How to speed up browser speed

Sluggish Browser? Here’s How to Speed Up Google Chrome

Does your Chrome browser feel like it’s running a bit slower than usual? These tips and tricks can help you give Google Chrome a speed boost.

In a way, your web browser has become as important as your PC’s operating system (if not more important). Nearly everything you do, from email to social media—even document editing—happens in your browser. You can even stream games right from a browser window. So if Chrome is feeling a little sluggish, that can hamper the whole experience. Here are a few things you can do to speed it up.

Check Your Internet Speed

Before you blame Chrome for your slowdowns, make sure your internet connection is up to snuff. Run a speed test using Speedtest.net (Opens in a new window) or PCMag’s own checker (Opens in a new window) to see how your connection measures up. If a website won’t load, check out Downdetector (Opens in a new window) to see if there’s an issue with your connection or if the website is down.

It’s completely possible you’re just experiencing an issue in your area, or you’re on a crappy public network. (Or maybe you just need to pay for faster internet.)

Update to the Latest Version of Chrome

Each new version of Chrome contains new features, security fixes, and—often—performance improvements, so it’s possible updating to the latest version may help your speed woes. Even if it doesn’t, it’ll keep you safer from online threats.

Chrome updates itself automatically, so chances are you’re already on the latest version, provided you’ve closed the browser recently. If you’re behind, Chrome will display a green, yellow, or red Update button in the upper right-hand corner of the browser.

This means an update is waiting for you, so all you have to do is click that Update button or close out the browser window and re-open it. It probably won’t make any night-and-day speed differences, but it’s a good place to start nonetheless.

Run a Malware Scan

Before you go digging into Chrome’s settings, you might want to ensure you don’t have any malware on your system. Run a scan with your anti-malware tool of choice and make sure there isn’t anything questionable running in the background.

You want to look out for anything that shoves extra advertisements into the pages you visit or tracks your online behavior. Malware that does this require extra resources, which can slow down your browser and computer.

Run the Chrome Cleanup Tool

Once upon a time, Google developed a program called the Chrome Cleanup Tool, which would detect potentially unwanted programs (PUPs), like toolbars and other automatically installed extensions that your antivirus may not be designed to catch.

Google has since integrated this directly into Chrome, and you can run it by going to Settings > Advanced > Reset and clean up > Clean up computer. Run the tool and it’ll check your computer for any software that might be slowing down your browser.

Uninstall Extensions You Don’t Need

If you thought this was going to be easy, I have some bad news for you: Sacrifices must be made. While the above tips may help some, the best thing you can do to speed up Chrome is slim it down. Extensions and tabs are the biggest resource hogs, and the fewer you have, the snappier Chrome will feel.

Let’s start with extensions: You can see which ones are taking up the most CPU and RAM by pressing Shift + Esc on your keyboard, which will bring up Chrome’s Task Manager. Check out which ones are hogging the most resources, and which ones aren’t crucial to your workflow.

Uninstall extensions by right-clicking on their icon in the toolbar and selecting Remove from Chrome. Or go to chrome://extensions and remove them from there. The more you remove, the more of a speed boost you’ll get (not to mention a security boost, since extensions can be hacked or sold to adware companies).

Close (or Unload) Tabs You Aren’t Using

Yes, I realize the irony of installing an extension when we just told you to uninstall as many as possible, but depending on how many tabs you tend to keep open, the result may still be a net positive speed increase for this particular case.

Wipe the Slate Clean

If you still can’t get Chrome to cooperate, it may be time to reset the browser to its original defaults—no extensions, custom search engines, or other saved settings. To perform a reset, head to Settings > Advanced > Reset and clean up > Restore settings to their original defaults > Reset settings.

This can be a pain, but if you discover Chrome goes back to being zippy after resetting, you might be able to keep it tidier and prevent it from building up extra cruft (or at least determine which extension or settings caused things to slow down later).

Of course, it may not be Chrome’s fault at all—your computer may just be getting a little long in the tooth. Check out our guide to speeding up your Windows PC to see if any of those tips help. If they don’t, it may be time to bite the bullet and get a new PC.

Disclosure: Speedtest.net and Downdetector are owned by Ookla, which is owned by PCMag’s publisher, Ziff Davis.

Like What You’re Reading?

Sign up for Tips & Tricks newsletter for expert advice to get the most out of your technology.

This newsletter may contain advertising, deals, or affiliate links. Subscribing to a newsletter indicates your consent to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe from the newsletters at any time.

Your subscription has been confirmed. Keep an eye on your inbox!

5 Simple Tips to Speed Up Your Browser

Last updated Jul 31, 2020

There’s nothing you use more and think about less than your web browser. You use your web browser to check the news, the stock market, your bank account, sports teams, watch shows, anything and everything you’re interested in. Add in the extensions and apps available for nearly all modern browsers, and you’d be hard-pressed to find a single application you use more on a daily basis.

Despite all the improvements, there are times when your browser just isn’t up to the task. If your web browser starts to seem a bit sluggish, how do you speed it up? We’ll look at five steps to help boost your sagging browser speeds.

1. Cut down on open tabs!

Let’s start with a simple one. Some of us HATE closing old tabs, and it shows. You never know when you might want to re-open that search you did three weeks ago on your favorite obscure band.

2. Remove extensions

Browser extensions are software add-ons for your browser. They change the way information is processed, stored, or appears on your browser. There are countless helpful extensions, from productivity hacks to email encryption extensions, from skins for different websites to password storage devices.

There are two problems with extensions, however. Extensions can pose a security risk, allowing third parties to infect your computer with malware, as well as divulge your browsing history and personal information.

Beyond the security risks that extensions pose, there’s a simple drain of resources. In every extension or add-on is an extra program to execute. The more extensions you have installed, the more your browser has to work, and the slower it will run.

To speed things up, simply remove any unwanted or unused extensions. You can add and remove extensions from any browser that supports them; to speed up your Chrome browser, follow these steps.

3. Uninstall/reinstall your browser

If you’re not seeing much improvement after the first few steps, you can always uninstall and reinstall your browser. This tends to clear things out all at once, and you may see a big improvement once you start from scratch with the latest version.

4. Update browser

Some of the older browsers, like Mozilla or Chrome, are updated regularly. And not all of those updates are created equal; a browser might make some much-needed improvements after a while. Make sure that you have automatic updates turned on for your browser, or check for a newer version.

5. Upgrade browser

Bonus: Install Brave

Brave is the browser re-invented. In fact, Brave wants to re-invent the entire Internet economy, from a surveillance-based economy that tracks, analyzes, and resells your browsing data and surfing history to a privacy-based economy that rewards you for your time and attention. By rewarding users with Basic Attention Tokens for certain opt-in ads, and by blocking ads and trackers automatically with Shields, Brave provides a highly secure and private browsing experience.

Even better? Brave is fast. All of those ads and trackers blocked, usually from 3rd party sites, are ads and trackers that don’t need to be loaded. In reality, this means that pages load 3x to 6x faster with Brave. If you really want to speed up your browser, switch to Brave!

Related articles

What’s the fastest browser for surfing the Web?

In this article, we look at the fastest web browser and discuss some of the factors that affect browser speed, including the browser engine and javascript engine.

Why is My Web Browser So Slow?

We explain some simple tips to help you self-diagnose what’s wrong with your slow browser and start taking some steps to speed things back up.

What’s the fastest browser for Android?

There are lots of Android browsers to choose from. But what’s the fastest browser? And what else should you consider beyond speed? In this article, we’ll offer advice on how to choose a browser for your Android device.

Ready to Brave the new internet?

Brave is built by a team of privacy focused, performance oriented pioneers of the web. Help us fix browsing together.

How To Speed Up My Browser Speed

Alternative Title: How to Speed up My Computer When the Internet Is Slow

Today’s ever-advancing technology has put the power of information gathering at our fingertips. The Internet is the primary source of information on all manner of subjects. It is also the leading utility for many tasks, such as banking, paying bills, paying taxes, shopping, and even making dinner reservations. But it can be quite frustrating when the Internet is running slowly, even though you are supposed to have a strong and fast Wi-Fi connection.

When you’re waiting for pages to load or having trouble connecting to a website, you may be wondering, «How to speed up my computer.» Thankfully, the solution is often a simple one. By regularly practicing a few simple computer and browser maintenance tasks, you can ensure that your Internet connection runs as quickly as it should.

How to Speed Up My Computer

Have you conducted a browser speed test yet? Sometimes the issue isn’t necessarily your Internet connection but the browser itself. Regardless of the browser, you prefer to use, you can take a series of steps to make sure your Internet browsing experience is a pleasant one. Try the following whenever you want to know how to speed up your computer’s Internet speed. First, run a browser speed test to see the actual connection speed. Then, if the following first method doesn’t solve the speed problem, move on to the next step.

Update to the Latest Version of Your Browser

Like most software, Internet browser applications often release updates. These updates are designed to fix several issues such as security or performance. Updating to the latest version will serve to improve Internet security and possibly also fix any performance issues you may have been experiencing.

Most browsers are now designed to alert you automatically if an update is available. However, if the speed of your browser is suffering, check for an update manually. You may have missed the update alert, or it could be that your browser just didn’t issue an alert. An update might still be available.

Run a Browser Speed Test

Sometimes if your browser version is completely up-to-date, it might not necessarily be a problem with the browser that is slowing things down. Instead, it could very well be your Internet connection. You can tell how well your Internet connection is performing by running a browser speed test.

Some browsers, such as Google Chrome, allow you to test the speed of any website directly from the speed test option in the Chrome toolbar. This can be a good way to tell if the website itself is the issue or your Internet speed. You can use several useful tools and services to test your Internet speed — most browser speed tests will tell you both the upload speed and the download speed. This will give you a good idea of how well your connection is performing.

If the browser speed test shows that your speed is poor, it could be due to connectivity issues in your area from your service provider. It could also be that your service provider isn’t a very good one, and you might want to consider switching.

Remove Unused Extensions

Browsers typically come pre-installed with several plug-ins and extensions. Over time, you might download and install more. Some of these extensions are obsolete, while others can cause significant performance issues. Many might run in the background, even if you don’t necessarily need them. To improve the performance of your browser, it is recommended that you periodically remove unused extensions and plug-ins.

Clear Caches and Cookies

When you visit various websites, the Internet browser collects various data and files to load a website quicker the next time you visit. This is referred to as the browser cache. You’ve probably seen many websites display a message that they use cookies. This refers to data that links your computer’s identity to a website. Sites do this to load your browser and website preferences quickly.

The cache and cookies are both designed to make your Internet browsing experience more pleasurable. But, over time, the abundance of data can cause your browser performance to suffer. Clearing the cache and cookies periodically can drastically improve browser performance.

Practice Good Tab Management

Just as having a lot of applications open can slow down your computer performance, having lots of browser tabs open can affect your Internet speed. Close tabs you aren’t using, and the open ones will likely perform better.

Run a Malware Scan

Malware on your computer can affect the performance of some applications, including your browser. Not to mention, it could also be used to hack into private accounts, so you want to clear your computer of any malware. Run a malware scan with an anti-malware tool to detect and remove any malware, spyware, or trojans.

Watch this video about Malware:

In Conclusion

Now that you’ve answered the question, «how to speed up my computer,» perform the above actions periodically. Doing so will help to keep your computer and browser’s performance operating smoothly. Additionally, practicing strong Internet security by running malware scans can also ensure that your private data and accounts are kept safe and secure.

Recommended products

Kaspersky can help you protect your private accounts from all significant threats, including malware, spyware, and trojans. The Total Security suite provides bank-grade protection, significantly reducing the risk of your accounts being infiltrated by hackers. Learn more about how Kaspersky can help you stay five steps ahead of cybercriminals and keep your data safe.

Why Is My Browser So Slow? | Speed Up Chrome, Internet Explorer & Firefox

Table of Contents

If you are frequently experiencing slow browser load times or crashes you may wonder why our web browser is so slow. Many things can cause this and most users don’t know about them or how to manage them. Most people’s first thought goes to some kind of virus or malicious attacker but, while that can cause browser slowness, that is not the only culprit and isn’t always the case.

It could be a simple case of using an ethernet cable to connect to your internet, if you suspect that is the case then make sure you get the best ethernet cable available. What’s more you can read our ethernet splitter reviews here and grab a model which suits you to connect multiple devices and keep the signal fast to each of them.

Alternatively, it could be issues you are having with your internet provider. There are some basic things you can do to maintain your browser and prevent slowness as well as some advanced options that might help.

Why Is My Browser So Slow?

Some basic maintenance tasks will help to keep your browser fast and efficient. This includes updating your browser, controlling the flash plugin, removing unnecessary extensions, and deleting your temporary internet data among other things.

It is also possible, but not always the case, that you are the active victim of a malicious program such as malware or spyware which is causing the slow browser load time. A lot of these software can be taken care of by a simple virus scan from any free antivirus software.

No matter what the problem is, the first step in fixing it is asking yourself “why is my browser slow?” and taking the time to troubleshoot the issue.

How To Speed Up Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Internet Explorer

There are some things that you can download for your internet browsers that will slow them in exchange for whatever feature they provide. Most toolbars will do this and so you shouldn’t install them and if you have already done so then you should remove them immediately to speed up Mozilla Firefox or whatever browser you use. The loss of browsing speed is never worth the minor convenience of having the toolbar there at all times.

Another tool you can use to speed up internet explorer or any other browsers are to clear your browsing data and cache. These are temporary files that, while small and minor, are created upon visiting most websites and can add up in a small amount of time. Clearing them out should reduce the load on your browser and speed up safari or your browser of choice.

Keep Your Browser Updated

One of the most prevalent problems with most user’s software of all kinds, not just internet browsers, is that they ignore update notifications. Keeping your software updated won’t just make it run faster, it also helps to keep you safe from malicious criminal activity. Don’t ignore update notifications, just don’t. That said, not every program will tell you that an update is available automatically so if you are asking yourself “why is chrome so slow?” then it may need an update.

Enable the Prefetch Resources Option

You can speed up Google Chrome by enabling the Prefetch Resources option. This option helps to speed up your ability to switch between web pages or sites by looking up the IP address of links on sites that you visit and downloading the information for pages it thinks you might visit. This will speed things up since it is doing the work before you need it to but it comes with several downsides that make it not recommended to enable this option.

The first downside is regarding your privacy. If you enable this option then Google Chrome may have to download cookies from each site as if you visited them even if you haven’t. This is a vulnerability in your security.

Another downside is the speed of your computer. This feature will speed up the Google Chrome Browser web browser but at the expense of the speed of your other software. With this feature enabled chrome is downloading information from every single link on every site you visit, even the ones you don’t visit, which will place a higher load on your system’s resources.

Ultimately, the decision lies with you if speeding up your web browser is worth the potential downsides then this is an option, but it is not recommended.

Control the Flash Plugin

Until a few years ago Chrome installed with many plugins already downloaded and it allowed you the opportunity to download even more. That all changed when latest Version 57 was released. There is now a much more restrictive approach to plugins which comes with advantages to stability, security, and speed. Now the flash plugin should require that you allow or deny it for each site that tries to use it individually. If that setting is turned off then it is recommended that you turn it back on. If every site is allowed to access the flash plugin with impunity it can significantly slow your browser.

Chrome is not the only browser that makes use of the flash plugin almost all web browsers make use of it in some way. No matter what browser you are using you should make an effort to ensure that the flash plugin is not open to being used by every site you click on. Instead, you should make sure to enable the setting that requires a site to ask your permission before it is given access to the flash plugin.

Scan for Malware and Spyware

Blocking security threats and Scanning for malware and spyware should be done regularly. The more often you run scans the more likely it is that you will catch and eliminate these problems and the less time and opportunity they have to inconvenience you. A lot of spyware can affect not only your speed but also your security and your browser’s stability and reliability. There are plenty of free antivirus programs out there including AVG Antivirus and Malwarebytes.

Remove Unwanted Browser Add-Ons

Browser extensions can be extremely convenient and provide functionality that is not available with the base form of your browser. That said, they also increase the load on your operating system resources which can slow down your browser speed. You should make a habit of disabling browser addons when you don’t need them and uninstall them entirely if you find yourself using them infrequently or not at all.

Usually, you can see a list of all installed extensions in your browser settings and from there it should be a simple matter of following prompts to disable or uninstall them. With a few of your browser extensions uninstalled or disabled you should notice an immediate increase in browser speed. If you don’t, then you know that your extensions are not the problem and it is time to look elsewhere for the cause of your browser speed issues.

Delete Temporary Internet Files and Browsing Data

Every time you visit a new site or webpage your internet browser will download data from that site including URLs and cached files, as well as your browsing history and downloads. These temporary internet files are there in your hard drive to help speed your browser up by allowing it to draw data from your system memory instead of having to recollect it from the website, but the cache will get fairly large over time which can cause the speed to drop instead. Making a habit of regularly searching the cache and uninstalling the data for websites you rarely visit should result in a faster browser overall.

Clear Browsing Cache and Cookies

The location that your temporary internet files are stored is called the “ browsing cache.” If your internet browser is significantly slower than usual then it might be worth it to just clear the entire cache and delete all of your cookies. This has the added benefit of protecting your privacy. It isn’t anybody’s business what sites you visit, when you visit them, or where you are accessing them from which is all data that can be gleaned from your cache or cookies by a tech-savvy individual.

Your browsing data can be cleaned in most browsers by visiting your browser history in the browser settings in the upper right corner. There should be a button or option somewhere in your history that allows you to clear browsing data and clear your cache. Even if privacy is not a concern to you, it would still benefit you to wipe this data every once in awhile just to clear out unnecessary data for sites you only intended to visit once or twice.

If Needed, Uninstall and Reinstall Your Browser

If none of the previous tips helped then it is possible that uninstalling your browser of choice and reinstalling it will help solve the issue. Just be sure to remove all of the data associated with the browser before reinstalling it, this is known as performing a “clean install” with most software. If you reinstall a program without first ensuring that all of the previous files are removed then a majority of programs will notice that those files are there when they are installing themselves and will just keep the old files which essentially means that the entire process was for nothing.

Generally, if you have to reinstall any kind of software it is a good idea to perform a fresh install, the only thing it costs you is a little bit of extra time. In exchange for that time you are guaranteeing that the program is installing in the intended way without any extra data bogging down your system resources and slowing things down.

Removing Add On or Unwanted Browser Extensions

If you make a habit of rapidly clicking through installation wizards when you are installing new programs on your computer, or you don’t inspect each window carefully enough, you may install added features that you don’t want. A lot of programs will hide optional files in their installation wizards in the hopes that you won’t notice them and the installation of them alongside the program you are after.

These optional programs include things like browser toolbars and extensions. If, in response to asking yourself “why is Firefox so slow?”, you notice you have an extension that you don’t remember downloading then this might be what happened.

If you notice extra extensions then it isn’t a big deal. Removing extensions by just visiting the extensions section of your browser settings, but can still be security vulnerabilities.

5 simple tricks to speed up your browser

By David Nield | Published Oct 1, 2021 3:30 PM

This post has been updated. It was originally published on March 13, 2020.

The days when the internet was a series of simple text pages have long gone. Today’s sites can contain video, audio, interactive elements, and stacks of images, and over time your browser can slow down under the weight of all that content.

But it doesn’t have to be like this: With a bit of timely maintenance and tidying up, you can ensure your browsing stays faster for longer. This advice applies across all the major desktop browsers, including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge, Apple’s Safari, and Opera.

1. Remove unused extensions

Just as too many unneeded apps will slow down your computer, too many plug-ins and extensions can do the same to your browser. They take up system resources and can even cause bugs and crashes. Extensions aren’t inherently bad—they can add genuinely useful features to your browser—but it’s a good idea to run an extension audit once in a while and remove the ones you no longer rely on, don’t recognize, or don’t really need, and get rid of those first.

The process is straightforward enough in most browsers, which have an easy-to-find display for the extension menu. In Chrome, Extensions is under More Tools on the main menu; in Firefox, choose Add-ons from the main menu; and in Microsoft Edge and Opera, pick Extensions from the main menu. Extensions are less common in Safari, but you can find them under Preferences and Extensions from the Safari menu.

Once you get going, you might be surprised at how many add-ons you can live without. If you’re ready for a really drastic cleanup, try removing all of them at once and then reinstalling only the ones you find invaluable.

For the extensions you do keep, make sure they’re regularly updated. Your browser should handle this automatically, but it’s worth checking manually—ensuring you’re running the latest versions of your add-ons keeps them bug-free and working smoothly.

2. Clear out the cache and cookies

As you travel the web, your browser collects (or caches) certain files to speed up your browsing experience. If you visit a site again, the cached files are already there, so your browser only needs to download any new bits from the web. This means less time waiting, and in general, it’s going to speed up rather than slow down your browsing.

However, we’d recommend occasionally clearing out your cache and starting anew. Your browser should automatically manage the cache, but it can get unwieldy and cause occasional problems. If you want to keep your browsing speed as good as new, wipe the slate clean every few months or so. Afterward, you will notice a slight slowdown as your browser rebuilds its cache, but speed should quickly go back to normal.

At the same time you clear your cache, most browsers let you clear cookies as well. Cookies are bits of data that websites link to your machine to identify who you are, where you’re from, your website preferences, and more. Usually, cookies are harmless and useful, but a regular purge will quickly get rid of any corrupt or unnecessary ones.

In Chrome, from Settings pick Clear browsing data. In Firefox Preferences, you can find the setting under Privacy & Security and Clear Data. For Opera, open Settings, then Privacy & security, and Clear browsing data. On the Settings tab for Microsoft Edge, open Privacy and Services, then click Choose What to Clear. Safari is a bit more involved: Open Preferences from the Safari menu, then click Advanced, and tick Show Develop menu in menu bar. You can then open up the Develop menu and choose Empty Caches. Clear Safari cookies via Privacy and Manage Website Data in Preferences.

3. Uninstall and reinstall your browser

We’ve talked about cleaning up extensions and wiping the cache to get your browser back to its original state, which is the best approach for stopping browser slowdowns. Well, uninstalling and reinstalling your browser is a quick shortcut that’ll do the same job.

Once you’ve gotten rid of the old version of your favorite browser, you can grab its latest update from the web. This will clear any corrupted data caches and unnecessary extensions, but will also make sure that you’re running the most up-to-date version of the software—another important factor in keeping your browser running smoothly. Staying up to date is so vital to fixing bugs and blocking security threats that modern browsers typically download updates automatically. But to cover all your bases, it’s worth running the occasional update manually.

So how do you go about deleting your browser? On Windows, you’ll need to head to the Apps section of Settings to remove programs; on macOS, you can just drag apps from the Applications folder in Finder to the Trash. It’s not possible to uninstall Microsoft Edge from Windows, or Safari from macOS, though, as these applications are embedded in the operating systems. Deleting a browser this way doesn’t just eliminate extensions and cookies—it will usually remove your bookmarks and browsing history at the same time. So if you want to keep your bookmarks, make sure you’ve backed them up somewhere else first.

Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Opera also include handy features for essentially resetting the browsers, which will save you the trouble of uninstalling and reinstalling the entire program. In Chrome, Edge, and Opera, find the Restore settings to their original defaults link at the very bottom of the advanced settings list. In Firefox, open up the “about:support” page in a tab, then click Refresh Firefox. These resets won’t affect your browsing history and bookmarks.

4. Manage your tabs

Clearing out behind-the-scenes clutter isn’t the only way to speed up your web experience. Managing your open tabs more efficiently will also help you browse faster. The more tabs you have open, the slower your browser is going to run (though apps are always getting better at managing these demands, so keep them up to date).

Doing so can be as simple as keeping the number of open tabs you have down to a minimum. This isn’t easy in today’s age of web apps and information overload, but try resisting the temptation to keep a dozen tabs open at once. If you need to keep track of several sites to return to later, you can use a read-it-later service like Pocket or Instapaper. Or just save the site links to your browser’s bookmarks list—you can set up a Temp folder for this very purpose.

A few well-chosen browser extensions can help with tab management, too. Although you should install as few browser add-ons as possible, extensions like these are genuinely useful. For example, Max Tabs for Firefox puts a hard limit on the number of tabs you can actually have open at once—when you reach that limit, you’ll need to decide which of your open tabs you can get rid of before you can introduce a new one.

[Related: Google Chrome’s Reading List will finally help you close some of those tabs]

Over on Chrome (and Edge, which supports the same extensions), xTab does a similar job. Meanwhile, The Great Suspender and Tab Wrangler are both great at closing or suspending unused tabs, and they work on both Chrome and Edge. If you’re on Safari, Tab Suspender is relatively basic, but does what you need.

5. Get extra help

In addition to managing your tabs, other add-ons and apps can help you keep your browser running at top speed. Most of these tools handle the cleaning jobs we covered above, like tidying up cached files that you don’t need anymore. It’s worth testing out one or two of these and seeing if you notice any speed increases.

For instance, take a look at the Speed Tweaks add-on for Firefox, which promises to cut down on browser bloat and edit a few under-the-hood settings for a speedier experience. For Google’s browser, Clean All is one to try: it can take care of your browser’s history, cache, cookies, and even some files hidden away deeper in the program.

Plenty of desktop programs clean up browser clutter, too. These include the reliable (and free) CCleaner for Windows and macOS, CleanMyMac ($35 per year) for macOS, and System Mechanic ($40) for Windows. The apps let you regularly tidy up after your browser in terms of the files left behind, and they come with a bunch of options for optimizing the other programs you’ve got installed too.

One final way to speed up your browsing is to reduce the amount of data reaching your computer. Extensions such as Save-Data for Chrome and Bandwidth Hero for Firefox can significantly cut down on the data you use and the time pages take to load, though techniques like image compression and cutting out extra elements (like animations) that aren’t essential for the site to appear.

David Nield is a freelance contributor at Popular Science, producing how to guides and explainers for the DIY section on everything from improving your smartphone photos to boosting the security of your laptop. He doesn’t get much spare time, but when he does he spends it watching obscure movies and taking long walks in the countryside.