How to Fix Choppy or Jerky Videos? [Latest 2026 Guide]

Nothing breaks the viewing experience faster than choppy or jerky videos. The broken videos, skipped frames, and stuttering playback can ruin the entire moment of joy. It can happen during editing a project, watching personal videos, or streaming content.

All of these issues indicate deeper problems with codecs, hardware, or file integrity. Therefore, the blog will guide you through real causes and proven ways to fix choppy or jerky videos for smooth video playback.

What does Choppy or Jerky Video Mean? – Simple Explanation!

You can call a video choppy or jerky whenever:

• The video frames skip or freeze suddenly.
• Video playback pauses and resumes repeatedly.
• Pictures or motions look glitchy, uneven, or stuttered.
• Audio plays fine, but video becomes laggy, jumpy, or jittery.

Why Do Videos Become Choppy or Jerky? – Find Top Reasons!

Check out the following reasons that may be responsible for the video playback issues:

• Outdated graphic drivers.
• High-bitrate or high-resolution videos.
• Unsupported or missing video codecs.
• Conflicts with hardware acceleration.
• Corrupted or partially damaged video files.
• Mismatched frame rate or incompatible format.
• Incomplete video encoding during recording or editing.
• Insufficient system resources, such as CPU, RAM, and GPU.

Spot the Exact Stage of Video Playback Issues!

Use the given information to pinpoint the source of video playback issues. It helps to identify the relevant solutions with ease

• Choppy video in all media players: It happens due to file or codec issues.
• Video plays choppy only in browsers: Hardware acceleration or browser issues are the reasons behind it.
• Plays choppy during editing: Cached data, timeline, or system performance can also cause the issue.
• Choppy after recording: It happens due to storage speed and frame rate.

Run These Quick Checks, Before Anything Else!

Must try these initial checks that solve the minor video playback issues. Here they are:

Step 1. Restart your system.

Step 2. Close unnecessary background applications.

Step 3. Disable heavy startup programs to reduce load.

Step 4. Make sure you have enough free disk space.

Best Manual Methods to Fix Choppy or Jerky Videos!

The sections cover the best approaches to remove video playback issues on different platforms. Go through them to find the most applicable one for yourself.

A. For Windows Users

We have listed the most applicable solutions to fix choppy or jerky videos on your Windows system.

Solution 1. Use the Different Media Player

Advanced players like VLC handle codecs better than the default Windows Media Player. So, try to play in it.

Step 1. Download and install the VLC Media Player.

Step 2. Open the choppy video file in VLC.

Step 3. Check that the file is running smoothly.

Step 4. If yes, then it means that the previous media player doesn’t support the video file.

Solution 2. Disable Hardware Acceleration

Here are the steps to turn off hardware acceleration in VLC Media Player.

Step 1. Launch the VLC Media Player on your system.

Step 2. Go to Tools and click on Preferences.

Step 3. Navigate to Input/Codecs and Disable the Hardware-accelerated Decoding.

Step 4. Save the changes and restart the player.

Solution 3. Update Graphic Drivers

Outdated GPU drivers often lead to frame drops. So, use the steps below to update them now:

Step 1. Search and open the Device Manager.

Step 2. Expand the Display adapters section.

Step 3. Right-click on GPU drivers and proceed to Update Driver Software.

Step 4. Restart the system after the successful update.

Solution 4. Optimize Windows Playback Settings

Sometimes battery optimization creates a hindrance to the smooth rendering of video files. So, use the following steps to set the battery optimization to max:

Step 1. Open the Settings and go to Video playback.

Step 2. Navigate to the Power & battery section.

Step 3. Set the optimization to Best Performance for both Plugged in and On battery.

Step 4. Save the settings and try to play the video again.

B. For macOS Users

Here are the methods to fix choppy or jerky videos on macOS devices:

Solution 1. Reduce System Load on Mac Devices

Close unnecessary applications to reduce the system load. Here’s how:

Step 1. Open the Activity Monitor on your system.

Step 2. List down all the apps consuming high CPU/GPU and close them all.

Step 3. Play the video to check if the issue is resolved.

Solution 2. Reset Non-Volatile RAM (NVRAM) & SMC System Management Controller (SMC)

Follow the given steps to resolve the playback-related glitches:

Step 1. Shutdown your Mac device.

Step 2. Power the system and press the Option + Command + P+ R keys simultaneously.

Step 3. Hold the keys for 20 seconds and release them.

Step 4. It will start resetting the NVRAM/SMC.

C. For Video Streamers

Use the given solutions to fix choppy or jerky videos while streaming them online.

Solution 1. Disable Hardware Acceleration in Browser

Here are the steps to disable hardware acceleration in the Chrome browser.

Step 1. Launch Chrome and go to Settings.

Step 2. Navigate to System and turn off the Use hardware acceleration when available.

Step 3. Re-open the Chrome browser.

Note: If you are using any other browser, then the steps may differ.

Solution 2. Adjust Streaming Quality

If you are streaming the video on YouTube or any other platform, then adjust the video quality.

Step 1. Reduce video resolution to the second highest (e.g., 1080p to 720p).

Step 2. Pause the background downloads if running.

Step 3. Refresh the site to load content properly.

Additional Methods Designed for Professional Users!

If you are a professional who deals with video files on a regular basis, then these steps are for you. Use them to adjust video settings to fix choppy or jerky videos.

A. Fix Frame Rate and Encoding Issues

You can use the provided methods to fix the issues related to frame rate and video encoding.

Solution 1. Convert to a Compatible Format

Take the help of media players like VLC to change the video format. Here’s how:

Step 1. Launch the VLC Media Player on your system.

Step 2. Go to Media and proceed to Convert/Save.

Step 3. Navigate to the File tab and Add the video file. Then, tap on Convert/Save.

Step 4. Browse to select the Destination.

Step 5. Choose the standard Video-H.264+ AAC (MP4) option from the drop-down menu and click Start.

Note: Set the frame rate to match the original file.

Step 6. Test the video file after exporting it.

Solution 2. Fix Variable Frame Rate Issues

Follow the given instructions for a consistent frame rate:

Step 1. Re-encode the video file to a constant frame rate.

Step 2. Don’t include the multiple FPS values.

Step 3. Once done, try to play the video file.

B. Fix Choppy Videos During Video Editing

Check out the methods below that help you avoid video playback issues while video editing.

Solution 1. Use the Copied files

The given solution is one of the best to prevent choppy videos. Here’s how:

Step 1. Create a copy of the video files in low resolution.

Step 2. Use these copied files for editing purposes.

Step 3. Once done, switch back to the original resolution before export.

Solution 2. Optimize Editing Timeline

It is one of the reliable methods used by experts for an organized editing process without compromising the final video quality. Here’s how:

Step 1. Set the preview resolution to the lowest.

Step 2. Clear the cache and render preview regularly.

Step 3. Temporarily disable the unnecessary effects.

C. Fix Choppy Videos After Recording Settings

Check the following settings before recording videos to avoid playback issues.

Step 1. Make sure to set the stable frame rate during recording.

Step 2. Always use high-speed storage cards.

Step 3. Never record a video when the storage is about to be full.

Closing Remarks

Hopefully, you got all the relevant information to fix choppy or jerky videos in various situations. It doesn’t matter which platform you are working on; the blog covers all methods to resolve the playback issue.

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