Start with a fresh Chrome browser page and try to load pages that make your PC seem sluggish. To try and diagnose it, retrace your steps and monitor your resource usage while you’re using Chrome. The generic Google Chrome Helper or Google Chrome Helper (Renderer) process is the only indication that a third-party plugin or extension is causing the issue.

If you’re using the Windows Task Manager or Mac Activity Manager to investigate first, however, you won’t find many answers. While Chrome still has a reputation for bad system resource management, there are things you can do to help limit Chrome’s impact, including disabling the Chrome Helper process entirely. The main cause of high CPU or RAM usage attached to the Google Chrome Helper isn’t the browser itself-it’s a plugin or extension using it. What Causes High Google Chrome Helper CPU and RAM Usage Before Google disabled Flash support, websites using Flash would need to access the appropriate Flash plugin, potentially causing Chrome to slow down or crash entirely. This is one reason why Adobe Flash in Chrome proved problematic, leading to Google blocking it by default.

A bad extension or resource-heavy pages using third-party plugins will cause Chrome Helper to hit maximum CPU or RAM usage in certain circumstances. However, if your PC or Mac seems sluggish using Chrome, Google Chrome Helper could help you trace the problem. Most users won’t notice that it even exists. For instance, a site that installs new software through the Chrome browser will require an unsandboxed plugin that has the authority to access resources outside of Chrome itself. In particular, these are plugins that typically require additional system access outside of standard plugins and extensions. The Google Chrome Helper process (and the Google Chrome Helper (Renderer) process) is a generic name for third-party content loaded in your browser, whether it’s a third-party extension or embedded content like a video player. This is where the Google Chrome Helper component of the Chrome browser becomes useful.

What is google chrome helper on mac