Refresh Rate Test
How to test your refresh rate
- The test starts on its own and measures for two seconds.
- The measured rate appears in Hz, with the frame time and how steady the frames are.
- Click Measure again after changing a setting, or show the moving bar to see the smoothness for yourself.
Frequently asked questions
How is the rate measured?
By timing how long the browser takes between animation frames and using the median gap, which ignores the odd late frame. A browser draws at the refresh rate of the screen it is on, so that gap is the refresh interval.
Why is it slightly off, like 59.9 Hz?
Because display clocks are not exact round numbers and the measurement is averaged over a short run. A reading within about 1 Hz of a standard rate means the screen is running at that rate.
Why is it lower than my monitor is set to?
Common causes: the window is on a second screen with a lower rate, the browser window is not focused, a power-saving or battery mode has reduced the rate, or a browser setting is capping frames. Some laptops also drop the panel to 60 Hz on battery.
Does a higher refresh rate matter?
For moving images, yes: 120 Hz halves the time a frame sits on screen compared with 60 Hz, which makes scrolling and games look smoother and reduces motion blur. For still text it makes no difference.
What does the spread between frames mean?
The difference between the slowest and fastest frames in the run, leaving out the extremes. A low number means a steady rate; a large one means frames are being dropped, which feels like stutter.