Why Is Procreate Slow or Laggy?

How to fix it

Try these in order — the most common fix is first.

1. 1. Free storage and restart

   Copy steps
   1. Keep at least 15% of storage free
   2. Force restart the iPad
   Did this fix it? Yes No

2. 2. Merge layers and shrink the canvas

   Copy steps
   1. Merge finished layers
   2. Work on a smaller canvas and enlarge later if needed
   Did this fix it? Yes No

3. 3. Update

   1. Update Procreate and iPadOS
   Did this fix it? Yes No

Symptoms

Brush strokes delay, layers react slowly, or the app stutters when zooming.

Why it happens

• Very large canvas (for example, thousands of pixels per side)
• Many layers
• Low free storage
• Older iPad with limited RAM

This guide also covers

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Other Procreate errors

• Apple Pencil Not Working in Procreate
• Apple Pencil Lag in Procreate
• Procreate Keeps Crashing on iPad
• Procreate Frozen or Not Responding
• Procreate Brushes Not Importing or Missing
• Procreate Lost Artwork: Recover Deleted or Missing Files
• Procreate Maximum Layers Reached
• Procreate Export Problems: PSD, PNG and Photoshop Not Opening