Did you know that there are surefire reasons to get a new computer is slow? For instance, if your computer is four years old or more, it likely means you’re due for a replacement.
One of the reasons that you might want to replace your computer is because it’s so slow. There are few things more frustrating for someone that relies on their computer than having to wait for a long time just for a program to load.
If your computer is slow and you’re struggling to figure out what’s going on, you’re in luck because there are some super common concerns that people face that result in a slower CPU. By understanding what may be happening, you can resolve the issue on your own!
Keep reading to learn about the possible reasons your computer is slow and what you can do to make it faster.
1. Virus or Malware
One of the worst things that a person with a slow computer might worry about hearing is that their computer has viruses, spyware, malware, or any other issues that are taking up all of the resources. When these issues make their way onto your CPU, you’ll end up with a slower computer simply because it isn’t able to function like it normally would.
What’s the Solution?
The first step is to install an anti-virus program and run it on your system to see if you can locate the specific malware or virus. If this doesn’t work, you can always uninstall that program and try another one to take another look.
Keep in mind that you shouldn’t have more than a single anti-virus program installed at the same time. This can create a conflict that renders both of the programs useless, so find one you like and stick with it!
2. Too Many Tabs Open
This is a pretty simple issue, but if you’re using a popular web browser (such as Google Chrome) to search the web, you want to be sure that you don’t open a lot of tabs. The reason for this is that they can end up sucking the resources away from your computer’s performance to keep all of those different web pages loaded.
The tabs are all using memory on your computer, which we will touch on more in the next point, but this memory is an important resource that you don’t want your computer to waste.
What’s the Solution?
If you’re trying to figure out how to deal with a slow computer due to a lot of tabs being open, the good news is that this is probably the most simple solution of all on this list. Close any of the tabs you aren’t using!
3. Not Enough Memory (RAM)
If your computer is lacking places to store important data and files, your computer is going to struggle to keep up with you as you use it.
A computer uses RAM, which stands for random access memory, to keep track of these important bits of information for any program that you’re using while on the computer. The computer can easily grab any of the info it needs from RAM quickly to make your programs run fast.
When there isn’t enough RAM for the computer to use, the computer will instead have to pull that important info from the hard drive, which takes a lot more time and effort.
What’s the Solution?
The solution here is to purchase more RAM for your computer. The main thing to remember is that you want to double-check whether or not the RAM you’re going to purchase will be compatible with the type of computer you have.
You can also choose to purchase a new computer altogether that has more RAM, although this is going to be a much more expensive solution to this issue.
4. Multiple Programs Running
A common issue that people run into is that they open programs and then don’t close them all the way when they finish using them.
If you have a lot of programs up at the same time, they are taking up a lot of that performance you need for your computer to work more quickly. However, even if you close them from your desktop, they could still be open in the background.
Another common error here is thinking that you could restart your computer and that will close all of the programs, but this is not necessarily true. You likely have programs that are set up to boot on startup, which means they will automatically run again once your computer turns back on.
What’s the Solution?
You should still continue to close programs that you aren’t actively using. In addition to that, always delete old programs that never get any use anymore from your computer entirely.
Go into your startup menu and change which programs open on startup. You likely don’t need them all. You can access this on Windows by pressing CTRL+ALT+DEL, selecting “Task Manager,” going to the “Startup” tab, and clicking “Disable” on any programs you don’t need open at launch.
Are you on a macOS? If so, you can check out this guide on how to delete apps that won’t delete to get an idea of what your options are as an Apple user.
Don’t Ignore When Your Computer Is Slow
Whenever your computer is slow, it’s a good idea to figure out what the issue is and get to the bottom of the problem instead of putting it off. Simply putting up with a computer that isn’t performing as you need it to is wasting your time, but it also can be a drain on your computer’s resources.
Luckily, if your computer is dealing with an issue not on this list, you have some options on what you can do to resolve the issue (even if it means getting a new computer).
Did you find this article useful? If so, be sure to take a look at more of our tech-related articles next for more helpful insights.