DJWillis

Q: "google chrome helper" using too much CPU?

If you open the Activity Monitor and see that a process called "google chrome helper" is using too much CPU, here's how I fixed it:

 

I went to Chrome settings/content settings/Plugins and selected Click To Play for all plugins.  (The default is Run Automatically.)

 

This fixed my problem.  Now you have to click whenever you want to run a youtube video or other plugins, but it's worth it.  It stops those stupid Flash ads from loading, too, so that's an extra bonus.

 

I'm posting this because when I had the problem, I couldn't find any solutions at all.

Posted on Nov 17, 2013 4:34 PM

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Q: "google chrome helper" using too much CPU?

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  • by eXTR,

    eXTR eXTR Dec 30, 2015 9:27 PM in response to DJWillis
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Dec 30, 2015 9:27 PM in response to DJWillis

    Hi all, I have this problem all the time and have one solution to work.  I always have 5 gmails tabs pinned.  So, if you goto the pinned gmail windows and click on "inbox" or "refresh/recycle" arrow thing, that tends to fix the problem for me

     

    I also sometimes find offending tabs, so I'll close out a bunch of tabs and try again, that fixes things too...

     

    hope this helps

  • by drCurvin,

    drCurvin drCurvin Jan 19, 2016 7:48 AM in response to MichelPM
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 19, 2016 7:48 AM in response to MichelPM

    There is a lot of truth to this post.

    I would not go so far as to completely ditch Google products and Chrome extensions - some of it is helpful in the extreme.

    However, running chrome and safari simultaneously can slow your system intolerably, especially with several instances open.

    I primarily us a 27" 2011 iMac with solid state drive and 16GB memory, and same specs on a new Retina.

    I have a separate login account on both machines in which to run Chrome.

     

    Does anyone know of a site where Chrome stability is documented as upgrades are released ?

     

    Best regards to all.

  • by Ult_Renegade,

    Ult_Renegade Ult_Renegade Feb 25, 2016 5:16 PM in response to drCurvin
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Feb 25, 2016 5:16 PM in response to drCurvin

    So I did what was the answer and made it so I have to manually turn on plug-ins.  But after awhile on Chrome I check the activity monitor to see that Google Chrome helper is back up to using up too much CPU.

  • by f_adri,

    f_adri f_adri Apr 5, 2016 12:25 PM in response to DJWillis
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Apr 5, 2016 12:25 PM in response to DJWillis

    I did the suggested fix.
    Went on Preferences > Settings > Show advanced settings > Content Settings (under Privacy) > Plugins and marked "Let me choose when to run plugin content".

     

    I restarted my macbook and let it be for a couple of days. Unfortunately Google Chrome Helper still takes up to 3GB of memory. What can I do?

  • by denis9009,

    denis9009 denis9009 Apr 29, 2016 10:06 AM in response to f_adri
    Level 1 (8 points)
    iPhone
    Apr 29, 2016 10:06 AM in response to f_adri
  • by f_adri,

    f_adri f_adri Apr 29, 2016 10:22 AM in response to denis9009
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Apr 29, 2016 10:22 AM in response to denis9009

    I checked it out but it seems to be something that has to do with the number of tabs open in the browser, right?
    In that case, I rarely have more than 3 tabs opened at the same time.
    Would it still help me? And if yes, how?

     

    Thanks!

  • by denis9009,

    denis9009 denis9009 Apr 29, 2016 10:43 AM in response to f_adri
    Level 1 (8 points)
    iPhone
    Apr 29, 2016 10:43 AM in response to f_adri

    I don't know... personally, it had something to do with the number of tabs open.

     

    Good luck!

  • by macuVryMuch,

    macuVryMuch macuVryMuch May 10, 2016 4:20 PM in response to bmoved
    Level 1 (4 points)
    May 10, 2016 4:20 PM in response to bmoved

    Very good advice.  Opera works much better and handles memory resources more efficiently.  If the memory is available Opera will use it, but if memory is low it will drop it quick.

     

    http://www.opera.com/download

  • by tonydi31,

    tonydi31 tonydi31 Jun 9, 2016 10:48 AM in response to DJWillis
    Level 1 (15 points)
    Desktops
    Jun 9, 2016 10:48 AM in response to DJWillis

    Hi, thanks for the info...I followed the steps great!!!  I did reboot my computer, but, I still see Google Chrome Helper using a bunch of MB's of memory? Any way to reduce the balance of the Chrome Helper still bring used?  I have 8 MG memory and I am always around 7.5  + MB's in us.

     

    I have an IMac OS x 10.9.5 Mavericks. The computer is not running as fast as I would like. Is it difficult to add additional memory to my iMac?  Where can I see a video on how to install additional MBs of memory for my iMac?


    Thanks,

    TonyDi31

     

  • by Eric Root,

    Eric Root Eric Root Jun 10, 2016 10:37 AM in response to tonydi31
    Level 9 (73,966 points)
    iTunes
    Jun 10, 2016 10:37 AM in response to tonydi31

    Adding RAM to an iMac is fairly easy. I have purchased RAM several times from Other World Computing and have always been very satisfied with the product and service. They have on-line instructions on how to replace the RAM. OWC has also tested RAM above what Apple states is the maximum.

     

    Other World Computing 

  • by Troy The Man,

    Troy The Man Troy The Man Oct 12, 2016 12:16 AM in response to Eric Root
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Apple TV
    Oct 12, 2016 12:16 AM in response to Eric Root

    I cannot accept that any computer, be it Mac, Windows or Linux, should ever require more than 8GB to run an internet browser. More RAM is not the solution.

    I'm not sure what is the solution, but it certainly ain't RAM.

     

    It started playing up for me after installing El Capitan and I have recently tried the process of Google Preferences > Settings > Show advanced settings > Content Settings (under Privacy) > Plugins and marked "Let me choose when to run plugin content".

    So far my Mac Pro 3,1 with 8GB of RAM has not crashed again, though Activity Monitor is still displaying Google Chrome Helper with the occasional random CPU spike. Not as bad as has been though.

     

    I have a feeling this could be some kind of Malware issue, but I cannot track it down.

     

    I would really appreciate a decent answer to this issue. Someone must know!

  • by Troy The Man,

    Troy The Man Troy The Man Oct 12, 2016 1:40 AM in response to Troy The Man
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Apple TV
    Oct 12, 2016 1:40 AM in response to Troy The Man

    OK, so if you want something done, do it yourself.

    I have analysed the various Google Chrome Helper activities and it would seem that many of them are Extensions that I have added over the past few months. These include;

     

    Mozbar

    Page Analytics (Google)

    Tag assistant (Google).

     

    (In case you are wondering what these are and why one would install them, I use these extensions for SEO and Internet Marketing work.

    I have just deactivated these extensions and first impressions would indicate far less Google Chrome Helper nonsense in the Activity Monitor and relaxed CPU levels.

     

    Now, I might be barking up the wrong tree and everything could turn to crap tomorrow, but this discovery makes a lot of sense.

     

    If you are having trouble still, perhaps try >Google Chrome Settings > Extensions (Top Left). If you have any extensions active, try deactivating and see if life gets any better for you.

    Fingers crossed, I've nailed it. If so, I apologise for insinuating that El Capitan is a pile of horse poo.

    Thank me later.

  • by Troy The Man,

    Troy The Man Troy The Man Oct 16, 2016 11:18 PM in response to Troy The Man
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Apple TV
    Oct 16, 2016 11:18 PM in response to Troy The Man

    Nah! Google Extensions are not the problem, Mac Pro still faulting and I cannot begin to understand why?

    Help!

  • by Eric Root,

    Eric Root Eric Root Oct 17, 2016 8:01 AM in response to Troy The Man
    Level 9 (73,966 points)
    iTunes
    Oct 17, 2016 8:01 AM in response to Troy The Man

    You might want to consider starting a new discussion. Since this one is a couple of years old, less people are likely to look at it. A new post would be much more visible. You can link to this one.

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