When buying a laptop, most people pay attention to the processor, RAM, SSD and battery life. The display is sometimes treated as an afterthought, even though it is one of the components you interact with every time you use the computer.
One specification that can make a noticeable difference to the way a laptop feels is display refresh rate.
You may see laptops advertised with 60Hz, 90Hz, 120Hz, 144Hz, 165Hz, 240Hz or even higher refresh rates. But what do these numbers mean, and does a higher refresh rate actually make a laptop better?
What Is Laptop Display Refresh Rate?
Refresh rate is the number of times a display can update its image every second.
It is measured in hertz (Hz).
A 60Hz display can refresh the image up to 60 times per second, while a 120Hz display can refresh it up to 120 times per second.
A higher refresh rate can make motion appear smoother, particularly when scrolling through websites, moving windows around the desktop or playing games.
What Does 60Hz Mean?
A 60Hz display refreshes up to 60 times per second.
60Hz has been the traditional refresh rate for many laptops and remains perfectly usable for everyday computing.
Web browsing, Microsoft Office, email, schoolwork, programming and video playback can all work well on a 60Hz screen.
Therefore, seeing 60Hz in a laptop specification does not automatically mean the display is poor.
What Does 90Hz Mean?
A 90Hz display can update up to 90 times per second.
The increase from 60Hz to 90Hz can make scrolling and animations feel smoother.
It can be a useful middle ground for people who want a more responsive-looking display without necessarily paying for a very high-refresh-rate gaming panel.
What Does 120Hz Mean?
A 120Hz display can refresh up to 120 times per second.
At this refresh rate, scrolling and animations can look noticeably smoother than on a conventional 60Hz panel.
120Hz is increasingly common on premium laptops because it provides a good balance between smoothness, responsiveness and power consumption when implemented well.
What Does 144Hz Mean?
A 144Hz display can refresh the image up to 144 times per second.
This refresh rate is particularly common on gaming laptops.
It can provide smoother motion during games, especially when the GPU can produce enough frames to take advantage of the higher refresh rate.
What Does 165Hz Mean?
A 165Hz display offers a slightly higher refresh rate than 144Hz.
The difference is real, but it is considerably smaller than the jump from 60Hz to 120Hz.
For competitive gamers, the additional responsiveness may be worthwhile. For ordinary users, the difference between 144Hz and 165Hz may be difficult to justify on its own.
What Does 240Hz Mean?
A 240Hz laptop display can refresh up to 240 times per second.
This is mainly aimed at gaming users who want extremely smooth motion and have hardware capable of producing high frame rates.
For ordinary office work, web browsing and watching films, paying extra for 240Hz usually makes little sense.
Is 60Hz Still Good Enough in 2026?
Yes.
A 60Hz display is still perfectly adequate for many laptop users in 2026.
If you mainly use your laptop for:
- Microsoft Word
- Excel
- Web browsing
- Schoolwork
- Programming
- Watching videos
- Basic business applications
you do not need a 120Hz or 144Hz display simply to perform these tasks.
However, if you value smoother scrolling and animations, a 90Hz or 120Hz screen can make everyday use feel more pleasant.
Is 120Hz Better Than 60Hz?
For smoothness and responsiveness, yes.
A 120Hz screen can display updates more frequently than a 60Hz screen. This can make movement look smoother and reduce the perceived delay between interactions and visual updates.
However, a higher refresh rate does not automatically mean better overall image quality.
A high-quality 60Hz display with excellent colour accuracy, brightness and resolution may be better for a professional photographer than a poor-quality 144Hz gaming panel.
Does Refresh Rate Affect Image Quality?
Refresh rate primarily affects motion smoothness rather than fundamental image quality.
Other specifications such as:
- Resolution
- Colour accuracy
- Brightness
- Contrast
- Panel technology
- Viewing angles
- Colour gamut
also matter.
Therefore, you should never judge a laptop display by refresh rate alone.
Does Higher Refresh Rate Make Scrolling Smoother?
Yes.
This is one of the easiest benefits to notice outside gaming.
Scrolling through a long webpage or document can appear smoother on a 90Hz or 120Hz display than on a 60Hz panel.
Moving windows and navigating menus can also feel more fluid.
Does Higher Refresh Rate Make a Laptop Faster?
No.
A 120Hz display does not make the CPU or SSD faster.
The laptop’s underlying computing performance remains determined by its processor, memory, storage and other hardware.
What changes is how frequently the display can update what you see.
Does Refresh Rate Affect Gaming?
Yes, significantly.
Gaming is one of the situations where a high-refresh-rate display can provide a major advantage.
If a game is running at 120 frames per second and the laptop has a 120Hz display, the screen can refresh frequently enough to display those frames.
With a 60Hz screen, the display cannot present more than 60 refreshes per second, even if the GPU is producing considerably more frames.
Does a 144Hz Display Require 144 FPS?
No, but to fully take advantage of the display’s maximum refresh capability, the system needs to produce enough frames.
If your game only runs at 60 FPS, moving from a 60Hz display to a 144Hz display will not magically make the game run at 144 FPS.
The display can refresh at 144Hz, but the GPU and game still determine how many frames are actually produced.
What Happens If FPS Is Lower Than Refresh Rate?
The display can still operate at its higher refresh rate, but the game may not provide a new frame for every refresh cycle.
For example, a game running at 70 FPS on a 144Hz screen cannot provide a new unique frame for every one of the screen’s 144 refresh opportunities.
This is why GPU performance remains important when buying a high-refresh-rate gaming laptop.
What Is Variable Refresh Rate?
Variable refresh rate, or VRR, allows the display’s refresh rate to dynamically adjust according to the frame rate being produced by the graphics system.
This can help reduce visual problems such as screen tearing and provide smoother gameplay when frame rates fluctuate.
Different laptop manufacturers and display technologies may use different implementations of variable refresh technology.
What Is Screen Tearing?
Screen tearing occurs when portions of multiple frames appear at the same time on the display, creating a visible horizontal discontinuity.
It can become noticeable during fast camera movement in games.
Technologies such as adaptive sync or other variable-refresh implementations can help reduce this effect.
Does Higher Refresh Rate Increase Battery Usage?
It can.
A display operating at a higher refresh rate may require more power, although the exact difference depends on the panel and laptop design.
Modern laptops can sometimes dynamically adjust refresh rate to balance smoothness and battery life.
For example, a laptop may lower the refresh rate when operating on battery and use a higher refresh rate when connected to power.
Does 120Hz Drain More Battery Than 60Hz?
Potentially, yes.
The difference varies by display technology and implementation.
Some modern panels are designed to operate efficiently at higher refresh rates, while others can consume noticeably more power.
If battery life is extremely important to you, check real-world battery tests rather than assuming that every 120Hz laptop will lose the same amount of battery life.
Is 90Hz Better for Battery Life Than 120Hz?
Potentially, but there is no universal rule.
The display’s panel technology, brightness, resolution and power-management system all influence consumption.
A well-designed 120Hz display may have excellent efficiency, while a different 90Hz panel may consume more power.
What Is the Best Refresh Rate for Students?
For most students, 60Hz to 120Hz is more than enough.
If budget is limited, prioritise RAM, processor quality, SSD storage and battery life before paying a large premium for refresh rate.
If the price difference is small, however, a 90Hz or 120Hz panel can be a nice upgrade for everyday use.
For buyers considering affordable used machines, our UK-used laptop guide for students in Lagos can help you balance specifications and price.
What Is the Best Refresh Rate for Office Work?
60Hz remains sufficient for most office applications.
However, professionals who spend many hours scrolling through documents, spreadsheets and websites may appreciate 90Hz or 120Hz because of the smoother motion.
In this case, refresh rate is more about comfort and user experience than raw productivity performance.
What Is the Best Refresh Rate for Programming?
60Hz is perfectly usable for programming.
A higher refresh rate can make scrolling through code and moving windows smoother, but it will not make code compile faster.
For developers, processor performance, RAM capacity, keyboard quality, display resolution and screen size may be more important.
What Is the Best Refresh Rate for Video Editing?
Video editors should not choose a display based on refresh rate alone.
Colour accuracy, resolution, brightness and colour gamut are often much more important.
A 60Hz display with excellent colour accuracy can be more useful for professional editing than a 165Hz panel designed primarily for gaming.
If you are buying a laptop for video editing, our video-editing laptop guide covers the other hardware specifications you should consider.
What Is the Best Refresh Rate for Gaming?
For gaming, 120Hz or higher is attractive if the laptop’s GPU can produce enough frames.
Competitive gamers may prefer 144Hz, 165Hz or 240Hz displays, particularly for fast-paced games where responsiveness matters.
However, there is little benefit in paying for an extremely high refresh rate if the GPU cannot produce high frame rates in the games you play.
Is 144Hz Worth It on a Gaming Laptop?
For many gamers, yes.
144Hz has become a practical high-refresh-rate target because it provides a substantial improvement over 60Hz without requiring the extreme hardware and cost associated with very high refresh rates.
It is particularly useful for competitive games that can achieve high frame rates.
Still, the GPU should be evaluated first. A powerful graphics processor paired with a 144Hz display is generally more useful than a weak GPU paired with a 240Hz panel.
Is 240Hz Worth It?
For most users, no.
240Hz can be valuable to competitive gamers who have hardware capable of producing very high frame rates and who care about extremely responsive gameplay.
For office users, students and general laptop buyers, the additional cost is usually better spent on other components.
Does Refresh Rate Matter for Watching Movies?
Usually less than you might expect.
Most films and television content are recorded and delivered at frame rates well below 120 or 144 frames per second.
A high-refresh-rate display can still provide smoother interface animations, but it does not automatically make ordinary movie content dramatically better.
Does Refresh Rate Matter for YouTube?
It depends on the video.
Many online videos are delivered at common frame rates such as 24, 30 or 60 frames per second. A high-refresh-rate screen can still make scrolling and interface movement smoother, but it does not turn a 30 FPS video into genuine 120 FPS footage.
Does Resolution Matter More Than Refresh Rate?
It depends on how you use the laptop.
For productivity, a high-resolution display can provide more workspace and sharper text.
For gaming, refresh rate can become more important, especially when paired with a powerful GPU.
For creative work, colour accuracy and resolution can be more important than refresh rate.
There is no single display specification that is best for everyone.
60Hz vs 120Hz vs 144Hz
| Refresh rate | Best suited for | General recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| 60Hz | Office work, browsing, schoolwork | Still perfectly adequate |
| 90Hz | General use with smoother scrolling | Good middle ground |
| 120Hz | Premium everyday use and gaming | Excellent all-round choice |
| 144Hz | Gaming and competitive play | Excellent for gaming |
| 165Hz+ | Competitive gaming | Best for specific users |
| 240Hz+ | High-level competitive gaming | Usually unnecessary for ordinary users |
Should You Buy a 60Hz Laptop in 2026?
Yes, if the rest of the laptop offers good value.
Do not reject an otherwise excellent laptop simply because it has a 60Hz display.
If you are buying a laptop for office work, school, programming or general productivity, 60Hz remains completely usable.
However, if two similarly priced laptops offer comparable specifications and one has a significantly better display with a higher refresh rate, the higher-refresh-rate model may be worth choosing.
What Should You Check Besides Refresh Rate?
- Screen resolution
- Brightness
- Colour accuracy
- Colour gamut
- Panel technology
- Viewing angles
- Response time
- Variable refresh rate support
- Screen size
- Matte or glossy finish
These characteristics can have a major impact on the overall display experience.
What About Used Laptops?
When buying a used laptop, do not assume that the display is in perfect condition simply because the advertised specifications look good.
Check the screen for dead pixels, bright spots, dark areas, flickering, uneven backlighting and physical damage.
Also test the display at different brightness levels.
Our used laptop inspection checklist can help you test the screen and other components before completing a purchase.
Does a High Refresh Rate Make a Laptop Future-Proof?
It can make the display feel more modern, but refresh rate alone does not determine how long a laptop will remain useful.
A laptop’s processor, RAM, storage, operating-system support, battery condition and overall build quality are also important.
A 60Hz laptop with a powerful processor and upgradeable 16GB RAM may remain useful for years, while a 144Hz laptop with weak hardware may become outdated much sooner.
Final Verdict
Refresh rate determines how frequently a laptop display can update its image. A higher refresh rate can make scrolling, animations and gaming look smoother, but it does not make the processor, SSD or graphics hardware faster.
60Hz is still good enough for many laptop users in 2026. Students, office workers, programmers and general users can comfortably use a 60Hz display.
For people who want smoother everyday interaction, 90Hz or 120Hz can be an excellent upgrade. Gamers may prefer 144Hz, 165Hz or higher, provided the laptop’s GPU can produce enough frames to take advantage of the display.
Most importantly, do not choose a laptop based on refresh rate alone. Consider the complete display and the entire computer.
The best laptop is the one that gives you the right combination of refresh rate, resolution, colour quality, processor performance, graphics capability, RAM, storage, battery life and price.