How to change your mouse's DPI to make the cursor move faster or slower
- You can change your mouse's DPI in several ways, but the easiest is through the Settings menu.
- DPI, or "Dots Per Inch," is a stat used to measure how fast your on-screen cursor moves when you move your mouse.
- Using the computer's settings to force a slow mouse to go faster can occasionally cause glitches, and make the cursor inaccurate.
DPI, or dots per inch, is the measure of a computer mouse's sensitivity. The higher your DPI, the farther your on-screen cursor will move for every inch your move the mouse.
This is why many people choose to change the DPI on their computer mouse. Lowering the DPI can help with tasks that require precision, like drawing with a mouse; raising the DPI is ideal if you need faster movement for games or other apps.
More advanced mice often have sliders or buttons that allow you to adjust the DPI in the mouse itself. Some have dedicated computer apps that will let you do it too.
However, if your mouse has neither of these things, you can still artificially adjust the DPI using your computer's settings menus. Just note that while using this method is safe, it can make your cursor seem buggy or less accurate. This is especially true if you try to make a slow mouse go much faster.
How to change your mouse DPI on a PC
Click on the "Start" menu and select the "Settings" icon.
On the Settings page, click on "Devices."
On the Devices page, click on "Mouse."
On the Mouse page, click on "Additional mouse options" under "Related settings."
In the "Mouse Properties" pop-up, click on "Pointer Options."
Use the slider under "Select a pointer speed" to adjust DPI. Sliding it to the left lowers DPI while sliding it to the right increases DPI.
- When the slider is where you want it, click "Apply" at the bottom. When the "Apply" button turns gray, meaning there are no additional changes to confirm, click on the "X" in the top right corner to close it.
How to change your mouse DPI on a Mac
Open the System Preferences app. The easiest way to find it is to click the Apple icon in the top-left corner of your screen, and then select "System Preferences..."
- In the menu that opens, click "Mouse."
You'll see a number of sliders and options. The slider that controls your mouse's DPI is "Tracking Speed." Move the slider to the position you want and test it out. When you're done, you can just close the window to save it.