Google Chrome Helper acts as a bridge between our browser and external plugins so that they can work on the browser. It’s a beneficial tool for Chrome users, given that it plays a vital role for many internet surfers.
However, it has been causing problems lately, especially for Mac users. I used to face this problem a few weeks back when my CPU usage started to skyrocket, and at the same time, the fan started with immense power.
Looking into the matter, I discovered that Google Chrome Helper is the culprit. In a hunt to find out what causes the trouble and what can fix it, I discovered some of the most effective notes.
In this guide, I’ll get you through all the fixes that could resolve the issue. These are curated solely on my experience and what others have experienced.
Without bragging about the matter, I’ll get right into the causes and the possible fixes to resolve the issue.
Disable Hardware Acceleration
As Google Chrome Helper drastically affects the device’s CPU, then the first thing we can do is prevent Chrome from making use of your CPU to offload tasks from the device.
Here are the steps to disable hardware accelerations:
- Launch the Google Chrome browser on a computer.
- Copy-paste the following address into the URL section.
chrome://settings/onStartup. - Scroll down to the bottom of the tab and click on the Advanced button to expand options.
- Within Advanced settings, scroll to the System section.
- Under this section, toggle off the Use hardware acceleration when available option.
After you disable this option in Google Chrome, click the button to save the changes successfully. Turning it off will no longer give Chrome permission to utilize the CPU, thus fixing the issue of overutilization.
Drop off Extensions
Specific Chrome extensions that run in the background and require CPU usage might be the culprit of CPU overutilization. This can be prevented by removing such extensions from your Chrome browser.
Here are the steps to remove the Google Chrome Extension:
- Launch the Google Chrome computer browser.
- Click on the Menu
at the top right side. - Hover your mouse pointer over More tools and head inside Extensions.
- Find the extensions that directly influence your device’s CPU and other elements.
- Hit the button to delete the extension.
Successfully removing such extensions from your Chrome browser will lift off the high tension and pressure your CPU takes. This ultimately results in a much lesser amount of CPU usage.
Block Ads on Chrome
Ads, as we know, can be harmful, irritating, and toxic at times. Although most of them serve no actual purpose, the Chrome browser will still pop them up, given that you visited and gave permission to scam sites or apps.
Ads can be misleading while browsing. They scam you, and certain ads can influence your device’s performance. This happens when your Chrome browser gives way for a lot of ads to overlap over time.
To prevent this, it is always suggested to use reliable ad blockers. You can choose to go with ad-blocking extensions or antiviruses for ad blocking, which might be the more reliable option.
Antiviruses like AVG, Yahoo, and such offer in-built and automatic ad blockers, keeping you safe and providing a convenient browsing experience. Using such ad-blockers will essentially take the load off the CPU, keeping it from being overutilized.
Bottom Line: Chrome Helper Overutilize CPU
That ultimately covers all the possible ways of fixing Google Chrome Helper from overutilizing your CPU. Blocking ads play a vital role in fixing this issue. However, I firmly believe that most users already have an antivirus, keeping the ads at bay for you.
As in my case, I already had Ghostery block ads to deliver that tailored, convenient browsing experience. That being the case, the solution was to drop off some of the highly demanding Chrome extensions I had installed.
If you have such extensions, I firmly believe that lifting them off your browser will drastically improve the situation where the CPU is overutilized.
However, if that isn’t working out for you, then disabling the use of hardware acceleration in Chrome will help you. Good luck!
“Find the extensions that directly influence the CPU and other elements of your device.”
Q: How do I tell which extensions directly overutilize the CPU??
Hi Conrad, if you click on 3 dots more options and hover on the More Tools menu, you will see the Task Manager menu. Click to Chrome Task Manager app to understand the Extension memory utilization.
Thank you, disabling hardware utilization helps
I was having this issue on my macbook. I couldn’t figure out what was causing it. I would force close Google Chrome Helper and CPU usage would drop significantly. Sometime later, CPU usage would be up again. I would force close GCH again. At some point, I realized any Amazon.com pages I had open were not working. So now when I’m done shopping on Amazon.com. I close the window. I no longer have high CPU usage and constant fan running(not to mention fast battery drain), except when I have an Amazon.com window open. I have Honey coupon and Capital One coupon extensions on Chrome and don’t know if they’re the root cause of the problem. I like them and don’t want to get rid of them. They don’t affect any other websites I shop on. I feel it is the Amazon.com windows I leave open. At least for me it is. I usually have about 40-50 windows open. Lol
Hi, the game I play online needs hardware acceleration.
I have two extensions again for the game I play but are not needed during game play. Is it enough to disable them during game play then able them again afterwards or do the extensions need to be deleted to have any effect?
This seems to be an old approach.
I have hardware disabled for years, but still had a massive problem. Just tried turning it back on and it now works a treat on Amazon and phots.google.com – previously it was unusable,