Measure first: what are you actually running at?
If your 144Hz monitor doesn't feel as smooth as promised, measure before guessing. Run the refresh-rate measurement in our monitor test for five seconds and you'll get the rate your browser is actually rendering at. If it reads 60Hz, your monitor is running at half its ability — and a surprising share of high-refresh monitor owners are in exactly this state without knowing.
Two caveats while measuring: laptops on battery-saver may dynamically lower the refresh rate, and a tab in an energy-saving state can read low. Plug in the power and keep the test tab visible on screen during the measurement.
Suspect #1: OS settings — 60Hz is often the default
The most common cause is the simplest: when you connect a monitor, the OS frequently picks a safe 60Hz default and waits for you to raise it. On Windows, set the refresh rate under Settings → System → Display → Advanced display; on macOS, under System Settings → Displays.
If 144Hz (or your monitor's maximum) doesn't even appear in the list, it's not a settings problem — it's the cable or port bandwidth issue below. If it appears but reverts or flickers when selected, suspect cable quality or the graphics driver instead.
Suspect #2: cable and port — bandwidth sets the ceiling
High resolution at high refresh demands serious bandwidth, and when the cable or port can't carry it, the OS silently trims your options. The classic case is HDMI versioning — older HDMI standards can't do 1440p at 144Hz, while the very same monitor unlocks instantly over DisplayPort. A convenient rule of thumb: gaming monitors want DisplayPort by default.
Cable quality matters too: the cable bundled with the monitor is usually fine, but the mystery cable from a drawer often underdelivers its printed rating. If your monitor has multiple inputs, try another port — some models support the full rate on only one of them — and check the monitor's OSD menu for hidden HDMI-version or overclock settings.
Suspect #3: graphics driver and in-game settings
If the OS and cable check out but games alone are pinned at 60fps, look at V-Sync, in-game frame caps, and windowed-mode quirks. Check the game's display settings for fullscreen mode, refresh rate, and frame limits, then the global settings in your graphics driver's control panel (NVIDIA, AMD, Intel). A long-neglected driver update sometimes resolves it outright.
Whatever you change, finish with another measurement: when our test reads 144Hz (within tolerance), the setting has genuinely taken effect. Want visual confirmation too? Whip the cursor across the screen — the spacing of the cursor's ghost trail looks distinctly different at 60Hz versus 144Hz once you know to look.