Frame Pacing Test
Visualize frame delivery consistency. Understand why high FPS doesn't guarantee smooth gameplay.
Frame pacing is the consistency behind your FPS number. A game running at exactly 144 FPS delivers frames every 6.94 ms. Frame pacing issues — caused by CPU/GPU scheduling irregularities, V-Sync stalls, or thermal throttling — create uneven delivery intervals that your eye perceives as stutter, regardless of what the FPS counter shows.
What This Test Measures
Frame Delivery Patterns
Visualizes the difference between stable frame delivery (evenly spaced intervals) and unstable delivery (clustered and gapped frames that cause stutter).
Frame Time Distribution
Shows how frame times distribute around the target interval — a tight distribution means smooth delivery; spread distribution means visible variance.
Stutter Identification
Demonstrates the visual signature of specific stutter patterns: V-Sync stalls, CPU bottleneck spikes, and thermal throttle events.
What Affects Your Score
V-Sync / Display Sync
Traditional V-Sync enforces hard scanout deadlines. Missed deadlines double the frame display time, creating a stutter. G-Sync/FreeSync eliminates this.
CPU Bottleneck
When the CPU can't feed draw calls fast enough, the GPU sits idle waiting — creating irregular active windows that produce frame time spikes.
Thermal Throttling
GPU and CPU thermal limits reduce clock speeds mid-frame. The resulting frame takes longer, creating a stutter spike that correlates with temperature.
Borderless Windowed Mode
DWM compositing adds a variable layer between the game's rendered frame and the display. Exclusive fullscreen bypasses DWM entirely.
GPU Driver Version
Specific driver versions are known to regress frame pacing on certain GPU families. Monitor community benchmarks before updating.
Score Reference
Responsiveness Score Ranges
How to Improve Your Score
Switch to exclusive fullscreen
Exclusive fullscreen bypasses Windows DWM compositor. In your game's display settings, choose Fullscreen (not Borderless Windowed). This eliminates DWM's scheduling overhead from the frame delivery path.
Enable G-Sync or FreeSync
Adaptive sync makes the monitor wait for your GPU instead of the reverse — eliminating V-Sync stalls that double frame display time. Use with V-Sync disabled in-game.
Cap FPS just below your refresh rate
Capping at 3–5 FPS below monitor max (e.g., 237 on a 240 Hz panel) prevents frame delivery conflicts with the display's scanout cycle, reducing micro-tearing and sync stalls.
Check thermal headroom
Use GPU-Z and HWInfo64 to monitor GPU and CPU temperatures during gaming. Thermal throttling at 95°C+ causes frame time spikes. Clean coolers, repaste, and improve case airflow.
Enable NVIDIA Reflex or AMD Anti-Lag
These technologies manage GPU render queue depth, preventing frame queuing that creates both latency and pacing irregularities. Enable whenever available in-game.
Optimize With the Desktop App
Apply all optimizations automatically. InputLag's desktop app manages power plans, GPU settings, and timer resolution persistently — no manual tweaking.