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1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsA frame-time graph shows how long individual frames take, usually in milliseconds; FPS percentiles and “1% low” figures summarize different parts of that performance distribution. To read them correctly, first identify the tool’s timing metric, then distinguish a percentile threshold from an average of the slowest frames. A high frame-time spike can expose a hitch hidden by average FPS, but the graph alone does not identify its cause.
What is a frame-time graph?
Most frame-time graphs plot time or frame number horizontally and frame duration vertically, in milliseconds (ms). A low, relatively flat trace means frames took similar amounts of time. A sharp rise means one or more frames took longer than nearby frames. Unlike a single average-FPS figure, the trace can show when slow frames occurred and whether they clustered.
Check the legend or capture settings before interpreting the line: “frame time” is not one universal event. For example, PresentMon distinguishes the interval between Present calls from the time between display changes. Those measurements occur at different points in the graphics pipeline and can tell different stories. PresentMon’s field documentation defines the timing values; NVIDIA’s FrameView 1.1 guide likewise distinguishes rendered timing from displayed timing.
Use frame time as a frame-budget conversion
For a target of N frames per second, the corresponding nominal frame interval is 1000 ÷ N milliseconds. For example, 60 FPS corresponds to about 16.67 ms per frame. This is a conversion, not a universal quality threshold: whether a frame interval is acceptable depends on the target and the consistency of delivery. A trace with repeated excursions may feel uneven even if its average is near the target.
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What does a 99th-percentile frame time mean?
A frame-time percentile is a threshold in milliseconds. The 99th-percentile frame time (P99) is the value at or below which 99% of the measured frame times fall; roughly the slowest 1% are at or above that threshold, subject to the tool’s calculation and ties. A higher P99 means the slow tail contains longer frame times. NVIDIA’s FrameView 1.1 guide explains the percentile rule with P95: if rendered P95 is 16.67 ms, 95% of rendered frames were faster than 16.67 ms.
Percentile terminology reverses direction when expressed in FPS because FPS is the reciprocal of frame duration. A high percentile of frame times describes a slow tail in milliseconds; a low-end FPS percentile describes slow-performing frames. Do not take the reciprocal of a percentile threshold and assume it equals an average of the slowest frames: those are different statistics.
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How do you read 1% lows?
“1% low” is a label that depends on the software’s definition. In NVIDIA FrameView 1.4, 1% Low FPS is calculated by averaging the FPS of the slowest 1% of frames. Its separate 1% FPS metric is a percentile measurement separating the slowest 1% from the fastest 99%. These are not interchangeable. The definitions are specific to FrameView 1.4; when reporting another tool’s result, use that tool’s documented method and exact label. NVIDIA’s FrameView 1.4 guide provides those definitions.
When comparing a low-FPS figure with a frame-time percentile, keep both the metric and direction visible. For example, “P99 frame time: X ms” and “1% low: Y FPS” are clearer than an unlabeled “1%” figure. The first is a slow-tail time threshold; the second may be a slow-tail average depending on the tool.
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Why can FPS look high but feel stuttery?
Average FPS compresses an entire capture into one number. It does not show when long frames happened, how often they occurred, or whether they arrived in a cluster. A game can sustain a high average while occasional long frames interrupt smooth motion. NVIDIA Nsight Systems describes a stutter row that flags frames significantly longer than nearby frames, illustrating why a time series can reveal events that a mean conceals. Nsight Systems’ FPS Overview documentation describes its frame-duration view and stutter row.
A spike says that a frame interval was long; it does not, by itself, prove a GPU bottleneck. The timing may reflect CPU work, GPU work, asset loading, shader compilation, synchronization, or another cause. To diagnose a cause, use a trace that correlates CPU and GPU activity rather than inferring it from the frame-time line alone.
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What is the difference between rendered FPS and displayed FPS?
Rendered or presented timing and displayed timing refer to different pipeline events. FrameView 1.1 describes MsBetweenPresents as timing between Present calls near the beginning of the graphics pipeline, while MsBetweenDisplayChange measures the interval between display changes near the end of the pipeline and is more indicative of what the user sees.
PresentMon documents additional fields that should not be treated as synonyms: MsUntilDisplayed measures from a Present call until display, while MsRenderPresentLatency measures from the Present call until GPU work for that frame completes. A capture tool may expose several of these values, so state the field or event used rather than reporting only “FPS.” See the PresentMon documentation and the FrameView 1.1 guide.
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How should you compare two frame-time captures?
For a useful comparison, hold the measurement and capture conditions as constant as practical. A difference in event definition, gameplay segment, or statistic can make two numbers incomparable even when both are labeled “FPS.”
- Metric and event: Identify the capture tool and version, and whether the result uses Present timing, display-change timing, or another field.
- Statistic: Label average FPS, an FPS percentile, a frame-time percentile, or a slowest-tail average explicitly.
- Capture scope: Use the same scene or benchmark, duration, graphics settings, frame cap and sync setup, and similar background conditions where feasible.
- Outlier pattern: Consider the size, frequency, and clustering of spikes, not only the single maximum.
- Exclusions: State whether menus, loading screens, transitions, or spikes were removed from the analyzed interval.
NVIDIA cautions that percentile data is sensitive to stutter and recommends excluding loading screens, menus, and large spikes when selecting a meaningful dataset. That advice is useful when those events are outside the question being tested, such as a gameplay-only benchmark. If the question is whether a real session stutters, removing actual gameplay spikes hides part of the experience. Report a whole-session result or show it alongside a separately defined gameplay-only result. NVIDIA’s FrameView 1.1 guide discusses percentile sensitivity and dataset selection.
Quick Recap
Which tools can show frame times and percentiles?
| Tool | What it provides | Useful qualification |
|---|---|---|
| PresentMon Capture Application | Real-time overlay, trace capture, per-frame CSV, and a summary with capture duration, frame count, average, minimum, maximum, and 99th, 95th, and 90th FPS percentiles. | Its documented fields distinguish present, display-change, display, and render-present timing; choose and label the one relevant to your question. |
| NVIDIA FrameView | Frame-rate and frame-time measurement with configurable overlay and logging, using PresentMon analytics. | The product page links version 2.0 release notes, while the definitions cited here come from guides explicitly labeled versions 1.1 and 1.4. Do not assume a version-specific formula applies unchanged to another version. |
| NVIDIA Nsight Systems | FPS overview with frame durations, average/minimum/maximum CPU frame time, average FPS, a 99th percentile for the displayed timeline range, and a row that flags unusually long frames. | It is a profiling tool that can help investigate timing, not a prerequisite for reading a consumer benchmark. |
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