How to Fix Screen Tearing, is a commonest of the issue. Screen Tearing is a type of distortion that may occur on PC’s monitor. It is addressed when user happens to see multiple frames in a single shot on PC’s screen. Screen tearing typically occurs on PCs that have display hardware installed, like graphics card.
Causes of Screen Tearing : When the video is fed to the PC is not synchronized with the monitor’s refresh rate, the Screen tearing issue may be seen. The problem has been reported to occur mostly with NVIDIA graphics card users.
Although it is not a big issue, several factors may cause screen tearing on PC’s display. It is recommended to follow the solutions provided below in an orderly fashion.
Solution 1: Restart PC
It is highly recommended to close down the game/application you are running, restart PC. At times, restarting PC can solve lots of issues. In this case, continue to put back video feed and display output back in sync. After restarting, re-run the game, or the application and see whether the issue remains.
Solution 2 : Change Game FPS
Getting a tough time with screen tearing issue while playing a game on PC, try changing the game’s FPS (frames per second) by going to the Settings menu in the game. Search video/graphics settings to find an option to change FPS or Frame Rate. Check adjustments with the FPS value by lowering down a bit.
Solution 3: Change Resolution and Refresh Rate
- Press Start button on PC and type resolution in the search box. Tap on option for change the resolution of the display.
- Display Settings window to open and scroll down to select Advanced display settings.
- Tap Display adapter properties for Display 1 option.
- New window will open to check Adapter tab, find a List All Modes button to click on it.
- Find a list of resolution & FPS modes valid for device. Check resolutions according to device’s specifications & graphics card’s. Check screen tearing every time while selecting a setting from the list. Ensure to restart the PC.
Solution 4: By Enabling / Disabling NVIDIA VSync
Are you using the NVIDIA graphics card? You can use NVIDIA’s VSync option to handle problem such as rate stuttering and screen tearing. When frame rate of the graphics card is higher than PC’s system, the VSync automatically takes care of it.
- Right-click on PC’s desktop, choose the NVIDIA Control Panel option from context menu.
- NVIDIA Control Panel window opens, tap on the Manage 3D Settings option available under the 3D Settings section.
- Scroll down to locate Vertical Sync option to disable or enable it according to current settings.
- Exit the control panel and check if this resolved the How to Fix Screen Tearing issue.
Solution 5: Enable the “Wait for Vertical Refresh” option in AMD
There is a similar setting in the AMD Control Panel in case of an AMD user. While opening NVIDIA Control Panel, try to open AMD Control Panel similarly from the desktop. Go to the Global Settings menu, ensure to set Wait for Vertical Refresh option to Always on mode.
Solution 6: Turn-off Game Mode & Full-screen Optimization
Microsoft introduced the feature-rich Game Mode. Loaded with features like system optimization, one-touch screenshot, gameplay recording and more, it was reported by varuious users to cause problems. Apart from crashing games, the mode further leads to issues like screen tearing.
- Press Win + I keys together to open the Settings menu. Tap Gaming option.
- Choose the Game bar option on the left pane. Using the Game bar toggle switch, turn off Record game clips, screenshots, and broadcast on the right pane.
- Select the Broadcasting option on the left pane. Turn toggle switch off placed right below the Record audio on the right panel.
Restart PC and check whether the problem got fixed. Try to disable fullscreen optimization.
- Right-click on the icon on the game and click on the Properties.
- Go to the Compatibility tab, select the Disable fullscreen optimization option. When done, click on the Ok button.
- Close down Properties window and rerun the game.
Solution 7: Set Launch Options in Steam
- Right-click on the game with issues from the list of the games in Steam, and choose Properties from the menu.
- Tap on Set Launch Options button.
- Type-windowed -noborder and tap on the Ok button.
Solution 8: Updating or Reinstalling Graphics Driver
The Screen Tearing issue on PC might be happening because of outdated/faulty Graphics Card Driver. Try to update the driver. If does not work, uninstall to reinstall it again.
- Tap Win + X keys, select the Device Manager option.
- Search Display adapters and click to expand. Right-click on the graphics card driver to select option for Update driver.
- Choose the Search automatically for updated driver software option.
- PC will search for updated version of the driver. Follow on-screen instructions to proceed when it is available with update.
When driver is already updated, you might wish to reinstall the graphics card driver. Follow these steps to do so:
- Right-click on the Graphics Card driver in the Device Manager window, to select Uninstall device option.
- Go to Graphics Card manufacturer’s website and download the latest driver compatible with Graphics Card model.
- Install it manually after downloading the driver.
Solution 9: Disable Frame Limit in-game
When Frame Limit is set to On, it may be cause the screen tearing issue. Search for Frame Limit option in the in-game menu to turn it off. Revert the changes when the how to fix screen tearing issue isn’t fixed.
Solution 10: Turn off Smooth Scrolling
While facing screen tearing issues in Chrome or any browser, you can turn off the browser’s Smooth Scrolling feature.
- Turn-off Smooth Scrolling in Chrome
- Open a new tab in Chrome, tp type in the address bar: chrome://flags/#smooth-scrolling and press Enter key. Disable the feature.
- Open a new tab in Firefox, typewrite about: preferences in the address bar to press Enter.
- Now, unselect Use smooth scrolling feature from the menu
- Disable Smooth Scrolling in Edge
- Tap Win + R to open the Run box to type systempropertiesadvanced and tap Enter.
- Below Performance option, tap on Settings button.
- Unselect smooth-scroll list boxes and hit the Ok button.
Solution 11: Try Another Browser
While facing the problem on a particular browser, as a workaround, try switching to another browser and check the problem occurs there as well.
Hope one of the above stated methods will help you to know how to fix Screen Tearing.