Disable the Touchpad on a Chromebook
Updated on by Jim Mendenhall
If you use an external mouse with your Chromebook, you might want to disable the touchpad to avoid accidental cursor movements while typing. This is especially useful for power users who prefer a traditional mouse setup, or for students and professionals who dock their Chromebook at a desk with a full keyboard and mouse. Chrome OS now includes native settings to disable your touchpad automatically when a mouse is connected, or to turn it off completely. Almost any USB or Bluetooth mouse will work with a Chromebook, and you have full control over when the touchpad is active. Whether you’re using a compact model for travel or a larger Chromebook for college students with a desktop setup, these touchpad controls give you flexibility to work the way you want.
PRIMARY METHOD: Settings Menu
Chrome OS now includes a built-in setting to control your touchpad, making this much easier than it used to be. This is the recommended method for most users because it’s reliable, officially supported, and doesn’t require any experimental flags or workarounds.
To access the touchpad controls, click the time in the bottom-right corner of your screen, then click the gear icon to open Settings. From there, navigate to Accessibility → Cursor & touchpad. You’ll see an option labeled “Disable built-in touchpad” with a dropdown menu next to it.
The dropdown offers three options that cover different use cases. The default setting is “Never,” which keeps your touchpad on at all times regardless of whether you have a mouse connected. If you want to completely disable your touchpad and only use an external mouse, you can choose “Always,” which permanently turns off the touchpad until you change this setting again. The most useful option for most people is “When a mouse is connected,” which automatically disables your touchpad the moment you plug in or connect a USB or Bluetooth mouse, then re-enables it when you disconnect the mouse.
That last option perfectly solves the original problem this feature was designed for. You can use your external mouse at your desk without worrying about accidental touchpad inputs while typing, but when you unplug your mouse and take your Chromebook on the go, the touchpad automatically comes back to life. It’s the best of both worlds, and it requires no ongoing management on your part.
ALTERNATIVE METHOD: Keyboard Shortcuts (Experimental)
If you prefer using a keyboard shortcut to toggle your touchpad on and off with a quick key combination, there’s an experimental method that works on many Chromebooks. This approach requires enabling a Chrome flag, which means it’s not officially supported and could stop working in a future Chrome OS update. But if you like having instant control via keyboard shortcuts, it’s worth trying.
To enable this feature, you need to access Chrome’s experimental flags page. Open the Everything button (the search or magnifying glass icon on your keyboard), type chrome://flags into the search box, and press Enter. Once you’re on the flags page, search for “Debugging keyboard shortcuts” in the search box at the top. When you find it, change the dropdown from “Default” or “Disabled” to “Enabled,” then click the blue “Relaunch” button that appears at the bottom of the screen to restart Chrome.
After Chrome restarts, you’ll have access to two useful hardware toggle shortcuts. Press search shift p to instantly toggle your touchpad on or off. If your Chromebook has a touchscreen, you can also press search shift t to toggle the touchscreen. These shortcuts are handy if you’re in the middle of work and want to quickly disable your touchpad without navigating through settings menus.
Keep in mind that this method is experimental and may not work on all Chromebook models or Chrome OS versions. Some users report that the shortcuts don’t respond on newer Chromebooks, particularly those running Chrome OS 80 or later. The Settings method above is more reliable and is the officially supported way to control your touchpad, so if the keyboard shortcuts don’t work for you, stick with the native Settings approach.
Troubleshooting Tips
If you’re having trouble with either method, here are a few things to try. First, make sure your Chrome OS is up to date by going to Settings → About Chrome OS and checking for updates. Some older Chromebook models might not have the Accessibility settings option yet, and updating to the latest version usually fixes this. Second, if you’re using the keyboard shortcut method and it’s not responding, try disabling and re-enabling the “Debugging keyboard shortcuts” flag, then restart your Chromebook completely (not just Chrome). Third, if your touchpad isn’t re-enabling when you disconnect your mouse while using the “When a mouse is connected” setting, try manually changing the dropdown to “Never” and then back to “When a mouse is connected” to reset the automatic detection.
For users who connect their Chromebook to an external monitor and use a desktop setup, combining the touchpad disable feature with a quality wireless mouse and external keyboard can significantly improve your productivity. You might also want to explore other Chrome OS productivity features like virtual desks and keyboard shortcuts to get the most out of your setup.
