Common Frame Rates in Adobe After Effects

Adobe After Effects supports a broad spectrum of frame rates to match various delivery formats across film, television, online streaming, and traditional animation. This guide outlines the standard frames per second (fps) options available in composition presets, explains their primary industry use cases, and highlights technical limits to help you configure your projects correctly.

Standard Industry Frame Rates

When creating a new composition in After Effects (Ctrl + K on Windows or Cmd + K on macOS), you can select from several industry-standard frame rate presets:

  • 23.976 fps (23.98 fps): Widely used for digital cinema and television dramas adhering to NTSC standards. It mimics the cadence of traditional film while maintaining digital broadcast compatibility.
  • 24 fps: The global standard for theatrical motion pictures. This rate is common when delivering visual effects or motion graphics directly intended for theatrical projection.
  • 25 fps: The standard for PAL and SECAM broadcast systems, common throughout Europe, Australia, parts of Asia, and Africa.
  • 29.97 fps: The standard definition and high definition NTSC broadcast frame rate utilized in North America, Japan, and other regions.
  • 30 fps: Commonly used for web-based content, corporate presentations, and computer monitors to ensure integer alignment without drop-frame complications.
  • 50 fps: The high-frame-rate European standard used primarily for live sports, gaming broadcasts, and fast-motion television production under the PAL system.
  • 59.94 fps and 60 fps: Standard formats for smooth high-motion web content, video games, sports broadcasts, and high-definition NTSC television.

Animation Frame Rates

After Effects is also used extensively for character animation and motion design that emulate traditional techniques:

  • 12 fps: Common in stylized 2D animation to emulate "drawing on twos" (where each drawing is held for two frames of a 24 fps master).
  • 15 fps: Frequently used in retro-style animations, motion graphics optimized for lower file sizes, or GIF creation.

Custom Frame Rates and Technical Limits

In addition to standard presets, After Effects allows users to enter custom frame rates manually in the Composition Settings dialog box. The software supports any frame rate ranging from 1 fps up to 999 fps. This flexibility accommodates specialized tasks such as stop-motion video processing, scientific analysis, and high-speed slow-motion footage manipulation.

To maintain render consistency, your composition frame rate should typically match your primary footage assets and your final export target.