First off, note we only mentioned digital connections thus far. Don’t even bother with VGA. While desktop PCs still support the format, it’s for legacy purposes only. Your multiple monitor setup relies on HDMI and DisplayPort. The latter is especially well-suited to having several monitors at once. Since DisplayPort version 1.2, daisy chaining monitors has been possible.
What’s daisy chaining? It means you have a single DisplayPort cable from your PC to one master monitor, and then DisplayPort cables from the master monitor to any additional screens. In other words, only one monitor needs to be directly linked to your PC with DisplayPort. With HDMI, each monitor needs an HDMI cable to your PC. You can freely combine HDMI, DisplayPort, and DVI. One monitor can be HDMI, the other DisplayPort and so forth.
Video connections are one thing, but remember your extra monitors won’t run themselves. Each requires a power connection, obviously. Make sure you’re comfortable with having the added cabling around, and the slightly higher electric bills you’ll be getting.
If you find your PC only has one usable video port you may be tempted to employ a splitter. Those work but may introduce compatibility and bandwidth issues. You won’t get the best image performance with a splitter, so we advise against using them.