What is Click Latency?

When you click your mouse, you want your game to react instantly. But between your finger pressing the button and the gun firing on screen, there is a delay. That delay is Click Latency.

The Definition

Click Latency is the total time it takes for a physical switch actuation to be effectively processed by the computer. It includes mechanical switch travel, firmware debounce time, USB transmission (polling), and OS processing.

The Villain: Debounce Time

Mechanical switches vibrate when hit (bouncing). To prevent the mouse from registering 10 clicks instantly, firmware waits for the signal to stabilize. This wait time is 'Debounce.' Higher debounce = slower clicks but no double-clicking. Optical switches solve this by using light, requiring near-zero debounce.

Wired vs Wireless

Modern 2.4GHz wireless mice (Logitech Lightspeed, Razer HyperSpeed) are often FASTER than wired mice because they are optimized for data transmission. Bluetooth, however, is significantly slower (8-15ms+) and should not be used for competitive gaming.

Typical Latency Values

Type	Latency Range	Verdict
Optimized Wireless (2.4GHz)	0.2ms - 1.5ms	Esports Ready
Standard Wired Gaming Mouse	0.5ms - 2.0ms	Excellent
Office Mouse (Bluetooth)	10ms - 20ms	Unusable for gaming
Cheap Wireless Office Mouse	15ms - 30ms+	Noticeable lag