How to make touchscreen controls more responsive on Windows 11

Touchscreen controls for Windows have come a long way, from largely unsupported to fully integrated.However, there is still a lot of work to be done to make them feel sensitive and responsive.Dragging windows can feel a bit sluggish, and the right-click menu sometimes takes a long time to open.

Let's take a look at a small fix to make touchscreen controls in Windows closer to how they should be.

Why are touchscreen controls so unresponsive on Windows 11?

In fact, Windows' touchscreen controls are as responsive as those on Android devices. There are a variety of reasons why Windows 11 feels unresponsive on a touch screen, most of which are minor issues.

The touchscreen's sensitivity and latency settings are variable, and by default can feel quite sluggish to some users.Additionally, the Windows 11 UI doesn't always lend itself well to touchscreen controls.

While there's not much we can do about the way the UI is designed beyond becoming familiar with Windows' various touchscreen gestures, there are some settings we can tweak to make the experience feel smoother.

How to adjust touch screen settings

Open the Start menu and search for "Change touch input settings."Once opened, you will see a window with two different tabs.You want to enter the "Touch" menu.

There are two settings we need to change here.Double clicking "Double Click" will open another window.Set "Speed" to "Fast" and "Spatial Tolerance" to "Large".

Click "OK" and then double-click "Hold".

In this interface, adjust "Speed" to "Short" and "Duration" to "Long".

Click "OK" and finally "Apply".You can also disable "Show visual feedback when touching the screen", but this won't improve your touch screen.However, some users may find that the screen is more intuitive to use when the input graphics are not visible.

Now that you're ready to give the touch screen a try, be sure to test how it feels to hold or double-tap the screen.These two settings may seem trivial, but they control a lot.

For example, grabbing a window and dragging it now requires less time holding the screen.Summoning the right-click menu will also be much faster.These small improvements can make Windows 11 touch screens feel more natural.

Other ways to improve Windows touch sensitivity

There aren't many other adjustments you can make to the touch screen settings other than the settings we just adjusted.However, if you feel that the touch screen is still a little off, you may want to calibrate the touch screen.If you search for "calibration" in the Start menu, you can open "Calibrate screen for pen or touch input."

Click "Calibrate" and then "Touch input."This will open a new screen that prompts you to touch different sides of the screen.This process must be done with caution, as improper calibration may result in a poor feel.

Finally, consider simply cleaning your screen.Proper wiping can greatly improve touch accuracy.

Getting your touch screen to work properly on Windows

Touchscreens can be tricky a lot of the time, but when they work properly, they're very intuitive.While Windows 11's touchscreen support leaves a lot to be desired, you can make it more responsive with these simple fixes.