How to fix a touchpad not working in Windows 11

A faulty touchpad on a laptop can be annoying, especially if you need to do something urgently. The issues are not new to Windows 11, and if you’re experiencing a touchpad issue, there’s nothing to worry about. Touchpad issues mostly occur due to outdated drivers, random bugs, problematic Windows updates, and other factors. The problem is easy to fix and you can easily do it by following a few troubleshooting steps.

Fix Windows 11 touchpad not working issue

In this article, we will discuss some troubleshooting steps to help you fix a touchpad not working in Windows 11.

Restart your computer

Many times the problem can occur due to random or temporary bugs/glitches. So instead of going through the troubleshooting steps first, you should restart your computer. Restarting your computer should most likely fix the issue you’re experiencing. However, if you are still facing the issue even after restarting your computer, then you should proceed to the next troubleshooting step in this article. If the touchpad is not working, you should try using an external mouse to follow the troubleshooting steps.

Turn on the touchpad

Another thing you can try is enabling the touchpad. You will have to manually enable the touchpad on your Windows 11 PC. You can do this by following the steps given below:

• Press the key combination Windows + I to open Settings.
• Navigate to the Bluetooth & Devices section on the left sidebar.
• On the right side, select the Touchpad option .

• Then turn on the switch for the touchpad.

Run the hardware troubleshooter

If you are having problems with the touchpad on your laptop, you can try running the hardware troubleshooter. To do this, follow the steps given below:

• Press the Windows key on your keyboard and from the Start menu look for CMD.
• Select CMD from the search results and then select Run as administrator.
• At the command prompt, type and run msdt.exe -id DeviceDiagnostic.
• Now in the Hardware and Devices Troubleshooter window, click Next and follow the on-screen instructions to run the Hardware Troubleshooter and fix the problem.

Update Windows

If you are still facing the touchpad issue and cannot use it, try updating your Windows PC. Below are the steps to help you update your Windows 11 PC.

• Press the key combination Windows + I to open the Settings app on your PC.
• In the Settings app , go to Windows Update from the left sidebar.
• Now on the right click Check for Updates.

• Download and install all updates on your computer, and then restart your computer.
• After that, the problem should be fixed.

Update touchpad drivers

Outdated touchpad drivers can also be the cause of your touchpad issue. If you find that the touchpad is not working, follow these steps:

• Press the key combination Windows + X , and then from the menu that opens, click on Device Manager.
• Here, expand the “Mice and other pointing devices “section by double-clicking on it.
• Now right click on the touchpad and select “Update Driver”.

• Then click “Search for Drivers Automatically”.

• After doing that, restart your computer and the issue should be fixed.

Reinstall touchpad drivers

Another troubleshooting step is to reinstall the touchpad drivers. The touchpad issue can be due to corrupted or faulty drivers, which can be easily fixed by reinstalling the touchpad drivers. To do this, follow the steps given below:

• Open the Start menu and search for Device Manager. Click on the very first option in the search results to open Device Manager.
• In Device Manager , expand Mice and other pointing devices by double-clicking on it.
• Here, right-click the touchpad drivers and select Uninstall device.
• Confirm the removal of the driver and reboot the device to reinstall the driver.

Scan PC for viruses

If you are still facing the problem, you should give preference to scanning your computer for viruses. You can use a third-party antivirus to scan your computer for viruses. However, if you are not using third party antivirus software, you may prefer to use Windows Security for this. Usually, Windows Security should do the work for you.

Reset PC

If you are still facing the touchpad issue on your PC, then you will have to restart your computer. Resetting your PC will reset the system to factory settings and should fix the issue you’re experiencing. Before you continue with this process, make sure you have a backup of your files. To restart your computer, follow these steps:

• Press Windows Key + I to open the Settings app on your PC.
• On the right side of the System tab , click Recovery .
• Now click the Reset Computer button to continue.

• You will now see two options: Keep my files and Delete everything.

• Keep my files. If you want to keep your files but delete all apps and settings, select this option.
• Delete all . If you want to remove everything from your PC, including files, apps, and settings, select this option.

Final words

If you’re having problems with the touchpad in Windows 11, this article will help you with that. With the above in mind, we have discussed some troubleshooting steps to help fix touchpad not working in Windows 11.