How to fix Chrome browser problems on a Mac: Proven methods

Few computer issues are as annoying as a slow browser experience. Unfortunately, no browser has a big “Fix Everything Now” button you can click to magically make it work again. That's why I'd like to share a few tips for figuring out why Google Chrome is so slow and for identifying and fixing the most common Chrome issues.

Why is my Chrome browser so slow?

If you ask this question at least a couple of times every week, it’s time to act now. Slow Google Chrome can seriously damage your productivity in the long term — and you certainly don’t want that to happen. So, how do you make Chrome work faster?  

First of all, it’s important to understand the reasons behind Chrome running slow on Mac. In most cases, the issue is CPU-related. Chrome browser is known to consume a big chunk of your CPU resources — and the more tabs and windows you have open, the higher the consumption. So if there is not enough CPU available, Chrome will start acting slow. 

Other reasons for Google Chrome running slow on Mac might relate to corrupted extensions, hardware acceleration, and some other things. Let’s tackle each of them in our troubleshooting guide. 

Try this if Chrome is slow	Your guide
Clear cache, cookies, and website data	Go to Chrome > Settings > Privacy and Security > Delete browsing data. Alternatively, use CleanMyMac X.
Check extensions in Incognito Mode	Check if Chrome lags in Incognito mode. If not, disable extensions in normal mode to see if any are causing slowdowns.
Disable graphics acceleration	Go to Chrome > Settings > System.
Reset Chrome Flags	Go to chrome://flags and click Reset All.
Reset Chrome	Go to Chrome > Settings > Reset Settings. Or use CleanMyMac X to do this efficiently.
Download Chrome Canary	Install a beta version of Chrome with the latest updates.
Check your Mac’s performance	Use Novabench to identify hardware issues that may be affecting Chrome.
Kill a frozen tab or window	Go to Chrome > Window > Task Manager and end a laggy process.
Quit all active processes	Use Quit All to stop all active processes, including background ones.

What to do if Chrome is running slow

If Chrome is just moving like molasses and you aren’t sure why, it’s time to do a troubleshooting routine that could isolate the issue. We’ll start with the basics, like clearing caches and cookies, and then work our way up to more advanced steps.

1. Clear the cache, cookies, and website data

You’ll have to log into sites again, but this step is often enough to speed things up noticeably. It’s also the easiest fix, which is why I recommend trying it first. To clear the data via Chrome browser settings: 

1. Open Chrome > Settings in the menu bar or just type chrome://settings as the URL. You can also use the Command + comma keyboard shortcut. 
2. Go to Privacy and Security > Delete browsing data.
3. Leave the boxes checked to clear your browsing history, cookies, and other site data, as well as cached images and files. 
4. Then click Delete Data at the bottom.

For a faster result, use CleanMyMac X to clean the caches of Chrome and any other browsers, as well as cookies, local storage, saved passwords, autofill values, and more. It’s much more convenient since you can clean every browser with just a few clicks rather than having to dig into each browser's settings.

1. Install CleanMyMac X from Setapp (it has a free 7-day trial).
2. Click Privacy in the sidebar.
3. Choose Chrome from the list, and select what you want to clear.

2. Check extensions with Chrome’s Incognito mode

Browse in Incognito mode by opening a new window (File > New Incognito Window or Shift + Command + N). While you’re in Incognito, Chrome rejects cookies and website data and doesn’t keep your history or any info you enter into forms. But more importantly for us, Chrome also disables your extensions, so this is a good way to tell if one of your extensions is causing the slowdown.

If Incognito mode seems to help speed up Chrome on Mac, you can try turning your extensions back on one by one. That way, if you experience slow performance, you’ll know it was probably the extension you just enabled. 

To enable Chrome extension:

1. Click the button with three vertical dots at the top-right of the browser window.
2. Select Extensions > Manage Extensions.
3. Click Details near the extension and toggle on Allow in Incognito.

3. Disable hardware (graphics) acceleration

If your Chrome is running slow, you might think to enable hardware acceleration. Well, many Mac users on Google’s Chrome Help Forum report the opposite: that Chrome runs better on macOS with this option turned off.

Check if you’re using hardware acceleration (or, graphic acceleration in a newer Chrome):

1. Visit Chrome’s Settings (Chrome > Settings or just enter this text in your browser: chrome://settings).
2. Select System and find the setting "Use graphics acceleration when available." If it’s unchecked, try checking it. If it’s checked (which it should be by default), try turning it off.
3. Click Relaunch.

Chrome should work better now.

4. Reset flags to default settings

Chrome has experimental features called Flags, found by typing chrome://flags into the URL bar. Some of these can actually speed up your browsing, with tricks like using more threads to download raster images faster and loading low-priority iFrames last. 

But! These are experimental features, and if Chrome isn’t acting the way you’d like, you might get some relief by setting all the Flags back to their default settings. To do this, go to chrome://flags and click Reset All at the top of the page.

5. Reset Chrome

If you’re still having troubles — Google Chrome won’t open on Mac, or it acts really slow — you can reset all of Chrome’s settings, basically restoring it to its freshly installed state. By the way, this method still saves your bookmarks and stored passwords.

To reset Chrome: 

1. Open Chrome > Settings.
2. Click Reset Settings (in the bottom left).
3. Click Restore settings to their original defaults > Reset Settings.

This can really help if an extension has been changing your settings without your explicit knowledge. 

Resetting Chrome does delete all your extensions, themes, cookies, pinned tabs, saved homepage, and startup tabs, as well as content settings. But the browser may work better in its natural state, and then you can re-add extensions and re-adjust settings as needed. 

Naturally, CleanMyMac X can reset Chrome as well. Just click the Uninstaller tool in the sidebar, then find Chrome in the list of applications. Right-click on the arrow and select Reset. 

Of course, uninstalling and re-installing Chrome is a more drastic step than just resetting it, but if you do decide to uninstall the whole app, CleanMyMac X will make sure to get all the associated files and preferences everywhere they exist on your Mac.

6. Try Chrome Canary

When Google Chrome is lagging, another tip is to consider installing Chrome Canary, a beta version of Chrome meant for developers and early adopters. 

It’s less stable than the regular shipping version of Chrome but has all the latest updates, so sometimes it does have fixes that aren’t in the main version yet. Some Mac users who couldn’t get Chrome to even launch report having a much easier time with Chrome Canary. You don’t have to uninstall Chrome to install Canary either; they can coexist side by side.

Again, Canary is beta software, and Google admits it “can be prone to breakage.” It gets updates nearly every day, and it can be just the thing if you can’t figure out why the regular version of Chrome isn’t working properly.

7. Check your Mac performance

Another answer to "Why is Chrome so slow on Mac?" may lie in the laptop itself. What if it just doesn't have enough capacity for Chrome? If your Mac overheats or its CPU and hard drive are constantly overloaded, then Google Chrome on Mac may quit unexpectedly or run slowly.

I suggest you check the performance of your Mac with Novabench. The app will show you how your laptop compares to the baseline and to other laptops. Is the processor busier than others? Does the machine use an excessive amount of power?

Pay attention to the parameters that are out of the standard and try to fix them. You may want to check out how to free up RAM on a Mac or how to reset PRAM/NVRAM and SMC.

How to kill a frozen tab or window in Chrome

If one of your tabs or windows in Chrome just stops responding — so badly that you can’t even close it — don’t worry, it’s an easy fix:  

1. Open Chrome.
2. Go to Window > Task Manager in the menu bar. 
3. Find the problem window or tab, click to select it, and then End Process.

That will kill whatever process is keeping the tab from loading correctly. The tab will probably show an error message saying, “Something went wrong,” but just click the X on the tab to close it.

If Chrome isn't responding or is completely frozen, you can quit it, as well as all the active processes of your choice, using Quit All. This app is a magic wand that “unfreezes” your Mac by stopping all processes, including the background ones.  

Try these apps for free if Chrome is slow

I hope, you've found an answer to the "Why is my browser so slow?" question. Some fixes you can do in Chrome, and some are better left to third-party apps.  CleanMyMac X deletes cookies and cache, restarts your browser, and quickly cleans up your Mac to make room for resource-hungry Chrome. As an additional solution, try running benchmark tests with Novabench to make sure your Mac is performing well overall.

These apps (as well as others I mentioned in the article) are free to try with a 7-day trial of Setapp.