A 60 Hz screen displays a new image every 16.7 milliseconds. At 100 Hz, the interval drops to 10 milliseconds. This difference, and this alone, explains why scrolling text appears more readable on the latter than on the former.
The 100 Hz threshold is where the gain is noticeable without actively looking for it, in actions that any office workstation repeats hundreds of times a day: scrolling a page, browsing a spreadsheet, moving the cursor from one end of the screen to the other. Beyond this, the differences continue to exist but narrow significantly.
An important nuance before going further: on high-definition screens, 4K, 5K, and 6K, the reasoning changes. Display density is what drives reading comfort, and 60 Hz remains the technical standard for these.
What refresh rate exactly describes
The refresh rate, expressed in hertz, indicates how many times per second the panel is able to reconstruct the displayed image. A 100 Hz monitor reconstructs its image 100 times per second, or once every 10 milliseconds.
This value describes a capability, not a result. It says nothing about the number of images the machine actually produces, nor the quality of the panel, nor the color fidelity. A 165 Hz screen connected to a machine that only calculates 60 frames per second will display 60 frames per second.
It should also not be confused with response time, which measures the speed at which a pixel changes state and is expressed in milliseconds. Both values concern movement, but they describe two distinct phenomena.
Where the jump to 100 Hz is noticeable: text in motion
Still text is identical at 60 and 240 Hz. The difference only appears when the image changes, and in office work, it mainly changes in three situations.
- Scrolling a page or document: the text moves vertically, and it is redrawn with each frame. The closer the frames, the finer the movement is broken down, meaning the characters remain well-formed during movement.
- Navigating a spreadsheet: same effects, with thin lines and dense numbers that do not tolerate a crude breakdown of movement well.
- Moving the cursor: on a large screen, the pointer travels a long distance. At 60 Hz, it leaves a more spaced out visual trail than at 100 Hz.
The jump from 60 to 100 Hz shortens the interval between two frames by 6.7 milliseconds. This is the most significant difference on the entire scale, and that's why it's the benchmark for a workstation.
Why the gain then plateaus
The progression of comfort is not proportional to the increase in rate, because what matters is the interval between two images, and this interval decreases less and less quickly.
Rate: 60 Hz
Interval between two images: 16.7 ms
Gain over previous level: reference
Rate: 75 Hz
Interval between two images: 13.3 ms
Gain over previous level: 3.4 ms
Rate: 100 Hz
Interval between two images: 10.0 ms
Gain over previous level: 3.3 ms
Rate: 120 Hz
Interval between two images: 8.3 ms
Gain over previous level: 1.7 ms
Rate: 165 Hz
Interval between two images: 6.1 ms
Gain over previous level: 2.2 ms
Rate: 320 Hz
Interval between two images: 3.1 ms
Gain over previous level: 3.0 ms
Between 60 and 100 Hz, the interval is divided by 1.7. Between 100 and 320 Hz, the rate must more than triple to gain an additional 6.9 milliseconds, over already very short durations.
This does not mean that high rates are useless: in a fast-paced action game, where the entire image constantly scrolls and reactivity determines the outcome, these milliseconds are fully justified. It is the mechanical transposition of this one-upmanship to the office workstation that has no basis.
High definition changes the question
On screens with high display density, the previous reasoning gives way to another.
A 27-inch 4K monitor, a 27-inch 5K monitor, or a 31.5-inch 6K monitor display 8.3, 14.7, and 21.2 million pixels respectively. At these densities, reading comfort comes from the sharpness of character rendering, not the speed at which the image is reconstructed. Text is readable in a small size without effort, which is precisely the intended use.
These panels overwhelmingly operate at 60 Hz, for a simple technical reason: transmitting 21 million pixels one hundred times per second requires considerable bandwidth, and the trade-off has been made in favor of definition.
In the JAPANNEXT catalog, the 27-inch IPS 5K Desktop Monitor and the 31.5-inch IPS 6K Desktop Monitor illustrate this regime. Their 60 Hz is not a limitation imposed on an office workstation: it is a corollary of what they offer elsewhere. The same reasoning applies to the 4K office range and to large formats from 43 to 75 inches.
What the machine and cable must keep up with
A 100 Hz monitor only displays 100 frames per second if three conditions are met simultaneously.
The machine must produce this number of images. In office work, this is almost always the case, as desktop interfaces are not very demanding. The connection must then transmit the flow, which depends on the version of the port and the cable used, with the constraint increasing with the definition. Finally, the system must be set to the correct rate, which is not always automatic: a screen capable of 100 Hz can operate at 60 Hz without the user noticing, simply because the default setting has never been changed.
This last point merits verification before any replacement purchase: it sometimes happens that an already installed screen is underutilized.
Flicker and comfort: two mechanisms not to be confused
Refresh rate is often confused with flicker, even though the two stem from different phenomena.
Refresh rate concerns the frequency of image reconstruction. Perceived flicker on some screens most often comes from backlight management, whose intensity can be regulated by rapid on-off cycles, particularly at low brightness.
A high-refresh-rate screen is therefore not automatically flicker-free, and a 60 Hz screen does not necessarily produce it. These are two characteristics to examine separately on a technical sheet.
JAPANNEXT Office Screens
The catalog covers the two regimes described in this article.
- 27-inch IPS Full HD 100 Hz USB-C Desktop Monitor with 65W charging: the exact reference corresponding to the level described here, with laptop power supply via the same cable.
- 27-inch IPS 5K Desktop Monitor and 31.5-inch IPS 6K Desktop Monitor: the high-density regime, where definition takes precedence.
- The 120 Hz range constitutes the higher tier, predominant in the catalog.
The entire collection is grouped under office screens.
To go further: definition, panel, and usage
- 4K gaming monitor, 120 Hz or 144 Hz: the same subject from the gaming perspective, where higher tiers are justified.
- Understanding 4K resolution: what display density brings, and why it is paramount in office work.
- 5K resolution: the next level, following the same logic.
- Understanding different monitor panels: response time and panel technology, distinct from refresh rate.
FAQ: Refresh rate in office settings
What refresh rate to choose for office work?
On a standard definition screen, 100 Hz is the threshold where the gain is noticeable in scrolling and cursor movement, with the interval between two frames decreasing from 16.7 to 10 milliseconds. Beyond this, the differences narrow significantly.
Is 60 Hz still sufficient?
It depends on the screen's definition. On a 4K, 5K, or 6K panel, reading comfort comes from display density, and 60 Hz remains the standard for these panels. On a standard definition panel, moving to 100 Hz brings a noticeable improvement in moving text.
Are 144 Hz or 165 Hz useful outside of gaming?
The gain exists but becomes marginal: going from 100 to 165 Hz shortens the interval between two images by 3.9 milliseconds, compared to 6.7 for the jump from 60 to 100 Hz. These rates retain their full meaning in fast-paced gaming, where responsiveness is crucial to the outcome.
Why are 4K and 5K screens often 60 Hz?
Because transmitting and displaying 8 to 21 million pixels at a high frequency requires considerable bandwidth. The technical trade-off is made in favor of definition, which is what is sought after in these formats.
How do I know what rate my screen is actually running at?
The refresh rate actually used can be found in the operating system's display settings. A screen capable of 100 Hz may operate at 60 Hz if the default setting has never been changed, a common situation with no obvious symptoms.
