How to speed up a slow laptop without upgrading any hardware

5 ways to speed up your slow laptop without upgrading any hardware By  Pankil Shah Published May 30, 2026, 6:00 AM EDT Pankil is a Civil Engineer turned freelance writer from Ahmedabad, India. As a long-time Windows and Android user, he has extensive knowledge of both operating systems and specializes in creating how-tos and troubleshooting guides. Pankil has been writing about Windows, Android, and iOS since 2021. He has written over 1200 articles across reputable publications like MakeUseOf, GuidingTech , and TechWiser . Outside of his writing endeavors, Pankil is an avid football fan and loves to plan his international travels with his wife in his free time. Sign in to your MakeUseOf account Add Us On follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap You don’t always need new hardware to fix a slow laptop. In fact, most of the time, the hardware is rarely the main problem. More often, laggy performance comes from things we tend to ignore over time, like the overload of startup apps, unnecessary visual effects , the wrong power mode, and Windows itself becoming more demanding with every update. Of course, all of these things can be fixed without spending money on upgrades. All it takes is a bit of patience and a few smart tweaks. Cleaning junk files and dust buildup goes a long way Start with the basics Credit: Oluwademilade Afolabi / MakeUseOf As obvious as it sounds, the first step to fixing a slow laptop is simply clearing the clutter. That means removing unused apps, deleting temporary files, clearing the cache, and freeing up storage in general. These are often the biggest reasons why your laptop might feel slow. The good thing is Windows already offers useful cleanup tools for this. Besides removing unwanted apps, you should also check the startup programs and background apps. If too many apps are c