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Disabling or Enabling the Touchpad on a Dell Laptop

Summary: Follow the instructions on how to turn the laptop touchpad (laptop mouse, trackpad, mousepad) off and on.

This article applies to This article does not apply to This article is not tied to any specific product. Not all product versions are identified in this article.
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Instructions

For information about questions such as, "Why is my touchpad not working?" or "How do I use the touchpad on my laptop?", see Dell Knowledge Base article Fixing Your Laptop Touchpad Not Working in Windows.

CAUTION: Dell does not recommend disabling the touchpad unless you have installed an external USB, wireless USB, or Bluetooth mouse, or your computer has a touch screen.
CAUTION: When the setting Leave touchpad on when a mouse is connected is cleared (in Windows 11 it is located in the drop-down menu when you select the down arrow next to the Touchpad On or Off toggle), inserting the dongle for a wireless mouse with disable the touchpad even if the mouse is turned off.
NOTE: There are settings that prevent the cursor from jumping around while typing. If that is your issue, see the Resolving the Cursor Jumping Around While Typing on the Notebook Keyboard section of the Dell Knowledge Base article Fixing Your Laptop Touchpad not Working in Windows.
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  1. Press and hold the Windows (Windows Key) key, and then press the q key.
  2. In the Search box, type touchpad settings.
  3. Select Touchpad settings (System settings) from the list.
  4. Select the Touchpad On or Off toggle to turn the touchpad on or off (Figure 1).
    Touchpad On/Off toggle
    Figure 1: Touchpad On or Off Toggle

  1. Press and hold the Windows (Windows Key) key, and then press the q key.
  2. In the Search box, type touchpad settings.
  3. Using the up or down arrows, highlight Touchpad settings (System settings), and then press the Enter key.
  4. Ensure the Touchpad On or Off toggle is highlighted (it should have a box around it), and press the Spacebar to enable or disable the touchpad (Figure 2).
    Touchpad On/Off toggle
    Figure 2: Touchpad On or Off Toggle
    NOTE: When there is no box around the Touchpad On or Off toggle, the press the Tab key until there is.

Additional Information

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Affected Products

Chromebook, G Series, Alienware, Inspiron, Latitude, Vostro, XPS, Legacy Laptop Models, Mobile Workstations
Article Properties
Article Number: 000124374
Article Type: How To
Last Modified: 30 Aug 2024
Version:  19
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