🖥️ HDMI Bandwidth Calculator
Calculate exact HDMI bandwidth for any resolution, refresh rate, color depth & HDR setting
| Resolution | Refresh | Color / Chroma | Raw Bandwidth | Min. HDMI Ver. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920×1080 | 60 Hz | 8-bit 4:4:4 | 3.56 Gbps | HDMI 1.2 |
| 1920×1080 | 120 Hz | 8-bit 4:4:4 | 7.12 Gbps | HDMI 1.4 |
| 2560×1440 | 60 Hz | 8-bit 4:4:4 | 7.12 Gbps | HDMI 1.4 |
| 2560×1440 | 144 Hz | 8-bit 4:4:4 | 17.07 Gbps | HDMI 2.0b |
| 3840×2160 | 30 Hz | 8-bit 4:2:0 | 8.91 Gbps | HDMI 1.4b |
| 3840×2160 | 60 Hz | 8-bit 4:4:4 | 14.93 Gbps | HDMI 2.0 |
| 3840×2160 | 120 Hz | 10-bit 4:4:4 | 40.50 Gbps | HDMI 2.1 |
| 7680×4320 | 60 Hz | 8-bit 4:4:4 | 59.73 Gbps | HDMI 2.1+DSC |
| 7680×4320 | 120 Hz | 10-bit 4:4:4 | 161.99 Gbps | HDMI 2.1+DSC |
| Chroma Format | Multiplier | Bits per Pixel (8-bit) | Typical Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4:4:4 (RGB / YCbCr) | ×1.0 | 24 bpp | PC, gaming, graphics |
| 4:2:2 (YCbCr) | ×0.667 | 16 bpp | Broadcast, professional video |
| 4:2:0 (YCbCr) | ×0.5 | 12 bpp | 4K streaming, UHD BD |
| HDR Standard | Min. Color Depth | Min. HDMI Version | Bandwidth Impact | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SDR (none) | 8-bit | HDMI 1.0+ | Baseline | Standard dynamic range |
| HDR10 | 10-bit | HDMI 2.0b | +25% | Static metadata, open standard |
| HDR10+ | 10-bit | HDMI 2.1 | +25% | Dynamic metadata, Samsung |
| Dolby Vision | 12-bit | HDMI 2.0b+ | +50% | Dynamic metadata, Dolby |
| HLG | 10-bit | HDMI 2.0b | +25% | Broadcast, backwards compatible |
| Use Case | Spec | Required Bandwidth | Recommended Cable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home Theater 1080p | 1080p@60 8-bit SDR | 3.56 Gbps | Standard HDMI (any version) |
| Console Gaming 4K | 4K@60 8-bit HDR10 | 18.66 Gbps | HDMI 2.0 Premium Certified |
| Next-Gen Gaming | 4K@120 10-bit HDR10 | 40.50 Gbps | HDMI 2.1 Ultra High Speed |
| Professional Monitor | 4K@60 12-bit DV | 22.40 Gbps | HDMI 2.1 or DP 1.4 |
| 8K Cinema Display | 8K@60 10-bit HDR | 74.66 Gbps | HDMI 2.1 + DSC required |
| Esports Monitor | 1080p@240 8-bit SDR | 14.27 Gbps | HDMI 2.0b or HDMI 2.1 |
HDMI stands for High Definition Multimedia. This helps to send digital image together with multi-channel sound through one single cable. Unlike old analog connections like VGA or DVI HDMI sends both sight and sound in digital form.
Bandwidth shows how many data one can flow through HDMI. Those data maybe arrive from common device, game console or Blu-ray player. They can go to AV-receptor or directly to television.
HDMI Bandwidth, Versions and Cables
To estimate the HDMI Bandwidth, one multiplies vertical pixels (plus Vblank), horizontal pixels (plus Hblank), bits per channel and frame rate. Everything becomes more complex, if one considers color sampling and video compression. Some programs use Visual Codes for televised signals, that store set data about signlas.
Not all versions of HDMI match. Cables of High Speed HDMI well work with 1080p and more, backing until 10.2 Gbps of Bandwidth, included 4K at 30 Hz, 3D and Deep Colour. HDMI 2.0 expands the maximum Bandwidth until 18 Gbps.
Even so TMDS-encoding does, that only 80 percent of sent bits is real data, sew the real Bandwidth stays around 14.4 Gbps.
HDMI 2.1 marks big progress. Ultra-high-fast HDMI-cables back 8K at 60 Hz, 4K at 120 Hz and until 48 Gbps of Bandwidth. It also launched Display Stream Compression 1.2, that is lossless compression for ultra-high definition.
Thanks to DSC, one reaches maximum packed Bandwidth of 128 Gbps, quite a lot for 10K-resolution. HDMI 2.1 fits to handle 1440p at 240 Hz without need of DSC entirely.
Here comes HDMI 2.2. It doubles the maximum Bandwidth of HDMI 2.1 until 96 Gbps and backs until 16K-resolution with new Ultra96-cables. That much fast 96 Gbps-Bandwidth is useful for future uses like AR, VR, mixed reality, digital posters, medical images and machine vision.
All Ultra96-cables and ultra-high-fast cables must pass certified test at officialtest center.
Also the cable quality matters. To create faster HDMI-cables, you need low impedance and reduced capacitance. Cable of 2.1 has likewise many wires as that of 1.4, but the structure and materials are other and better.
Bad cables can cause problems with signals, especially long cables, where added connections cause signal issues. Since HDMI 1.4 and the appearance of 4K, the differences between cable types became actual cause.
HDMI has also some less known mainstream functions, that work at lower Bandwidth, for instance ARC for sending sound to receptor and CEC for single control of several devices.
