When your laptop touchpad isn’t working, there’s a lot you can’t do—from controlling the cursor to scrolling through your favorite apps and websites.
We help millions of users resolve device problems and get the most out of their tech. Check out their tips for getting your touchpad (laptop mouse) back up and working.
Why Is My Laptop Touchpad Not Working?
Your laptop touchpad—or trackpad, if you’re on a MacBook®—can malfunction for several reasons. But when the trackpad is having trouble, you’ll notice two things: It responds inconsistently and erratically, or worse, it won’t respond. Here’s why you may encounter these issues:
- Your laptop’s operating system may be frozen.
- Your laptop may have defective hardware.
- The touchpad settings on your laptop may have been disabled.
- Your laptop may have outdated or corrupted drivers.
- Your laptop may contain corrupted files or software.
- Dirt and dust may be stuck in your touchpad.
How to Fix a Laptop Touchpad That’s Not Working
If you’re having issues with an unresponsive touchpad or trackpad, there are several ways to get your device in working shape, whether it’s a Dell®, HP®, or Lenovo® laptop. Here’s how to fix those brands and others, according to our experts:
Restart Your System
Turning your computer off and back on can fix many problems—including a laptop mouse or touchpad that’s not working. When the operating system is unresponsive or frozen, the other hardware on your laptop may also stop working. Turn it off and on again and see if that fixes the issue.
Check for Dirt
Eat lunch at your desk? Oils and dirt from your fingers, food, and other substances can accumulate on your touchpad and cause problems. Remove this grime regularly with a can of compressed air, a microfiber cloth, and a small amount of distilled water and isopropyl alcohol.
Disconnect Bluetooth Devices
If the touchpad isn’t working as it should, other devices your laptop is paired with could be to blame. Disconnect your Bluetooth mouse, gamepad, or any external device connected via USB. Then restart your laptop and try your trackpad once more.
Enable the Touchpad
It’s easy to disable the touchpad unknowingly by pressing the Function (FN) keys. But you can easily enable it back in settings.
How to Enable Your Laptop Touchpad in Windows™ 10:
- Press the Windows key and type “Touchpad.” Then select Touchpad settings.
- Check to see if the touchpad is activated. If it’s turned off, press the Shift + Tab to navigate the options.
- Press the Space bar to turn the touchpad feature on, then test the touchpad to see if it works.
Looking for a fix for your MacBook trackpad? Changing the settings on your device is also simple:
- Open System Preferences > Accessibility, then select Mouse & Trackpad in the menu to the left.
- If the Ignore built-in trackpad when mouse or wireless trackpad is present checkbox is selected, deselect it.
Update Your Laptop Drivers
If you’ve tried everything else, your device drivers could be the issue. If you’re using a MacBook, check if there are any software updates available in System Preferences. If you are using a PC, you can update the drivers manually in a few easy steps:
- Press the Windows key, type “Device manager,” and press Enter.
- Under Your PC, look for and expand the Mice and other pointing devices’ menu.
- Right-click on the device listed and select Update driver software > Search automatically for updated driver software. You can click Scan for hardware changes in the same menu if that doesn’t work.
What Can I Do If The Touchpad Click Is Not Working?
- Be sure that this feature is enabled
- Make sure that the delay is turned off
- Reinstall the touchpad driver
- Make sure that your drivers are up-to-date
- Run Hardware and Devices troubleshooter
- Make changes to your registry
- Perform a System Restore
Be Sure That This Feature Is Enabled
- Press Windows Key + S and enter the control panel. Select Control Panel from the list.
- When the Control Panel opens, select Mouse.
- The mouse window will now open. Go to the Device settings tab.
- Now click the Settings button and go to Tapping.
- Check the Enable tapping checkbox, and click OK.
If the touchpad click is not working on your laptop, it’s possible that it isn’t enabled. Your trackpad supports various configurations.
To enable this feature, you need to complete the above steps. After making these changes, the tapping feature should be enabled, and everything will start working again.
A couple of users reported that the Tap to click feature was already enabled, but after turning it off and back on again, the problem was resolved.
Make Sure That Delay Is Turned Off
- Open the Settings app. To do that quickly, use Windows Key + I shortcut.
- When the Settings app opens, go to the Devices section.
- From the menu on the left, choose Touchpad. In the right pane, look to make sure that the delay is set to No Delay.
If the touchpad click feature isn’t working, the problem might be the delay settings. Many touchpads have this option enabled to prevent accidental clicks.
However, if the touch-click feature isn’t working on your laptop, you may disable this feature entirely. To do that, follow the above steps.
After doing that, there won’t be any delay, and the touchpad click should start working without any issues.
- Reinstall the Touchpad Driver
- Press the Windows Key + X and choose Device Manager from the list.
- Locate your touchpad driver, right-click it, and choose Uninstall device from the menu.
- When the confirmation dialog appears, click Uninstall. Don’t check if the Remove driver software for this device option is available.
According to users, your drivers can sometimes get corrupted, and that will cause problems with your touchpad.
If the trackpad touch click feature doesn’t work on your PC, it’s possible that there’s an issue with your drivers.
However, you can fix this problem simply by reinstalling your touchpad drivers. After that, you’ll have to restart your device, and Windows will automatically install the necessary drivers.
Sometimes, you might have to restart your PC twice to solve the problem.
A few users suggested that instead of a touchpad driver, you should reinstall the mouse driver, so you might want to try that as well.
Make Sure That Your Drivers Are Up-To-Date
According to users, touchpad issues can occur due to your drivers. If your drivers are out of date, they might have specific bugs that will cause the touchpad to click to stop working.
This can be a big problem; you should update your drivers to fix it. You can update all your drivers automatically by using third-party software.
A dedicated tool is quite simple to use, and it will scan your PC for outdated drivers and update them automatically for you, so be sure to try it out.
Most of the time, the generic drivers for your PC’s hardware and peripherals are not correctly updated by the system. There are critical differences between a generic driver and a manufacturer’s driver.
Searching for the correct driver version for each hardware component can become tedious. That’s why an automated assistant can help you find and update your system with the correct drivers every time.
Enabling the Touchpad of the Laptop
- Press and hold the Windows (Windows Key) key, then press the q key.
- In the Search box, type Touchpad.
- Touch or click Touchpad settings (System settings).
- Look for a Touchpad On/Off toggle.
- When there is a Touchpad On/Off toggle option:
- Touch or click the Touchpad On/Off toggle to turn the touchpad on or off.
- When there is not a Touchpad On/Off toggle:
- Touch or click Additional settings on the right side of the screen.
- Touch or click the Dell Touchpad tab (Figure 1.)
- Figure 1: Dell Touchpad Tab
- Touch or click the image of the touchpad.
- Touch or click the Touchpad On/Off toggle to turn the touchpad on or off.
- Touch or click Save.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why Is My Touchpad Not Clicking?
We investigated this particular touchpad issue, and it seems to be related to touchpad drivers, configuration errors, and unexpected glitches.
Why Does My Touchpad Double Click?
Pinpointing the direct cause is often difficult. However, note that it may be related to having the double click speed set too low or wireless signal interferences.
What Do I Do If My Trackpad Won’t Click?
Double-checking that this feature is enabled first is just one of the many confirmed solutions you may apply.