What is XGA resolution?

XGA (Extended Graphics Array) resolution is 1024 pixels wide by 768 pixels tall, totaling 786,432 pixels per frame at a 4:3 aspect ratio. IBM introduced the XGA standard in 1990 to supersede VGA (640x480) and SVGA (800x600).

What does XGA stand for?

XGA stands for Extended Graphics Array. The "extended" refers to the expanded resolution over the original VGA (Video Graphics Array) standard, roughly doubling the pixel count in each dimension.

What aspect ratio does XGA use?

XGA uses a 4:3 aspect ratio (1024/768 = 1.333...). On modern 16:9 widescreen displays, XGA content appears with vertical black bars (pillarboxing) unless the display stretches or crops the image.

How many pixels does XGA have?

XGA has 1024 x 768 = 786,432 pixels per frame. That is 2.56 times more than VGA (307,200), but only about 85% of 720p HD (921,600), and roughly 38% of Full HD 1080p (2,073,600).

Is XGA still used today?

Yes. XGA remains the default native resolution for many business projectors and portable projectors because the 4:3 format matches older slide decks and whiteboards. Budget monitors, industrial HMIs, and certain rugged tablets also ship with XGA panels.

What refresh rates does XGA support?

The original IBM XGA standard ran at 75 Hz for 1024x768. The later VESA XGA mode standardized 60 Hz and 75 Hz, with some monitors supporting 85 Hz at this resolution. Pixel clocks of 65 MHz (60 Hz) and 78.75 MHz (75 Hz) are most common.

SXGA (1280x1024) and WXGA (1280x800) followed XGA in the early 2000s. As widescreen panels took over, 1280x720 (HD Ready) and 1920x1080 (Full HD) became mainstream, and XGA was relegated to budget and specialized hardware.

XGA Resolution Reference

Quick-reference specs for the XGA resolution (1024x768) with an interactive PPI calculator and comparison against VGA, HD, Full HD, and 4K.

Resolution

1024 x 768

pixels (W x H)

Total Pixels

786,432

per frame

Aspect Ratio

4:3

fullscreen

Standard Name

XGA

Extended Graphics Array

Pixel Density Calculator

Enter the diagonal screen size to find the PPI of an XGA (1024x768) display.

inches

Common Examples

15-inch XGA laptop 85 PPI

17-inch XGA CRT monitor 75 PPI

10-inch projector screen (small) 128 PPI

Technical Specifications

Common VESA XGA signal parameters for 1024x768.

Parameter	Value
Refresh rate	60 / 75 Hz
Pixel clock (60 Hz)	65.000 MHz
Pixel clock (75 Hz)	78.750 MHz
Horizontal sync	48.363 kHz
Color depth	up to 24-bit
Signal type	Analog / Digital
Scan type	Progressive

Resolution Comparison

How XGA stacks up against other common display standards.

Standard	Width	Height	Total Pixels	vs XGA	Label
VGA	640	480	307,200	0.39x	VGA
SVGA	800	600	480,000	0.61x	SVGA
XGA	1024	768	786,432	1x	Baseline
SXGA	1280	1024	1,310,720	1.67x	SXGA
720p (HD)	1280	720	921,600	1.17x	HD Ready
1080p (Full HD)	1920	1080	2,073,600	2.64x	Full HD
4K (UHD)	3840	2160	8,294,400	10.55x	Ultra HD

Quick Facts

Introduced by: IBM (1990)
Aspect ratio: 4:3
Scan type: Progressive
Standard refresh rate: 60 Hz / 75 Hz
Pixel diagonal: 1280 px
Uncompressed data rate (24-bit): ~1.14 Gbps @ 60 fps
Preceded by: VGA (640x480), SVGA (800x600)
Succeeded by: SXGA, WXGA (early 2000s)

Summary

XGA (Extended Graphics Array) is a display resolution standard introduced by IBM in 1990, defining a resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels at a 4:3 aspect ratio — 786,432 total pixels per frame. It succeeded VGA and SVGA as the dominant desktop resolution through the 1990s and early 2000s, and remains widely used in projectors, budget laptops, and embedded displays today. This reference consolidates all key XGA specs, pixel density calculations, and a resolution comparison table so you always have the numbers at hand.

How it works

Read the spec card for the essential XGA numbers at a glance.
Enter your screen diagonal in inches to calculate the pixel density (PPI) of an XGA display.
Review the comparison table to see how XGA relates to VGA, HD, Full HD, and 4K.
Browse the Quick Facts section for historical context and technical details.

Use cases

Configuring projectors that default to XGA (1024x768) output.
Setting up legacy monitors, thin clients, or industrial panel displays.
Checking PPI when repurposing an older 4:3 monitor or laptop screen.
Verifying XGA compatibility for presentation software and slide layouts.
Teaching or explaining the progression of PC display resolution standards.
Designing UI layouts that must support minimum 1024x768 viewports.
Comparing bandwidth and storage requirements when downscaling video to XGA.
Understanding why 4:3 XGA content has black bars on widescreen displays.

Frequently Asked Questions

Last updated: 2026-06-13 · Reviewed by Nham Vu