Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock Adobe Photoshop is a large resource-intensive application. Sometimes it can slow down to crawling or, even worse, crashing. If you’re having trouble, you can follow a few simple steps to get it working again. Here’s what to do to repair Photoshop.

Restart Photoshop

“Turn it off and turn it back on” is the most common tech tip for a reason: it often works, and Photoshop is no exception. If you work with large files or photos, your computer must store a lot of data in RAM. This includes every file and its history, plus everything Photoshop needs to make things work. All of this can add up to a few megabytes. If Photoshop has been open for a while, things can catch up a bit. The easiest solution is to simply close and reopen the app. Restarting your computer may also work, especially if you have a lot of other apps running in the background or if you haven’t restarted in a while. Photoshop’s performance is affected by everything that happens in the background. If a different system application or utility crashes, it may affect how Photoshop works, but restarting your computer will fix the problem.

Update Photoshop to the Latest Version

If Photoshop continues to run slowly or crash after restarting it, things get a little trickier. The first step to fixing recurring issues is to make sure you’re using the latest version of Photoshop. Open Photoshop and go to Help > Updates to open the Creative Cloud app. (If Photoshop doesn’t open, you can also open the Creative Cloud app directly.) Click “Updates” in the sidebar. Click the ellipsis in the top right, then select “Check for updates”. If any of your apps need to be updated, it will be listed here with an “Update” button. You can either update individual apps or click “Update All” in the top right. Let Creative Cloud do its thing, then try Photoshop again. Keep in mind that the Creative Cloud Updater will not automatically remove the older version from your system. Every year the app changes (Photoshop CC 2019 has been replaced by Photoshop CC 2020, for example), so be sure to open the latest version. Also, if you haven’t done so for a while, you may need to update your Windows PC or Mac. You may also consider updating your GPU’s graphics drivers.

Reset Photoshop Preferences

If Photoshop isn’t behaving as expected, it could be as simple as a misconfigured preference in a dark dialog box. Rather than going through every setting and testing every tool, you can simply restore Photoshop to its default state. To do this, open Photoshop and press Alt+Ctrl+Shift on a Windows PC or Option+Command+Shift on a Mac. When asked if you want to “Delete Adobe Photoshop Settings File”, click “Yes”. When Photoshop opens, it will return to its new state.

Disable third-party plugins

Third-party plugins are a common cause of crashes, especially if they haven’t been updated to work with the latest version of Photoshop. To check if one of them is causing your problems, open Photoshop and press Shift. When asked if you want to “skip loading optional and third-party plugins”, click “Yes”. Use Photoshop and see if the problem persists. If not, the problem was caused by one of the plugins you installed. Update them all to the latest version. If that doesn’t work, uninstall plugins one by one until the issue is resolved.

Adjust Photoshop performance settings

To get the best performance from Photoshop, you can increase the amount of system resources it has access to. This won’t fix any crashes, but it can speed up general work and some specific tools. On a PC, go to Edit>Preferences>Performance. On a Mac, go to Photoshop > Preferences > Performance. There are three sets of parameters here:

• Memory Usage: Control the maximum amount of RAM Photoshop can use. If you’re using a low-end machine, increasing this value will make Photoshop run faster. However, this will come at the expense of other apps you have open.
• GPU Settings: Check the “Use GPU” option to allow Photoshop to use it and the CPU. Under Advanced Settings, you can select one of three levels – “Basic”, “Normal” or “Advanced” – which increase the workload placed on the GPU. Start with “Advanced” and, if you have any problems, go back to “Normal” or “Basic”. Similarly, you can check the “Use OpenCL” option if your graphics card supports it, although this only speeds up a few features, such as the Blur Gallery.
• History and cache: These determine how much information Photoshop stores in RAM. The three Optimize buttons take your system configuration into account. Select the one that best suits the type of work you are doing. You can also manually configure “history state” (how many “undoes” you get), “cache levels” and “cache tile size”. Increasing “cache levels” and using smaller cache tiles will make moving and zooming in a document faster, but will take longer to open.

Then you will need to restart Photoshop for your changes to take effect.

Problems with external monitors

Photoshop takes a lot of math to display the changes you make in real time. This is especially true if you’re using a large external monitor with an underpowered computer. If everything lags while connected to a large monitor, disconnect it and use your laptop screen instead. You can also adjust the resolution on the big screen to a level your computer can handle.

Upgrade your computer

Photoshop is optimized to run on low-end machines, so minimum system requirements are fairly basic: an Intel or AMD 2 GHz processor and 2 GB of RAM. As of 2020, the latest version works perfectly on my mid 2012 MacBook Air. It is unlikely that the computer you are using to view this site will not meet these requirements, but you should also have realistic performance expectations. For example, while my older MacBook Air can run and perform most Photoshop operations, it doesn’t do so as quickly or without much fan noise. If Photoshop consistently slows down while you’re doing 3D modeling or working with multiple large dSLR photos, you may be reaching the limits of what your machine can handle. Unfortunately, no troubleshooting can solve this problem. Subscribe us on

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Photoshop can do amazing things with images. It can also make you want to pull your hair out in frustration. Photoshop constantly crashing while you work is one such frustrating problem. Why does it crash? What can you do to fix it? Your computer may not have enough memory, or it may not have enough space to run Photoshop, causing it to crash. Or the graphics driver may need more time to process. Don’t know what that means? Don’t worry! Come with us as we explore some of the possible reasons why your Photoshop keeps crashing. More importantly, we’ll also explore how to fix it even if you’re not a techy person. Click to learn more…

Tip for Windows Users

This tip is more of a hack than a traditional fix, but it is effective for many Windows users. It has to do with the communication between Windows 10 and your graphics card. Windows will only wait so long for a response from your graphics card before resetting it. There is a setting in the operating system called Timeout Detection Recovery that controls how long Windows will wait. The default setting is only 2 seconds, but if you go and change it to 8 seconds, you may find your problems with Photoshop crashing are solved. How do you do it? Don’t worry, it doesn’t take high-tech computer skills to do it. Simply open the Run command from the Start menu and type in ‘regedit’. This will open up the registry editor window. Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, go to SYSTEM, go to CurrentControlSet, go to Control, and go to GraphicsDrivers. Select DWORD (32-bit Windows) or QWORD (64-bit Windows). Name it TdrDelay and hit enter. Now double-click to select TdrDelay and put 8 in the Value data. Select OK, close out the Registry Editor, and restart your computer.

Update Your System

Still having problems? Before you begin troubleshooting your Photoshop crashing problem — update everything. Make sure your operating system is up to date and the most current drivers are installed for all your drivers and devices. Running the latest version of Photoshop can also help. If you find that any of this stuff was outdated, check Photoshop again. You may find that your problem has been fixed. If not, let’s keep going.

Check the Efficiency

At the bottom of the image window, there is a pop-up window. Click on it and select Efficiency. This will show you the efficiency at which the computer is running. Anything less than 100% means the computer is using a Scratch Disk to operate. Confused about what that means? We’ll explain the Scratch Disk in a moment. For now, just know that a computer running at less than 90% or 95% efficiency will benefit from the two fixes we’re about to discuss.

Problem: Not Enough RAM

Photoshop is a heavy program and your computer needs to be capable of handling it. Adobe officially states that Photoshop only needs 2 GB of RAM. That being said, they recommend 8GB of RAM for optimal performance. The way you use Photoshop also matters. If you tend to work on large files you’ll find that performance lags even with 8 GB. Of course, Photoshop isn’t the only program that may be using RAM on your computer at any given time. If you turn on music on your computer, have other applications running, or the computer is running any background tasks, your computer will be using RAM for those activities. While RAM isn’t the only factor that affects the speed of your computer, it’s been our experience that less RAM means more waiting around and…ding, ding, ding! More crashes. Honestly, if you want to get good performance from Photoshop you’ll want at least 16GB. And if you use Photoshop extensively or typically work on very large files, do yourself a favor and get at least 32 GB.

Fix: Get More RAM

It’s easy to upgrade the RAM on most desktops and some laptops. You can simply open it up, pop out the old RAM sticks and put in new ones. RAM sticks are easy to find and inexpensive. Before you buy them, make sure that your computer is upgradeable. You’ll need to be able to open it up and the computer needs to be able to handle more RAM. We recommend buying whatever the max is for your system. Why say no to more RAM, right? Check out this handy guide from NCIX Tech Tips to learn how to determine what you need:

Problem: Not Enough Space

If your computer is lacking in enough RAM to run Photoshop, it will try to compensate by using a Scratch Disk. Simply put, this is any space available on your drives. Generally speaking, Photoshop needs contiguous hard drive space that equals about 5 times the size of the file you’re working on to run efficiently. That means if you’re working on a 50 MB file, the program actually needs 250 MB of available disk space.

Fix: Ways to Make Space

If your computer is cluttered, try deleting files you don’t need to free up space. You can also store older files that you don’t use often in the cloud or on an external hard drive. Alternatively, you can connect an external hard drive when you want to use Photoshop to provide additional space. USB and DVD drives aren’t fast enough for this task. Make sure you’re using either a 4 or 6 pin firewire drive. You can also upgrade the internal hard drive itself if you feel you need more space in general on your computer.

Make Photoshop Lighter and/or More Efficient

What if your RAM is already maxed out? What if upgrading your hard disk isn’t possible and adding an external hard drive is inconvenient? There are a few tricks you can use to reduce the amount of computing power that Photoshop needs to work. Let’s look at them here.

Preference Settings

In the preferences menu, you can see how much memory Photoshop is allowed to use on your computer. Go to Edit, then to Preferences, and choose Performance. The window that opens up will show you the memory usage as well as the history and cache settings. First, in the Memory Usage section, check the available RAM and see how much Photoshop is allowed to use. Try setting the slider bar to 70% to allow Photoshop to use more RAM. You might wonder if you can set it to 100% for the best performance, but remember the rest of your computer needs memory to work as well. Now go down to History & Cache. On the right, you’ll see History States and Cache Levels. By reducing the number for History States, you can reduce Photoshop’s memory needs. Cache Levels has to do with screen redraw and histogram speed. What you do with this number will depend on how you use Photoshop. Do you typically work with only a few layers and large files? Increase this number. Conversely, if you work on smaller files with a ton of layers, reduce it.

Plugins

The wrong plugins could be slowing down Photoshop and causing it to crash. For example, say you updated to the new 64-bit version of Photoshop and now it’s crashing all the time. Check your plugins. You may have plugins still installed that were designed for the 32-bit version. The incompatibility between these can cause those frustrating crashes.

Purge

Purging the memory can also help free up additional space. As you’re working on images, Photoshop is storing information for the Undo, History, and Clipboard. While this is handy for undoing mistakes and looking back through your history of changes, it takes up extra memory. Go to the Edit menu, go to Purge, and then click All to free up some extra RAM for your project. Just be aware that now you won’t be able to access the ‘Undo’ command or previous versions of your project. You can also choose Purge and select only some items to purge.

Fully Reboot Your Computer

After you make these changes, you should restart your computer. Photoshop may run okay and not crash. However, you may notice that the system is still running a bit sluggish and slow. To fix this, try shutting your computer down completely and restarting. Often, this is enough to fix the problem.

Create Images Without Interruptions

We hope this article has helped you figure out why your Photoshop keeps crashing and that following these tips has fixed your problem. There’s nothing more frustrating than being right in the thick of editing an amazing image and having Photoshop crash on you. If you’re still having trouble, it may be time to consider purchasing a new system, particularly if you see in the memory usage section of Photoshop that there just isn’t enough available RAM. These tips will help speed things up, but don’t expect miracles out of a system that only has 4 GB of RAM. If memory doesn’t seem to be the problem, maybe you should consider switching to a different photo editing software instead. Check out our comparison of Affinity Photo to Photoshop to find out if you should make the switch. Click this link to learn how to fix photoshop brush lag. You can try to open the file in the safe mode where your files don’t crash. Second, make sure that your Photoshop installation is up to date and the programs are in the safe mode.

What to do if Photoshop keeps crashing?

If you are using a Mac, you can run the Photoshop App in Safe Mode. You’ll need to reinstall Photoshop. If the Mac won’t start up, try using an internet browser to download the latest version. Then, restart your Mac.

Why does Photoshop 2021 keep crashing?

These potential sources of crashes can cause Photoshop to crash. One option is to look at the problem with memory. Another is to look at the possibility that Photoshop is using a lot of your processor. Finally, it could be a problem with the file itself, like corruption or missing metadata.

Why does Photoshop 2022 keep crashing?

If you’re unsure about the best way to reduce the size of your file, simply resize it. Once you’re happy with the new size, you can make a copy of the original before continuing.

Why is my Photoshop crashing when I save for web?

Photoshop crashes when saving for web because the document size is too large. There are two possible reasons for this: either the file size is too large, or there are too many layers in the document. Another possibility is that the file itself is corrupted.

Why does Adobe CC keep crashing?

There are several reasons that could lead to Adobe CC crashing such as your computer is too slow, or you have an outdated computer. This can lead to Adobe CC not being able to open the files you have made.

Why does Photoshop 2020 keep freezing?

There are a lot of reasons why Photoshop freeze, but the most common one is that you have run out of memory. If you’re using a lot of features or images, Photoshop 2020 freezes as it can’t keep up with the demand and freeze. You can try using lower resolution images, but if that doesn’t work, you may need to upgrade the computer memory or buy an additional memory card.

How do you reset Photoshop?

If you have a problem with your Photoshop installation, try using the Reset Photoshop panel from the “Photoshop menu”. You’ll then see the panel “Photoshop Options”. Click on the “History” tab and select the last used restore point.

Why is my Adobe Photoshop not responding?

If Photoshop is running slowly or having memory problems, you could be experiencing these problems. You might have to turn off the services offered by your computer to make your Photoshop run faster. You may also want to consider upgrading your computer RAM or checking your computer for a memory defect.

How do I change my scratch disk in Photoshop?

You can change your scratch disk by going to the file menu and then selecting “Save As.” Then you can select the location where you want to save your file. You can also use the keyboard shortcut SHIFT-S to save your current image to your scratch disk.

Why does Photoshop keep crashing when I try to save?

There are few potential causes of Photoshop crashing when you try to save. The most common reason is that Photoshop is trying to save the file in an unsupported format. If you’re using an older version of Photoshop it may not be able to save files in the newer formats that are available. Another possibility is that Photoshop is running out of memory. If you’re experiencing frequent crashes it might be worth upgrading your computer’s memory or installing some extra memory saving software.

How do I fix Photoshop CS3 has stopped working?

First, download the newest version of Photoshop CS3. Restart your computer, and try reloading Photoshop. If that doesn’t work, uninstall and reinstall Photoshop. Finally, if all else fails, contact Adobe support to fix the issue.

How do I update Photoshop?

There is a way to update Photoshop, but you have to update the whole system. The other two options are not available at my computer.

Does Photoshop make your computer slow?

The image is a photograph of my favorite cat, Sita. She is my beloved. It has to do with the whole subject of this page.

How do I stop Photoshop from freezing in Windows?

If you are having trouble with Photoshop freezing, then try to upgrade the computer version to the best available version. Make sure that you don’t need any of the advanced features. If you have used an earlier version, try uninstalling the software and downloading a new copy. If you have used Photoshop for a long time, then try using the different version.

How do I reset Photoshop cs6?

Press the “Ctrl + Alt + Delete” to restart the computer. Select “Help” and then “Reset Photoshop”. Press F5 to reload the image.

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Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock Adobe Photoshop is a big, resource-heavy app. Sometimes, it can slow to a crawl or, even worse, crash. If you’re having problems, there are some simple steps you can take to get it working again. Here’s what to do to fix Photoshop.

Restart Photoshop

“Turn it off and back on” is the most common tech support tip for a reason: it often works, and Photoshop is no exception. If you’re working with large files or photos, your computer has to store a lot of data in RAM. This includes every file and its history, plus whatever else Photoshop needs to keep things running. All of this can add up to quite a few megabytes. If you’ve had Photoshop open for a while, things can just get a bit caught up. The simplest fix is to just close and reopen the app. Restarting your computer might also work—especially if a lot of other apps are running in the background or you haven’t restarted in a while. Photoshop’s performance is impacted by whatever’s going on in the background. If a different app or system utility has crashed, it can affect how Photoshop runs, but restarting your computer will fix it.

Update Photoshop to the Latest Version

If Photoshop continues to run slow or crash after you restart it, things get a bit trickier. The first step for fixing recurring problems is to make sure you’re running the latest version of Photoshop. Open Photoshop and go to Help > Updates to open the Creative Cloud app. (If Photoshop won’t open, you can also open the Creative Cloud app directly.) Click “Updates” in the sidebar. Click the ellipsis at the top right, and then select “Check for Updates.” If any of your apps need to be updated, they’ll be listed here along with an “Update” button. You can either update individual apps or click “Update All” at the top right. Let the Creative Cloud do its thing, and then try Photoshop again. Keep in mind the Creative Cloud updater won’t automatically remove the old version from your system. Each year, the app changes (Photoshop CC 2019 was replaced by Photoshop CC 2020, for example), so make sure you open the newest version. Also, if you haven’t done so in a while, you might need to update your Windows PC or Mac. You might also want to consider updating your GPU’s graphics drivers.

Reset Photoshop’s Preferences

If Photoshop isn’t behaving as expected, it could be as simple as a misconfigured preference in some obscure dialog box. Rather than digging through every setting and testing every tool, you can just restore Photoshop to its default state. To do so, open Photoshop and press Alt+Control+Shift on a Windows PC or Option+Command+Shift on a Mac. When you’re asked if you want to “Delete the Adobe Photoshop Settings File,” click “Yes.” When Photoshop opens, it’ll be back to its like-new state.

Disable Third-Party Plugins

Third-party plugins are a common cause of crashes, especially if they haven’t been updated to work with the latest version of Photoshop. To check if one of these is causing your problems, open Photoshop and press Shift. When you’re asked if you want to “Skip Loading Optional and Third-Party Plugins,” click “Yes.” Use Photoshop and see if the problem still occurs. If it doesn’t, the issue was caused by one of the plugins you’ve installed. Update them all to the latest version. If that doesn’t work, uninstall plugins one by one until it fixes the issue.

Tweak Photoshop’s Performance Settings

To get the snappiest performance from Photoshop, you can increase the amount of system resources it has access to. This won’t fix any crashes, but it can speed up general work and some specific tools. On a PC, go to Edit>Preferences>Performance. On a Mac, go to Photoshop>Preferences>Performance. There are three sets of settings here:

• Memory Usage: Control the maximum amount of RAM Photoshop can use. If you’re on a low-end machine, increasing this will make Photoshop run faster. It will do so at the expense of other apps you have open, though.
• Graphics Processor Settings: Check the “Use Graphics Processor” option to enable Photoshop to use it, as well as the CPU. Under Advanced Settings, you can select one of three levels—“Basic,” “Normal,” or “Advanced”—which increase the workload put on the GPU. Start with “Advanced” and, if you have any issues, dial it back to “Normal or “Basic.” Similarly, you can check the “Use OpenCL” option if your graphics card supports it, although this will only speed up a few features, like the Blur Gallery.
• History and Cache: These determine how much information Photoshop stores in RAM. The three Optimize buttons take into account your system configuration. Select the one that’s most appropriate for the kind of work you do. You can also manually configure the “History State” (how many “Undos” you get), “Cache Levels,” and “Cache Tile Size.” Increasing the “Cache Levels” and using smaller cache tiles will speed up moving and zooming in a document, but it will take longer to open.

Afterward, you’ll need to restart Photoshop before your changes will take effect.

Problems with External Monitors

It takes a lot of computation for Photoshop to show the edits you’re making in real time. This is doubly true if you use a large external monitor with an underpowered computer. If everything lags when you’re connected to a large screen, disconnect it, and use your laptop screen instead. You can also adjust the resolution on the large display to a level your computer can handle.

Upgrade Your Computer

Photoshop is optimized to run on low-end machines, so the minimum system requirements are pretty basic: a 2 GHz Intel or AMD processor and 2 GB of RAM. As of 2020, the latest version runs perfectly on my mid-2012 MacBook Air. It’s unlikely any computer you’re using to view this site fails to meet these requirements, but you also need to have realistic performance expectations. For example, while my old MacBook Air can run and perform most Photoshop operations, it doesn’t do so quickly or without a lot of fan noise. If Photoshop is constantly slowing down while you do 3D modeling or work with multiple large dSLR photos, you might just be hitting the limits of what your machine can handle. Unfortunately, no amount of troubleshooting can fix that. READ NEXT

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Restart Photoshop

“Turn it off and back on” is the most common tech support tip for a reason: it often works, and Photoshop is no exception. If you’re working with large files or photos, your computer has to store a lot of data in RAM. This includes every file and its history, plus whatever else Photoshop needs to keep things running. All of this can add up to quite a few megabytes. If you’ve had Photoshop open for a while, things can just get a bit caught up. The simplest fix is to just close and reopen the app. Restarting your computer might also work especially if a lot of other apps are running in the background or you haven’t restarted in a while. Photoshop’s performance is impacted by whatever’s going on in the background. If a different app or system utility has crashed, it can affect how Photoshop runs, but restarting your computer will fix it.

Update Photoshop to the Latest Version

If Photoshop continues to run slow or crash after you restart it, things get a bit trickier. The first step for fixing recurring problems is to make sure you’re running the latest version of Photoshop. Open Photoshop and go to Help > Updates to open the Creative Cloud app. (If Photoshop won’t open, you can also open the Creative Cloud app directly.) Click “Updates” in the sidebar. Click the ellipsis at the top right, and then select “Check for Updates.” If any of your apps need to be updated, they’ll be listed here along with an “Update” button. You can either update individual apps or click “Update All” at the top right. Let the Creative Cloud do its thing, and then try Photoshop again. Keep in mind the Creative Cloud updater won’t automatically remove the old version from your system. Each year, the app changes (Photoshop CC 2019 was replaced by Photoshop CC 2020, for example), so make sure you open the newest version.

Reset Photoshop’s Preferences

If Photoshop isn’t behaving as expected, it could be as simple as a misconfigured preference in some obscure dialog box. Rather than digging through every setting and testing every tool, you can just restore Photoshop to its default state. To do so, open Photoshop and press Alt+Control+Shift on a Windows PC or Option+Command+Shift on a Mac. When you’re asked if you want to “Delete the Adobe Photoshop Settings File,” click “Yes.” When Photoshop opens, it’ll be back to its like-new state.

Disable Third-Party Plugins

Third-party plugins are a common cause of crashes, especially if they haven’t been updated to work with the latest version of Photoshop. To check if one of these is causing your problems, open Photoshop, and press Shift. When you’re asked if you want to “Skip Loading Optional and Third-Party Plugins,” click “Yes.” Use Photoshop and see if the problem still occurs. If it doesn’t, the issue was caused by one of the plugins you’ve installed. Update them all to the latest version. If that doesn’t work, uninstall plugins one by one until it fixes the issue.

Tweak Photoshop’s Performance Settings

To get the snappiest performance from Photoshop, you can increase the number of system resources it has access to. This won’t fix any crashes, but it can speed up general work and some specific tools. On a PC, go to Edit>Preferences>Performance. On a Mac, go to Photoshop>Preferences>Performance. There are three sets of settings here: Memory Usage: Control the maximum amount of RAM Photoshop can use. If you’re on a low-end machine, increasing this will make Photoshop run faster. It will do so at the expense of other apps you have open, though. Graphics Processor Settings: Check the “Use Graphics Processor” option to enable Photoshop to use it, as well as the CPU. Under Advanced Settings, you can select one of three levels “Basic,” “Normal,” or “Advanced” which increases the workload put on the GPU. Start with “Advanced” and, if you have any issues, dial it back to “Normal or “Basic.” Similarly, you can check the “Use OpenCL” option if your graphics card supports it, although this will only speed up a few features, like the Blur Gallery. History and Cache: These determine how much information Photoshop stores in RAM. The three Optimize buttons take into account your system configuration. Select the one that’s most appropriate for the kind of work you do. You can also manually configure the “History State” (how many “Undos” you get), “Cache Levels,” and “Cache Tile Size.” Increasing the “Cache Levels” and using smaller cache tiles will speed up moving and zooming in a document, but it will take longer to open. Afterward, you’ll need to restart Photoshop before your changes will take effect.

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