Black Line on Laptop Screen HP: Common Causes and Quick Fixes

Seeing a black line on the HP laptop screen is a common problem for many users, which can be very frustrating and distracting as it disrupts your workflow, gaming, or other activities. It may appear as a thin vertical line or horizontal black lines on the screen.

This problem usually shows up immediately after a system update, when connecting external monitors. Most times, it just happens without any clear reason. In this blog post, we’ll get to know why there’s a black line on your HP laptop screen, possible causes, and how to fix it.

In this guide, you’ll discover how to fix a black lines on laptop screen HP, and learn the causes and step by step guide to fix black horizontal/vertical lines on HP, Lenovo and monitors in Windows 10 and 11. We’ll also cover similar problems on Lenovo laptops and external monitors to ensure you get the required information to fix your laptop screen and restore your laptop’s display to normal.

Possible Causes of Black Line on Laptop Screen

So, if you’re one of those people asking, Why is there a black line on my laptop screen? This problem is usually caused by either faulty hardware or software glitches. But below are the main causes

Damaged Screen: The black line on your laptop might be a result of physical damage, which may include a fall, a bump, or pressure, which can permanently damage your LCD.
Faulty or Loose Display Cable: A black line across the monitor or a flickering can be caused by either a faulty or loose connection between the screen and the motherboard.
Graphics Driver Issues: Most times, corrupted or outdated GPU drivers can result in a black horizontal line on your laptop screen.
Refresh Rate Conflicts: This is common in gaming setups where horizontal lines on the monitor at 144Hz appear.
Overheating: Overheating affects the GPU performance and can lead to a HP laptop black screen with vertical lines.

Different instances of black line issues on Laptop Screen

There are different scenarios or cases in which you see a black line on your laptop screen. These lines appear differently depending on the type of laptop or monitor. Let’s quickly discuss the different instances of black lines on the laptop screen.

1. Black Line on Laptop Screen HP

The black line on the HP laptop screen is one of the common instances. These lines might be either horizontal or vertical lines. This usually occurs on Windows 10 and Windows 11. On Windows 10, it usually happens after a graphics update, and this is referred to as a black line on the laptop screen HP Windows 10.

On Windows 11, the black line on the laptop screen issue is mostly caused by issues that occur after adjusting your screen resolutions, which later result in creating a black line on the laptop screen HP Windows 11.

2. Horizontal Black Lines on Laptop Screen

The horizontal black lines on the laptop screen usually appear as a result of a faulty driver or a refresh rate problem. This mostly shows up when playing games, scrolling, or even adjusting your system’s brightness.

3. Black Lines on Lenovo Laptop Screen

Many Lenovo laptop users complain of the black lines on the Lenovo laptop screen, which are usually caused by faulty GPU drivers, damaged screens, or even cable issues. This also happens on many HP laptops.

4. Black Lines across Monitor

When you see a black line across your monitor, it simply means either the HDMI cable or the DisplayPort cable is faulty. So, in this case, you need to check if your cable is loose or not properly connected, because these are usually the cause of such issues.

5. Black Lines on Top and Bottom of Computer Screen

Another common scenario is the black lines on the Top and bottom of the computer, which are usually caused by the wrong mounting of screen or wrong resolution adjustment. This issue is not hardware-related at all.

6. Black Screen Horizontal Lines Issues

Most times, you wake up just to find out that the whole screen is flickering with black horizontal lines. It is usually a horizontal line that happens as a result of overheating or a crashed graphics driver. These are the two main causes of back screen horizontal issues.

7. HP Laptop black screen vertical lines

The vertical black line on your HP laptop screen is an issue usually caused by faulty internal connectors or an issue in the LCD panel.

How to Fix Black Line on Laptop Screen HP

There are various ways to fix these issues, but here are practical step-by-step solutions on how to fix the black line on the laptop screen of HP:

1. Restart your Laptop

The simplest and stress-free method to fix a black line on an HP laptop screen is by restarting the laptop or system. This could be caused by a glitch that can be cleared after restarting. So before attempting any advanced method, restart your system.

2. Check your Display Cable

Your display cable might be loose or not properly fixed, which is one of the main causes of black lines is across the monitor or your laptop screen showing lines. So to resolve this issue, you need to unplug and plug the cable.

3. Reinstall or Update Graphics Drivers

Another way to fix a black line on a laptop screen is to update your graphics driver regularly or reinstall your graphics driver if it is faulty. To update your graphics driver, follow the steps below:

Go to Device Manager by clicking on the Windows key + X.
Click on the arrow on Display adapter to display your graphics card (Eg, Intel (R) HD Graphics 300)
Right click on the graphics card and select “Update Driver”.
If the error persists, then you need to uninstall and install the driver again from either the HP website or the Intel/NVIDIA/AMD website.

4. Adjust Your Refresh Rate

If you eventually notice horizontal lines on your monitor at 144Hz, then this happens as a result of the wrong adjustment of your system’s display resolution. To fix this, follow the steps below:

Right click on your Desktop home page and click on Display settings.
Scroll and select Advanced display settings.
You can lower the refresh rate to either 120Hz, 60Hz, or 40Hz.

Then, if, after this adjustment, the lines still show, then it wasn’t a refresh rate related problem.

5. Test the Display with an External Monitor

Another easy way to fix a black line on an HP laptop screen is by running the Diagnostics. To run diagnostics on your laptop, you need to shut down your system. While starting up, you press the ESC key, choose the Diagnostics option, and run a screen test. If the black lines show up during the test, it means it’s a hardware-related issue.

6. Replace Your LCD Panels

The reason you got a black line on your laptop screen might be a faulty LCD panel. So, if after trying out all the troubleshooting options and the line keeps showing, then you need to replace your LCD panel.

7. Try another Monitor

To confirm if the issue is monitor-related, you need to connect your laptop to an external monitor. If the black line shows in the external monitor, then it is likely a GPU issue; if the line doesn’t appear, that means your laptop’s LCD panel is faulty and needs replacement.

How to Fix Black Horizontal Lines on a Laptop Screen

If the black horizontal lines on the laptop screen are your main issue and you’re searching for how to fix it, then try out these working methods:

Prevent overheating at a cost by using cooling pads, and ensure you regularly clean dust from vents.
Always make sure your GPU drivers are up to date because this is one of the major causes of black screen horizontal flickers.
Adjust your display settings to the right scaling and change your display resolution.
Boot into safe mode to check if the problem is caused by software or not.
Try an external monitor to confirm if it’s a GPU or screen related issue.

How to Prevent Black Lines on Laptop Screen

Here are various methods you can use to get rid of black lines on your laptop screen.

Always handle your laptop with care. Avoid holding the laptop on the screen or on the laptop lid to avoid screen damage.
Ensure your system drivers are regularly updated to prevent black screen vertical lines, especially on HP laptops.
Invest in cooling devices to keep your laptop cool, because overheating can easily lead to display glitches.
Always replace damaged HDMI or DisplayPort cables, because these are the major causes of black lines across the monitor.
Use the perfect resolutions for your laptop’s screen to prevent black lines on the top and bottom of your computer screen.

Conclusion: Black Line on Laptop Screen HP

Most times, getting a black line on your laptop screen can be annoying, but many are ignorant of the simple ways to fix this issue, which include updating drivers, reinstalling cables, or adjusting refresh rate. But if it’s a permanent line, then it is caused by a faulty LCD panel that needs an immediate replacement.

It doesn’t matter if it’s black lines on a Lenovo laptop screen, vertical/horizontal black lines on a laptop screen, or a black line across the monitor; the above-listed fixes will guide you through possible fix options.

But if after trying out all the troubleshooting methods listed, and the issue persist, then you need to consult a professional to help you repair it, rather than causing an issue that will damage other components of the laptop. I believe you now know different methods to fix and prevent black lines on a laptop’s screen.