Refresh rate test

What your monitor is running at right now, measured in three seconds. Keep this tab in front while it measures. Nothing to install, and nothing is sent anywhere.

Your display is refreshing at

… Hz

Measuring…

The refresh rate is one of many settings left wrong.

Bottleneck checks each monitor’s rate against the highest it supports, and the rest of what holds a PC back: memory below its rated speed, Resizable BAR and GPU scheduling left off, heat. Then, while you play, it records which part set the pace in every frame. The free version has no time limit and needs no account.

Download free for Windows Which graphics card do I have?

If it says 60 Hz on a faster monitor

A monitor sold as 144 Hz or faster runs at 60 until Windows is told otherwise, and many never are. Every game on it is then held to 60 frames a second, however fast the PC.

  1. Set the rate in Windows. Settings, System, Display, Advanced display, then choose the highest rate under Choose a refresh rate. On Windows 10 it is Display adapter properties, Monitor.
  2. Check the cable and the port. Older HDMI cables and ports stop at 60 Hz at higher resolutions. DisplayPort, or the cable that came with the monitor, usually unlocks the full rate.
  3. Plug into the graphics card. On a desktop, a monitor plugged into the motherboard runs on the processor’s built-in graphics, often at 60 Hz, and games run there too.
  4. Check the monitor’s own menu. Some models ship with their highest rate or overclock switched off.

The monitor stuck at 60 Hz guide goes through each step in detail.

Why the number can differ from what you expect

  • Two monitors: the test measures the screen this window is on. Drag the window to the other one and press Measure again.
  • Battery saver: laptops and phones often hold the browser at 60 Hz or lower to save power. Plug in, or switch battery saver off, and measure again.
  • iPhone and iPad: Safari normally draws web pages at up to 60 frames a second, even on a 120 Hz ProMotion screen, so it reads 60 here.
  • G-Sync and FreeSync: a variable refresh rate display can follow the browser instead of its own top rate. A reading that changes from one run to the next is usually this.
  • A busy PC: if the browser misses frames, the test says so. Close other tabs and measure again.

Questions

Does the refresh rate change my FPS?

Not what the PC renders, but what you see. A 60 Hz screen shows at most 60 frames a second, so a game running at 140 looks no smoother than one at 60. With V-Sync on, the game is also held to the screen’s rate. That is why a monitor left at 60 Hz can look like a slow PC.

What refresh rate is good for gaming?

144 Hz is the usual step up from 60, and most people notice it at once. 240 Hz and above mainly help fast competitive games, and only if the PC can reach those frame rates — which depends on the processor more than anything. The bottleneck calculator shows which part sets the pace for yours.

How accurate is this test?

It times a few hundred frames and takes the typical one, so a missed frame does not drag it down; the result is rounded to the rate a display is sold at when it is within 3% of one. It shows the rate the display is running at, not the highest it supports: only Windows and the monitor know that, which is what Bottleneck reads.