Why Does Chrome Keep Crashing? The Real Fixes That Work
Chrome usually crashes for one of four reasons: too many tabs or extensions using up available memory, a conflict between Chrome's hardware acceleration and your graphics drivers, a corrupted user profile folder, or a bad extension interfering directly with the browser. Start by testing in Incognito mode, which disables most extensions, if crashes stop there, an extension is the cause. If they continue, try turning off hardware acceleration in Chrome's system settings and updating your GPU drivers. If neither helps, reset Chrome's settings to default or create a fresh browser profile, both of which keep your bookmarks and saved passwords intact since those are stored separately from the settings and local profile data being reset.
What this guide covers
The real causes of Chrome crashing
"Chrome crashed" can mean a few different things: the whole browser closes, a single tab goes white and shows "Aw, Snap!", or the browser freezes and stops responding entirely. The underlying causes overlap, and almost all of them fall into one of these categories.
- Too many tabs and extensions eating RAM. Chrome runs most tabs as separate processes, which is good for stability in general, but each open tab, especially ones with video, ads, or heavy scripts, uses real memory. Once available RAM runs low, the operating system or Chrome itself starts killing tabs or the whole browser to free space.
- GPU and hardware acceleration conflicts. Chrome offloads rendering work to your graphics card by default to run smoother. If your GPU drivers are outdated, buggy, or conflict with a recent Windows or macOS update, this same feature can cause frequent crashes or visual glitches instead.
- A corrupted user profile. Chrome stores your settings, extensions, and cached data in a profile folder. If a file in that folder becomes corrupted, often after a crash during an update or a forced shutdown, Chrome can crash repeatedly on startup or during normal use.
- Malware-injected or malicious extensions. Some extensions, including ones that were legitimate when installed but later sold or compromised, inject scripts that interfere with normal page loading and cause instability.
- Outdated GPU drivers. Related to the acceleration issue above, but worth calling out separately: manufacturers regularly release driver updates specifically to fix browser rendering bugs, and a driver that's a year or more out of date is a common, overlooked cause.
Diagnose it: extension, tabs, or driver?
A few minutes of testing narrows this down before you change any settings permanently.
- Open an Incognito window (Ctrl+Shift+N on Windows, Cmd+Shift+N on Mac). Incognito disables most extensions by default. If Chrome stops crashing here, the cause is very likely an extension.
- If it still crashes in Incognito, close all but one or two tabs and see if the crashing continues with a minimal load. If it stops, too many open tabs or a specific heavy tab was the trigger.
- If it crashes even with one tab open and no extensions, the cause is more likely GPU acceleration, a driver issue, or a corrupted profile, and you'll want to work through the fixes below in order.
The fixes, in order
- Close unused tabs and turn on Memory Saver. In Chrome Settings → Performance, turn on "Memory Saver," which automatically frees memory from inactive tabs. It's on by default in current versions but worth confirming.
- Find and remove the problem extension. Go to
chrome://extensions, disable everything, then re-enable one at a time while using the browser normally until crashing returns. Remove the extension responsible, or update it if a newer version is available. - Turn off hardware acceleration temporarily. In Chrome Settings → System, toggle off "Use graphics acceleration when available," then restart Chrome. If crashes stop, the issue is a GPU or driver conflict.
- Update your graphics drivers. On Windows, use Device Manager or the GPU manufacturer's own update tool (NVIDIA, AMD, or Intel). On Mac, GPU drivers update through regular macOS system updates. Once updated, you can usually turn hardware acceleration back on.
- Update Chrome itself. Go to
chrome://settings/help, which checks for and installs updates automatically. Many crash bugs are fixed within a few release cycles of being reported.
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Get help now – $79.99Resetting Chrome without losing anything
If the fixes above didn't resolve it, the profile itself may be corrupted. The good news is both reset options below keep your bookmarks and saved passwords intact, since those live in a different part of Chrome's data than what gets reset.
Option 1: Restore Chrome's default settings
- Go to Chrome Settings → Reset settings → "Restore settings to their original defaults."
- This resets your homepage, new tab page, search engine, and pinned tabs, and disables extensions. It does not delete bookmarks, saved passwords, browsing history, or your signed-in account.
Option 2: Create a fresh Chrome profile
- Go to Chrome Settings → You and Google, and add a new profile, or create a new one from the profile icon in the top right.
- Sign in with your Google account in the new profile. Bookmarks, saved passwords, and history synced to your account will pull in automatically.
- The old, potentially corrupted local profile data stays behind and isn't carried over, which is exactly the point if a corrupted file was the cause.
If Chrome crashes are part of a wider pattern, like your whole computer running slow or other apps also acting up, our Windows support and MacBook support services cover the operating system level, not just the browser.
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Frequently asked questions
Why does Chrome keep crashing on my computer?
The most common causes are too many open tabs or extensions consuming available memory, a conflict between Chrome's GPU hardware acceleration and your graphics drivers, a corrupted user profile folder, or a malicious or poorly coded extension interfering with the browser. Outdated GPU drivers are a frequent and often overlooked cause, especially after a Windows update changes driver behavior. Working through these in order, starting with extensions and tabs, resolves the large majority of repeated Chrome crashes.
Do too many tabs actually cause Chrome to crash?
Yes. Each Chrome tab runs largely as its own process, which is good for stability in general but means dozens of open tabs, especially ones with video, animations, or heavy scripts, can use up available RAM and cause the browser or individual tabs to crash once memory runs low. Closing unused tabs, using Chrome's built-in memory saver setting, or moving rarely used tabs to bookmarks instead of leaving them open reduces this significantly.
How do I know if a Chrome extension is causing crashes?
Open Chrome in Incognito mode, which disables most extensions by default, and see if the crashing stops. If it does, the problem is very likely an extension. Confirm which one by going to chrome://extensions, disabling them all, then re-enabling them one at a time while using Chrome normally until the crashing returns, which points to the specific extension responsible.
How do I reset Chrome without losing my bookmarks and passwords?
Go to Chrome Settings, then Reset Settings, then "Restore settings to their original defaults." This resets startup pages, new tab page, search engine, pinned tabs, and disables extensions, but it does not delete your bookmarks, saved passwords, browsing history, or signed-in account data, since those are stored separately from the settings this reset targets. If crashes continue after this, creating a brand new Chrome profile and signing back in syncs your bookmarks and passwords fresh while leaving any corrupted local profile data behind.