Your Guide to Dual Screen Streaming with ViewGrid

Dual screen streaming is simply using a second monitor to watch multiple video streams at the same time. This keeps your main screen free for work, a game, or another task. To get started, you just open a web browser like Chrome or Firefox on your second monitor, go to a multi-stream site like ViewGrid, and start adding the streams you want to watch.

This setup is useful when you want to keep an eye on several things without cluttering your primary display. You can have your main activity front and center while a grid of live news, sports, or creator streams runs on the side.

Why Use a Second Monitor for Streams?

While you can split your screen on a single monitor, using a second one gives you much more space and flexibility. It creates a clear separation between what you're actively doing and what you're passively monitoring.

Think of your second screen as a dedicated dashboard. Instead of shrinking your game or work document to make room for a small video window, you can keep that full-screen on your main monitor. The second screen can then be filled entirely with your chosen streams. This is helpful for:

Gaming: Play your game on monitor one while watching your favorite streamer's point-of-view, a tournament broadcast, or your teammates' feeds on monitor two.
Work: Keep your work applications on your main screen and have live news, financial market streams, or industry keynotes running on the other.
* Live Events: Watch the official broadcast of an event like a product launch or awards show on your main screen, and use your second screen to see real-time reactions from multiple creators.

This approach avoids the compromises of picture-in-picture or constantly rearranging windows on one screen. If you're still deciding between using one monitor or two, our article "Split Screen vs. Dual Monitor Streaming: A Guide" breaks down the pros and cons of each method.

How to Set Up Your Streams on a Second Screen

Once you have two monitors connected to your computer, getting a multi-stream grid running is straightforward. This guide uses ViewGrid, which works directly in your browser.

1. Open a Browser on Your Second Monitor
2. Drag your preferred web browser window (like Chrome, Firefox, or Edge) over to your second screen. Maximize it so it fills the display.

1. Go to ViewGrid.tv
2. Navigate to the ViewGrid website in the browser window on your second monitor. You don’t need an account to start building a grid.

1. Add Your Streams
2. In the input box, paste the link to a stream you want to watch. This can be a channel from Twitch, YouTube (live or video), Kick, or Rumble. You can also search for live YouTube streams directly from the search bar. The first stream will appear on the screen.

1. Build Your Grid
2. Continue adding streams by pasting more links. Each one you add will automatically resize to fit the grid. On a desktop computer, you can add up to 20 streams in a single layout. You can choose layouts of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 12, 16, or 20 streams.

1. Control the Audio
2. Every stream you add starts muted. To hear one, just click the speaker icon on that video player. Clicking the speaker icon on another stream will automatically mute the first one and switch the audio source. This lets you quickly jump between conversations or commentary without juggling multiple browser tabs.

1. Open Live Chat
2. If you want to follow the conversation, you can open the live chat for any single Twitch, YouTube, or Kick stream. The chat will appear in a side panel next to your video grid, so you don't have to sacrifice a stream slot to see it.

If you create a layout you plan to use again, you can create a free account to save it. This lets you open your favorite grid of streams with a single click next time.

A Few Practical Tips

Getting the most out of a dual screen setup involves more than just putting videos on a screen. Here are a few things to keep in mind.

Internet and Computer Performance

Watching multiple high-definition streams at once requires a stable internet connection and a reasonably modern computer. If you notice streams are buffering or your computer is slowing down, try reducing the number of streams or lowering the quality of each video in its player settings. A grid of 20 streams will naturally use more resources than a grid of four.

Sharing Your Layout

The web address (URL) in your browser bar automatically updates to include all the streams in your current grid. If you want to share your exact layout with a friend, you can just copy the link and send it to them. When they open it, they’ll see the same streams you have arranged.

Finding Events

For major live events, like gaming tournaments or space launches, you can often find pre-made grids on the Events page. These grids gather the official broadcast and popular co-streams in one place, saving you the time of finding all the links yourself.

Getting Your Grid on a TV Screen

A common question is how to watch a ViewGrid layout on a big-screen TV. ViewGrid is a website and does not have a built-in "cast" button like you might find in the YouTube or Netflix apps.

However, you can still get it on your TV using your device's own features. Here are the most common methods people use:

Use the TV's Web Browser: Most modern smart TVs have a built-in web browser. You can open it and navigate to ViewGrid.tv directly. Using a keyboard and mouse connected to the TV will make this much easier.
Connect a Laptop via HDMI: The most reliable method is to connect a laptop or computer to your TV with an HDMI cable. The TV will act as a second monitor, and you can drag your browser window with the ViewGrid layout onto it.
* Use Screen Mirroring: Many operating systems (like Windows and macOS) and browsers (like Chrome) have built-in screen mirroring or casting functions that can send your entire screen or a browser tab to a compatible TV or device.

These methods rely on the capabilities of your TV and computer, not on a specific ViewGrid feature.

Using a second screen transforms how you watch live content, turning it from a passive activity into a command center. It gives you the space to follow all the action without compromise, and a tool designed for multi-stream viewing makes managing it all simple.