Sometimes it’s simple to find out what DPI a particular mouse has. Just look at its specifications on the original box, in the manual or on the manufacturer’s website.
The thing is, and surely the reason you’re reading this, is because you’ve already tried that and didn’t find the info. Or your mouse has various DPI settings and you’re unsure exactly what each one is. Maybe you want to measure the DPI to check it against the manufacturer’s claims.
In any case, we’ll show you how to find out how any mouse shapes up in the sensitivity stakes.
Just before getting to that, it’s worth a brief explanation of DPI. It stands for dots per inch and is a measurement used for various tech devices (including printers) but, for mice, DPI determines how small or large a movement is required to be registered as movement.
A higher DPI (such as 10,000) means higher sensitivity than a low DPI, such as 100. So, if you swapped a 100 DPI mouse for one with 10,000 DPI, moving it a set distance to the right will move the cursor on screen further to the right than making that same movement with a lower-DPI mouse.
You can argue that this isn’t a massively helpful example, as you can adjust the mouse sensitivity settings in Windows to make your mouse faster or slower across the screen. And you’d be right. But DPI and sensitivity aren’t quite the same thing.
And this is relevant if you happen to be a gamer that likes first-person-shooters, for example. Whether a lower or higher DPI setting is best is debateable, but it’s a subject for another article.
Games often let you use a higher DPI with a lower sensitivity so you don’t have to adjust how much you move the mouse if you’re swapping to a new mouse or playing a different game. No-one wants to have to relearn that muscle memory for turning your character 360° on screen, for example. There are even online calculators that can translate your settings from one game to another.
Many gaming mice have buttons that let you switch DPI on the fly while you’re playing, but what if you don’t know your mouse’s DPI? Or you don’t know the DPI settings it switches between?
Here are three ways to find out a mouse’s DPI.
1. Check the manufacturer’s specifications
The most obvious thing you can do is see if the manufacturer lists the DPI. Search online for your mouse’s make and model, details that should be printed on a label on the underside. Put these details into Google and there’s a good chance you’ll find the specifications which should include the DPI figure.
Typically, the figure quoted will be the highest DPI on offer. But some manufacturers, including Logitech, specify the range the mouse supports.
2. Install the drivers
Unless you have an unbranded mouse which relies solely on Windows’ default mouse driver you should be able to download the appropriate software from your mouse manufacturer’s website.
This usually gives you a heap of options, including the ability to change what all the buttons do and – relevant here – choose the DPI setting.
You might find that there’s a standalone app for accessing all the settings and options. We can’t tell you where the DPI setting is for any given mouse (except the one used as an example here – the Logitech G403) so you’ll have to search around in the app or in Windows’ settings to find it.
In Logitech’s Gaming Software you have to click on the icon with a pointer and a cog. With some mice such as the G403 it’s possible to set up to five different DPI levels. The G403 has only three LEDs to indicate which level is selected, though.
You can also customise the actual DPI settings for each level – a common feature on gaming mice.
3. Measure your mouse’s DPI
1.
Disable acceleration (pointer precision)
Jim Martin / Foundry
To use a measurement tool, you must first disable acceleration. Otherwise the distance you move the mouse won’t necessarily correspond to on-screen movements: acceleration means the faster you move the mouse, the more the pointer (or your character) moves.
To disable it, click Start > Settings > Devices > Mouse.
Then click on Additional mouse options (highlighted above).
2.
Go to Pointer Options
Jim Martin / Foundry
Click the on the Pointer Options tab and uncheck Enhance pointer precision. Note down what the pointer speed is set to. By default, as shown above, it’s at 6 out of a possible 11.
If you have any mouse software installed, check this as well because you might also be able to disable acceleration in that too: it needs to be turned off in both Windows and third-party software.
3.
Make a measurement guide
Jim Martin / Foundry
You’ll need a piece of paper, or some other way to know how far you’re moving your mouse. Here, we’ve printed out a tape measure from printable-ruler.net. Just use an actual ruler or tape measure to make sure it has printed correctly and the distances are correct.
Decide how far you’re going to move the mouse: it doesn’t really matter what the distance is as long as the pointer remains on your monitor and doesn’t hit the edge. It doesn’t matter if it goes past the edge of your browser window, but moving the mouse after the cursor has reached the edge of the display will make the result incorrect.
4.
Browse to the measurement tool
Jim Martin / Foundry
Now head to the Real Mouse DPI Analyzer page and enter the distance you’ve chosen, remembering to check that the next box is correctly set to centimetres or inches – whichever you’ve chosen.
Here we’ve entered 6 centimetres. As our pointer speed was already set to default, there’s no need to change the speed on the far-right box. But if your pointer speed (from step 2) was different, use the drop-down menu to select the appropriate speed.
Since you don’t know your mouse’s DPI you can’t put a value in the Configured DPI box. If you do know what it should be, enter it here and a blue crosshair will be displayed on the measurement line alongside the red one.
5.
Perform the measurement
Jim Martin / Foundry
Now move your mouse cursor over the red crosshair at the bottom of the page, ensuring that the mouse itself is at the start of your printed tape measure. Click and hold the left mouse button and drag the mouse to the right in as straight a line as possible, stopping at the distance you specified in Target distance. You don’t have to do it quickly: the aim is to be accurate.
6.
Check your results
Jim Martin / Foundry
When you let go of the mouse button, a figure will appear by ‘Actual DPI’. This shows the approximate DPI value that your mouse is currently set to.
You can repeat the test using any other DPI settings your mouse might have, or you can adjust the DPI in your mouse’s software and try again if you’re attempting to hit a specific DPI.
How do I change my mouse DPI and sensitivity?
A lot of mice have buttons to change the DPI setting. Some even have displays which show the current setting, while others don’t.
If your mouse doesn’t have any buttons, or they’re not doing what you want, then open your mouse software (if installed) and look for options to change the DPI. You should be able to specify an exact DPI setting, or even multiple settings if your mouse supports that and has buttons to toggle between those settings.
For those without dedicated mouse software, use the Control Panel settings detailed above and adjust the Pointer speed slider until you like how much your cursor is moving.
Alternatively, use the Windows 10 or 11 Settings app, click Devices, then Mouse and you’ll find a ‘Cursor speed’ slider which does the same thing.
If you decide your current mouse isn’t up to the job, see some recommendations for a replacement in our roundup of the best gaming mice.
