![[FIXED] Second Monitor Lag While Playing Games? (5 Methods!)](https://gamescopes.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Second-Monitor-Lag-Featured-1.webp)
The second monitor lag while playing games can be incredibly frustrating, especially if you’re trying to enjoy seamless multitasking while gaming.
Well, many gamers use a second monitor for streaming, chatting, or managing other tasks, but when lag interferes, it can disrupt the whole experience.
Fortunately, there are a variety of solutions to resolve this issue. We’ll explore how to optimize your system’s performance, update drivers, adjust settings, and address other factors that might be contributing to the lag.
Why Does My Second Monitor Lag When I Play Games?
Using a second monitor can enhance multitasking while gaming, but issues like lag can arise, disrupting the experience.
Here are some common causes:
- 🔴Enabled GPU Scheduling
- 🔴High GPU or CPU usage
- 🔴Outdated Display Drivers
- 🔴Mismatched Refresh Rate
- 🔴Browser HW Acceleration
- 🔴Suboptimal Connections
How To Fix Second Monitor Lag While Playing Games?
Note: Have you tried restarting your computer?
1. Disable Windows “GPU Scheduling”
#️⃣Method 1/5
If you’re experiencing second monitor lagging while playing games, disabling Windows “GPU Scheduling” may help resolve the issue. GPU Scheduling is designed to improve performance, but in some cases, it can cause conflicts with multi-monitor setups.
Follow these steps to disable GPU Scheduling on Windows 11:
- Open Windows Settings via the Start menu.
- Then, head to System, and choose Display.
- Scroll down and select the “Graphics” menu.
- Click on “Change default graphics settings.”
- Find Hardware-Accelerated GPU Scheduling.
- Lastly, toggle the switch to disable the feature.
When you’re ready, test your system to check if the second monitor lag persists while gaming.
🗯️Note: If the option doesn’t appear, your GPU likely doesn’t support GPU Scheduling, and you can skip this step.
2. Change Your Monitor’s Refresh Rate
#️⃣Method 2/5
If you’re noticing second monitor lag when playing games, adjusting your monitor’s refresh rate may help. Often, mismatched refresh rates between two monitors can cause latency issues, particularly in dual-monitor setups.
Well, aligning both monitors to the same refresh rate, such as 59.94 Hz, or experimenting with different rates might resolve the problem.
Here are the steps to change your monitor’s refresh rate on Windows 11:
- First, enter the Windows Settings from the Start menu.
- Head to System → Display → Advanced display pane.
- Under “Choose a refresh rate,” click the dropdown tab.
- You need to select a refresh rate, preferably 59.94 Hz.
- Finally, repeat the same process for the second monitor.
So, after applying these settings, test the performance to determine if the second monitor lag improves. If you’re still facing the problem try setting both monitors to a different refresh rate.
🗯️Tip: If nothing helps, select 59.94 Hz refresh rate for the time being and continue reading!
3. Manage the GPU and CPU Utilization
#️⃣Method 3/5
If you’re still facing second monitor lagging when playing games, it could be due to high GPU or CPU utilization. If the system is under heavy load (demanding games), any other tasks such as streaming or video playback on your second monitor may lag.
Hence, identifying and closing unnecessary processes can free up resources, and relieve the GPU and CPU utilization, which will ultimately reduce the lag.
So, follow these steps to manage utilization on Windows 11:
- Press CTRL + SHIFT + ESC to open Task Manager.
- Head to the “Performance” tab to monitor usage.
- Then, switch to the “Processes” tab to view tasks.
- Click to sort by GPU/CPU usage to prioritize tasks.
- Select high-resource tasks and click on “End Task”.
If GPU or CPU usage remains above 95% usage during gaming, it could still cause lag. In such cases, consider lowering in-game graphics settings to reduce the load on your system. Similarly, reducing the resolution of videos or streams on the second monitor can ensure smooth playout.
⛔Important: If you receive a warning after attempting to “End Task”, skip this process as it is related to the system’s operational services.
4. Update Graphics and Monitor Drivers
#️⃣Method 4/5
If your second monitor stuttering while playing games is getting out of hand and nothing helps, can often be attributed to outdated graphics or monitor drivers. Keeping these drivers updated ensures that your hardware communicates effectively with Windows, preventing any lag issues.
Both GPU and monitor drivers can be updated through the Device Manager on Windows 11, a straightforward process that helps resolve compatibility and performance problems.
👉How to Update the GPU Driver?
To update your GPU driver, open Device Manager, expand the “Display adapters” tab, and right-click on your GPU. Select “Update driver” and choose the option to search automatically for updated driver software.
To update your graphics card (GPU) driver manually, follow these links:
You can then download and manually install the drivers!
👉How to Update Monitor Driver?
Similarly, in Device Manager, expand the “Monitors” section and right-click on your monitor. Select “Update driver” and allow Windows to search for the latest driver.
Keeping the monitor driver updated ensures optimal performance and helps eliminate stuttering or lag while gaming on a dual-monitor setup.
🗯️Note: Your monitor will go pitch black for a few seconds during the graphics driver update, which is entirely normal, so don’t worry.
5. Disable the Browser HW Acceleration
#️⃣Method 5/5
Well, the second monitor stuttering when playing games could be tied to hardware acceleration (HW acceleration) in your browser. So, the HW acceleration allows browsers to use your GPU for rendering videos and graphics instead of relying on the CPU alone.
While this boosts performance in most scenarios, it can strain the GPU during gaming, leading to stuttering or lag when playing streams or watching videos on the second monitor. Disabling HW acceleration can free up GPU resources, ensuring smoother performance on both monitors.
👉 How to Disable HW Acceleration on Chrome?
- Open Chrome and click on the three-dot icon (top-right corner).
- Head to Settings and select System from the left-hand menu.
- Then, toggle off “Use hardware acceleration when available.”
- Finally, you must restart Chrome for the changes to take effect.
👉 How to Disable HW Acceleration on Firefox?
- Open Firefox and click the hamburger menu (three horizontal lines).
- Then, navigate to Settings and scroll down to the “Performance”.
- You must uncheck the “Use recommended performance settings”.
- Next, uncheck the “Use hardware acceleration when available.”
- Finally, restart the Firefox browser, so all these changes can apply.
🗯️Note: If this is not working, try to reinstall your browser or use a different browser for streaming and videos while gaming.
Lag on Second Monitor - More Troubleshooting!
If you’ve tried other methods and still experience lag, these additional troubleshooting steps can help fine-tune your setup and reduce lag on the second monitor while gaming.
1️⃣Enable the Game Vertical Sync
Vertical Sync (V-Sync) synchronizes your monitor’s refresh rate with your game’s frame rate, reducing screen tearing and potential lag on dual-monitor setups. Check your game’s graphics settings to enable V-Sync, which can improve the performance when using a second monitor.
2️⃣Play in Full-Screen Borderless
Using a game’s Full-Screen Borderless mode allows easier transitions between the game and your second monitor. This mode prevents the GPU from overloading when switching tasks and can reduce stuttering during multitasking. Look for this option in your game’s display settings.
3️⃣Avoid Using Monitor Adapters
Adapters, such as HDMI-to-DisplayPort converters, can sometimes cause signal delay or degrade performance. Whenever possible, use direct connections between your monitor and your GPU, such as HDMI-to-HDMI or DisplayPort-to-DisplayPort, to minimize lag or stuttering.
These adjustments, combined with the other methods in this guide, can significantly improve the performance of your second monitor while gaming.
The Verdict!
Hence, dealing with a second monitor lag while playing games often comes down to optimizing your setup by updating drivers, adjusting refresh rates, and managing GPU usage effectively.
Also, disabling hardware (HW) acceleration and ensuring proper monitor connection can also significantly improve performance across dual-monitor setups.
