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How to Change Your Mouse Speed in Windows 10
Does your mouse cursor move too fast or too slow in Windows 10? Some devices have their own hardware-based tracking speed settings or propriety software, but Windows itself can also adjust your mouse speed. Here’s how to change your mouse speed in Windows 10.
First, it’s important to note that Microsoft’s new policy is to make relatively significant changes to Windows 10 multiple times each year. This means that the some menus, settings, or steps may be or look different following future updates. The screenshots and steps in this article are accurate as of June 2017 and Windows 10 Version 1703. If you’re reading this tip at a future date and the screenshots in the article don’t match what you’re seeing on your PC, please leave us a comment below the article so that we can update the content to reflect the latest Windows 10 version.
Changing Your Mouse Speed
To change the speed of your mouse or trackpad cursor in Windows 10, first launch the Settings app from the Start Menu and select Devices.
On the Devices screen, select Mouse from the list of sections on the left, and then select Additional Mouse Options on the right side of the screen.
This will open the Mouse Properties window, which lets you adjust many options related to the way your mouse cursor looks and functions. To change your mouse cursor speed, select the Pointer Options tab and you’ll see a slider labeled Select a pointer speed at the top.
This is the slider that will control how quickly your mouse cursor moves on your PC screen relative to its physical movement on your desk. Adjust the slider to the left and your cursor will move slower, slide it to the right and your cursor will move faster. For most mice, the far left or far right of this slider makes the cursor unusable, causing it to move either painfully slow or way too fast to be accurate. The default setting in Windows 10 is right in the middle, and most users will be happy adjusting the slider to within a few notches of this default value.
As you adjust the slider, the change in mouse speed will happen immediately (i.e., you don’t need to click Apply or OK for the change to take effect). This lets you quickly test out different speed options to find the one that best suits your mouse hardware and personal preferences.
Enhance Pointer Precision
An option related to mouse speed in Windows 10 is Enhance Pointer Precision, located right below the pointer speed slider discussed above. This option attempts to improve a user’s experience by automatically adjusting cursor acceleration based on mouse speed. With this option enabled, if Windows detects you moving the mouse quickly, it will automatically accelerate the speed of the cursor to help you move the cursor to its intended location as fast as possible (i.e., it temporarily changes the mouse speed from a constant value to an increasing value based on what it thinks the user wants).
This can improve the perceived “smoothness” of the mouse cursor but some users, particularly gamers, prefer to turn this option off, as it introduces variability to the cursor speed that can be detrimental to their gaming experience. If you’re unsure about the Enhance Pointer Precision option, simply spend a few minutes using your PC with the option both on and off, as you can easily adjust it from the Mouse Properties window. Note, however, that you will likely need to move the pointer speed slider to the right if you disable Enhance Pointer Precision, as the lack of cursor acceleration will likely necessitate a faster baseline cursor speed.
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