Tool categories
Place your hand off the mouse, press Start, and wait 30 seconds. The tool samples every pointer event and reports total drift, max delta, and movement count.
Mouse Drift Test is a free, browser-based mouse testing tool that lets you detect idle cursor drift and sensor jitter by sampling pointer events for up to 3 minutes while the mouse sits still.
Mouse drift is unwanted cursor movement when your hand is not touching the mouse. It happens when the sensor imagines motion — reading micro-variations in the tracking surface as real movement and reporting them to the OS. A healthy gaming sensor should report exactly zero counts when the mouse is stationary. This tool measures that by listening to every PointerEvent the browser receives during a fixed idle window.
Each pointermove event gives us a new (x, y) in CSS pixels. We compare consecutive events, sum the Euclidean distance, track the largest single jump, and count the number of events. After 10-180 seconds we report:
Zero pixels total = a perfectly still sensor. A couple of pixels over 60 seconds is normal electronic noise.
Need the sensor background? Read how ball, optical, and laser mice actually work before comparing drift results across different mousepads and desk surfaces.
Laser sensors (Philips Twin-Eye, older Razer) see fine surface detail, which is great on cloth but triggers false movement on glossy, painted, or highly reflective desks. Optical sensors (PixArt PMW3360, PAW3395, HERO) track contrast changes — they hate transparent glass mats and very dark surfaces. Matching the sensor to your mousepad eliminates 90% of drift reports.
If the test reports more than ~25 px over 60 seconds on a proper mousepad with acceleration disabled, the issue is usually one of: a damaged sensor lens, outdated firmware, a sensor-smoothing bug in a gaming driver, or a failing USB cable introducing noise. Update the mouse driver, try a different USB port, then replace the mouse if drift persists.
If the cursor moves when your hand is off the mouse, use the full mouse cursor moving by itself guide to separate sensor jitter from touchpad input, controller drift, surface problems, USB or wireless issues, and security concerns.
Mouse Drift Test FAQ
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