A slow browser can affect your browsing experience and productivity. And while Brave is a privacy-focused browser that offers a great user experience, it can, like all other browsers, sometimes load slowly. The good news is that there are plenty of things you’re able to do to speed up your Brave Browser and enjoy uninterrupted, fast browsing.
1. Check Your Internet Speed and Signal
Before you try any fix to increase your browsing speed, your first step should be to check if your internet is working as it should. There are severalwebsites where you can test your internet speedfor free. If you’re dealing with unstable or slow connectivity, that could affect your browsing speed significantly.
If you suspect the issue is with your internet, tryrebooting your routerand modem. You can also reach out to your ISP. Make sure to also check if you’re only facing slow browsing speeds on one or a few websites. It’s possible that the website is down, affecting your browsing speeds.
If youuse other browsersand find that they’re working normally, your slow browsing speeds could be caused due to an issue with Brave.
2. Disable Brave Ads
Brave’s ad-free browsing experience is one of its key characteristics. However, Brave also gives users the option of enabling Brave Ads; people who have Brave Ads turned on get access to Brave Rewards, which is a unique rewards program built into the browser. While Brave Ads are less intrusive and more privacy-preserving compared to ads on other major browsers, they do require some loading time, which may be affecting your browser speed.
If you enabled Brave Ads to earn rewards, disabling them through your browser is pretty straightforward. Keep in mind that disabling them will, however, affect your ability to earn Brave Rewards. That said, without these ads, you’re likely to experience a faster and more distraction-free browsing experience.
Alternatively, if you want to continue earning Brave Rewards, you canreduce the number of ads Brave showsyou in an hour. While the default is set at ten ads per hour, you may bring it down as low as one ad per hour. To do this, click thetriangle iconin the browser bar (the BAT logo, Brave’s cryptocurrency) and selectRewards settings. You’ll now see options to change the number of ads shown per hour.
3. Close Open Tabs
Having too many tabs and windows open can affect your browser’s performance. This is more likely to happen if you’re running an older version of the browser and if the tabs you have open include dynamic elements, like audio and video clips.
So, if you are experiencing issues with your browser, you’ll want to close tabs you’re not currently using. In general, it’s a good idea to periodically look at the number of windows and tabs you have open and close the unnecessary ones to ensure a smoother browsing experience.
4. Remove Unnecessary Extensions
Browser extensions are software applications, and they need processing power to work. While many are extremely useful, they can sometimes affect your browser’s performance. While a couple of extensions will not have a noticeable effect on your browser’s functionality and performance, installing too many can, unfortunately, slow down your browser and your device.
What’s more, someextensions can also cause security risks. These unsafe extensions put your personal data at risk and cause slow browser performance, among other issues.
If you’ve noticed a significant slowdown in browser speeds, it may be time to uninstall a few extensions. To remove extensions in your Brave Browser, click thehamburger menu iconon the top-right side of the webpage. Then, clickExtensions. On the page that opens, click theRemovebutton, which you’ll find under each extension you’ve downloaded.
5. Turn Off Your VPN
A VPN encrypts your online data to keep your activity private. This protects your privacy and gives you an additional layer of security. However, since the VPN routes your internet traffic through a server in a remote location, you’ll experience some speed loss.
You’ll typically find that the shorter the distance between you and the VPN server, the quicker the internet speed will be. A substantial distance will affect browsing speeds. If you’ve been experiencing slower browser speeds, check whether you’ve enabled Brave’s built-in VPN. To check, click the VPN icon in the top-right corner of the page.
If you must use a VPN, choose a location closer to your home country. Currently, Brave offers VPN servers in locations like Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Singapore, Switzerland, the US (with four server locations—Central, East, Northwest, and West), and the United Kingdom.
6. Clear Your Browsing Data
If your browsing experience seems slugging, consider clearing your browsing history, including cached images and files. Internet browsers typically store information about every website you visit. If you can’t recall the last time you cleared your browsing history, now is probably a good time to do it.
When clearing your browsing data, avoid deleting cookies because this will wipe all your personal details from your browser, including your login credentials and website settings and preferences.
7. Update Your Browser
If the software that your browser is running is outdated, your browsing speeds may be affected. In this case, updating your browser could improve your browsing experience. Each new version of Brave offers improvements over the previous.
So, not only will you be able to resolve speed-related problems, but you may also be able to access new features, security fixes, and other improvements by updating your browser. To update Brave, click thehamburger menu iconon the top-right side of the webpage. Then clickAbout Brave.
If that fails, consider uninstalling and reinstalling your browser as a last resort. You’ll typically see a big improvement once you do this, but you may lose some of the data stored in your browser.
Use These Easy Fixes to Improve Brave’s Browsing Speed
Each of these fixes can help improve your browser’s speed and performance. At times, all you may need is one of the above-mentioned fixes to see a marked improvement. But other times, you may have to try out more than one of these fixes. If you continue to have speed-related issues despite trying all these fixes, it’s best to reach out to Brave’s help center.
