# What are Frame Rates & FPS?

Frame rate is the frequency at which video frames are captured, encoded, or displayed, usually measured in frames per second. Capture, stream, and display rates need not be identical.

Video + audio tracks

Video processing

Playable derivative

Video processing decodes timed tracks, transforms them, and encodes a deliverable for a target player. This diagram shows video broadly, not specifically Frame Rates & FPS.

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## How Frame Rates & FPS work

Frame rate describes temporal sampling, while container timestamps determine when individual pictures are actually presented. Constant-frame-rate media uses a regular cadence; variable-frame-rate media permits unequal intervals even if tools report an average FPS. Display refresh rate and camera shutter duration are related production concerns but are not the same quantity. Frame-rate decisions span capture, editing timelines, encoder time bases, streaming constraints, and final display behavior.

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## Key facts

1. 1Many production rates are rational values rather than exact whole decimals. Rounding a time base or treating a fractional rate as an integer can accumulate synchronization drift.
2. 2Container or stream timestamps are authoritative for presentation order and spacing. Dividing a frame count by a reported average rate can misstate variable-rate duration.
3. 3Raising FPS increases temporal samples but does not automatically reduce motion blur, which is governed by exposure time. It also does not guarantee that a display shows every frame.

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## When Frame Rates & FPS matter

Developers choose FPS by weighing motion smoothness, latency, bitrate, compatibility, and production requirements. Converting between mismatched rates can cause judder, duplicate frames, or interpolation artifacts.

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## Common use cases for video

These examples cover video broadly, not specifically Frame Rates & FPS.

* Preparing uploaded video for web, mobile, connected-TV, social, or editorial playback.
* Creating clips, thumbnails, captions, alternate aspect ratios, and adaptive renditions.
* Normalizing camera, screen-recording, and user-generated files into predictable outputs.

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## Working with video

This guidance covers video broadly, not just Frame Rates & FPS.

A demuxer separates tracks from the container, decoders turn compressed streams into frames or samples, and filters apply spatial or temporal changes. Encoders compress the transformed tracks before a muxer writes the chosen output container.

Video compatibility is the product of codec, container, profile, level, frame rate, color, audio, and subtitles. Validate the complete output on target devices because a playable file on one decoder may fail or look different on another.

### What you gain

* Standardized derivatives make diverse source files playable on target devices.
* A retained master can feed many resolutions, aspect ratios, codecs, and channels.
* Automated inspection and transformation make large upload volumes consistent.

### What it costs

* More efficient codecs can lower bitrate at similar quality but usually cost more compute and may have narrower support.
* Higher resolutions and frame rates preserve more detail and motion while increasing processing and delivery requirements.
* Fast encoding settings improve throughput but can produce larger files or lower quality than slower analysis.

### Before production

1. 1Inspect codec, container, dimensions, frame rate, color, audio, and subtitle tracks.
2. 2Test visual quality and playback support across the slowest and oldest target devices.
3. 3Preserve a suitable master before applying lossy, destructive, or delivery-specific changes.

[← Frame Interpolation](/glossary/frame-interpolation.md)[FVOD →](/glossary/fvod.md)

More in video

* [FFmpeg](/glossary/ffmpeg.md)
* [Frame Averaging](/glossary/frame-averaging.md)
* [Frame Interpolation](/glossary/frame-interpolation.md)
* [GPU Transcoding](/glossary/gpu-transcoding.md)
* [Group of Pictures](/glossary/group-of-pictures.md)
* [H.261](/glossary/h-261.md)

[All 505 terms](/glossary.md)

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