Research presented by LG Display at SID Display Week 2026 indicates that high-refresh-rate monitors significantly improve gaming win rates and reaction speeds. While the most dramatic gains occur when moving away from 60 Hz, the data suggests that the competitive advantage narrows sharply as refresh rates exceed 120 Hz.

The 38% Win Rate Leap from 60 Hz to 480 Hz

According to the study conducted by LG Display, there is a measurable correlation between the speed of a monitor's refresh rate and a player's success in a competitive environment. The research, which involved 31 adults playing an undisclosed first-person shooter, found that players using 480 Hz monitors saw an average win rate increase of 38% compared to those using 60 Hz displays.

The data suggests that faster visual feedback directly translates to better performance. However, the margin of improvement shrinks as the hardware becomes more advanced. LG Display reported that the jump from 240 Hz to 480 Hz only yielded a 10% increase in win rates, while the move from 360 Hz to 480 Hz provided a mere 5% boost.

Why 120 Hz Remains the Practical Sweet Spot

The LG Display findings highlight a steep curve of diminishing returns for hardware enthusiasts. The most significant performance gain recorded was a 28% increase when upgrading from 60 Hz to 120 Hz. This suggests that for the vast majority of users, 120 Hz or 144 Hz represents the point where the most meaningful performance value is extracted from the hardware.

This trend is not isolated to the LG Display research. As reported in the source, a separate 2024 study echoed these results, noting a significant jump in target tracking and reaction times when moving from 60 Hz to 120 Hz, but finding that the benefits became marginal when moving from 120 Hz to 144 Hz or 240 Hz.

The OLED Advantage at Identical Frame Rates

Beyond raw hertz, the type of panel technology appears to play a critical role in performance. LG Display noted that OLED monitors tended to outperform other display technologies, even when the frame rates were identical. This suggests that response times and motion clarity inherent to OLED pixels provide an edge that goes beyond the simple refresh rate number.

It is important to note that LG Display manufactures its own line of premium OLED gaming monitors, which introduces a potential for corporate bias in the study's conclusions.. Nevertheless, the overarching trend of high-refresh-rate superiority is supported by independent testing, including a well-known analysis by the YouTube channel Linus Tech Tips, which found that participants consistently performed better on 240 Hz monitors than on 60 Hz models.

How Veteran Gamers Compensate for Lower Refresh Rates

The impact of hardware upgrades is not uniform across all skill levels. Analysis from Linus Tech Tips suggests that seasoned competitive players are less affected by lower refresh rates than beginners. this is because veterans often develop cognitive techniques and predictive habits to compensate for slower visual feedback.

Conversely, casual gamers and novices rely more heavily on raw hand-eye coordination. For these players, the faster visual updates provided by high-refresh-rate monitors provide a more pronounced performance boost because they lack the experience-based adaptations that professional players use to mitigate hardware limitations.

The Mystery of the Undisclosed First-Person Shooter

Despite the concrete numbers provided by LG Display, several key deetails remain hidden. the study does not name the specific first-person shooter used in the tests, leaving it unclear if these results would translate to slower-paced genres or different game engines. Furthermore,the source does not specify the exact skill distribution of the 31 adults involved, making it difficult to determine if the "average" win rate was skewed by a few high-performers.