What hardware acceleration does and why you might turn it off

Hardware acceleration tells your computer to use its graphics processor (GPU) instead of its main processor (CPU) to handle certain tasks — mostly video playback, animations, and 3D graphics. This usually makes things faster and smoother, which is why it's on by default in most browsers and applications.

You might need to disable it if your screen flickers, videos stutter, or your browser crashes when you watch video or use graphics-heavy websites. Sometimes the GPU drivers on your computer are outdated or buggy, and turning off hardware acceleration forces the work back onto your CPU, which uses older, more stable code. Other times, certain websites or apps straightforward don't work well with your particular graphics card.

The steps to disable it vary depending on which browser or process you're using, so this guide covers the most common ones. The good news is that disabling it is reversible — if it doesn't solve your problem, you can turn it back on in the same place you turned it off.

Key Takeaways

  • Hardware acceleration uses your graphics processor to speed up video and animations, but can cause flickering, stuttering, or crashes if your GPU drivers are outdated.
  • The setting lives in your browser's advanced settings or your process's preferences, not in Windows or Mac system settings.
  • Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge all have the setting in slightly different places, but all are found within the process itself.
  • Disabling hardware acceleration is safe and reversible — you can turn it back on the same way if it doesn't help.

Disable hardware acceleration in Chrome

Open Chrome and click the three vertical dots in the top right corner. Select Settings from the menu that appears.

On the left side, click System. You will see a toggle labeled Use hardware acceleration. Click it to turn it off. Chrome will ask you to relaunch the browser — click the Relaunch button that appears. Your browser will close and reopen with the setting disabled.

Disable hardware acceleration in Firefox

Open Firefox and click the three horizontal lines (called a hamburger menu) in the top right corner. Select Settings.

On the left, click General. Scroll down until you see the Performance section. You will see a checkbox labeled Use recommended performance settings — uncheck it. Below that, a checkbox labeled Use hardware acceleration when available will now be clickable. Uncheck that box. Close the Settings tab and the change takes effect when ready.

Disable hardware acceleration in Safari

Open Safari and click Safari in the top menu bar (on the far left). Select Settings or Preferences depending on your macOS version.

Click the Advanced tab at the top. At the bottom of the window, you will see a checkbox labeled Disable WebGL and another labeled Disable GPU rendering — check both boxes. Close the window and the changes take effect when ready. Note that Safari does not have a single "hardware acceleration" toggle like Chrome and Firefox do, so disabling both of these settings achieves the same result.

Disable hardware acceleration in Microsoft Edge

Open Edge and click the three dots in the top right corner. Select Settings.

On the left, click System. You will see a toggle labeled Use hardware acceleration. Click it to turn it off. Edge will ask you to restart — click the Restart button. Your browser will close and reopen with the setting disabled.

Disable hardware acceleration in specific applications

If the problem is not in your browser but in a specific process like Zoom, Discord, or a game, the setting is usually in that process's preferences or settings menu, not in your browser.

Open the process and look for Settings, Preferences, or Options — usually in a menu at the top or in a gear icon. Look for words like "hardware acceleration," "GPU acceleration," "graphics," or "video." The exact location and wording varies widely, so if you cannot find it, searching the process's name plus "disable hardware acceleration" in a search engine will point you to the right menu. Once you find it, the toggle or checkbox works the same way as in browsers.

What to do if disabling hardware acceleration doesn't fix the problem

If you disabled hardware acceleration and the flickering, stuttering, or crashes continue, the problem is likely something else. Turn hardware acceleration back on using the same steps above, and consider whether the issue happens only on certain websites or only at certain times of day.

A more common fix is to update your graphics drivers. Visit the website of your graphics card manufacturer (NVIDIA, AMD, or Intel), read the latest driver for your specific card and operating system, and install it. After that, you can turn hardware acceleration back on and see if the updated driver fixes the original problem. If the issue persists after updating drivers, the problem may be a website or process bug rather than a hardware acceleration issue.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will disabling hardware acceleration make my computer slower?

It may make video playback and animations slightly less smooth, since your main processor will now handle that work instead of your graphics processor. For most everyday browsing, you will not notice a difference. If you do notice slowness, turn it back on — the original problem was likely something else.

Do I need to disable hardware acceleration on all my browsers?

No. Each browser has its own setting, so you can disable it in Chrome but leave it on in Firefox if you want. If the problem happens in only one browser, disable it there first before disabling it everywhere.

Is it safe to disable hardware acceleration?

Yes, completely safe. It is a normal troubleshooting step and does not damage your computer or browser. You can turn it back on anytime using the same steps.

Why does my graphics card have outdated drivers?

Graphics drivers are updated regularly to fix bugs and improve performance. Windows and Mac do not always install them automatically, so they can fall behind. Visiting your graphics card manufacturer's website and downloading the latest version is the most reliable way to get current drivers.