What is refresh rate?

Refresh rate is the number of times per second a monitor redraws the image on screen, measured in hertz (Hz). A 60Hz display refreshes 60 times per second, while gaming monitors commonly run at 120Hz, 144Hz, or 240Hz. Higher refresh rates produce smoother motion, reduced motion blur, and more responsive visuals, which is especially noticeable during fast-paced gameplay, scrolling, and cursor movement.

The refresh rate advertised by a monitor's manufacturer is its maximum capability, but the actual rate delivered depends on the cable, GPU output settings, operating system configuration, and browser rendering pipeline. Testing the real-world refresh rate helps confirm that a display is running at the rate you expect.

Tool description

This monitor refresh rate tester measures your display's actual refresh rate directly in the browser by sampling animation frame timings over time. It continuously tracks the interval between frames and calculates the effective frequency in Hz, along with the minimum and maximum values observed during the session.

How it works

The tool uses the browser's animation frame callback, which fires in sync with your display's refresh cycle. By measuring the time elapsed between consecutive frames over a rolling window of samples, it computes an average frame interval and converts it into a frequency reading in Hz. Implausible values, such as those caused by the browser tab being hidden or the system pausing rendering, are automatically filtered out to keep the reading accurate.

Features

  • Live Hz reading: Continuously updated refresh rate measurement while the page is open
  • Session min/max tracking: Displays the lowest and highest Hz values recorded during your test
  • No installation required: Runs entirely in the browser with no downloads or plugins

Tips

  • Keep the browser tab active and in focus while testing, since backgrounded tabs can throttle or pause rendering
  • If the reading seems capped at 60Hz on a higher refresh-rate monitor, check that your OS display settings and GPU driver are configured for the correct refresh rate
  • Run the test for at least a few seconds to let the readings stabilize before checking the min/max values