Krita is a well-known open-source software used for painting and digital art by a large number of users. It has been considered as one of the best well-known free alternatives to Adobe Photoshop. Like every other software used for graphics, many users have reported that Krita is running slow due to its demand for system memory. But Krita gives full control to a user to limit RAM usage and increase performance through the application’s user interface. Move ahead into this article to know the methods that can be used to improve the performance of Krita and in turn make it work faster.
Method 1 – Reduce the Number of Layers
Check the number of layers that you are using in your painting if you are using an old system or are limited by the RAM. You can paint using at the max 5 layers. So cut down on the number of layers being used and check if you are finding a lag in the software.
You can view your layers on the right side of the application window.
Right-click on a layer and select Remove layer to remove a particular layer.
Method 2 – Resize the Canvas
1. Go to the Image menu at the top.
2. Select Resize Canvas… option.
3. If you have made your canvas size big try to resize to a lower value to improve performance. For example, if you are using 6000 X 6000 you can reduce it to 3000 X 3000 or a much lower value.
4. Select the box next to Constrain proportions so that height and width stay in proportion to each other.
5. Click on OK. Relaunch Krita to see whether the performance has improved.
You can set the canvas size at the beginning while creating a new file using the steps below.
1. Select the File menu and choose New…
2. In the Custom Document tab, change the Dimensions (height and width) under Image size.
3. At the bottom of this window you can see how much RAM a single paint layer of the size set by you will take.
4. Once you have set based on your requirements, click on Create.
Method 3 – Increase/Decrease RAM Usage
1. Go to the Settings menu and choose Configure Krita…
2. Select the Performance tab on the left in the new window that appears.
3. In the General tab, you can change the Memory Limit, that is the RAM space/ memory you will give Krita to use for your painting.
4. Increase the Memory Limit, but make sure to keep at least 2GB reserved for your system else your system will not have enough resources for proper functioning when other applications are open.
5. If you have an AMD CPU, then go to the Advanced tab and check the box next to Disable all vector optimizations (for AMD CPUs).
5. Click on OK. Restart Krita.
Check whether this helped to improve Krita’s performance.
Method 4 – Change Canvas Graphics Acceleration
1. Click on Settings at the top. Select Configure Krita…
2. Go to the Display tab.
3. If you are using older graphics or some integrated graphics (where GPU is a part of the processor), under Canvas Acceleration turn off the option Canvas Graphics Acceleration by unchecking it.
4. In case of a newer graphics version or discrete graphics, click on the dropdown next to Scaling Mode and select either Bilinear Filtering or Nearest Neighbour to turn down the scaling. Click on OK.
5. Restart your system. Launch Krita and check if Krita is running faster than before or there is a lag still present.
Method 5 – Lower the Frame Rate
1. Click on Settings –> Configure Krita…
2. Go to the Performace, and select the Advanced tab.
3. In the option to Limit frames per second while painting, reducing it to 60 fps or 30 fps will help Krita use fewer system resources.
4. Click on OK. Restart Krita and check whether you are having a smooth experience using the application
Thanks for reading.
Your Krita application must now be performing much better without any lag after trying the methods mentioned above. Comment and let us know the fix that worked for you.