If your PC’s screen is dimming unexpectedly on Windows 11, let go of all of your fears. This issue has been haunting a large number of PC folks – for quite some time. It typically occurs due to multiple reasons such as misconfigurations, out-of-date drivers, and botched-up power settings. There are a few underdogs that trigger it as well (more on this after the jump).
Frankly speaking, I have had a few run-ins with the screen dimming problem on my Windows laptop as well. So, I can relate to the frustration that you are going through. Based on my personal and the tips that have restored my PC, I have jotted down the 17 most reliable ways to fix Windows 11’s screen dimming issues like a pro. Read on to…
Best Tips & Tricks to Fix Screen Dimming Issues in Windows 11 24H2
As always, I would like to first highlight all the bad actors that crop up the screen dimming issues on Windows. Take a quick glance at the following list:
- Adaptive brightness enabled
- Outdated graphics drivers
- Power-saving settings
- Night light feature
- Display brightness settings
- Screen saver activated
- External monitor issues
- Hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling
- Overheating of the device
- Battery health concerns
With a clear idea regarding what’s making your screen behave weirdly, let’s look for effective and reliable ways to resolve the issue.
1. Disable Adaptive Brightness
Adaptive brightness is designed to automatically fine-tune your screen’s brightness depending on the lighting around you. While it’s an incredibly useful feature readied to improve your viewing experience, it can at times, cause sudden dimming or fluctuations in brightness. On a few rare occasions, it might even fail to adjust properly, especially under indoor lighting or while using the device in different environments.
By turning off adaptive brightness, you gain more control over your screen’s brightness settings, ensuring consistent visibility without unexpected dimming. This is particularly helpful for devices with sensors that frequently misjudge light levels.
- To do so, open Settings > go to System > Display.
- Scroll down to Brightness & Color and turn off “Change brightness automatically when lighting changes”.
2. Adjust Power Settings
Windows 11 comes with an exceptionally user-friendly power management feature to save battery life by taking control of the power-hungry features or the ones that tend to gobble up a bit more battery. Though no one can deny the value of the power-saving mode, you should be fully aware of the fact it often leads to issues like screen dimming and unresponsive screens due to their aggressive nature of throttling demanding features in order to conserve as much battery life as possible.
Fine-tuning the power settings will ensure your screen is able to maintain the desired brightness even when the system is in power-saving mode, offering a seamless user experience without interruptions caused by automatic brightness reductions.
- Open the Settings app on your PC and go System > Power & Battery.
- Click on Screen and sleep.
- Then, you need to set “On battery power,” turn off after to a desired time.
- Set When plugged in, turn off after to a longer duration.
3. Disable Night Light
Readied to enhance the viewing experience by safeguarding your eyes from the blue light exposure, Night Light keeps your screen warmer and dimmer in low-light environments. Though this visual feature plays a vital role in reducing eye strain, at times, it fails to work as expected causing the screen to appear much dimmer even when your laptop is in bright environments.
- Navigate to the Settings app on your Windows device > System > Display.
- Scroll to Night light > Night light settings and turn off the toggle for Night light.
4. Restart Your PC
Should the abnormal screen dimming issue happen to be the byproduct of a temporary glitch, rebooting the PC will be more than handy in getting rid of the problem.
- Therefore, navigate to the Start menu > Power icon > Restart.
- Once your PC has rebooted, head into the Action Center (Win+A) and increase the brightness by using the slider.
- Now, wait for some time to check if the issue has gone. If the problem goes, it was a random glitch that was hurting your PC.
5. Disable Screen Saver
Screen savers basically came into the picture in order to prevent screen burn-in on CRT monitors. For all being an age-old feature, they are no less helpful even on modern devices with LED screens. If you love using the screen savers on your PC, keep in mind their downside as well. Sometimes, they could cause the display to dim or turn off abruptly. So, try turning off the screen saver as it might be spoiling your game with the unexpected behavior.
- Right-click on the desktop > Personalize > Lock screen.
- Scroll down and choose Screen saver settings.
- In the Screen Saver Settings window, you have to set Screen Saver to None.
6. Adjust Brightness Using Function Keys
Most laptops and desktops come equipped with function keys that allow quick access to adjust screen brightness. Sometimes, these keys may become unresponsive or fail to adjust brightness due to misconfigurations or driver issues.
If your screen keeps dimming unexpectedly, manually adjusting the brightness via the function keys can provide a quick solution. This method directly controls the brightness, bypassing any software interference, and is a simple way to regain control over the display’s visibility without needing to adjust more complex settings.
- Look for the brightness icons on your keyboard (usually F1, F2, or with a sun symbol).
- Press the Fn key (if needed) and the appropriate function key to adjust brightness.
7. Disable Hardware-accelerated GPU Scheduling
Hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling ramps up the graphical performance by offloading some tasks to the GPU. Though it does help in boosting performance by speeding up intensive tasks, it can sometimes trigger unexpected issues including screen dimming or flickering on certain systems. It might not be compatible with all hardware configurations or could interfere with the operating system’s control over display settings.
Hence, disabling this feature gives Windows back full control over display management, which can resolve any abnormal dimming issues and ensure smoother performance, especially for older or less compatible systems that might not fully support hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling.
- Launch the Settings app on your device > System > Display.
- Scroll down and click on Graphics Settings.
- Toggle Hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling to Off.
8. Reset Display Settings
Never fail to keep a close eye on the wrongly-configured or conflicting display settings as they can cause screen dimming issues. These settings might be accidentally changed by applications, users, or system updates. When these settings are misconfigured, the display may not respond to brightness adjustments properly, resulting in unwanted dimming.
Resetting the display settings to their default values ensures that the system functions as intended, with the correct resolution and refresh rate. This action restores optimal visual performance and helps prevent any errors that could lead to dimming or other display issues.
- Open Settings and go to System > Display.
- Under Display resolution, choose the recommended resolution.
- Scroll down to Advanced display and click Display adapter properties.
- Click Color Management and reset the settings to default.
9. Check for Windows Updates
Are you up against the outdated version of Windows on your PC? If you are not sure, be sure to check for the latest updates via the Settings app > Windows Update. If the latest Windows 11 update is readily available for your device, go ahead to download and install it without fail.
10. Check for Overheating Issues
Be warned that overheating can cause your system to throttle performance to prevent damage, which can include dimming the display. This is a built-in safety feature that automatically reduces power usage when the system detects high temperatures.
If your laptop or PC is overheating, it can trigger the dimming of the display to reduce strain on the components. Ensuring proper ventilation, using a cooling pad (for laptops), or cleaning the internal fans and vents can help prevent overheating, allowing the system to maintain normal brightness levels without thermal-induced dimming.
- Ensure your computer is in a well-ventilated area.
- Clean out the fans and vents to remove dust.
- Consider using a cooling pad (for laptops) or an additional fan for desktops.
11. Adjust the Display Brightness in BIOS
On certain systems, BIOS settings can influence hardware performance, including display brightness. Sometimes, BIOS settings related to brightness or power management may override Windows settings, causing the screen to appear dim or bright unexpectedly.
Adjusting the display settings directly in BIOS allows you to reset or fine-tune the brightness settings for better consistency. This is particularly helpful if the issue persists even after adjusting software settings in Windows, as BIOS changes can address more fundamental display configuration issues at the hardware level.
- Restart your computer and press the key (usually F2, Del, or Esc) to enter BIOS.
- Look for settings related to Display or Brightness.
- Adjust brightness settings and save changes before exiting.
12. Update Graphics Drivers
Note that outdated or incompatible graphics drivers have an adverse impact on your display’s functionality, triggering a number of issues like screen dimming or flickering. Since graphics drivers act work as the indispensable communication bridge between your computer’s hardware and software, updating the graphics drivers will likely resolve the screen dimming issue on your PC.
- To get going, right-click the Start menu > search for Device Manager and launch it.
- After that, expand the Display Adapters section and right-click on the graphics card.
- Select Update Driver > Search automatically for updated driver software > Follow the official prompts to install the latest update and then reboot your device.
13. Reinstall the Graphics Drivers
Should the screen dimming issue continue to haunt your PC, why not go a little further and reinstall the graphics drivers? Well, for times when you are dealing with corrupted drivers that don’t seem to mend their ways even after an update, fresh installation becomes the way to go.
On your PC, fire up the Device Manager and expand the Display Adapters section > Right-click on the graphics card > Uninstall device > restart your device so that Windows will be able to install the latest drivers automatically.
14. Check for External Monitor Issues
If you’re using an external monitor, the screen dimming may not be related to your computer settings but rather to the monitor itself. Monitors sometimes have their own power-saving features, like automatic dimming based on input signal or ambient light, which could be causing the issue. Additionally, faulty cables, connection issues, or hardware malfunctions can result in dimmed screens.
Checking for secure cable connections, ensuring the monitor’s brightness settings are configured correctly, and testing with another cable or device can help identify whether the issue lies with the monitor rather than your computer.
- Ensure that the monitor is properly connected to your PC.
- Check the monitor’s Brightness settings from its on-screen display menu.
- Use a different cable or port if necessary.
15. Check Battery Health (Laptop Users)
If you’re using a laptop, battery health can significantly impact the performance of your display. As the battery deteriorates over time, the system may automatically adjust brightness to save power, leading to dimming or other display issues.
Checking the battery health in Windows 11 allows you to assess whether the battery’s capacity has diminished to the point where it impacts system performance. If the battery health is poor, it may be necessary to replace the battery to restore full brightness control and prevent unexpected dimming due to power-saving measures.
- Open Command Prompt as Administrator.
- Type powercfg /batteryreport and press Enter.
- Locate the battery report in the file path shown in the prompt.
- Review the battery health and replace it if needed.
16. Test in Safe Mode
Now is the right time to trigger Safe Mode to determine whether or not the screen dimming issues are related to third-party software or background processes. With the ability to load only the necessary system drivers/services and disable the redundant third-party applications that could potentially interfere with your display settings, this mode makes it easy to spot the culprits.
- To begin with, restart your PC and press Shift + Restart.
- Dive into Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Settings.
- Select Enable Safe Mode.
- Check if the screen dimming issue persists in Safe Mode.
If the screen operates normally in Safe Mode, it’s likely that some software or background process is causing the issue. This method allows you to troubleshoot more effectively by narrowing down potential causes and enabling you to identify and remove any conflicting software that could be triggering dimming.
17. Use Third-Party Software for Brightness Control
If none of the tips has worked in troubleshooting the screen dimming issue on your PC, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to use third-party software for enhanced brightness control. The apps that I would recommend you check out are f.lux and Display Turner.
With a wide range of customization features such as the ability to adjust brightness based on the time of the day and reduce the blue light exposure, they can amp up your viewing experience big time. So, give they a chance to win you over.
Wrapping up…
That’s pretty much it! The screen dimming problem should hopefully be gone now and gone for good. Now that you have discovered the viable ways to get rid of this issue, keep them at hand to ensure the problem never manages to haunt your PC for too long. And yes, if there is any useful tip that works in flushing out this age-old Windows 11 problem, feel free to share it via the comments section below.
