Refresh Rate Calculator
A display’s refresh rate, measured in hertz, is simply how many times per second the screen draws a new image. This calculator works in three directions: it finds refresh rate from a frame count and time interval, converts between hertz and frame time in milliseconds, and applies the broadcast scan-frequency formula engineers use for display signals.
Frame count from a game counter, benchmark, or video clip
The interval those frames were captured over
Refresh rate result
If you fill in both fields, the Hz value takes priority
Time available to render one frame
Conversion result
Horizontal scan frequency of the video signal
Vertical resolution of the display
Scan formula result
Quick Answer
For the pre-filled run of 120 frames over 2 seconds, the refresh rate is 60.00 Hz, each frame gets 16.67 ms, and that is 3600 frames/min. The calculator above is pre-filled with this exact example; switch tabs for the Hz-to-frame-time converter (pre-filled at 144 Hz) or the scan-frequency formula (pre-filled at 67.5 kHz and 1080 lines).
Key takeaways
- Refresh rate in Hz is just frames divided by seconds. Frame time in milliseconds is 1000 divided by Hz.
- Results stay hidden until you click Calculate. Reset restores the pre-filled examples.
- If you fill in both Hz and frame time, the Hz value takes priority: that is the tool's stated rule, kept as it has always been.
- The scan-frequency tab assumes about 5% of the line budget goes to retrace time (the 1.05 factor), which is why 67.5 kHz and 1080 lines read as 59.52 Hz, the familiar "60 Hz" timing.
How to use the refresh rate calculator
Pick the tab that matches what you already know. Every tab keeps its results hidden until you click its own Calculate button.
- Frames and Time tab: enter the total frame count and the seconds they were captured over (120 frames, 2 seconds pre-filled). You get the refresh rate, the frame time per frame, and frames per minute.
- Hz and Frame Time tab: enter a refresh rate in Hz or a frame time in milliseconds, then Convert. The preset buttons (60 to 360 Hz) fill in the Hz field and run the conversion at once. You also get a frame-budget note, from "Smooth for office and video" up to "Pro esports territory".
- Scan Frequency tab: enter the horizontal scanning frequency in kHz and the horizontal line count (67.5 kHz and 1080 lines pre-filled, a standard 1080p60 signal). You get the refresh rate plus the scan lines per second.
If your real question is how many frames your game produces rather than how often the screen redraws, the frame rate calculator measures the GPU side of the same pipeline.
The three refresh rate formulas
All three tabs are the same physics seen from different sides: hertz means events per second, and the frame time is the inverse.
Frame time = 1000 ÷ refresh rate (Hz), in milliseconds
Frames per minute = frames ÷ seconds × 60
Scan-frequency refresh rate = (scanning frequency in Hz) ÷ (horizontal lines × 1.05)
| Refresh rate | Frame time | What the tool calls it |
|---|---|---|
| 60 Hz | 16.67 ms | Smooth for office and video |
| 75 Hz | 13.33 ms | Noticeably smoother than 60 Hz |
| 120 Hz | 8.33 ms | Great for console and PC gaming |
| 144 Hz | 6.94 ms | Excellent for competitive gaming |
| 165 Hz | 6.06 ms | Excellent for competitive gaming |
| 240 Hz | 4.17 ms | Pro esports territory |
| 360 Hz | 2.78 ms | Pro esports territory |
The frame-time column is the number game developers actually budget against: at 144 Hz every frame must be rendered in 6.94 ms or it misses its slot. Two disclosed behaviours of this tool, kept as they have always been: if you fill in both the Hz and the frame-time fields, the Hz value wins and the frame time is derived from it; and the scan formula's 1.05 is a fixed 5% retrace allowance, an approximation of real blanking intervals that vary by signal, which is why the tool reads 59.52 Hz for what broadcast calls 60 Hz. Display timing literature states the relationship as line frequency equals frame rate times vertical total size; the 1.05 simply folds the blanking into the line count.
Worked examples from each tab
Every figure below was produced by the tool itself. The first row is the pre-filled example on the Frames and Time tab.
| Tab and inputs | Result | Related figures |
|---|---|---|
| Frames/Time: 120 frames, 2 s | 60.00 Hz | 16.67 ms, 3600 frames/min |
| Frames/Time: 144 frames, 1 s | 144.00 Hz | 6.94 ms, 8640 frames/min |
| Hz/Frame Time: 144 Hz | 144.00 Hz | 6.94 ms, Excellent for competitive gaming |
| Hz/Frame Time: 16.6667 ms | 60.00 Hz | 16.67 ms, Smooth for office and video |
| Scan Frequency: 67.5 kHz, 1080 lines | 59.52 Hz | 67500 lines/sec |
A practical note the numbers make obvious: frame time halves from 60 Hz to 120 Hz (16.67 to 8.33 ms), but only falls by 1.39 ms from 240 Hz to 360 Hz. That shrinking payoff is why competitive players pair a high-refresh panel with a frame cap a few FPS below the maximum: Blur Busters' long-running G-Sync testing recommends capping about 3 FPS under the refresh rate so the variable-refresh window never disengages at the top end. And if your monitor can do 144 Hz but only shows 60 Hz, check Windows first: Microsoft's own support page walks through Settings › System › Display › Advanced display, where the refresh rate dropdown often sits untouched at the default after setup. For the cost side of high frame output, the cost per frame calculator prices rendered frames, which is the other half of the budget for anyone running a game server or render farm.
What competing calculators miss
The pages ranking for this keyword each do one direction of the math well and ignore the rest:
- Brave Calculator: a frames-and-time tool only, thin content, no converter and no signal math.
- computerinfobits.com: a live browser measurement test plus a good frame-time table, which is genuinely useful for checking what your panel is actually doing, but browsers throttle drawing in background tabs and on battery, so the reading can mislead. No calculator modes beyond the test.
- Mr Calcu's FPS-to-Hz converter: the strongest one-direction rival, with frame-time tables, tearing and pulldown edge cases, and per-game-type guidance. But it is strictly FPS to hertz; there is no Hz-to-frame-time converter and no scan-frequency math.
- GameplayKing's monitor tools: a monitor comparison angle with latency estimates and a shopping slant, which answers "which panel" rather than "what is my rate".
- RefreshRateTest.online: a measurement utility, not a calculator: it tells you what your display is doing right now, not what any set of numbers implies.
- The gap this page fills: all three directions in one tool (frames to Hz, two-way Hz to frame time with one-tap presets and frame-budget notes, and the broadcast scan-frequency formula), each with copy and share, plus the worked math explained in the article rather than hidden behind the button.
Frequently asked questions
Divide the frame count by the seconds: refresh rate (Hz) = total frames ÷ time in seconds. 120 frames over 2 seconds is 60 Hz. Use the Frames and Time tab above; it also gives you the frame time and frames per minute.
Frame time is how long each frame stays on screen: frame time (ms) = 1000 ÷ Hz. A 60 Hz display gives every frame 16.67 ms, a 144 Hz display gives 6.94 ms. Game developers use this number as the render budget: if a frame takes longer, it misses its slot.
Usually yes for gaming, less so for office work. Frame time drops from 16.67 ms to 6.94 ms, a 9.73 ms saving you can feel in mouse movement. The gains shrink at the top end: 240 to 360 Hz saves only 1.39 ms. Competitive players often cap frames about 3 FPS below the monitor's maximum to keep variable refresh rate engaged.
In Windows, go to Settings, then System, then Display, then Advanced display, and pick the highest rate in the Choose a refresh rate dropdown. New monitors often sit at 60 Hz by default after setup, so this one step fixes most "my 144 Hz monitor feels like 60" complaints.
It applies the broadcast engineer's formula: refresh rate = scanning frequency ÷ (horizontal lines × 1.05). The 1.05 is a fixed 5% allowance for retrace time between frames. Enter the horizontal scan frequency in kHz and the line count, and it returns the refresh rate plus scan lines per second.
Because of the 5% retrace allowance: 67,500 ÷ (1080 × 1.05) = 59.52 Hz. That is the real timing behind the familiar "60 Hz" label for 1080p signals. Real blanking intervals vary by signal, so treat the 1.05 as the tool's stated approximation, which it is.
If you fill in both fields on the Hz and Frame Time tab, the tool uses the Hz value and derives the frame time from it, ignoring the frame time you typed. That is the tool's long-standing rule, stated on the page so the behaviour never surprises you.
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References
- Microsoft Support. Change the refresh rate on your monitor in Windows. Accessed October 23, 2026.
- Blur Busters. G-Sync 101: Optimal G-Sync Settings and Total System Latency (frame caps ~3 FPS below the refresh rate). Accessed October 23, 2026.
- NVIDIA. Variable Refresh Rate (NVIDIA Control Panel help: how VRR matches monitor refresh to GPU frame rate). Accessed October 23, 2026.
- RS Components DesignSpark. TFT Displays: Understanding Timing Parameters (line frequency = frame rate × vertical total size; blanking periods). Accessed October 23, 2026.
- XDA Developers. Your monitor's response time matters less than you've been told (refresh rate vs response time when buying a monitor). Accessed October 23, 2026.