What is Apple ProMotion? The 120Hz display tech explained

“ProMotion” is a marketing term created by Apple for its adaptive display technology with refresh rates of up to 120Hz. Hertz (Hz) measures the refresh rate of a display, or how many times per second a display is able to draw a new image. For years, 60Hz was the standard refresh rate for smartphones, tablets and laptops. ProMotion doubles that to 120Hz, refreshing the screen up to 120 times per second to give users smoother scrolling, improved responsiveness and better gaming performance.

Apple’s ProMotion display is not static. It adjusts automatically to the content on your screen. When you use the device actively, for example scrolling, switching between apps or playing a game, it runs at up to 120Hz, and when the content is still, it drops to a much lower rate to save power. On the current iPad Pro the range is 10Hz to 120Hz, and the iPhone 13 Pro, the first iPhone with ProMotion, used the same range. Overall, it keeps motion smooth when it matters and saves battery when it does not.

ProMotion also makes the Always-On display possible, which Apple introduced with the iPhone 14 Pro. When the Always-On display is enabled and the phone is locked, the iPhone can scale back to a refresh rate of just 1Hz, keeping the lock screen visible without draining much battery. Because the display only ramps up to 120Hz when needed and spends a lot of time below the standard 60Hz rate, it offsets much of the extra power that a faster refresh rate would otherwise use.

Benefits of ProMotion include:

1. smooth and optimised motion on screen while jumping between apps and scrolling through articles
2. faster responsiveness to input, especially while playing games, with up to twice the frame rate of a 60Hz display
3. better battery efficiency, because the refresh rate drops when full speed is not needed
4. a more responsive feel when drawing or writing with Apple Pencil on the iPad Pro.

Which Apple devices have ProMotion?

High refresh rates are not unique to Apple; many Android smartphones also offer 90Hz, 120Hz or faster displays. Apple first used ProMotion on the iPad Pro in 2017 and has since brought it to many more products. As of October 2026, ProMotion is available on:

• every Pro iPhone since the iPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max (2021), up to the iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max announced in September 2026
• the iPhone 17 and iPhone Air, announced in September 2025, which brought ProMotion and the Always-On display to non-Pro iPhones for the first time
• iPhone Duo, Apple’s first foldable iPhone, announced in September 2026, on both its inner and outer displays
• the iPad Pro, from the 2017 models to the current models with Ultra Retina XDR displays
• the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro, from the 2021 models onwards

The long-rumoured move of ProMotion to non-Pro iPhones has therefore happened. The technology is still missing from some cheaper models, including the iPhone 16, the iPhone 17e and the iPad Air. For app developers, smooth animation on high-refresh-rate screens is one of many details that shape the user experience; read more about current trends in iOS app development.