If the Microsoft Edge browser is running painfully slow while browsing on the internet, the problem might be due to High CPU usage by Microsoft Edge on the computer.
Since, Microsoft Edge does not provide any warning or hint about the problem being due to high resource usage, the only way to confirm this possibility is by going to the Task Manager on your computer.
If the Task Manager confirms high CPU Usage, the problem can be easily fixed by changing the browser settings to reduce the amount of CPU being used by Microsoft Edge on your computer,
Microsoft Edge High CPU Usage in Windows 11/10
As mentioned above, the first step is check and confirm that the slowing down of the Microsoft Edge browser on your computer is indeed being caused due to High CPU Usage by Microsoft Edge.
1. Right-click on the Start button and click on Task Manager.
2. On the Task Manager screen, switch to Processes tab and see if Microsoft Edge is consuming high amounts of CPU and Memory.
3. If Microsoft Edge is consuming high amount of CPU, select the Microsoft Edge entry and click on the End Task button.
If High CPU usage by Microsoft edge is confirmed in the Task Manager, you can follow the steps as provided below to prevent this problem from re-occurring on your computer.
1. Close Unused Browser Tabs
A common reason for High CPU usage by Microsoft Edge is due to multiple browsing tabs being left open.
Hence, make sure that only necessary tabs are open and close all unnecessary tabs. If you do need to open multiple tabs, you can enable sleeping tabs option as provided below in this guide.
2. Disable Background Apps and Extensions
Microsoft Edge has a default tendency to allow apps and browser extensions to run in background, even when the browser is closed.
1. Open Microsoft Edge > click on Three-dots icon and select Settings in the drop-down menu.
2. From the Settings screen, go to System and performance > System > Disable Continue Running Background Extensions and Apps… option by moving the slider to OFF position.
After this Microsoft Edge won’t be running background apps and extensions, which should result in less CPU usage by the Edge browser on your computer.
3. Enable Efficiency Mode
An easy way to reduce CPU usage on the computer is to enable the built-in efficiency mode as available in Microsoft Edge.
1. Open Microsoft Edge browser Settings.
2. From the Settings screen, go to System and performance > Performance > Enable Efficiency Mode by moving the slider to ON position.
This should lead to noticeable reduction in CPU usage by Microsoft Edge browser on your computer.
4. Disable Graphics Acceleration
The graphics acceleration feature in Microsoft Edge can lead to High CPU usage, especially on budget computers.
1. Open Microsoft Edge browser Settings.
2. From Settings screen, go to System and performance > System > Disable Use Graphics Acceleration When Available option by moving the slider to OFF position.
5. Disable Startup Boost
While the Start boost feature in Microsoft Edge browser can help in quickly launching the browses upon start, it can sometimes lead to excessive resource usage.
1. Open Microsoft Edge browser Settings.
2. From Settings screen, go to System and performance > System > Disable Startup boost by moving the toggle to OFF position.
After this, make sure you restart the browser.
6. Enable Sleeping Tabs
If the nature of your work requires you to open multiple tabs, Microsoft Edge provides the option to reduce resource usage on your computer by enabling Sleeping Tabs.
1. Open Microsoft Edge browser Settings.
2. From Settings screen, go to System and performance > Performance > Enable Save Resources with Sleeping Tabs and Fade Sleeping Tabs options.
Note: You can save additional resources by enabling Fade Sleeping Tabs option.
7. Disable/Remove Browser Extensions
The problem of High CPU usage by Microsoft Edge on your computer might be due an incompatible browser extension.
You can identify the Extension that is causing problems on your device by disabling all the extensions and re-enabling them one-by-one.
1. Open Microsoft Edge browser Settings.
2. On the Settings screen, scroll down and click on Extensions.
3. On the Extensions screen, you can disable extensions by moving the slider to OFF position and delete them by clicking on the Remove option.
Note: Use browser extensions only when they are necessary and always monitor browser performance after installing an extension.
8. Disable Microsoft Defender SmartScreen
If you are still experiencing High CPU Usage by Microsoft Edge, disable SmartScreen Filter for Microsoft Edge and see if this helps in fixing the problem.
1. Open Microsoft Edge browser Settings.
2. From Settings screen, go to Privacy, Search, and services > Security > Disable Use Microsoft Defender SmartScreen option.
Note: Windows Security provides the option to enable SmartScreen Filter for Apps and Files located on your computer, even if it is disabled in Microsoft Edge.