A monitor arm that slowly sinks over the course of a day, or won't hold position at all, is one of the most common complaints in our monitor arm buying guide comments and reviews. The fix depends entirely on which of three causes is actually happening — and they're easy to tell apart once you know what to check.
Gas-spring arms are tuned to a weight range, not just a maximum. If your monitor is at or below the low end of that range, the spring's upward force is stronger than the monitor's downward pull, so it drifts upward — or, on some designs, the imbalance causes drift downward instead depending on the arm's construction. Either direction, the underlying cause is the same: mismatch between spring tension and monitor weight.
Most gas-spring arms include a tension adjustment screw, typically on the underside of the main joint, accessed with an included hex key. Turning it clockwise usually increases resistance (compensating for a lighter monitor), counter-clockwise decreases it. Adjust in small increments and test — over-tightening makes the arm stiff to move rather than fixing drift, and can strain the mechanism over time.
Gas springs lose a small amount of pressure over years of use even under normal conditions, which is why an arm that held position fine for two years can start drifting without any change in your monitor. Tension screw adjustment can compensate for a while, but once the screw is at its maximum and drift continues, the spring itself has reached the end of its useful life. At that point, the arm needs replacing — the spring isn't a separately replaceable part on most consumer models.
If the arm only moves after being bumped, or feels loose at a specific pivot point rather than sinking evenly, the cause is more likely a loosened joint bolt than spring tension. Most arms have a tightening bolt at each pivot (separate from the main tension screw) — check your arm's manual for the joint tightening points, since these are less commonly discussed than the main tension adjustment but are a distinct and separately fixable issue.
Replace rather than continue adjusting if: the tension screw is maxed out and drift continues, the arm has visible cracks or bent components, or the monitor has changed to something significantly heavier or lighter than what the arm was rated for. Attempting to compensate for a monitor far outside an arm's rated range with tension adjustment alone usually fails and can wear the mechanism faster.
This is almost always the gas spring losing tension relative to your monitor's weight, either because the monitor is near or below the arm's rated minimum weight, or because the spring has weakened with age.
Often yes. Most gas-spring arms have a tension adjustment screw, usually accessed with an included hex key, that can be tightened to compensate for a lighter monitor or a spring that has loosened slightly with age.
It can be if the drooping is sudden or severe rather than gradual — a joint that fails to hold any position suggests worn internal components and the monitor could fall. Gradual drift over hours is a tension issue, not usually a structural failure risk.
The practical version: gradual drift is almost always fixable with the tension screw; a joint that won't hold position at all, or visible damage, means it's time to replace rather than keep adjusting.
A drooping arm changes your monitor's height gradually — see how that affects eye strain and correct positioning.
What might change: tension screw location and adjustment direction vary by manufacturer — this describes the common gas-spring design pattern, not a specific model. Always check your arm's manual for exact instructions.