frame time

Definition

Frame time is the time in milliseconds taken to render a single frame, the inverse of FPS. A consistent 8.3 ms frame time equals 120 FPS; 4.1 ms equals 240 FPS. Pro players prefer to monitor frame time over FPS because spikes (1% lows) are more relevant to feel than the average. Sustained frame-time stability matters more than raw FPS for competitive feel.

Example

"My average frame time is 4 ms but the 1% low spikes to 30 ms — that's a stutter." The peaks in frame time hurt feel more than the average.

Related terms

• FPS
• input lag
• tick rate