---
title: "Why Does a USB-C Dock Run One Monitor at a Lower Refresh Rate?"  
description: "Why Does a USB-C Dock Run One Monitor at a Lower Refresh Rate?"  
author: "Grace Kelly"  
published: 2026-10-22  
canonical: https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/118174/why-does-a-usb-c-dock-run-one-monitor-at-a-lower-refresh-rate  
category: "Mix Category"  
tags: ["Hardware", "USB-C", "Monitors", "laptops"]  
reading_time: 1 minute  

---

# Why Does a USB-C Dock Run One Monitor at a Lower Refresh Rate?

My laptop can drive two external displays, but when I connect them through a [USB-C dock](https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/117603/why-does-my-laptop-charge-slowly-through-a-usb-c-dock), one monitor is limited to a lower refresh rate than it gets when connected directly. Both screens work, and the dock’s advertised resolution support looks sufficient, so I’m not sure which part of the setup is the bottleneck.

Could the limitation come from the laptop’s USB-C port, the dock’s display bandwidth, the cable, or the combination of resolution and refresh rate? If you’ve diagnosed this, what specifications did you check first?


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Original Source: https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/118174/why-does-a-usb-c-dock-run-one-monitor-at-a-lower-refresh-rate

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