HDMI / DisplayPort Bandwidth Calculator

How to Use This Tool

1. Enter the active pixel width and height, plus the refresh rate in Hz.
2. Enter bits per pixel for the video format. Uncompressed RGB with 8 bits per channel uses 24 bits per pixel.
3. Enter a documented useful payload budget in Gbps. Do not substitute a version label or raw signalling rate.

Choose the Output Signal

Enter the active width and height of the selected output mode, with that mode's refresh rate. A 3840 × 2160 panel can receive a 1920 × 1080 signal; their active data requirements differ. Do not combine one mode's dimensions with another mode's refresh rate. The calculator reads only your numbers, without detecting ports, equipment or display settings.

The useful payload budget is also supplied by you. Find documentation for the actual link configuration, including its lane count and shared traffic. The initial 3 Gbps is an arithmetic example, not an HDMI or DisplayPort rating. An advertised raw signalling speed is not automatically a useful-video budget. When the budget is unknown, the active-rate calculation still cannot answer the compatibility question.

Choose Bits per Active Pixel

Uncompressed RGB has red, green and blue components. Eight bits per component gives 24 bits per pixel; ten gives 30 and twelve gives 36. Enter the combined pixel value. Typing 8 for ordinary eight-bit RGB undercounts the data by a factor of three. Colour depth describes each component's precision, separately from image dimensions and refresh rate.

YCbCr chroma subsampling stores fewer colour samples in some formats. This form has no chroma selector and does not derive its bpp entry. An average sample count does not resolve interface-specific packing either. DSC needs support and negotiation along the path; the calculator does not enable it or apply a compression ratio. A smaller arbitrary bpp value cannot prove that compressed operation is supported.

Follow the Active-Data Calculation

Active Gbps equals width × height × Hz × bits per pixel ÷ 1000000000. Gbps means decimal gigabits per second, not gigabytes. For 1920 × 1080, 60 Hz and 24 bpp, the result is 2.985984 Gbps. An entered 3 Gbps budget is therefore 99.5328% used. That small numerical gap does not establish room for everything the transport requires.

At fixed dimensions and colour format, doubling refresh doubles active data. Changing RGB from 24 to 30 bpp multiplies the rate by 1.25. Doubling both pixel dimensions multiplies area and active data by four. These relationships help check a surprising result before inspecting equipment. They concern the active picture only, with no assumed timing standard or automatic overhead percentage.

Read the Comparison in Its Scope

Below means the active-rate number is smaller than the entered budget. Equal means they match, leaving no modeled allowance. Above means the budget cannot contain that active data under the uncompressed assumptions. None certifies a resolution, refresh rate, HDR mode, cable or adapter. The table's budgets are chosen examples for reproducible arithmetic, not advertised interface capacities.

Display timing includes intervals outside the active picture. Links also use encoding, control information and other transport arrangements. Their treatment varies across interfaces and modes, so one universal overhead percentage would give false precision. A documented payload ceiling can also include audio or several displays. Consult timing-aware specifications or a manufacturer mode table for the final check; this result remains the active-data subtotal.

Check the Complete Connection

Write the path in order: graphics output, cable, adapter or dock, receiver when present, and the display's chosen input. Check each exact port and supported mode. Connector shape and a version label alone do not establish maximum rate, colour format, lane allocation or compression support. Two inputs on one display can differ. A dock can divide display bandwidth among connected screens.

Cable certification, model and length provide evidence about the cable while source and display still need the mode. Start an unstable connection check at a documented supported resolution and refresh rate, then change one setting at a time. Record black screens, interruptions or stable operation. A working lower mode narrows the observation but does not identify the cable as the only cause.

Separate Signal, Density and Image Size

PPI describes native panel pixels over a physical area; MP counts an image's pixels. Neither includes refresh or colour depth, so neither replaces the signal calculation. Multiplying compressed file size by refresh rate does not calculate uncompressed display data. Use the related tools for those separate tasks and return to the selected output dimensions here.

Enter positive whole pixel counts and positive numeric rates without unit suffixes or thousands grouping. Zero or negative budgets are invalid. Decimal refresh rates are allowed; use the selected mode's actual rate. The result is calculated, not measured from a cable. A shared calculation link preserves inputs for discussion. Equipment specifications and supported mode documentation still belong beside it before deciding that a connection will work.

• Calculate native-panel PPI and active size
• Convert image dimensions to megapixels

What the Result Means

Timing, encoding, chroma subsampling, DSC and negotiated lanes affect the real link. The computer, port, adapter, cable and display must support the required mode.

Common Questions