Fixing Your Laptop Touchpad not Working in Windows

Before You Begin

For generic troubleshooting steps, see our Laptop Touchpad Not Working library page

Overview

Touchpad issues may be caused by outdated or corrupt drivers, incorrect touchpad settings, hardware failure, or other factors.

If you are having issues with a touch screen (not touchpad), see Touch Screen Not Working on Dell Laptops, All-In-One desktops, and Monitors.

Suggested Quick Fixes

1. Ensure the touchpad is turned on. See Disabling or Enabling the Touchpad on a Dell Laptop.
2. Ensure the touchpad and your finger are free of dirt, grease, liquids, or food (the touchpad needs good contact with your finger to work correctly).
3. Save any open data, close programs, and restart the computer.
   NOTE: Do not touch the touchpad until the computer has fully booted, as it goes through a calibration process during startup.

The Cursor Movement Is Not Smooth (Erratic) or Does Not Move at All

1. Ensure the touchpad and your finger are free of dirt, grease, liquids, or food.
   NOTE: If the touchpad appears distorted or is not working correctly, this could indicate a swollen battery.

   Check your laptop for these warning signs:

   • Bulging or swelling of the battery compartment.
   • Gaps or separations in your laptop's case.
   • The trackpad or keyboard does not click properly or feels raised.
   • Laptop wobbles when placed on a flat surface.
   • Screen does not close completely or looks misaligned.

   If you suspect a swollen battery See the Dell Handling swollen Lithium-ion batteries library page.
2. Ensure the touchpad is turned on. See Disabling or Enabling the Touchpad on a Dell Laptop.
3. Save any data, close open programs, and restart the computer using a wired USB or Bluetooth mouse if available. Otherwise, press and hold the power button for at least 15 seconds to power off (unsaved data will be lost).
4. Unplug all peripherals except the power cable, including speakers, printers, scanners, USB devices, USB flash drives/external storage, external monitor, external keyboard, and external mouse. Undock the computer if it is attached to a docking station.
5. Turn the computer back on and retest the touchpad.
   NOTE: Do not touch the touchpad until the computer has fully booted.
6. If the cursor works correctly, reattach one device at a time and test after each to identify which device caused the issue.
7. Ensure BIOS and chipset drivers are updated to the latest version.
• See How to Update BIOS: Install and Upgrade BIOS on Windows.
• See How to Update Drivers on My Dell Computer.
• Consider using SupportAssist for automatic updates and issue detection: SupportAssist for Home PCs.
8. Some laptops have added gesture features (two/three-finger scrolling, pinch zoom, circle zoom, rotate, swiping) that are enabled by default and may cause erratic cursor movement. Adjust these in the touchpad driver properties:
9. Right-click the Windows Icon > Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Touchpad. .
10. Adjust the options as preferred in the Gestures & interaction section (all the Gestures may not be available on all computers).
11. Click Bluetooth & devices.
12. Close the Settings window.

For more information, see the Microsoft article Touch gestures for Windows.

13. If the touchpad still does not work, run a hardware checkup with SupportAssist:
    1. In the search box, type SupportAssist.
    2. Open SupportAssist. (If not preinstalled, see SupportAssist for Home PCs.)
    3. Select the three bars on the left side of the SupportAssist page.
    4. Select Support, and then in the Test my hardware card, select Get started.
    5. Scroll to HID-compliant touch pad, and select Run Test
    6. Select Start and follow the prompts.
    7. Select either Done or Fail.

Resolving the Cursor Jumping Around While Typing

Ensure the BIOS is updated to the latest version. See How to Update BIOS: Install and Upgrade BIOS on Windows.

1. Right-click the Windows Icon >  Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Touchpad > More touchpad settings.
2. Open the Pointer Options tab.
3. Check Hide pointer while typing.
4. Select OK
5. Expand the Taps section.
6. Using the drop-down menu, select Low sensitivity (can be adjusted back later if needed).
7. Click Bluetooth & devices.
8. Close the Settings window.

For more information, see the Microsoft article on touch and keyboard settings.

Troubleshooting a Slow-Moving Cursor

1. Ensure the touchpad and your finger are free of dirt, grease, liquids, or food.
2. Ensure the latest touchpad driver is installed. You may need an external USB or Bluetooth mouse in the meantime. See How to Update Drivers on My Dell Computer.
• Some newer laptops use a Dell Precision Touchpad with a driver built into Windows (no separate download needed). See How to Use and Fix Precision Touchpad Issues in Windows.
3. Adjust the pointer speed:
   1. Right-click the Windows Icon > Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Touchpad..
   2. Move the Cursor Speed slider to the desired level.
   3. Click Bluetooth & devices.
   4. Close the Settings window.

4. If the issue persists, turn off the computer.
5. Unplug all peripherals, including speakers, printers, scanners, other USB devices (including an external keyboard), and USB flash drives or other external storage.
6. Turn the computer back on and retest cursor movement.
• If it works correctly, reattach devices one at a time to identify the cause.
7. If the touchpad still does not work, run SupportAssist's Hardware Checkup (see steps under the previous section) to test the Mouse device.

Resolving Touchpad Button Issues

1. Ensure nothing is physically obstructing the touchpad buttons. Most touchpad buttons produce a clicking sound or tactile response when pressed.
2. Ensure the touchpad and your fingers are free of dirt, grease, liquids, or food.
3. Save data, close programs, and turn the computer off (hold the power button 15+ seconds if needed; unsaved data will be lost).
4. Turn the computer back on and retest the touchpad buttons after it fully boots.
5. Ensure the touchpad is turned on. See Disabling or Enabling the Touchpad on a Dell Laptop.
6. Ensure the BIOS is updated to the latest version. See How to Update BIOS: Install and Upgrade BIOS on Windows.
7. If the touchpad still does not work, run a hardware checkup with SupportAssist:
   1. In the search box, type SupportAssist.
   2. Open SupportAssist. (If not preinstalled, see SupportAssist for Home PCs.)
   3. Select the three bars on the left side of the SupportAssist page.
   4. Select Support, and then in the Test my hardware card, select Get started.
   5. Scroll to HID-compliant touch pad, and select Run Test
   6. Select Start and follow the prompts.
   7. Select either Done or Fail.

If these steps do not resolve the issue, you can use a restore point to return Windows to a time when the touchpad worked (in Windows 10, this is called "refreshing" the OS), or reinstall the operating system. See Factory Reset, Restore, or Reinstall Microsoft Windows on a Dell computer.

Reversing the Touchpad Buttons

If you want to reverse the function of the Touchpad buttons, perform the following steps.

1. Right-click the Windows Icon >  Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Touchpad > More touchpad settings.
2. On the Buttons tab, click to check the box Switch Primary and secondary buttons.
3. Click OK.

How to Turn the Touchpad Off and On

See Disabling or Enabling the Touchpad on a Dell Laptop.

Resolving Touchpad Issues After Waking from Sleep Mode

1. Save data, close programs, and restart the computer. If the touchpad/keyboard are unresponsive and no external mouse is available, hold the power button for 15+ seconds to force shutdown (unsaved data will be lost).
2. Ensure the BIOS is updated to the latest version. See How to Update BIOS: Install and Upgrade BIOS on Windows.
3. Ensure Windows has the latest updates. See Microsoft's Windows Update: FAQ.

Resolving a Disappeared Cursor

1. Run SupportAssist:
1. Press and hold the Windows key, and then press the Q key.
2. Type supportassist in the Search box. (If not listed, skip to step 2.)
3. Select SupportAssist and press Enter.
4. Tab to and select Full system scan (may take several Tab presses).
5. Follow the prompts as the app scans hardware and looks for driver updates.
2. If unresolved, uninstall and let Windows reinstall the mouse driver:
1. Press and hold the Windows key, and then press the Q key.
2. Type device manager in the Search box.
3. Select Device Manager and press Enter.
4. Press Tab, then arrow down to Mice and other pointing devices and expand it.
5. Select the listing for Dell Touchpad or HID-compliant mouse.
6. Press and hold the Shift key and then press F10 (on some laptops, Shift + Fn + F10).
7. Arrow down to Uninstall device and press Enter.
8. Confirm Uninstall and press Enter.
3. Restart the computer:
1. Press the Windows key.
2. Tab to the Expand icon, then arrow down to the power icon and press Enter.
3. Arrow down to Shut down and press Enter. The computer will reboot.

Touchpad Wobble

If the touchpad appears distorted or is not working correctly, this could indicate a swollen battery.

Check your laptop for these warning signs:

• Bulging or swelling of the battery compartment.
• Gaps or separations in your laptop's case.
• The trackpad or keyboard does not click properly or feels raised.
• Laptop wobbles when placed on a flat surface.
• Screen does not close completely or looks misaligned.

If you suspect a swollen battery See the Dell Handling swollen Lithium-ion batteries library page.

Common Touchpad Navigation

See the Microsoft article Touch gestures for Windows.