7 Ways To Speed Up Your Slow Computer

Your computer is an incredible tool, but when it slows down, it can be frustrating. It’s no wonder so many of us are searching for ways to make our machines run faster – the good news is there are plenty of things you can do without spending money on hardware upgrades.

Updating your computer’s operating system, drivers and applications can significantly enhance its speed. This is especially critical if you have an older machine that hasn’t been updated in some time.

Your PC generates many temporary files when it boots up or launches an application, taking up valuable space that could otherwise slow down your system’s performance.

Regularly clearing out these files on your computer can help maximize its storage capacity.

One of the biggest causes of slower computers is Windows’ dependence on tips, notifications, and other visual effects to make your machine appear more “modern.” Unfortunately, these features are unnecessary and can take up valuable processing power. To reduce their impact on performance, right-clicking the taskbar and selecting Task Manager from the options.

Many computers come preinstalled with third-party applications that may not be necessary. These programs, known as bloatware, take up space on your hard drive and sap resources from your machine. To disable them, open Task Manager and look under Startup in the left menu bar of your screen.

When playing a game that requires lots of CPU power, it’s wise to set its settings at low in order to prevent overheating your system. This is especially beneficial for laptops which tend to get hotter and costlier to operate than desktops do.

Increasing memory on your computer can greatly enhance performance, particularly if you frequently have multiple browser tabs open simultaneously. To check how much RAM is being used, open Activity Monitor and look at the pie chart at the top of the page for an indication.

If your computer is older and still uses a traditional hard drive, you can upgrade to a solid-state drive for an impressive boost in speed. These drives use flash memory instead of moving parts like traditional hard disks, enabling them to access data much faster than their older counterparts.

Upgrading to a new hard drive can be costly, but the benefits of faster performance are worth the expense. This is especially true for older computers, but can also be an excellent investment for more modern models.

Sometimes a simple restart is all it takes to fix computer issues. This allows updates to take effect and terminate stuck programs.