Compress Sites as They Load

Many Chrome extensions can be found in the Chrome Web Store, while others are available from particular providers. Google offers its very own Chrome Data Saver extension that works in much the same way as the built-in feature in the Android version of Chrome.

Google Data Saver Chrome Extension

It compresses sites that aren’t served over a private connection (HTTPS) or in incognito mode, using Google’s servers to give you an optimized version, meaning there’s less info to load and therefore the page loads faster. Simple.

Go Faster, Use an Ad-Blocker

Not all ads are bad, and you should certainly suffer through them and switch off any ad-blockers on sites that you respect and enjoy reading. But let’s face it, in 90% of the situations, you’ll want to avoid them. This isn’t just for the reason that they’re ugly, annoying, and sometimes have the cheek to take up your entire screen, but they force your browser to load more elements which puts strain on your PC.

You probably don’t need an invitation to do this, but use an ad blocker. Adblock Plus is a classic, and Ghostery is nice as well if you want to fine-tune what kind of ads you are and aren’t happy to see.

Cut the Fat

The time-honoured concept of less being more applies to Chrome as well. If you head to the settings, there are a few things you can tweak to give you a faster experience.

Take Flash: By default, Chrome will run what it deems to be “important” Flash content. While Chrome will eventually move away from Flash completely, you can achieve that result right now. Under Chrome Settings > Advanced (In Latest Version) > Privacy (‘Privacy and Security’ in Latest Version)> Content settings you can select which sites allow Flash, or block it altogether. Unless there’s a site that needs it to work, you won’t miss the slowness.

Privacy and Security Setting in Google Chrome

Additionally, Flash plugins can creep into your browsing over time. Click Manage exceptions and you can see which sites are on the “Allow” list. From this screen, you can remove them. You can do the same with pop-ups, allowing them on sites where they’re essential.

Suspend Tabs You’re Not Using

Over the years the number of tabs we simultaneously leave open has ballooned into the double figures. With higher-resolution monitors capable of displaying more info on-screen, and the option of multiple desktops these days, why not

The reason why not is because tabs that continue to run in the background continue to hog your system resources. Instead of just closing those excess tabs, though, you can enable a Chrome flag that suspends tabs you’re not using, then re-enables them when you click them, saving on memory.

To enable this, go to chrome://flags, then hit “Ctrl + F” and search for “tab discarding.” When you see it, click the drop-down box, select “Enabled,” and restart Chrome.

 Google Chrome - Tab Discarding

Turn on Hardware Acceleration

The graphics card in your computer – whether a rudimentary integrated one or the latest Nvidia beast – is an invaluable part of keeping your browsing zippy. In Chrome, you can use “hardware acceleration” to utilize your graphics card power for more graphically intensive browser processes.

You can enable hardware acceleration by going to your Chrome Settings > Advanced > System. Next, click the slider next to “Use hardware acceleration when available” to switch it on.

If you’re interested, you can have a look at what aspects of Chrome hardware acceleration is affected by going to chrome://gpu/

Keep Chrome up to date

Every six weeks Chrome rolls out a major version update, and it usually packs in a lot of speed and stability improvements. While the browser will update automatically in the background, power users such as yourself will want the latest changes now.

To do so, go to the settings by clicking the three vertical dots to the right of the URL bar. Then choose Help > About Chrome and you’ll see the latest version. If you’re not using the most recent build of Chrome, you’ll be prompted to get the latest version.

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