Stop Chrome Auto Updates on Windows and Mac

This guide shows you how to stop Google Chrome from automatically updating on Windows and Mac. Disabling auto-updates gives you control over when Chrome changes versions, which is useful for testing, avoiding compatibility issues with extensions, or simply preferring to update manually. You will need administrative access to your computer to make these changes.

What You’ll Need

• Administrator account on Windows or Mac
• Access to the Services app (Windows) or Terminal (Mac)
• Chrome installed on the target computer

Step-by-Step

On Windows

1. Close Chrome completely. Make sure no Chrome windows or background processes are running. Check the system tray (bottom-right corner) for the Chrome icon and right-click it, then select “Exit” if present.
2. Open the Services manager. Press Windows + R, type services.msc, and press Enter. This opens the Services window where you can manage background services.
3. Locate Google Update services. Scroll down to find services that start with “Google Update” – typically named Google Update Service (gupdate) and Google Update Service (gupdatem). There may also be a service called Google Chrome Elevation Service (for admin privileges), but the two update services are the key ones.
4. Disable each update service. Right-click on Google Update Service (gupdate) and select Properties. In the “Startup type” drop-down, choose Disabled. Click Stop if the service is currently running, then click Apply and OK. Repeat this for Google Update Service (gupdatem).
5. Prevent Chrome from re-enabling the services. Chrome may re-enable these services when it launches. To block that, you need to modify the registry. Press Windows + R, type regedit, and press Enter. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Google\Update. If the Update key doesn’t exist, right-click on Google, select New > Key, and name it Update. Inside the Update key, right-click in the empty space and select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value. Name it AutoUpdateCheckPeriodMinutes and set its value to 0. Create another DWORD named UpdateDefault and set it to 0. Close the registry editor.
6. Restart your computer. This ensures the registry policy takes effect and the services remain disabled.

On Mac

1. Close Chrome completely. Press Cmd + Q while Chrome is active, or right-click the Chrome icon in the Dock and choose Quit.
2. Open Terminal. Go to Applications > Utilities > Terminal, or search for it using Spotlight (Cmd + Space).
3. Disable the update check. Run the following command to set a policy that prevents Chrome from checking for updates:

   defaults write com.google.Keystone.Agent checkInterval 0

   This tells the Keystone updater (which handles Chrome updates on Mac) not to check automatically.

4. Prevent the updater from launching. Run the following command to disable the Keystone agent from running at all:

   defaults write com.google.Keystone.Agent autoupdate 0

   This stops the background updater process.

5. Remove the update agent from login items. Go to System Settings > General > Login Items (macOS Ventura or later) or System Preferences > Users & Groups > Login Items (older versions). Look for any item related to Google Keystone or Chrome Update and remove it by selecting it and clicking the minus button.
6. Restart your Mac. This ensures the changes take effect.

Common Mistakes

• Only disabling the service on Windows without setting the registry policy. Chrome will often re-enable the update service when you launch it. The registry policy is essential to keep it disabled.
• Forgetting to close Chrome before making changes. If Chrome is running, it may overwrite the registry or services settings when it exits.
• On Mac, only running one of the two defaults commands. Both commands are needed to fully stop updates – one to stop the check, the other to stop the updater process itself.
• Not restarting after changes. Without a restart, the changes may not take effect, and Chrome might still update on its current session.

Tips

• Update manually when you want. To update Chrome after disabling auto-updates, you can either re-enable the services temporarily or download the latest installer from Google’s website and run it to update.
• Use Chrome’s built-in update policy (Windows). Instead of disabling services, you can set the registry key UpdateDefault to 1 to allow updates only when you click “Relaunch” in the menu, but this still requires the service to be enabled.
• Keep an eye on security. Chrome updates often include security patches. If you disable updates, you should update manually at least once a month to stay safe.
• Test in a virtual machine. If you need a specific Chrome version for testing, consider using a VM or a portable Chrome installation instead of disabling updates on your main system.

Troubleshooting

Chrome still updates after following the steps. This can happen if:

• The registry policy was not set correctly. Double-check the key path and the value names. Ensure you have no typos.
• Chrome was running when you made changes. Close Chrome completely and repeat the steps.
• You have a 64-bit Chrome but the registry path is under WOW6432Node. Check both HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Google\Update and HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Policies\Google\Update and apply the same values.

On Mac, the defaults command doesn’t work. Make sure you run the command exactly as shown, including the spaces and slashes. If you get an error, try adding sudo at the beginning and enter your password when prompted.

After disabling, Chrome shows an error about updates. This is normal – Chrome may display a warning that it can’t check for updates. You can ignore it, or you can hide it by using the policy UpdateDefault set to 0 on Windows.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will disabling updates break Chrome?

No, Chrome will continue to work normally. You just won’t receive automatic updates, which means you won’t get new features or security patches until you update manually.

Can I re-enable auto-updates later?

Yes. On Windows, go back to Services and set the startup type to “Automatic” and start the services. On Mac, run defaults delete com.google.Keystone.Agent checkInterval and defaults delete com.google.Keystone.Agent autoupdate to remove the restrictions.

Does this affect other Google apps like Drive or Earth?

Yes, the Google Update service on Windows and Keystone on Mac are shared among many Google products. Disabling them will stop updates for all Google software that uses the same updater.

Will Chrome still update if I use a portable version?

Portable versions of Chrome typically don’t have built-in auto-update, so they are a good alternative if you want to avoid updates entirely without changing system settings.

Is it safe to disable Chrome updates?

It’s generally safe, but it leaves your browser vulnerable to known security flaws. Only do this if you have a specific reason and commit to updating manually on a regular basis.

What if I only want to delay updates, not stop them permanently?

You can set the AutoUpdateCheckPeriodMinutes to a large number (like 43200 for 30 days) instead of 0. This will delay the check, but Chrome will still eventually update.

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