Controller test
Plug in your controller or pair it, then press any button. Every check ends in a plain answer, and the report at the end can go with a return or a sale.
Press any button on the controller
Browsers show a controller only after a button is pressed, so that pages cannot list your devices unasked. Wired or Bluetooth both work.
This browser cannot read controllers.
Try a current Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari on a computer, Safari on an iPhone or iPad, or Chrome on Android.
The controller was disconnected. Connect it again and press a button; your results are kept.
Result: No problem found so far
Press every button, then run the checks below: the result is written here as you go.
Sticks
The rings are dead zones: the inner one 10 %, which many games use, the outer one 24 %, Xbox's standard for the left stick (27 % for the right).
Drift check
Put the controller down and do not touch the sticks. The check reads them for three seconds.
Range check
Push each stick to its edge and turn it slowly round, two or three times.
Buttons
Press each one. A button turns blue while held and stays ticked once it has worked.
Triggers
Press each trigger all the way down. A trigger reports how far it is pressed, not just on or off.
Rumble
Each button runs a motor for one second. The tab must stay in front while it runs.
This browser cannot run this controller's motors: Firefox and the browsers on iPhone and iPad run none, and Chrome and Edge on Windows do not run a PS5 controller's. The rest of the test is not affected.
Report
For a return, a warranty claim or a sale: print it, save it as a PDF, or copy the text.
How it works
- Connect the controller with a cable or Bluetooth, open this page, and press any button so the browser shows it.
- Press every button and both triggers all the way. Each one is ticked once it has worked.
- Put the controller down and run the drift check: three seconds with nobody touching the sticks.
- Turn each stick slowly round its edge for the range check, then try the rumble.
- Print the report, save it as a PDF, or copy it for a return, a warranty claim or a sale.
What the results mean
- Drift, measured against what games ignore
- Every stick reads a little off centre. Games ignore small movements near the centre (the dead zone), so a raw number alone does not tell you if a game will notice. The drift check compares the stick with a 10 % dead zone, which many games use, and with 24 %, the standard dead zone in Xbox's own controller interface.
- Range, direction by direction
- A worn stick often still reaches its edge in most directions and falls short in one. The range check splits the circle into 36 directions and names the ones that fall short. A stick that goes past the circle in its corners is normal: many sticks move in a rounded square.
- Triggers in steps, not on or off
- Triggers report how far they are pressed. One that stops at 70 % works as a button but loses the gentle and the full press in driving and shooting games.
- What a browser cannot see
- Browsers do not show a controller's motion sensor, touchpad position, battery or adaptive trigger resistance, and a browser cannot measure the controller's true speed or lag. This test reports only what it can measure.
Questions
My controller does not show up. What do I do?
Press a button after the page has opened: browsers hide controllers until then. If it still does not appear, unplug it and plug it in again, or pair it again over Bluetooth, and check that another program is not holding it (Steam can take over a controller).
The test shows drift but my games play fine. Is the stick faulty?
Not always. Slight drift is hidden by a 10 % dead zone, so most games will not show it, but it is more than a new stick reads and it tends to grow: name it in a warranty claim or a sale. Drift past 10 % shows in games with a small dead zone; many games let you raise the dead zone in their settings.
Can it fix stick drift?
No test can. Drift comes from wear or dirt in the stick. Cleaning around the stick sometimes helps, and many games and consoles let you set a larger dead zone. If the controller is under warranty and the test finds drift of any kind, the report is the record to send with the claim.
Does it work with a PS5 DualSense, an Xbox controller or a Switch Pro Controller?
Yes, and with most USB and Bluetooth pads. On Xbox, PlayStation and Switch Pro controllers the buttons are shown with the names printed on them. Other pads show positions: bottom, right, left, top.
Why do the rumble buttons do nothing?
Firefox and Safari on iPhone and iPad cannot run a controller's motors from a web page. Chrome, Edge and Safari 16.4 or later on a computer can. The tab also has to stay in front while the motor runs.
Is anything sent anywhere?
No. The test runs on this page in your browser. Nothing you press, no result and no report leaves your device.