How do I stop screen tearing?

Adaptive sync, meaning G-Sync or FreeSync, is the best option because the monitor waits for the frame rather than the reverse, with no latency penalty. VSync also removes tearing but adds one to two frames of input lag. Capping your frame rate just below your refresh rate helps in either case.

Does screen tearing damage your monitor?

No. It is purely a timing artifact in how frames are presented and puts no additional stress on the panel or electronics. It is visually annoying but completely harmless.

Why do I still get tearing with G-Sync or FreeSync on?

Usually because your frame rate has risen above the top of the adaptive sync range, at which point the monitor reverts to a fixed refresh rate. Cap your frame rate a few frames below your maximum refresh rate so you stay inside the window.

Is screen tearing worse at low or high frame rates?

It is most noticeable when frame rate is close to but not matching refresh rate, since the tear line drifts slowly and your eye tracks it. At very high frame rates there are more tears per second but each is smaller and they move too quickly to fix on.

Screen Tearing: Why It Happens and How to Eliminate It

Q: What causes screen tearing?

The GPU and the monitor run on independent clocks. When a new frame arrives partway through a refresh, the monitor displays the top of one frame and the bottom of another, producing a horizontal seam. It occurs whenever frame rate and refresh rate are not synchronized.

What causes screen tearing?

Your GPU renders frames as fast as it can. Your monitor refreshes at a fixed rate (say, 144Hz - once every 6.9ms). When the GPU sends a new frame while the monitor is partway through drawing the previous one, the monitor stitches together the bottom of the old frame and the top of the new one. The result is a horizontal seam where images do not align - screen tearing.

Tearing is most visible in:

Fast horizontal camera movement

Panning scenes at the edge of your frame rate budget

Games where your framerate frequently crosses your refresh rate

VSync - the original fix

VSync forces the GPU to hold completed frames until the monitor's next refresh. No frame starts scanning until the current one finishes. Tearing is eliminated.

The cost: When your GPU cannot maintain the target frame rate, VSync drops to the next lower divisor (from 144fps to 72fps, then 36fps). This creates a jarring stutters when framerate drops slightly below the sync rate. Input lag also increases because the GPU must buffer frames to stagger delivery.

Adaptive sync - the modern solution

FreeSync (AMD) and G-Sync (NVIDIA) let the monitor's refresh rate follow the GPU frame output. The monitor waits for each frame (within a range, typically 40–240Hz). No tearing, because the refresh never fires mid-frame. No VSync stutter, because the refresh rate flexes to match the GPU rather than forcing a fixed cadence.

This is the best solution for most gaming setups. See our G-Sync vs FreeSync guide for details on which standard to use.

When your framerate is above your monitor's max

Adaptive sync only eliminates tearing within its variable refresh range. If your GPU outputs 300fps on a 240Hz monitor, tearing will still occur. Solutions:

**Frame cap**: Cap your game framerate at your monitor's max refresh rate (or just below). Nvidia Reflex, Radeon Anti-Lag, or in-engine limiters can do this.

**In-game VSync with a flush limit**: Enable VSync but cap framerate at 1–2 below the monitor max so VSync rarely needs to drop.

Testing for tearing

Use the Motion Test tool on this site. Set a horizontal sweep and watch for horizontal splits across the moving element. If you see tearing, enable adaptive sync in your GPU drivers and monitor OSD.

How to actually see whether you have tearing

Tearing is easiest to confirm with a hard vertical edge moving horizontally at speed. A photograph or a still frame will not show it, because the seam only exists during the refresh. Use the Screen Tearing Test on this site: if the moving bar stays one straight line from top to bottom you have no tearing, and if it breaks into offset horizontal sections you do.

Where the tear sits tells you something useful. A tear that stays in roughly the same vertical position means your frame rate is sitting at a fixed offset from your refresh rate. A tear that drifts up or down the screen means the frame rate is wandering.

Frame rate caps as a practical fix

Even with adaptive sync, capping frame rate matters. Adaptive sync only works inside the monitor supported range, typically something like 48Hz to your maximum. Above that ceiling the monitor falls back to fixed refresh and tearing returns.

The common recommendation is to cap 3 to 5 frames below your maximum refresh rate: 141fps on a 144Hz panel, or 237fps on a 240Hz panel. That keeps you inside the adaptive sync window at all times while giving up almost nothing in smoothness.

Tearing in browsers and video players

Tearing is not exclusive to games. Browsers, video players and even desktop window managers can tear during fast scrolling or full-screen video, particularly when hardware acceleration is disabled or the compositor is bypassed. If you see tearing outside games, check that hardware acceleration is enabled in your browser and that your desktop compositor is running.