diff --git a/mitmproxy/options.py b/mitmproxy/options.py
index 6e1503ea6..b87d5dbd8 100644
--- a/mitmproxy/options.py
+++ b/mitmproxy/options.py
@@ -434,8 +434,11 @@ class Options(optmanager.OptManager):
         self.add_option(
             "flow_detail", int, 1,
             """
-            Flow detail display level. LEVEL == 1 : Only Request and Response URL with response code.  LEVEL == 2 :
-            All in 1 + Headers. LEVEL >= 3 : All in 2 + Full Response Text.
+            The display detail level for flows in mitmdump: 0 (almost quiet) to 3 (very verbose).
+              0: shortened request URL, response status code, WebSocket and TCP message notifications.
+              1: full request URL with response status code
+              2: 1 + HTTP headers
+              3: 2 + full response content, content of WebSocket and TCP messages.
             """
         )