Mouse Test

This mouse test shows you in a few seconds whether every button and the scroll wheel on your mouse still work. Press a button and the matching part of the diagram lights up; if a worn switch fires twice, the test flags it as a double-click fault.

How to use the mouse tester

1. Move the cursor into the dark test panel at the top of the page.
2. Press the left, right and middle buttons one at a time. Each one lights up on the diagram and its counter goes up by one.
3. Press the two side buttons. They appear as Back button and Forward button, and the page will not navigate away while the cursor is inside the panel.
4. Roll the wheel a few notches up and a few notches down. The Scroll wheel counter tracks each direction separately.
5. Move the mouse in quick circles for a couple of seconds to get a Polling rate reading.

When all five buttons have registered, the line under the diagram reads "5 of 5 buttons tested". Press Reset to clear the counters and run it again.

What the mouse test checks

Every button, including the side buttons

A mouse reports each button separately. The test listens for all five standard ones: left, middle (the wheel click), right, back and forward. A button that never lights up is not reaching your computer at all, which points to a dead switch, a broken cable or, for side buttons, a remap in your mouse software.

The right button normally opens a context menu and the side buttons normally move through your browser history. Both are blocked inside the panel so you can press them freely.

Double-click faults

The switches under the main buttons wear out. When the metal contact inside gets tired or dirty, it bounces as it closes and the mouse reports two presses for one. You notice it as files opening when you only meant to select them, or as text being highlighted by accident.

The test measures the gap between consecutive presses of the same button. Anything under 80 ms is flagged, because nobody clicks that fast on purpose. The Event log shows the gap for every press, so you can see for yourself whether a fault was a 4 ms bounce or your own quick second click. For a longer run with an adjustable threshold, use the double click test.

The scroll wheel

Each notch of the wheel should produce one step in the direction you rolled. If you roll down ten notches and the down counter shows eight, the encoder is skipping. If the up counter moves while you are rolling down, the wheel is jumping backwards, which is usually dust on the encoder. The dedicated scroll test counts those reverse jumps for you.

Polling rate

Polling rate is how many times per second the mouse tells the computer where it is. The reading only appears while the mouse is moving, and it is shown next to the closest standard setting. If you set 1000 Hz in your mouse software and see about 1000 here, the setting is applied. The polling rate test adds an average, a peak and a graph over time.

How to read the results

• Left button1
  Lights up and counts by one

  The press reached the browser and the counter went up by exactly one. That switch is healthy.

  Next Nothing. Move on to the next button.

• Left button0
  Never lights up

  The tile stays dashed no matter how hard you press. The press is not reaching the browser at all.

  Next Check the cable or receiver, then any remapping software.

• Left button21× double
  A "double" badge appears

  Two presses of the same button arrived less than 80 ms apart. A finger cannot do that; the switch bounced.

  Next Repeat 30 to 50 slow clicks to confirm, then see the fixes below.

• Scroll wheel↑2 ↓8
  Wheel counts in the wrong direction

  You rolled down, but the up counter moved as well. The encoder is skipping or bouncing.

  Next Blow out the wheel slot, then retest.

• Polling rate118Hz
  Polling rate far below your setting

  A mouse set to 1000 Hz that reads near 125 while moving fast is being held back by power saving, a weak wireless link or a busy USB hub.

  Next Plug the receiver directly into the computer and retest.

One odd reading is not a verdict. A fault that shows up again and again across 50 presses is.

When a mouse test is worth running

• Buying a used mouse. Run the full test before you pay. Worn main switches are the most common hidden problem, and they will not show up in a casual minute of use.
• Deciding on a warranty claim. A screenshot of the event log with repeated gaps of a few milliseconds is clear evidence that the switch is at fault, not your settings.
• After a spill or a drop. Check every button rather than only the ones you use most. Side buttons and the wheel click often fail first.
• Before a ranked session. A quick pass confirms the buttons, and a CPS test or mouse accuracy test makes a decent warm-up.
• Setting up a new mouse. Confirm the polling rate you chose is really in effect, and use the DPI test to see how close the sensor is to its advertised resolution.

If the mouse test finds a problem

Start with the cheap fixes. Try another USB port, replace the battery, and move a wireless receiver away from USB 3.0 drives and closer to the mouse. Then test on a second computer: if the fault follows the mouse, the hardware is to blame; if it stays behind, look at drivers and settings.

For double clicks in particular, the causes and the fixes that are worth your time are covered in why is my mouse double clicking. If a button lets go on its own while you hold it, the mouse drag test will show it.

Your input stays on your device

The mouse tester is a single web page that reads standard browser events. It does not upload your clicks, does not need an account and keeps nothing after you close the tab.