How to Turn Off Hardware Acceleration in Google Chrome

While you can quickly familiarize yourself with Google Chrome and learn how to do things like open private windows or create bookmarks, you might eventually run into some problems that you need to fix.

One particularly bothersome issue occurs when everything seems to be lagging, making it difficult to interact with websites.

Luckily there is a setting that you can adjust in Chrome that can often resolve this problem.

How to Shut Off Google Chrome Hardware Acceleration

  1. Open Google Chrome.
  2. Click the three dots at the top-right corner of the window.
  3. Click Settings.
  4. Choose the System tab.
  5. Click the button to the right of Use hardware acceleration when available.
  6. Click the Relaunch button to restart Chrome with this new setting.

Our article continues below with additional information on disabling hardware acceleration in Google Chrome, including pictures of these steps.

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Have you forgotten a password that you have saved to your browser? You can read our how to view saved passwords in Chrome article and find out where to see those passwords.

We can get so used to everything with our technology working properly that it can be really frustrating when an application that used to work properly becomes problematic.

Sometimes it can be something as simple as this article on changing a default browser, but other times it’s more confusing.

Often restarting a device can fix these issues, but troubleshooting can often involve changing a setting, such as the hardware acceleration option in Google Chrome.

I was recently having a problem in Google Chrome where my mouse was lagging whenever I was trying to click a link or copy text. It was increasingly frustrating, to the point where I was starting to use Firefox more frequently.

But Chrome has long been my default browser, and I was not ready to give up on it yet. So I spent a bit of time trying out assorted troubleshooting tips that I could find online, all with little to no effect.

But I was finally able to fix the problem, and my solution rested with turning off hardware acceleration in Google Chrome.

Now Chrome is back to being fast and responsive, and the problems that I was previously having are gone. If you are having a similar problem with mouse lag in Google Chrome, then follow our steps below to turn off hardware acceleration and see if it fixes your problem as well.

How to Disable Google Chrome Hardware Acceleration (Guide with Pictures)

There are many reasons why you might be having problems with performance in Google Chrome, so this solution may not work for everyone. But it fixed my mouse lag and the latency issues that I was personally having, so it is worth a shot if you are experiencing similar problems.

If you are experiencing similar problems in other programs, too, then reading this guide at live2tech.com can show you how to turn off hardware acceleration in a number of different programs on your computer.

These steps will show you how to turn off hardware acceleration in Google Chrome.

Step 1: Open the Google Chrome Web browser.

Launch Chrome on your laptop or desktop computer.

Step 2: Click the icon with the three dots at the top-right of the window.

click the three dots

Open Chrome’s menu at the upper-right corner of the window.

It says Customize and control Google Chrome when you hover over it.

Step 3: Click the Settings option near the bottom of the menu.

click Settings

Select Settings from the dropdown menu.

Step 4: Choose the System tab on the left side of the window.

select the System tab

Click System near the bottom of the left menu.

Step 5: Uncheck the switch to the right of Use hardware acceleration when available.

how to turn off hardware acceleration in Google Chrome

Turn off the Use hardware acceleration when available option.

Step 6: Click the Relaunch button that appears after changing this setting.

Click the Relaunch button to close Chrome and open it without using system resources for acceleration.

Now that you know how to turn off hardware acceleration in Google Chrome you will be able to turn this setting on or off when you want to improve the performance of the browser.

Hopefully, your issues with mouse lag in Chrome are now gone. If not, then head over to Google Chrome’s support site for additional help.

Additional Information on Disabling Hardware Acceleration in the Chrome Browser

  • Another way to get to the Chrome settings menu involves typing chrome://settings into Chrome’s URL bar at the top of the page. Using the chrome://settings options will take you directly to the menu that you would get to by clicking the menu button and then choosing the Settings option. You can then continue to disable hardware acceleration or enable hardware acceleration by choosing Advanced then System.
  • One other thing to consider is that it may be an extension that is giving you trouble. Read here to see how to remove a Chrome extension.
  • Alternatively, if you are looking for some more detailed information on GPU options in the Chrome browser, you could enter chrome://gpu into the address bar instead. This brings up a lot of extra information about Chrome and GPU usage.
  • While disabling usage of the GPU (graphics processing unit) can resolve issues specific to how Chrome interacts with webpages, it’s not usually a good idea to disable hardware acceleration unless you are having a problem with the browser.
  • In newer versions of Google Chrome you can show advanced settings by simply clicking the Advanced tab at the left side of the Settings menu.
  • Turning hardware acceleration on or off will require you to relaunch the browser for the change to be applied.
  • If you’re lucky then disabling hardware acceleration in Google Chrome will resolve the performance issues that you were experiencing with the browser. However, it’s possible that nothing will change or things might actually get worse. If that happens, consider uninstalling Chrome and reinstalling it. if a reinstallation doesn’t improve the situation, then see if a different browser like Firefox works better.

Frequently Asked Questions About How to Turn Hardware Acceleration in Chrome On or Off

How can I tell if hardware acceleration makes a difference?

Whether you have hard hardware accelerated in Chrome, or you have hardware acceleration disabled, you will be able to notice the difference after you go through Chrome’s settings and change it.

When hardware acceleration works, Chrome should behave as you would expect. If things seem to be lagging or stuttering, then there is probably an issue with the way that Chrome uses your computer’s GPU to try and improve performance.

How can I update Chrome?

If you want to have Chrome check for updates so that you can make sure you are using the most recent version, you can click the three dots, choose Help, then About Google Chrome.

Once that window opens Chrome will automatically look for available updates and apply them if available.

Dep[ednign on the update you may need ot restart Chrome for any changes to take effect.

What are the default settings for Chrome’s hardware acceleration?

If you haven’t changed any of the settings, then hardware acceleration is likely turned on and is using your computer’s hardware to try and make the browser run better.

Do you want to set up a different Home page in Chrome? This article will show you how.

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