Two different brands here go out of their way, in brackets and capitals, to tell you the same thing: the filter does nothing about the person sitting behind you. Not at any distance. It blacks out the view from the sides and leaves your screen perfectly legible to whoever is in seat 14B looking over your shoulder. Five of the nine listings in this search say so. They presumably got tired of the returns.
At a glance
| Filter | Size, fixing and what it publishes | Price tier | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| Magicmoon 15.6in | 16:9, slide or mount. Best seller. Names the wavelengths | Budget | |
| SightPro 16in | 16:10, adhesive or slide. TAA compliant. Cheap | Budget | |
| SightPro 14in 16:9 | 16:9. Not for MacBooks, and says so | Mid-range | |
| SightPro 14in 16:10 | 16:10. Costs triple its own bigger filter | Mid-range | |
| Peslv 15.6in | 16:9, magnetic. Claims 95% blue light | Mid-range | |
| Peslv 16in | 16:10, magnetic. Same width as the 15.6in | Mid-range | |
| Kensington MagPro | 16:10, magnetic. The laptop still closes | Premium | |
How to choose
It does not stop the person behind you
This is what a privacy filter is and is not. It uses microscopic vertical louvres, like a Venetian blind on its side, so light leaves the screen towards you and not sideways. Anyone off to the left or right sees black. Anyone directly behind you sees your email perfectly, from any distance, forever. Two brands here state that explicitly and one of them puts it in capitals. If your worry is the seat behind you on a plane, this product does not address it and it is plain enough to say so.
Thirty degrees and sixty degrees are the same number
Three brands quote a viewing angle and they look like two different products. One says blackout outside a 60-degree viewing angle. Another says it filters sight outside 30 degrees left and right. A third says plus or minus 30 degrees. Add them up and every single one is 60 degrees of total visibility, 30 either side of center. They are describing an identical cone in three notations. Nobody on this page is offering a narrower angle than anybody else, whatever the number looks like.
Never order by the diagonal, and here is the proof
Every brand here tells you to measure your screen rather than trust its diagonal, and the data on this page shows exactly why. A 15.6 inch 16:9 filter measures 344 millimeters wide. A 16 inch 16:10 filter measures 344.5 millimeters wide. That is the same width on two filters advertised half an inch apart. What differs is the height: 194 millimeters against 215. So the number on the box tells you almost nothing, and a ruler across the visible glass tells you everything.
The blue light claims run from 30 percent to 95
Same product category, same job, three times the number. Magicmoon says 30 percent and then does something nobody else does: it names the band, 380 to 495 nanometers, which is what blue light actually means. Peslv says 95 percent with no band attached. Two other brands mention blue light and publish nothing at all. A smaller number with a wavelength behind it is worth more than a bigger number with nothing, because at least you can check what was measured.
Magnetic or adhesive decides how often you use it
The cheap filters attach with clear adhesive strips or slide-mount tabs, both of which mean fiddling every time. The magnetic ones snap on and lift off in a second, which is the difference between a filter you use on the train and a filter that lives in a drawer. Two brands here are magnetic. One of them adds a storage clip so the filter travels in your bag rather than getting bent. If you will take it on and off daily, this is the whole decision.
Will your laptop still close?
A filter thick enough to work is usually thick enough to hold the lid open, which means removing it every time you pack up. Kensington is the only listing here that addresses it, saying its slim magnetic strip lets the laptop close and enter sleep with the filter still attached. Nobody else mentions the lid at all. It is the sort of thing you only discover on the fourth day, and it is why filters end up unused.
Magicmoon 15.6in
The best-selling filter in this search by a wide margin and the cheapest, and the listing works harder than the price suggests. It publishes exact dimensions, 344 by 194 millimeters, and then tells you plainly to use a ruler on the visible area rather than trusting the diagonal. It says not for 16:10 in the title and again in the first bullet. And its blue light claim is the only one with a wavelength attached: 30 percent, across 380 to 495 nanometers. It attaches by sliding or mounting.
Pros:
- The best seller here by a distance, and the cheapest
- The only blue light claim with a wavelength band attached
- Tells you to use a ruler, not the diagonal
- Says not for 16:10 twice; publishes exact dimensions
Cons:
- 30 percent blue light, against a rival’s claimed 95
- Slide or adhesive; not magnetic
- Not touchscreen compatible, as it says three times
Best for: a 16:9 laptop, cheaply, from the listing that measured.
SightPro 16in
The bargain of this page and an oddity: it is SightPro’s largest filter and it costs roughly a third of SightPro’s own 14 inch models, same bullets, same company. It measures 344.5 by 215.6 millimeters for a 16:10 screen, comes with both adhesive strips and slide mounts plus a cloth, and it carries the one thing nobody else here offers: Section 889 and TAA compliance, which is what a government contractor’s procurement team will ask about before anything else on this page.
Pros:
- Section 889 and TAA compliant; unique here
- Costs about a third of SightPro’s own smaller filters
- Both adhesive strips and slide mounts in the box
- States that it does not block the view from behind
Cons:
- Not for MacBooks or touchscreens, as it says
- No blue light figure published
- Adhesive or slide only; not magnetic
Best for: government and corporate procurement, cheaply.
SightPro 14in 16:9
The 16:9 version at 310 by 175 millimeters, with the same two attachment options, the same cloth, and the same TAA and Section 889 compliance. Its exclusions are the useful part and it names them in brackets: not optimized for touchscreens, not compatible with MacBooks, and it does not block visibility directly behind you regardless of distance. Three real limits stated up front. SightPro also says it is US-based and sells to government and educational institutions, which is presumably where the compliance came from.
Pros:
- Names three limits plainly, including MacBooks
- Section 889 and TAA compliant
- Adhesive strips and slide mounts both included
- Publishes exact dimensions in millimeters
Cons:
- Costs well over double its own 16 inch filter
- No blue light or viewing angle figure published
- Not magnetic
Best for: a 16:9 work laptop, if compliance matters.
SightPro 14in 16:10
The 16:10 version at 304 by 190 millimeters for a 14.1 inch diagonal, and the most expensive SightPro here, which is strange because it is also the smallest. Everything else carries over: two attachment options, a microfiber cloth, the TAA and Section 889 compliance, and the frank note that nothing here stops the person behind you. Unlike its siblings it does not warn about MacBooks, which may be an omission rather than a difference. Check the 16 inch price before you commit to this one.
Pros:
- Correct 16:10 geometry, published to the millimeter
- Section 889 and TAA compliant
- Two attachment options and a cloth included
- Real that it does not block the view from behind
Cons:
- The most expensive SightPro here, and the smallest
- Roughly triple the price of the brand’s 16 inch filter
- No blue light or angle figure published
Best for: a 14 inch 16:10 screen, after checking the other prices.
Peslv 15.6in
Magnetic, which changes everything about whether you actually use it: hold it near the screen and it snaps on, lift it off in a second, and a storage clip keeps it flat in your bag rather than creased in a pocket. It is 345 by 194 millimeters for a 16:9 screen, matte and anti-glare, and Peslv claims 95 percent blue light and 92 percent UV reduction, with no band named. It filters 30 degrees left and right, and states plainly that it will not stop anyone in front. Lifetime warranty.
Pros:
- Magnetic; on and off in a second
- Storage clip so it travels flat, not creased
- Lifetime warranty; cleaning kit and cloth included
- States it will not block the view from the front
Cons:
- 95 percent blue light with no wavelength band named
- Its 30 degrees is the same cone everyone else offers
- No mention of whether the lid still closes
Best for: a filter you take on and off every day.
Peslv 16in
The 16:10 version at the same price, and holding it up against its 15.6 inch sibling proves the point of this whole page. This filter is 344.68 millimeters wide. The 15.6 inch one is 345. They are the same width, half an inch of diagonal apart, and what actually differs is the height, 215 against 194. Order by the diagonal and you get a filter 21 millimeters wrong in one direction and perfect in the other. Same magnets, same storage clip, same lifetime warranty.
Pros:
- Magnetic with a storage clip; the same easy fixing
- Correct 16:10 height, published to two decimals
- Lifetime warranty; four adhesive magnets included
- Says plainly it will not stop the view from the front
Cons:
- Same width as its 15.6 inch sibling; order by height
- 95 percent blue light with no band named
- No mention of whether the lid still closes
Best for: a 16:10 laptop, magnetically, once you have measured.
Kensington MagPro
Several times the price of everything else and it earns it on one sentence nobody else writes: the slim magnetic strip lets your laptop close and enter sleep with the filter still on. That is the difference between a filter you leave attached and one you take off and lose. It is also reversible, matte on one side for glare and fingerprints, glossy on the other for clarity, so it is two filters. Patented magnetic attachment, plus or minus 30 degrees, and it suits edge-to-edge displays.
Pros:
- The only filter that lets the laptop close and sleep
- Reversible: matte for glare, glossy for clarity
- Works on slim-bezel and edge-to-edge displays
- Patented magnetic strip; publishes exact dimensions
Cons:
- Several times the price of everything else here
- No blue light figure published, despite claiming reduction
- 14 inch 16:10 only
Best for: leaving it on the laptop permanently.
The verdict
These stop the view from the sides and nothing else, which two brands here say in capitals. Every viewing angle on this page is the same 60 degree cone written three ways. And the diagonal on the box is useless: a 15.6 inch filter and a 16 inch filter here are the same width and differ only in height. Get a ruler on the visible glass first.
Best overall: Magicmoon 15.6in. The best seller in this search by a wide margin, at a price that makes it hard to argue with, and the listing does the two real things nobody else manages together. It tells you to measure with a ruler rather than trusting the diagonal, and it is the only blue light claim on this page with a wavelength band behind it: 30 percent across 380 to 495 nanometers. A smaller number you can check beats a bigger one you cannot.
Best value: SightPro 16in. Section 889 and TAA compliant, which is the only thing a government or contractor procurement team will care about, for roughly a third of what SightPro charges for its own smaller filters and a fraction of the premium option. Adhesive strips and slide mounts both in the box, exact dimensions published, and it tells you plainly what it cannot do.
Best premium: Kensington MagPro. It costs several times its rivals and it buys one thing they cannot: the laptop closes and goes to sleep with the filter still attached, which is the difference between a filter that lives on your screen and one that lives in a drawer. It is also reversible, matte on one face for glare and glossy on the other for clarity, so it is two filters in one.
FAQ
Will it stop the person behind me on a plane?
No. Two brands here say so directly, one in capitals: it blocks the view from left and right, and does nothing about anyone in front of the screen at any distance. If that is your worry, this is the wrong product.
Is 30 degrees better than 60?
They are the same. Thirty degrees left and right is a 60 degree cone, and plus or minus 30 is that same cone again. All three brands quoting an angle here are describing identical performance in three notations.
Can I order by my laptop’s screen size?
No, and every brand on this page says so. A 15.6 inch 16:9 filter is 344 millimeters wide; a 16 inch 16:10 filter is 344.5. Same width, different heights. Measure the visible glass, excluding the bezel, in both directions.
Which blue light claim is real?
Unclear, and the range should worry you: 30 percent from one brand, 95 from another, nothing from two more. Only the 30 percent figure comes with a wavelength band attached, at 380 to 495 nanometers, which is the only claim here you could actually check.
Will my laptop still close with it on?
Only one filter here says so. Kensington’s slim magnetic strip is designed to let the lid shut and the machine sleep with the filter attached. Nobody else mentions the lid, which is exactly how filters end up in drawers.
This article may contain affiliate links; see our Affiliate Disclosure.