The difference between FPS and Hz and why both are important in competitive Fortnite

FPS / Hz

  • While not exactly the same thing, FPS and Hz are related with regard to clarity and speed of what you see in your display.


  • Frames per second (FPS) matters in competitive play. The ability to see things moving as quickly as possible, and as close to “real-time” as possible per the server’s understanding, allows great benefit in game play, whether in building battles and taking walls, or in hitting a shot on a quick moving target. PS5 and XBOX X can currently (as of this article) run at 120 FPS max. PC max FPS will depend on the capability of your PC build (typically GPU) and display.


  • Hz is the unit of measure for refresh rate on your monitor/TV. If a screen was being refreshed once per second, it would be at 1 Hz. A screen being refreshed 240 times per second would be operating at 240 Hz. Currently, most pros are playing on 240 Hz monitors, while some can afford to play on 360 Hz monitors. Playing on less than 120 Hz will almost certainly limit your competitiveness in the most competitive lobbies and tournaments. FNCS championships, played in person, are currently using 240 Hz monitors to keep things fair and consistent between all finalists.


For more tech topics, see our sections on