With the release of the TRMNL X, we officially support portrait mode for our native plugins and require compatibility for all community recipes released since January 17, 2026, however hundreds of plugins published prior were updated to support the layout.
To change your device's orientation, go to your Device Settings > Color & Rotation > Screen Rotation (quick link for your current device)
Change the setting to Portrait and save.
Once changed, the backend screen generator still needs to generate screens of your playlist items in the new orientation. This will happen automatically based on the plugin's refresh rate, or for private plugins and installed recipes you can use the Force Refresh feature on the plugin's settings page to expedite the process.
I Don't See the Screen Rotation Option
If it is not present, your device does not currently support portrait mode. This is most common with smaller screen sizes, like the TRMNL OG or smaller.
Using CSS to mimic portrait mode
This section is being kept for reference only and is NOT recommended.
First, build a plugin. This can be a Recipe, private plugin, or third party instance. Learn more about each type here.
Next, inside your markup, simply add the transform CSS declaration like so:
transform: rotate(90deg);
Here's some working sample code:
<style>
div#content {
transform: rotate(270deg);
}
</style>
<div id="content" class="markdown gap--xsmall">
<span class="title">First Time Around</span>
<div style="width: 390px;">
<p><i><b>First Time Around</b></i> is a one-disk DVD by Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings recorded in 2006 at CBC Studios in Toronto, Canada, by CBC. It was originally shown on CBC in April 2006, but was later released as a DVD with extended footage of the concert. The concert has 20 tracks of songs by Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Burton Cummings, The Guess Who and cover versions of artists such as Sting and Jimi Hendrix. It was originally shown on CBC in April 2006, but was later released as a DVD with extended footage of the concert. The concert has 20 tracks of songs by Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Burton Cummings, The Guess Who and cover versions of artists such as Sting and Jimi Hendrix Sting and Jimi Hendrix. It was originally shown on CBC in April 2006, but was later released as a DVD with extended footage of the concert. The concert has 20 tracks of songs by Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Burton Cummings, The Guess Who and cover versions of artists such as Sting and Jimi Hendrix Sting and Jimi Hendrix. It was originally shown on CBC in April 2006, but was later released as a DVD with extended footage of the concert. The concert has 20 tracks of songs by Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Burton Cummings, The Guess Who and cover versions of artists such as Sting and Jimi Hendrix.</p>
</div>
</div>
Which looks like this in TRMNL's live preview markup editor:
And here's the completed render:
