Mouse Polling Rate Test
A free mouse polling rate test. Move your mouse around the box and we'll measure how many times per second it reports — its Hz. Check whether your gaming mouse actually hits 500Hz or 1000Hz. Pair it with the mouse test and CPS test.
Polling Rate Test
Press Start, then move your mouse around as fast as you can. We count how many times per second it reports — that's your Hz.
Best: —
Note: browsers may merge events and cap sampling near your display's refresh rate, so readings can run below your mouse's rated Hz. Use this to compare classes (office vs. gaming mouse), not as a lab-grade figure.
Top scores
Polling Rate
- 1🇺🇸overclock1000 Hz
- 2🇰🇷hz_hunter990 Hz
- 3🇩🇪Razerr985 Hz
- 4🇬🇧Viper512 Hz
- 5🇨🇦Logi508 Hz
- 6🇸🇪glide502 Hz
- 7🇫🇷officeMax250 Hz
- 8🇧🇷basic248 Hz
- 9🇮🇹stock125 Hz
- 10🇮🇳laptop124 Hz
How to test your polling rate
Press Start, then move your mouse quickly and continuously across the box. The live number shows how many position reports arrived in the last second — that's your Hz. Keep moving to push the peak as high as it goes, then stop to lock in your result. The faster and more constantly you move, the closer the reading gets to your mouse's true rate.
Because browsers merge events and cap sampling near your display's refresh, the reading runs a little under your mouse's rated Hz — that's expected. Use it to confirm the class of your mouse, not as a lab-grade figure.
What polling rate actually does
Polling rate sets the floor on input latency. The table below shows how Hz maps to the delay between moving your hand and the cursor reacting.
| Polling rate | Latency floor | Who it's for |
|---|---|---|
| 125 Hz | 8 ms | Office / bundled mice. Fine for browsing, noticeably laggy for fast aim. |
| 250 Hz | 4 ms | Entry gaming mice and older models. A clear step up from 125Hz. |
| 500 Hz | 2 ms | The practical sweet spot — smooth aim, negligible CPU cost. |
| 1000 Hz | 1 ms | The competitive standard on virtually every gaming mouse today. |
| 4000–8000 Hz | 0.25–0.125 ms | Newest esports mice. Only pays off on 240Hz+ displays; raises CPU load. |
Higher Hz, lower latency
The math is simple: latency floor = 1000 / Hz. At 125Hz the mouse reports every 8ms; at 1000Hz every 1ms. That 7ms gap is small in isolation but stacks with monitor and game latency — which is why competitive players run 1000Hz and pair it with a high-refresh display.
When more Hz stops helping
Above 1000Hz the returns shrink fast. 4000Hz and 8000Hz mice only show a difference on 240Hz+ monitors, and each doubling multiplies CPU interrupts — on a weaker PC that can cause stutters that *cost* you more than the latency you saved. For most people 1000Hz is the right target.
Polling rate isn't your whole setup
Hz is one piece. Your DPI and in-game sensitivity decide how far the cursor travels, your mouse buttons and scroll wheel decide whether every input registers, and your monitor's refresh decides how fast you see the result. Test them together for the full picture.
Got your Hz confirmed? Make sure the rest of the mouse is healthy with the mouse test, then put your reflexes to work in the aim trainer.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is mouse polling rate?
Polling rate is how often your mouse reports its position to the computer, measured in Hz. A 1000Hz mouse updates 1000 times per second (every 1ms); a basic 125Hz mouse updates every 8ms. Higher Hz means a smoother, lower-latency cursor and aim.
Why is my measured Hz lower than my mouse's rated rate?
Browsers coalesce (merge) mouse events and sampling is influenced by your display's refresh rate, so an in-browser test usually reads below the true rated Hz. It's reliable for telling classes apart — a 125Hz office mouse from a 1000Hz gaming mouse — rather than as an exact lab figure. For an exact number, use your mouse's driver software.
What polling rate should I use for gaming?
500Hz or 1000Hz is the sweet spot for most gamers — smooth and responsive without taxing your CPU. 4000Hz and 8000Hz mice exist but only help on very high-refresh monitors and can raise CPU usage. For most setups, 1000Hz is ideal.
Does higher polling rate use more CPU?
Slightly. Each report is processed by the CPU, so 8000Hz creates 8x the input interrupts of 1000Hz. On modern systems the cost is small, but on older or budget machines a very high polling rate can cause stutters — 1000Hz is the safe default.
How is polling rate different from DPI?
They're unrelated. Polling rate is *how often* the mouse reports (Hz); DPI is *how far* the cursor moves per inch. Both affect feel, but you tune them separately — set your DPI with the eDPI calculator and confirm your Hz here.
Sources & References
- MDN Web Docs — MouseEvent.getCoalescedEvents(). Documents that browsers merge multiple pointer movements into a single mousemove event — the reason an in-browser polling-rate reading runs under the mouse's rated Hz, and why this test recovers coalesced samples.
- Microsoft Learn — Mouse input — polling and high-resolution input. Background on how the OS polls mouse input and reports movement, framing why polling rate (Hz) sets the floor on input latency.