Actuation point and reset
Actuation point is the single most consequential keyboard specification for competitive play, and until adjustable switches arrived it was fixed by the geometry of a piece of plastic. Now that it is a setting, most people set it wrong in the same direction.
The anatomy of a key press
A key travels through four states on the way down and back:
- Rest. Key fully up, no contact.
- Pre-travel. The key is moving but has not yet registered. This time is pure cost.
- Actuation. The press registers.
- Over-travel to bottom-out. Additional movement after the press has already registered. Also pure cost, and the source of most finger fatigue.
Coming back up, the key must rise past the reset point before it can fire again. On a typical Cherry-style switch that is around 1.8 mm, only slightly above the 2.0 mm actuation point, and if you bottomed out at 4.0 mm you have 2.2 mm of lift to perform.
Turning millimetres into milliseconds
A fast finger moves a key at roughly 100 to 200 mm per second during the press phase. That gives a rough conversion:
| Distance | Time at 150 mm/s | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 2.0 mm (standard actuation) | 13.3 ms | Pre-travel on a normal mechanical switch |
| 1.2 mm (short throw) | 8.0 ms | Saves 5.3 ms over standard |
| 0.8 mm (Hall effect, sensible) | 5.3 ms | Saves 8.0 ms over standard |
| 2.2 mm (lift to reset after bottom-out) | 14.7 ms | What rapid trigger removes |
These are order-of-magnitude figures rather than precise measurements, because finger speed varies enormously. But they establish the scale: actuation depth is worth several milliseconds, which is larger than every peripheral latency term on the input lag budget except the render queue.
Choosing a depth
The correct depth is the shallowest one at which you never fire a key accidentally. That threshold is personal, because it depends on how heavily your fingers rest on the keys, which depends on your typing background and your hand.
A simple procedure to find yours:
- Set movement keys to 1.5 mm. Play one session.
- Lower by 0.2 mm. Play one session.
- Repeat until you notice an input you did not make: a strafe you did not ask for, a character typed while resting.
- Go back up 0.2 mm. That is your value.
Most people land between 0.8 and 1.2 mm on movement keys. If you land above 1.5 mm you probably rest heavily on the keys, which is normal and worth accommodating rather than fighting.
Keep typing keys normal
If your keyboard is also the thing you write on, leave the alphabetic keys near 2.0 mm with rapid trigger off. A board configured entirely for gaming produces doubled letters and phantom characters while typing, which is a daily annoyance in exchange for a benefit you only receive on four keys.
Related reading
- Hall effect and rapid trigger, which makes this a setting rather than a purchase.
- Switch types and the database, with actuation figures for every switch.
- Keyboard latency: where travel time sits next to debounce and polling.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good actuation point for gaming?
Between 0.8 and 1.4 mm on movement keys for adjustable switches, or a 1.2 mm short-throw switch if yours is fixed. Shallower than 0.8 mm and resting fingers start triggering keys. Deeper than 1.5 mm and you are adding movement time for no benefit on the keys where timing matters.
What is the difference between actuation point and reset point?
Actuation is the depth going down at which the press registers. Reset is the depth coming back up at which the key becomes available to press again. On most mechanical switches reset is slightly higher than actuation, and the gap between them is called hysteresis.
Why does hysteresis matter?
Because it makes a re-press require more movement than the original press. If you press to 4 mm and reset is at 1.8 mm, you must lift 2.2 mm before the key can fire again. For fast repeated inputs, and for counter-strafing where the release timing determines whether you stop, that extra distance is a real cost.
Should I use different actuation points for different keys?
Yes, if your board allows it. Movement keys benefit from shallow actuation; ability keys benefit from deeper actuation because an accidental press is expensive; typing keys should stay near the standard 2 mm so that writing is normal. Uniform shallow settings across a whole board is the most common configuration mistake.
Do short-throw switches like Cherry MX Speed Silver help?
They give you a fixed 1.2 mm actuation instead of 2.0 mm, which is a genuine reduction in movement time and a genuine increase in accidental presses. They are a reasonable option on a board without adjustable actuation, and largely obsolete on one that has it.