50 to 100 cm) |
| Glare | Screen at right angles to windows, tilted 10 to 20 degrees |
| Position | Change it often, stand or walk for a few minutes |
Can my employer help with the setup?
Often yes. The NHS says an occupational therapist can suggest changes to your workspace, and it suggests speaking to your employer about ways they can help you keep working, such as changing how you work or reducing your hours. Ask your manager or occupational health team. Our page on working with RSI explains how to ask.
Can I type less instead of only fixing the desk?
A setup changes how you type. Typing less changes how much you type. Dictop is a dictation app for Mac, iPhone and iPad. Its speech models run on your device. It has a 30-day free trial, then costs US $6.99 once with no subscription (US App Store; regional prices vary). You can use it to draft longer text by voice and rest your hands, or keep working while you recover. It does not treat or prevent pain. See Dictop for Mac and Dictop for iPhone and iPad.
Where to go next
By Dictop · Reviewed