What is difference between Refresh Rate and Frame Rate?

 

Understanding Refresh Rate vs. Frame Rate

Refresh rate and frame rate are two crucial aspects of display performance, but they serve different roles.

Refresh Rate
This is the number of times per second that a screen redraws the image, measured in Hertz (Hz). For instance, a 60Hz screen refreshes 60 times per second, while a 120Hz screen does so 120 times. Higher refresh rates generally result in smoother motion on the display and reduce visual artifacts like flickering.

Frame Rate
Frame rate refers to how many individual images (or frames) are produced by a content source such as a video game, movie, or graphics card each second. It's measured in frames per second (FPS). A game running at 30 FPS displays 30 images each second at 60 FPS, it shows 60, providing a more fluid visual output.

How They Work Together
The key difference lies in their origin: refresh rate is dictated by the display hardware, while frame rate is generated by the content source (e.g. software or hardware rendering the visuals). For the best viewing experience, these two should ideally align.

If the frame rate is lower than the screen’s refresh rate says, 30 FPS content on a 120Hz display the same frame may appear multiple times, resulting in less fluid motion. On the other hand, if the frame rate exceeds the refresh rate such as 120 FPS content on a 60Hz monitor some frames may not be displayed, which can lead to screen tearing.

To get the smoothest visuals, it’s best when the refresh rate and frame rate are closely matched.