Meta Quest 3 Gets Extended Refresh Rates, Up to 240Hz in Horizon OS 2.7
Horizon OS 2.7 unlocks display rates above 120Hz on Quest 3 alone, hitting 207Hz at full resolution and 240Hz with scaling enabled.
- Horizon OS 2.7 adds "Extended Refresh Rates" support exclusive to Meta Quest 3
- Hardware accepts any integer rate from 72Hz to 207Hz at full resolution via standard APIs
- 240Hz requires display scaling since full-resolution frames exceed bandwidth above 207Hz
- Quest 3S is excluded because its display panel caps out at 120Hz
Meta has quietly given the Quest 3 a display upgrade it never mentioned in a keynote. Horizon OS 2.7 adds what Meta calls “Extended Refresh Rates,” letting the headset run above its long-standing 120Hz ceiling. Meta Quest 3 supports display refresh rates above 120 Hz, up to 240 Hz, and this is exclusive to Meta Quest 3, not available on Meta Quest 3S or any other headset.
The feature surfaced first through developer chatter on X, spotted by a user going by Luna, before Meta’s own developer documentation confirmed the numbers. It is a real spec change, not a rumor, and it only applies to one specific piece of hardware already sitting in millions of living rooms.
Enthusiasts online are less focused on the number itself than on how Meta got there without a new chip: 
207Hz at Full Resolution, 240Hz With a Catch
The headline number needs a footnote. 207 Hz is the highest rate at which the system can deliver a full frame of data to the display at full resolution, and rates above 207 Hz require display scaling because a full-resolution frame exceeds the available bandwidth to the display. In practice that means 240Hz is real, but it comes with a resolution trade-off the marketing-free patch notes do not sugar-coat.
Below that ceiling, developers get a lot of freedom. On Meta Quest 3, the display hardware accepts any integer refresh rate from 72 Hz through 207 Hz, and developers can request any of them through the standard APIs. No special build flags, no waivers, no closed beta enrollment required.
Horizon OS 2.7 Is the Gate, Quest 3S Is Locked Out
The unlock is tied directly to software version. Extended refresh rates require HorizonOS v2.7 or later. Anyone still running an older build simply will not see the option, regardless of how new their unit is.
Quest 3S owners are out of luck entirely. Extended refresh rates are not available on Meta Quest 3S because it uses a different display panel that does not support rates above 120 Hz. The two headsets share a chipset and much of their software stack, but the panel underneath the lenses is a different part with a hard physical limit.
Read also: QuestStack Tool Unlocks Original Meta Quest Bootloader, Grants Full Root Access
Thermal Throttling Still Has the Final Word
Higher refresh rates draw more power and generate more heat, and Meta’s own guidance flags that tension. If an app with a display refresh rate higher than 72 Hz experiences thermal events, dynamic throttling may change the refresh rate to 72 Hz as a first step. A headset chasing 207Hz or 240Hz for an extended session could see the display quietly step back down mid-play.
That caveat matters because standalone Quest 3 titles still have to be coded to request the higher rates in the first place. Meta’s documentation is explicit that developers should not treat an extended rate as a requirement, since it depends on the specific display hardware inside this one model and nothing else in the lineup.
A Pattern of Late Hardware Headroom
Quest 3 launched in October 2023 capped at 120Hz, and the jump to a possible 207Hz through pure software has drawn comparisons to Meta’s earlier, quieter move to raise the headset’s GPU clock speed well after launch. It follows the same shape as Meta’s own Quest Link updates, which have previously added higher refresh support and battery savings for PC-tethered play through firmware alone rather than new silicon.
Whether any shipping game actually asks for 207Hz remains a separate question from whether the headset can now deliver it. For now the ceiling is set, the gate is Horizon OS 2.7, and the Quest 3S stays fixed at 120Hz until Meta ships a headset with a different panel.
Reported from
- Meta Horizon OS Developers
- DTF
- Road to VR
How this story was made. Bolverk Games uses an AI newsroom assistant to research and draft breaking coverage. Every story is written from facts verified across at least two independent sources, which are listed above, and is published under a named Bolverk reporter who is accountable for it. Spotted an error? Tell us — corrections run at the top of the article. Read our AI policy.