When you purchase a new laptop or change from one laptop to another, you may notice that you have to press a little harder to register your finger on the touchpad, or have to move around your finger twice as much to move the mouse pointer. This is probably because of the touchpad sensitivity difference between the two laptops. In such a situation, you can adjust the touch sensitivity of either of the touchpads to match the other one, so that there is no longer a difference, and the transition is seamless.
Touchpad Sensitivity: Cursor Speed vs. Tap Sensitivity
Before we show you the different methods to adjust the touchpad’s sensitivity on a Windows 11 laptop, we would like to clear out a common misunderstanding between users.
Touchpad Sensitivity: Cursor Speed vs. Tap Sensitivity How to Adjust Touchpad Tap Sensitivity in Windows 11 From Settings app From Windows Registry How to Adjust Touchpad Cursor Speed Sensitivity in Windows 11 From Settings app From Control Panel Final Thoughts
When you hear the words “touchpad sensitivity,” it is thought of as referring to the mouse cursor sensitivity, when in fact it can also mean the sensitivity by which the touchpad recognizes a finger (tap). This is specifically known as tap sensitivity. Tap sensitivity is how hard you need to press down on the touchpad for the PC to register your tap. You can select tap sensitivity out of these 4 options:
Most sensitiveHigh sensitivityMedium sensitivityLow sensitivity
By default, Windows 11’s touchpad tap sensitivity is configured at “Medium sensitivity.” With that cleared out, let us now show you how to adjust the tap sensitivity and the touchpad cursor speed on a Windows 11 computer.
How to Adjust Touchpad Tap Sensitivity in Windows 11
From Settings app
Follow these steps to adjust the sensitivity of your touchpad to taps from the Settings app: If you are not sure which one suits you, you can try them one after the other and select the one you think is best for your touch responses.
From Windows Registry
You can also apply the same configurations directly within the Windows Registry that will apply to the selected tap sensitivity. Here is how: Note: Misconfiguration of critical values in the system’s registry could be fatal for your operating system. Therefore, we insist that you create a system restore point before proceeding forward with the process. Once the computer restarts, the touchpad’s tap sensitivity will change. That being said, you can still change it to any other configuration using the Registry Editor or through the Settings app as discussed above.
0 – Most Sensitive 1 – High Sensitivity 2 – Medium Sensitivity 3 – Low Sensitivity
Click OK when done.
How to Adjust Touchpad Cursor Speed Sensitivity in Windows 11
From Settings app
You can also control your mouse pointer/cursor’s movement speed from the Settings app. Here is how:
From Control Panel
If you prefer the legacy Control Panel, you can adjust your cursor’s speed from there too. Here is how: You can leave the settings where you think the cursor speed is right for you and then close the Settings app.
Final Thoughts
Using the given methods above, you can now control how your system’s touchpad reacts to your touches and the speed at which the cursor moves. Furthermore, you can also configure 2, 3, and 4 finger touchpad gestures and choose which actions to perform. Using these methods, the touchpad can become an even better tool than having an attached mouse.
