How to adjust the IPD on Meta Quest 3: VR hard to focus on, makes you dizzy? Try this!

Meta Quest 3 is the Facebook company's latest and greatest VR (virtual reality) headset. We covered all you may want to know about it in our Quest 3 review, but what you should put some extra attention to is setting up your IPD correctly, before you start playing.

If you don't, and instead just immediately put on your new Quest 3 and launch some games, you'll likely have a bad time. Without setting the IPD on your VR headset correctly first, your eyes will have a harder time focusing, and your brain will have a harder time getting "tricked" into thinking your VR experiences are real.

If you get dizzy playing the Quest 3, or uncomfortable in a way that you can't exactly describe, it could be due to your headset being set to the wrong IPD.

So let's fix that, and make sure you have the best VR experience possible, on your new Quest 3!

What's IPD on VR headsets, and why is it super important?

IPD stands for interpupillary distance, and basically – it's the distance between the centers of your eyes. VR headsets are usually designed to have adjustable IPD for their lenses, in order to be able to match most people's interpupillary distance.

If a VR headset is not set to an IPD that matches yours, you might start feeling uncomfortable wearing it, due to your eyes having a hard time focusing. That's why it's very important to take a few seconds to measure your IPD, and set your Quest 3 to what yours is, before you fire it off and start playing for hours.

The great news is that the Quest 3 is a huge improvement over the Quest 2 when it comes to that, as it now has an IPD wheel on the bottom left side. But first…

How to measure your IPD for VR

There are various ways you can measure the distance between the centers of your eyes at home. It's best to ask someone to use a ruler or a tape measure and do it for you, although doing it alone with the help of a mirror works too.

If you're measuring your IPD on your own – stand in front of a mirror, and align the ruler's zero mark with the center of your eye. Then note the millimeter mark on your other eye (e.g. 68 mm), and that's your IPD.

Of course, the best method is to ask an eye care professional to measure your IPD for you, which would likely give you the most accurate number. But even if you have a rough estimate, give or take a few millimeters, you should be good to go.

How to set the IPD on the Meta Quest 3

As mentioned earlier, the Quest 3 conveniently has an IPD wheel on the bottom left side of the headset. Make a mental note of where it is, before you put on your headset.

Then put it on, and turn it on if it doesn't start automatically. Proceed to turn the IPD wheel, and you'll see numbers popping up on screen. Those numbers are the IPD the Quest 3's lenses are currently set to.

Keep adjusting, until you reach a number that matches your IPD, or at least – it's the closest possible.

Once you reach your IPD, stop turning the wheel, and you're good to go.

It's worth noting that the Quest 3 has an IPD range of 53-75 mm, so if the distance between your eyes happens to be outside of that, you'll have to settle for the closest number.

In any case, you can now have a far more comfortable VR experience, and enjoy your AR/VR games for hours on end, hopefully without any discomfort! Enjoy!

What if someone else wants to use my Quest 3?

They'll have to go through the same process – measure their IPD, then set the Quest 3 to that. It's unfortunate, having to change the IPD on the Quest every time a different person uses it, but that's just how it is – we all have different faces, with different distances between our eyes.

But again, it's important for everyone using any VR headset, be it the Quest 3, or Quest 2, to make sure the IPD is correctly set for them before they play, especially if they'll be doing it for a while.

Also check out:

• Meta Quest 3 review
• Best Quest 2 games