Does my controller have stick drift?
Stick drift is an analog stick reporting movement while nobody is touching it. Rest your controller on a flat surface, take your hands off, and watch the values below: readings that sit consistently off centre, or wander in one direction, are drift.
Connect a controller and press any button to begin.
Browsers only expose a gamepad after the first input.
This runs locally in your browser. No device data is uploaded.
Telling drift from normal jitter
Every controller shows a little jitter around zero, and that is not a fault. What matters is whether the resting value hovers around centre or sits reliably off it. Put the controller down and do not touch it at all while reading — even light pressure on the shell can shift the values.
This test deliberately applies no dead zone, which makes it more sensitive than a game. If a game drifts but this looks clean, check that game's own dead zone and sensitivity settings before blaming the pad.
What causes it and what to do
The sensors under each stick wear with use, so the resting position gradually stops reading as exact centre. Dust and debris around the stick base cause the same symptom without any wear at all, which is why cleaning is always worth trying first — compressed air around the base, or a little isopropyl alcohol.
Some controllers offer a recalibration that re-teaches the centre position, which buys time on mild cases. Genuine sensor wear needs the stick module replaced. Hall effect replacement sticks use magnets instead of contacts and do not wear the same way, which is why they have become the standard fix for controllers worth keeping.
Frequently asked questions
- Which controllers can I test?
- Any pad your computer recognises as a gamepad over USB or Bluetooth — Xbox, PlayStation, Switch Pro and most third-party controllers. Press a button first, because the browser does not expose a gamepad until it sends input.
- My controller is under warranty. Is drift covered?
- Often yes, and it is worth claiming. Stick drift is a widely acknowledged failure, and several manufacturers have repaired it outside the normal warranty period after enough complaints.
More about this test
The full stick drift test page covers how the test works and what the common faults look like.
Open the Stick Drift Test →