Google Chrome is a popular browser; over 80 percent of people prefer it over any other browser. It is undoubtedly fast and responsive, but in many instances, it might feel sluggish and unresponsive, and if Chrome is taking too long to download files, you have come to the right place. Today, you will learn how to fix slow download speeds in the Chrome browser.
How to Fix Slow Download Speeds in Chrome
You may experience slow or sluggish download speeds in Google Chrome for various reasons, including interference from extensions, slow download link, incorrect browser settings, or DNS cache issue. Below, we have not only mentioned solutions to fix issues that may be slowing your downloads but also the tricks to boost downloading. Read on.
1. Enable Parallel Downloading Flag
Chrome has an experimental Parallel downloading feature that, once enabled, boosts the download speed and downloads large files quickly as it divides them into small packets. Follow the below steps to enable the flag in the browser.
Step 1: Open the Google Chrome browser on your system.
Step 2: Type chrome://flags in the address bar and hit enter.
Step 3: Search for Parallel downloading in the search box. Alternatively, type chrome://flags/#parallel-downloading in the address bar and press enter.
Step 4: Click on the drop-down menu next to it and select Enabled.
Step 5: Finally, tap on Relaunch to restart the browser.
2. Check Your Internet Speed
Even after enabling the parallel downloading flag, the thing you need to do is check whether you are receiving good internet speed or not because that might be the reason why you are getting slow download speeds.
To check your internet speed, visit a speed checker website like fast.com, speedtest.net, speakeasy.net, etc., and check your connection’s download speed. If you are receiving slow speeds, switch to a stable network, and your issue should be fixed. On the other hand, if you are receiving good speed, try other fixes.
3. Restart Google Chrome
Another thing you should do if you are experiencing slow download speeds is restart Google Chrome. Follow the below steps to exit the browser.
Step 1: Tap on the three-dot icon at the top-right corner.
Step 2: Select Exit from the menu options to close Google Chrome.
Step 3: Reopen the browser, and your issue should be fixed.
4. Use Turbo Download Manager Extension
The Turbo Download Manager extension provides users with reliable downloading as it comes with multi-threading support, which increases download speeds. Here’s how you can install and use the extension:
Step 1: Head over to the Turbo Download Manager extension page.
Step 2: Add the extension to your browser by tapping on Add to Chrome > Add Extension.
Step 3: Once added, tap on the extension menu icon and select Turbo Download Manager.
Step 4: Now, drag and drop the link for files you want to download or click the ‘+’ icon to add them manually.
5. Kill Unused Tabs
Too many open tabs in the browser may slow download speeds, as each opened tab consumes some resources, which impacts the download speed. Here’s how you can identify and close the task taking up more network resources.
Step 1: Click on the three-dot icon at the top.
Step 2: Select More Tools and click on Task Manager.
Step 3: Find the task that is taking the most network resources and tap on it.
Step 4: Click on End Process to close the task. You can also close all the tabs if they are not useful.
After closing all tasks that take the most network resources, the download speed should be increased.
6. Update Your Browser
You can also try updating the browser, as there might have been some issues in the previous version that Chrome has fixed with the latest update. Follow the below steps to check and update the Chrome browser.
Step 1: Open the Chrome browser on your system.
Step 2: Click on the three-dot icon at the top and select Settings.
Step 3: Tap on About Chrome from the sidebar.
Chrome will automatically check for updates and download them if there are any available. If not downloaded automatically, click on Update Chrome to download the latest version.
7. Flush DNS Cache
If the DNS cache on your system gets corrupted, it can also lead to a slow download speed on the Chrome browser. Hence, clearing the DNS cache will help you boost the speed. Here’s how you can flush the DNS cache:
Step 1: Press the Windows key and search for Command Prompt.
Step 2: Tap to open the command prompt.
Step 3: Type ipconfig /flushdns and press enter.
Once flushed successfully, you will see a message stating, “Successfully flushed the DNS Resolver Cache.”
8. Use Google Public DNS Servers
If you have never changed the DNS servers of your system, then it means you are using the servers assigned by your ISP (Internet Service Provider), and they may not be as fast as they should be. Hence, it’s recommended to use Google’s public DNS servers to receive the best possible speed. Here’s how you can change them on a Windows PC:
Step 1: Press the Windows+R key to open the Run window.
Step 2: Type control.exe /name Microsoft.NetworkAndSharingCenter and press enter.
Step 3: On the Network and Sharing Center, click on Change adaptor settings from the side menu.
Step 4: Right-click on the network you are currently using and tap Properties.
Step 5: Click on Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) and select Properties.
Step 6: Select the checkbox for Use the following DNS server addresses.
Step 7: Enter 8.8.8.8 in the Preferred DNS server and 8.8.4.4 in the Alternate DNS server.
Step 8: Finally, click OK to update your server to Google’s public servers.
9. Disable Extensions
Extensions are a cool way to use extra features not available in the browser, but adding too many will slow down the Chrome browser. Hence, we recommend disabling all the unused extensions. Here’s how you can do it:
Step 1: Open the Chrome browser, type chrome://extensions in the address bar, and press enter.
Step 2: You will be redirected to the Chrome Extensions page.
Step 3: Click on the Remove button under the extension and delete all the extensions you don’t use.
10. Turn Off Hardware Acceleration
Although hardware acceleration improves the performance of browsers, there are instances when it slows down the download speed. Hence, it’s best to turn it off and check if it affects the downloading speed. If disabling it further slows the download speed, turn it back on. Follow the below steps to turn off hardware acceleration in Google Chrome.
Step 1: Open the Chrome browser and tap on the three-dot icon at the top-right corner.
Step 2: Select Settings from the menu that appears.
Step 3: Click on System from the left sidebar.
Step 4: Turn off the toggle next to Use hardware acceleration when available.
Step 5: Finally, relaunch the browser.
11. Clear Chrome Host Cache
Clearing the host cache of the browser also helps many users boost their download speeds. Here’s how you can clear the host cache on the Chrome browser.
Step 1: Open Chrome, type chrome://net-internals/#dns in the address bar, and hit enter.
Step 2: Click on Clear host cache on the page that appears.
Step 3: Finally, reopen the Chrome browser.
12. Turn Off the VPN
A VPN makes internet browsing more secure, and if the VPN server is too far away from you, the data transmission will take longer to travel between your location and the VPN server’s location, which slows down both Chrome browsing and download rates. Hence, disable the VPN if you are using it and check if it speeds up your downloads.
13. Clear Browsing Data
Temporary files also cause problems in the data download process. Hence, you need to clear the browsing data in order to remove the temporary files that are collected by the browser. Follow the steps mentioned below to clear Chrome browsing data.
Step 1: Open Chrome, type chrome://settings/clearBrowserData in the address bar, and hit enter.
Step 2: Select all the checkboxes, including browsing history, cookies, cache, etc., and set the Time Range to All Time.
Step 3: Finally, click on Clear Data.
14. Reset Chrome Settings
Resetting the browser to its default settings also increases the download speed for several Reddit users. Here’s how you can reset your Google Chrome browser:
Step 1: Open the Google Chrome browser on your system.
Step 2: Tap on the three-dot icon and select Settings.
Step 3: On the left side menu, click on Reset settings.
Step 4: Click on Restore settings to their original defaults.
Step 5: Finally, click Reset settings on the pop-up window to confirm the reset.
(Resolved) Slow Download Speeds in Chrome
This is how you can fix slow download speeds in Chrome. I hope the above article helps you increase the download speeds of files you are saving from the web in the Google Chrome browser. If you have any queries related to the article, let us know, and stay tuned to BrowserToUse for more such articles and how-tos.
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