Why Is My Laptop Screen Flickering and How Do I Fix It?

Quick answer: is it software or hardware?

Run this test first. It takes two minutes and saves hours of guessing.

1. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager while the screen is flickering.
2. Watch Task Manager itself. If the whole screen, including Task Manager, flickers, the problem is almost certainly the display driver or a display setting.
3. If Task Manager stays steady while other windows flicker, a specific app is causing it, which is easily solved by updating or removing that app.
4. If you connect an external monitor or TV by HDMI and it is steady while the laptop screen flickers, the laptop's graphics are working and the fault is in the screen, cable or backlight.

This sorts most cases into one of three buckets, and the sections below take each in turn.

What causes a laptop screen to flicker?

The common causes, roughly in order of how often they turn out to be the answer:

• Display driver problems: a recent Windows update, a corrupt or outdated graphics driver, or a driver that does not match the hardware.
• Display settings: a refresh rate that does not suit the panel, adaptive or automatic brightness fluctuating, or colour and HDR features.
• Incompatible apps: an app that draws its own overlay or window effects and fights the display driver.
• Loose or worn display cable: connections inside the laptop or the flat cable through the hinge.
• Failing backlight: the light behind the picture dims or flickers as it ages, often worse at low brightness or when the screen is cold.
• Damaged panel: impact or pressure damage, which often also causes lines, patches or colour bands.
• Power problems: sometimes a failing battery or charger leads to brightness changes when you plug in or unplug.

Fix 1: Restart and check for pending updates

It sounds basic, but a restart clears driver glitches and finishes half-installed updates.

1. Save your work and choose Restart, not Shut down. On Windows 10 and 11, Shut down uses fast start-up and may not fully reload drivers.
2. Open Settings, Windows Update and install anything waiting. Restart again if asked.
3. Check whether the flicker has gone before moving on.

Fix 2: Check refresh rate and brightness settings

Refresh rate

1. Open Settings, System, Display.
2. Scroll to Advanced display (Windows 11) or Advanced display settings (Windows 10).
3. Look at Choose a refresh rate. Switch to a different rate, usually 60 Hz, and check for flicker.

Adaptive brightness

Windows and the graphics software can raise and lower brightness based on content or a light sensor, which looks like flicker.

1. In the Start search box type Edit power plan and open it.
2. Click Change advanced power settings.
3. Expand Display, then Enable adaptive brightness, and set both On battery and Plugged in to Off.
4. Also in Settings, System, Display, Brightness, untick options such as 'Help improve battery by optimising the content shown and brightness' if they appear.

Your graphics control panel, if installed (for example Intel Graphics Command Center), may have a power-saving display feature that does the same thing. Turn it off and test.

Fix 3: Update, roll back or reinstall the display driver

This is the most common cure for flicker that also affects Task Manager.

Update the driver

1. Right-click Start and open Device Manager.
2. Expand Display adapters. Right-click your graphics adapter and choose Update driver, then Search automatically for drivers.
3. Restart and test. For a better result, download the latest graphics driver from the laptop maker's support page for your exact model, since they sometimes differ from the generic ones.

Roll back a bad update

If the flicker started right after an update, double-click the graphics adapter in Device Manager, go to the Driver tab and click Roll Back Driver if it is available. Pick any reason and confirm. Restart afterwards.

Uninstall and let Windows reinstall

1. In Device Manager, right-click the adapter and choose Uninstall device.
2. Restart. The screen may look low resolution for a moment before Windows reloads a driver.

If you have two adapters listed (for example Intel and NVIDIA or AMD), the fix may need doing for both, and the laptop maker's driver should be installed first.

Fix 4: Find an app causing the flicker

If Task Manager stayed steady while another window flickered, treat the app as the suspect.

1. Note which app or window flickers. Update it from its own settings or its official site.
2. If it is a browser, turn off hardware acceleration in its settings, restart it, and test.
3. Close overlays and tools that draw over the screen, such as screen recorders, colour filters, or desktop customisation software.
4. Start Windows in Safe Mode (hold Shift while clicking Restart, then Troubleshoot, Advanced options, Startup Settings, Restart, then press 4). If the flicker is gone in Safe Mode, a driver or app is the cause. If it is still there, suspect hardware.

Hardware causes: the cable, backlight and panel

If an external monitor looks fine, or Safe Mode and a fresh driver change nothing, the fault is inside the laptop.

• Flicker changes when you move the lid slightly: the display cable or its connector. Opening and closing the lid slowly while watching is a safe test. If the picture flashes at certain angles, stop and book a repair.
• Screen dim, picture visible if you shine a torch at an angle: a failed backlight or its power circuit. The image is still being produced but you can barely see it.
• Vertical or horizontal lines, colour patches, pressure marks: a damaged panel, which needs replacement.
• Flicker only at low brightness: an ageing backlight or its control.
• Flicker begins on battery power or when unplugging: look at the battery and charger as well.

Do not press on the screen, twist the lid, or open the laptop to look for loose cables yourself. Screens are fragile, the cable connectors are tiny, and the usual result is a cracked panel. Continued use is rarely harmful, but flickering can cause eye strain and headaches, so avoid long work sessions on it.

Use an external monitor while you decide

Connecting an external monitor is both a diagnostic test and a temporary fix.

1. Connect the monitor or TV with HDMI (or USB-C or DisplayPort if your laptop has them).
2. Press Windows key + P and choose Second screen only.
3. If the picture is clean, work on the larger screen until the repair is done.

This also helps you copy important files if the laptop screen gets worse. Repair costs vary by model: some panels are readily available and cheap, others are costly, which is why a technician should confirm the cause and the cost before you agree. Panel replacement is usually the answer for damaged screens, while cable and connector problems are often cheaper.

Frequently asked questions

Written by the ICT AccessPoint team

We repair laptops and build websites and business systems. Have a question this guide did not answer? Message us.

This guide is general advice. Every device and business is different, so if you are unsure, ask a technician before you act.