What Is The Best DPI For Gaming?
Even though it tends to not be a top priority when putting together a gaming PC, selecting the best mouse to meet a user’s needs is important. The market is flooded with countless gaming mice of all shapes, price ranges, and built-in features; with so many vying for a customer’s attention, it can be difficult to know where to start.
While barely mentioned in the promotion of office or casual variants, DPI is usually plastered all over gaming mice. This feature comes with a lot of wiggle room, with some mice supporting a range starting from 100 to over 10,000 DPI. What is the best DPI for gaming? Is a high or low DPI better?
What Is DPI?
Before progressing further, a brief explanation of DPI is necessary. «Dots Per Inch» determines the number of pixels a cursor will travel on the screen for every inch the mouse is dragged on the pad. Basically, a mouse with 1300 DPI will move 1300 pixels per inch.
The higher the DPI, the more monitor real estate the cursor will cover. Therefore, a high DPI translates to faster on-screen movement or a more sensitive mouse. On paper, this might seem like nothing but a good thing, but this can result in lower accuracy.
RELATED: What Does DPI Mean For Gaming Mice?
Office mice typically come with a DPI of somewhere between 800-1600; however, gaming mice are different. While exceptions exist, most gaming mice promote flexibility, allowing players to choose from a range of DPI.
For instance, the SteelSeries Aerox 9 Wireless has a DPI range (or CPI, which can be treated as the same thing in these cases) between 100 – 18000, split into increments of 100. Players can use the mouse’s app to set their preferred DPI.
A wide DPI range is not an exclusive feature of high-end gaming mice either, as budget-friendly options like the Razer DeathAdder Essential have a respectable max sensitivity of 6400.
Selecting A DPI For Gaming
Ultimately, DPI comes down to personal preference, and users are recommended to try out a mouse’s full range to see which one works best for them.
A large selection of gaming mice include a DPI button that cycles through different levels (typically starting from the lowest and ending on the highest), and some even allow this input to be customized through an app. Do not hesitate to experiment to find the perfect setting.
DPI Depends On The Monitor’s Resolution
A 4K monitor has 4x the pixel count of a 1080p screen; therefore, a mouse with a DPI of 1600 will seem much slower on the former than the latter. Like any other component of a gaming PC, compatibility between the monitor and mouse should be the deciding factor when selecting a DPI.
Even though some mice have a DPI that can reach 20000+, those numbers will be impractical for most people unless they happen to be using an 8K monitor. In fact, users with 1080p and 1440p do not need a mouse that supports more than 1600 DPI, and even that can be overkill.
RELATED: Most Important Things To Consider When Buying A Gaming Mouse
Benefits Of High DPI (>1000)
As high DPI equals more rapid cursor movement, these levels are generally considered to be a good fit for twitch shooters and games that require quick reflexes.
However, as previously mentioned, high DPI results in less accuracy, which can be a death sentence in precision-based first-person shooters. That said, a high DPI can complement stuff like RPGs or MMOs where players wish to move their camera quickly.
Benefits Of Low DPI (<1000)
Low DPI means every pixel counts, giving players full control over the cursor at the cost of speed. MOBA and strategy titles demand precise actions, and a high DPI would be a detriment to these genres.
In-Game Mouse Sensitivity & EDPI
The majority of PC games permit players to change the sensitivity of their mice. By increasing or decreasing this setting, the mouse’s DPI will change, creating what is called eDPI («Effective Dots Per Inch«).
If a game’s sensitivity is set to 2x, a mouse with a DPI of 1200 will have an eDPI of 2400. Conversely, if the sensitivity is set to 0.5x, the mouse’s eDPI will be 600.
It is also possible to change a mouse’s sensitivity through Windows.
What Is The Best DPI For Gaming?
800 is the best starting DPI for a 1080p or a 1440p system. While it might seem low, this level is suitable for most gameplay styles. Rather than constantly changing a mouse’s DPI, players should set an eDPI for each game. Once the ideal sensitivity for that title is discovered and saved, that setting will be always ready to go. There isn’t one DPI that fits every experience out there, so rather than jumping back and forth between the mouse’s levels, pick a foundation that can support as many configurations as possible.
If a game does not have a standard mouse sensitivity option, then 800 might be too low for a number of genres. In such cases, start with 800 and go up exponentially after that, jumping up 400 DPI at a time.
MORE: Do I Need A Gaming Headset?
Best DPI for Gaming to Play Like a Pro
DPI settings have been a hot topic in gaming circles for years now.
So, you might be wondering how important your DPI is in the grand scheme of things.
Worry not. In this article, we will:
- Explain what DPI is and how it’s connected to CPI, sensitivity, and EDPI
- Show you the best DPI for gaming options
- Walk you through checking your mouse DPI
Let’s dive in!
What Is DPI on a Mouse?
DPI stands for Dots Per Inch.
It is actually a misnomer, but more on that later. Still, even a bit ill-fitting, the name says it all. Your mouse DPI measures how many pixels (“dots”) you can move the cursor on the screen per one inch of your hand movement.
In other words, it’s a measure of the relation between how far your cursor moves on the screen and how far the mouse moves on the surface.
Here’s an example.
So, let’s say your DPI is 800. That means that if you move your mouse one inch, your mouse cursor will move for 800 pixels on your screen.
Or let’s take higher DPI levels, like 1600. Again, you move your hand one inch — but now your mouse cursor will move 1600 screen pixels! Even though your hand movement stayed the same, your mouse moved further on-screen.
What’s the main point of this high vs low DPI comparison?
It’s all about mouse sensitivity.
You’ve probably noticed how manufacturers have been trying to one-up each other when it comes to gaming mouse DPI. A lot of the marketing strategy seems to rely on impressive numbers, surpassing even 20 000!
But, does bigger equal better in this case?
Here’s a secret:
It doesn’t. As you might’ve guessed, it’s all just part of a marketing ploy designed to dazzle you with big numbers.
You need to find the best mouse sensitivity for maximum utility. So, nothing too low, and nothing absurdly high either.
Luckily for you, we did the research.
What’s the Best DPI for Gaming?
This is a loaded question.
That’s why we’re going to suggest some starting points. They will lead you to your own grand discovery of what’s the best DPI for gaming.
First things first:
Sensitivity does not equal accuracy!
Let’s say you try to play your usual CS:GO round but with a much higher mouse sensitivity than the one you’re used to.
You will just 360-no-scope yourself out of the screen like a confused helicopter. It will feel like you’re trying to aim with a slippery bar of soap. Not pleasant!
That’s because mouse DPI for gaming is only one part of the picture. Your experience also depends on:
- Native sensitivity and in-game sensitivity (which varies from game to game!)
- Screen resolution and ratio
- Your play style and muscle memory
- The type of game you play.
Let’s talk a bit about each of these.
Native and In-game Sensitivity
Windows and in-game sensitivity also factor in since they serve as multipliers. We will talk more at length about them in the next section.
For now, let’s just take a quick look.
Always keep your pointer precision or mouse acceleration unchecked since it can seriously throw off your gaming DPI.
In-game sensitivity settings values are different for each game. So, if you tried to use the same mouse settings for gaming in Overwatch in, let’s say, Apex — you wouldn’t get the same sensitivity!
That also means that the best DPI for Apex Legends won’t be the best when used in any other game.
Luckily, there are many calculator tools online that deal with this problem and convert your settings from one game to another.
Screen Resolution and Ratio
Let’s say you upgrade from a 22” 1080p monitor to a 27” 1440p one. It will probably affect your mouse sensitivity, and you will need to up it to go with the larger screen. With a bigger screen and your same old DPI levels, it will feel like you need to move your hand significantly more to traverse across the screen with your pointer. And that feeling will only intensify with ultra-wide curved monitors or dual monitors.
To simplify: more pixels = higher sensitivity needed.
Playstyle and Muscle Memory
Everyone has their distinct playstyle and movements. Some people love higher DPI settings because they like to do everything with a slight wrist flick (beware of Carpal tunnel syndrome, though). Others love to play with lower DPI levels on an oversized gaming mat, with more arm and shoulder movement.
But, that’s not all!
It also depends on the muscle memory you developed for the game. If you change up your long-time mouse settings for gaming, most automatic movements will not work anymore. That’s why it’s best you quickly find out what works for you and stick with it.
Types of Games
It makes sense that what counts as good DPI for FPS might not work for RTS, doesn’t it? Take the following suggestions with a grain of salt. What works for some people won’t necessarily work for you.
In general, whenever someone talks about the best DPI for gaming, treat it with a healthy dose of skepticism.
For shooting precision in FPS, the recommended DPI for gaming is in the lower scope of 400-800. There isn’t a widely accepted optimal range for MOBA games, but this could also be your sweet spot for more control in your clicks.
It’s a different story for MMOs and RPGs since you will depend more on a broader range of movement on maps than precision.
For those games, the best DPI is in the higher range of 1000-1600. So, nothing too crazy. The same setting goes maybe even more so for RTS games, where you will need to strategically overlook everything going on.
You might’ve noticed that we haven’t mentioned insanely high DPI settings, not even once. And that’s because you don’t really need them!
Of course, there are always people on Reddit talking about their bizarre gaming setups with 10000+ DPI, which they claim is the best DPI for League of Legends. But you don’t need a lot to achieve the most.
CPI vs DPI vs Sensitivity vs EDPI
There is a bundle of terms that are often used alongside DPI, sometimes even interchangeably. And we’ve already mentioned that the term DPI is technically a misnomer.
Time to clarify:
CPI vs DPI
CPI stands for Counts Per Inch. The “Counts” are the base units of mouse sensors. So, if you have a 1000 CPI mouse, that means that it registers 1000 counts when you move it one inch.
The higher the CPI, the more sensitive the mouse is.
So, what’s the deal with DPI then?
DPI actually stands for printer dots per inch, which refers to the output resolution of printers. The name just kind of got stuck for mice.
CPI and DPI are the same thing, basically. It’s just that CPI is technically the more fitting term for measuring mouse sensitivity, but DPI is the popular one.
Fun fact:
There’s even another cuter term that’s used — mickeys per second.
DPI vs Sensitivity
You might be wondering why we’re talking about sensitivity — again. Remember how we mentioned native and in-game sensitivity earlier? Together with DPI (or rather, CPI), they all act as sensitivity multipliers.
So, if you want to set the best mouse sensitivity, you will need to pay attention to Windows and in-game settings.
Let’s take a closer look.
When you check your Windows mouse sensitivity settings, you will see a slider with 11 notches — all different sensitivity multipliers
You need to set the multiplier to the sixth notch.
Any other mouse settings for gaming may result in pixel skipping.
So, remember: 6/11 is the magic number!
What about in-game sensitivity?
It differs from game to game.
Many players like to play with higher DPI levels that they “water down” with in-game sensitivity turned down. The only problem is that if you want to play with a really high DPI, the in-game options probably won’t be low enough.
DPI vs EDPI
EDPI stands for Effective Dots Per Inch. Whenever you’re messing around with your in-game sensitivity, you are effectively changing your EDPI.
That’s because your EDPI is your “plain” gaming DPI multiplied with in-game sensitivity.
So, it’s something like this:
600 DPI x 2 in-game sensitivity = 1200 EDPI
The result is your true mouse DPI for gaming, hence why it’s called “effective”. Again, your EDPI value depends on the game you play.
How To Check Your Mouse DPI
Alright, that all makes sense but what is my mouse DPI right now?
We’ll help you find out.
Let’s start with an easy one — your mouse specs.
You can look on your box (if you still keep it) or simply look up the model online. Your mouse DPI range (or the highest point) should be there.
Another way to do it is with mouse drivers.
Navigate your way through the manufacturer’s website and look for the appropriate driver software for your model. When you install it, find your pointer settings. From there on, finding your DPI settings should be easy. The cool thing is you can customize what each of your fancy sensitivity level buttons does.
Finally, if all else fails, you can use the ol’ reliable online DPI analyzer to determine your current DPI levels.
Here’s the process, step by step:
- Get a piece of paper with drawn on inch/cm lines (to use as a mousepad) or just a ruler. You will need those to measure how far you move the mouse when moving the pointer from the left edge of your screen to the right.
- Type in that distance as your Target distance in the analyzer.
- Click and carefully drag the red crosshair below, move it to the same distance you specified as your target distance, and then let it go.
- And voilà! Now you know your mouse DPI. You will see your Actual DPI value appear in the box.
For this to work correctly, have your native pointer precision unchecked and keep that 6/11 sensitivity setting.
Wrap Up
In the end, we can say that gaming DPI as a concept is a bit overhyped. Sure, it’s important, but it isn’t a matter of life and death like some mouse manufacturers may lead you to believe.
In truth:
There is no universal best DPI for gaming. It’s all a matter of trying out different combinations because your DPI isn’t an isolated value. In fact, your DPI settings only make sense as part of a broader context, which is a combination of:
- Screen resolution
- Windows and in-game sensitivity settings
- Different play styles
- Types of games
As the Ancient Greek proverb goes, “Know thyself and know thy DPI measure.
” So, grab your mouse and keyboard and start experimenting!
How much is
enough for a normal game?
Modern gaming mice have so many buttons and functions that the guard is easy! Ergonomics, button layout, RGB lighting features and other things — all this at the stage of choosing a new mouse for your loved one must now be understood and taken into account. And there is also such a parameter as the DPI of the mouse, it also cannot be miscalculated. But it happens in different ways…
Everyone already knows that in DPI, dots per linear inch (dots per linear inch), as it were, the accuracy of the optical mouse sensor is measured, in other words, its sensitivity. nine0007
Therefore, the more DPI, the more accurately the cursor reacts to hand movements and the faster and more accurately, for example, the mouse allows you to aim at Counter-Strike , Apex Legends or Fortnite , right? Not really…
A lot has been written and said about this on the Web, and exhaustive information on this topic is googled at a time, but let’s clarify in a nutshell: the higher the DPI of the mouse, the less you need to move your hand (fingers) to move the cursor on the monitor.
In other words, in order for the cursor on the screen to move to the desired distance, a mouse with 100 DPI must be dragged along the table much further than a mouse with 1000 DPI. This means that with a lower mouse DPI value, the character in the game will also move more slowly, which is especially noticeable in dynamic games that require high FPS. nine0007
Hence the well-known nuance to every experienced gamer: the “large” DPI of the mouse (increased sensitivity) speeds up the character, but makes it difficult to aim.
Therefore, one must think and plan. For example, in Overwatch, if you play as a mega-smart Lucio, then the high sensitivity of the cursor only helps.
But Widowmaker, as a sniper, is more suitable for a mouse with a low DPI, since this allows you to aim more accurately and it is more convenient to keep a constantly moving target in sight with it, although for this you have to work more actively with your hand: