Surface touchpad use and settings

Your Surface Pro Keyboard or Surface Laptop has a touchpad with two buttons that you can use like a mouse. Use gestures on the touchpad to do things like scroll up and down, zoom in, and select items. You can also adjust settings to prevent the touchpad from responding to accidental touches and more.

Use the touchpad

If your Surface has a touchpad, it has right-click and left-click buttons that work like the buttons on a mouse.

Do this If you want to
Press down on the left side of your touchpad
  • Press to click
  • Select an item
  • Left-click like on a mouse
Press down on the right side of your touchpad
  • Press to right-click
  • Open app commands in Windows apps or a context menu in desktop apps
  • Right-click like on a mouse
Tap one finger anywhere on the touchpad
  • Select an item
  • Left-click like on a mouse
Tap two fingers anywhere on the touchpad
  • Open app commands in Windows apps or a context menu in desktop apps
  • Right-click like on a mouse
Drag your finger on the touchpad
  • Moves the cursor
Swipe three fingers up on the touchpad
  • Display your virtual desktop
Press and hold the left touchpad button down and then slide a finger in any direction
  • Move an item or select text
  • Like moving a mouse while you hold down the left button
Tap, immediately tap and hold, then drag
  • Move an item or select text
  • Like moving a mouse while you hold down the left button
Slide two fingers horizontally or vertically
  • Scroll though a screen or document
  • Like dragging the scroll button on the screen, or using a scroll wheel on a mouse
Pinch your thumb and forefinger together or move them apart
  • Zoom in or out
  • Like the gestures on your touchscreen

Change the touchpad settings

You can change touchpad settings to turn the touchpad on and off, adjust cursor speed, reverse scrolling direction, change three-finger and four-finger gestures, and more.

  1. Attach your Surface to its keyboard or Type Cover.

  2. Do one of the following

    1. On Windows 11, go to Start > Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Touchpad.
    2. On Windows 10, go to Start > Settings > Devices > Touchpad.

  3. Adjust your settings under Touchpad.

Open Touchpad settings

Tip

Surface device users can use the Surface app to customize their interaction with the device. The available settings and customization options depend on the specific type of Surface device being used.