Why is Chrome Using So Much CPU? Comprehensive Guide 2023

Because I got so many questions about how to turn on the Why Is Chrome Using So Much CPU in 2023, so I wrote this article to explain the basics. Chrome uses a lot of resources, which is not a secret. Here is a really easy way to make Google Chrome use less CPU.

Since 2017, AMD and Intel have been fighting all the time. This has made CPUs much more powerful and efficient. Modern CPUs with a low number of cores are great for simple tasks like browsing files, browsing the web, watching videos, etc.

But even with these new CPUs, browsers like Chrome can use too much of the CPU, making every other program slow down or stutter.

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Why does Chrome use so much processor time? Is there any way to fix this?

Let’s look more closely at all the things that could cause this and how to fix them.

Reasons For Chrome High CPU Usage

Chrome Using So Much CPU for a number of different reasons. It could be because of malware, a virus, or a problem, or it could just be the way the computer works.

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Here are the most common reasons why a processor is being used a lot:

• Too many browser tabs open: The number of open tabs is the main reason why a browser would use a lot of the computer’s processing power. If you only have a few tabs open, it shouldn’t slow down your computer. However, once you have about a dozen tabs open, CPU usage will quickly go up. This can also use a lot of RAM.
• Too many extensions: The extensions are another problem that is easy to fix. People just have too many extensions on their Chrome browser, as we’ve seen many times. There are also extensions that are hard to run and take up a lot of CPU power that can be installed.
• Watching videos in high resolution: We all know that a lot of us watch videos and live streams on YouTube and other sites like Twitch and Facebook. The more tabs with videos you have, the more CPU power Chrome will need. This is especially true when watching videos in HD or 4K.
• Browsing unoptimized websites: Google is always adding new rules to their SEO to make sure that only reputable sites show up in their search results. But many websites still aren’t very well optimized. They have too many ads, videos that play automatically, and content that can use a lot of CPU.

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Solutions For Chrome High CPU Usage

Now that we’ve looked at the most common reasons for Chrome High CPU Usage, let’s look at how to fix it.

Close All Tabs Except One

The easiest fix is the one you should try first. Open Task Manager, click “sort by CPU usage,” and then close every Chrome tab except one.

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Make sure that the tab you leave open is not a video or a website with a lot of animations. This should cut down on how much your processor is used.

Restart Browser

After being used for prolonged periods of time, it is usual for browsers, and notably Chrome, to consume more processing power and RAM than they actually require. If Task Management reports that Chrome has a high CPU utilization, you can try restarting the browser to see if this resolves the issue.

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Disable All Extensions

We already told you that extensions might be the cause of your problem, so we suggest turning off all extensions as a fix. To do this, click on the three dots at the top right of your Chrome window, expand “More tools,” and click on “Extensions.”

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You should be able to see all of your add-ons on this page. You can turn them off one at a time by pressing the small blue switches.After turning off all extensions, you can restart your browser and use it as usual. Check Task Manager to make sure that the CPU is being used normally.

If this fixes your problem, you will need to slowly turn on your extensions one by one to find out which one is Using So Much CPU.

Turn on an extension, keep using your browser, and if everything is still working well, turn on another one. Using this method, you should be able to figure out who is really causing trouble.

Remove All Extensions

If turning off all Chrome extensions didn’t fix the problem, you might have to get rid of them all.

Before you get rid of them, you should either remember them or take a screenshot of your extensions page so you can put them back on.

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Go back to the Extensions page and this time, instead of clicking the toggle button, click “Remove.” When asked to make sure, click Remove again.

Take off all of the add-ons one by one, and then test your browser. Is the CPU still being used a lot, or has it dropped a lot? If it went away, you must have taken off the extension(s) that were causing problems. To find it, you’ll have to use the same process of elimination we talked about in the last answer.

Disable Hardware Acceleration

Hardware acceleration is a way for the software to tell both the GPU and the CPU how much work to do. This makes the program (in this case, the browser) run more smoothly and gives both parts a lot more room to move around.

However, hardware acceleration hurts performance more than it helps on some systems. This is especially true for computers with GPUs that are not as good. In these cases, you might be better off turning off hardware acceleration.

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Click the three dots in the upper right corner, then click Settings. Scroll down to the bottom, expand “Advanced,” find “Use hardware acceleration when available,” and turn it off.

Keep in mind that turning off hardware acceleration could make your browsing experience worse. Videos could be slow, animations could skip, etc. It is up to the website.

Clear Browsing Data

If none of these fixes have helped, it’s time to try something more serious.

Some of the cookies, history, cache, or other data in your browser could be taking up too much space on your computer, especially on your CPU. If that’s the case, you should delete all of your browsing history.

Don’t worry, you don’t have to delete your saved passwords or other sign-in information. Doing so isn’t likely to slow down your browser in any way.

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Chrome’s settings let you clear your browsing history. Go there again and search for “Clear browsing data.” If you can’t find it, use the search box in the upper right corner of the window.

Once you’ve found it, click “Advanced” and then “All time” under “Time range.” This will delete all cookies and data that Chrome has collected since it was installed until now.

Choose from the following: browsing history, download history, cached images and files, site settings, and hosted app data. Leave the box unchecked for “Passwords and other sign-in data.”

With these choices made, click “Clear Data.” After that, close Chrome and start it back up again. Start browsing, open a lot of tabs, and look at Task Manager to see how the browser works.

If this still doesn’t fix the problem, you might need to reinstall Chrome.

Reinstalling Chrome

Now that we’ve tried the other fixes and found that none of them work, let’s try reinstalling Chrome.

First, go to the website where you can download Chrome and download the setup file. Then, open the Start menu, type “chrome” into the search bar, right-click the Chrome icon, and choose “Uninstall.” “Programs and Features” will open when you do this. Find the browser you want to uninstall, click “Uninstall” again, and then follow the steps.

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Now that Chrome is gone from your computer, open the setup file you downloaded earlier. It should only take a few minutes to put in place.

When it’s done, start Chrome and browse as usual. Check to see if the CPU usage has stayed the same.

Try Performance Boost Extensions

It might not have worked to turn off or remove all of the extensions. What if there are extensions that could make your browser run better and, in the end, use less CPU?

Chrome and most other browsers have a lot of services running in the background. Many websites also have a lot of content that needs a lot of processing power, like ads, animations, videos, and other things.

Some add-ons, though, can help you avoid some of that content for better performance, so you might want to try some of them.

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FasterChrome is a popular choice right now. With this add-on, websites will load before you even click on them. This means that the CPU usage usually goes up before you even open the website, but it goes down once you start using it.

Of course, this extension isn’t a magic wand that will fix all your problems right away. Still, it is worth a shot.

You could also try out Web Boost. This extension blocks trackers and other unnecessary content. It also uses a different caching method that helps the browser open websites faster.

If your CPU is being used too much, installing uBlock Origin could help you block all ads.

Try A Different Browser

If none of the solutions work, it could mean that the problem is not with the browser but with your computer.

Try a different browser to make sure the problem isn’t caused by Chrome. Most likely, it would be best to try Mozilla Firefox, which is the software that is most like Chrome.

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Get Firefox and put it on your computer. Once you know how to use the browser, try doing things like opening multiple tabs, watching videos, etc., to see how well it works. If the CPU isn’t being slowed down and it’s being used a lot, it means that Chrome is the problem.

In that case, you might want to switch to Firefox or try Chromium, which is a lighter version of Chrome.

Other Possible Causes

If none of the solutions above work, the problem could be with your computer. Here are some possible causes:

• Malware, viruses, Trojans, etc: Malware, viruses, Trojans, and other types of intrusive software are often to blame for a high CPU usage. Malware could be attached to your browser or it could be deep in your operating system. You will need to download antivirus software to get rid of software that is in the way.
• Operating system issues: Windows often has bugs, gets corrupted, or does something similar. So, the problem might be with the way your computer works. Reinstalling Windows could help, but you should only do this as a last resort.
• Weak processor: In the end, the problem might not even be that hard to figure out. It could be that your processor is just old or weak. Processors with less than 4 cores and threads are often bottlenecked these days. Chrome and other browsers are being made to work better with processors with more cores, like Intel’s 11th generation or AMD’s Ryzen 5000 series.

Conclusion

There are a few different problems that could result in Google Chrome not functioning correctly and taking up all of the available processing power for itself. Examine the list to go forward in finding a solution to the issue and getting to the bottom of the predicament.

Users have noted that running Google Chrome in administrator mode is an easy way to resolve the issue caused by a lack of administrator capabilities.

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Mysterious extensions If you have recently installed any new plugins or extensions, you should check to see if they are responsible for the excessive CPU consumption. If you haven’t done so already, you should uninstall all of the new ones.

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