The basics

What a controller vibration test actually checks

A controller vibration test confirms that the rumble motors inside your gamepad still fire when a game tells them to. When a controller stops shaking during explosions, engine revs or hits, it's usually one of two things: a motor has failed, or a wire / solder joint to it has come loose. This controller vibration tester sends a standard browser rumble command — the same basic dual-rumble a game uses — so you can tell the difference between "the game has rumble turned off" and "this controller's motor is dead," and whether it's the left/strong motor, the right/weak motor, or both that have stopped responding.

Almost every modern gamepad uses two rumble motors, and they don't do the same job. One is a larger, heavier motor that produces a deep, low-frequency shake — the standard Gamepad API calls it the strong motor, and it usually sits in the left grip. The other is a smaller, lighter motor that produces a faster, higher-frequency buzz — the weak motor, usually on the right. Games mix the two to make rumble feel detailed rather than a single flat vibration. That's why a good test triggers them separately: a controller can have one healthy motor and one dead one, and a single "buzz everything" button would hide that. Testing each motor on its own is the whole point of the guided test above.

Step by step

How to run the guided controller vibration test

The test walks you through four short steps. After each one you simply answer whether you felt the buzz — that's how the checklist gets built.

Connect and wake the controller. Plug in a USB cable or pair over Bluetooth, then press any button. The browser only "sees" a gamepad after it receives an input, so a button press is what makes the test buttons light up.
Left (strong) motor. Press the first step button. Only the deep, low motor should fire — you'll feel a heavy shake, usually weighted to the left grip. Felt it? Tap Yes. Nothing? Tap No.
Right (weak) motor. The second step fires only the lighter, faster motor — a higher-pitched buzz, usually on the right. Confirm it the same way.
Both motors, full then gentle. The last two steps drive both motors together — once at full strength, once gently — so you can check that they combine cleanly and that a low-intensity rumble (the kind games use for subtle feedback) still comes through.

When every step is confirmed, the checklist says so. If any step gets a "No," it stays on the list, named, so you know exactly which motor didn't respond — without the tool ever pretending to grade a buzz it can't feel.

The difference

Why a guided test beats a single "buzz" button

Most online tools give you one button that rattles both motors at once. That tells you almost nothing useful. If you feel something, you can't say whether both motors fired or just one. If you feel nothing, you can't tell a dead controller from a browser that silently ignored the command. The guided controller vibration test on this page isolates each motor and asks you to confirm it, so a half-broken controller — one good motor, one dead — shows up clearly instead of passing on a technicality. It's slower by a few seconds, and far more honest.

By controller

Vibration on different controllers

The browser sends a single, standard "dual-rumble" command. How richly each controller responds to it varies, and some of the fancier hardware features simply aren't reachable from a normal web page.

Xbox (Series X|S, Xbox One). Classic two-motor rumble, which maps cleanly onto the strong/weak split above. One caveat we measured rather than assumed: plugged into a Mac over USB and tested in Chrome, our Xbox pad reported a vibration interface and then sat through all four steps without moving. Over USB an Xbox pad talks to the host in GIP, a Microsoft protocol macOS has no built-in driver for, which would leave the rumble command nothing to reach. We haven't tried that pad over Bluetooth, so we can't tell you how it behaves. Separately, the standard dual-rumble command doesn't address the Xbox One's trigger-rumble motors, so those sit outside this test.
PlayStation 5 (DualSense). On a supported setup, a PS5 controller vibration test can fire the DualSense's two main actuators, so you can confirm basic rumble works. What it cannot reach is the DualSense's signature hardware — the high-definition haptics and the adaptive triggers — because the standard web vibration command only exposes simple dual-rumble, not those finer effects. So this page checks that the motors are alive, not that every advanced haptic feature is perfect.
PlayStation 4 (DualShock 4). Two-motor rumble, same as the model above, and the one result we can report first-hand from a Mac: wired over USB, tested in Chrome, our DualShock 4 answered on all four steps. Worth knowing if you own both pads, because the Xbox one gave us nothing on that same machine, in that same browser, on the same afternoon.
Nintendo Switch. The Joy-Con and Pro Controller use "HD Rumble," a high-resolution vibration system. Browser support for Switch controllers is inconsistent, and even when one connects, the web can only send a basic rumble — not the fine-grained HD Rumble patterns games use. Treat a Switch result here as "the motor fired," nothing more.

Honesty

What this controller vibration test can and can't tell you

Being straight about the limits is more useful than a green checkmark, so here's exactly where the line is:

It can trigger; it can't measure. The Gamepad API lets a web page start a rumble effect, but it never reports back how strongly the motor actually buzzed. There is no honest way to print a "motor health: 80%" number, so we don't. Your "Yes / No" is the measurement.
A "successful" rumble command can still be silent. The browser tells us it sent the effect, never that a motor moved — no web page gets to feel your controller, which is why this controller vibration test asks you instead. The two can disagree, and which pairings disagree turns on your controller as much as your system: wired over USB in Chrome on the same Mac, on the same afternoon, our DualShock 4 answered every step and our Xbox pad answered none. So a pad sitting still here is a reason to try another controller, cable or machine — not a reason to conclude the motor is dead.
Some inputs are off-limits. Console-specific extras — DualSense adaptive triggers, Xbox trigger rumble, Switch HD Rumble — live behind interfaces a normal web page can't open, so they're out of scope for this test. We'd rather say that than imply we tested something we didn't.

Troubleshooting

Controller vibration test not working? Quick fixes

The buttons are greyed out: The browser hasn't detected a controller yet, or it doesn't expose the vibration API. Press a button on the gamepad first. If the buttons stay disabled, switch to Chrome, Edge or Safari 16.4+ — Firefox ships no gamepad vibration at all today, and the tracking bug for it is still open.
You're on a Mac with an Xbox pad and feel nothing: We got the same result: wired over USB, in Chrome, our Xbox pad reported a vibration interface and never moved — and it did the same on every other controller vibration test we tried, so it isn't something one page got wrong. Over USB an Xbox pad speaks GIP, a protocol macOS has no built-in driver for, which would explain a command that reports success and reaches nothing. A DualShock 4 on that same Mac answered every step, so trying a different pad tells you more than trying a different site.
Bluetooth connected, but no rumble: Some controllers only rumble over a USB cable in the browser, even when buttons and sticks work fine wirelessly. Plug in a data cable and try again before blaming the motor.
One motor works, the other doesn't: That's a real, common failure — and exactly what the per-step test is built to surface. A controller with one dead motor is often worth repairing, especially a premium pad.
Nothing happens in any browser: Try a different USB port or cable, restart the browser, and confirm the controller rumbles on its native console. If it's silent everywhere, the motor or its connection has likely failed.

More tests

More controller tests

Full Controller Tester All inputs

Test every button, stick, trigger and bumper at once — the comprehensive check.

Stick Drift Test Verdict

Rest your sticks and get a PASS / DRIFTING / FAIL verdict on analog drift.

FAQ

Controller vibration test FAQ

The short answers. The guided tool above and the sections on this page cover the rest.

Is this controller vibration test free?

Yes. The full guided test is free, with no sign-up and no download. It runs entirely in your browser.

How do I test if my controller vibration works?

Connect the controller, press any button so the browser detects it, then press each step button to fire one motor at a time. Answer "Yes" or "No" after each buzz. The tool builds a checklist from what you felt.

Why is there no automatic pass or fail?

Because a browser can only start a rumble effect — it can't measure how hard the motor actually buzzed. Any automated "motor OK" grade would be guessing. Your own "felt it / didn't" is the only honest signal, so that's what the test uses.

Why doesn't my controller vibrate on a Mac?

On a Mac, check which pad you're holding first — in our own testing it decided the answer. Wired over USB in Chrome, our DualShock 4 buzzed on every step and our Xbox pad never moved once, same machine, same browser. Over USB an Xbox pad speaks GIP, a protocol macOS has no built-in driver for, which would explain a rumble command that reports success and reaches nothing. That points at a driver gap rather than your hardware: if the same pad still rumbles in a console game, the motors are clearly working and the Mac just isn't reaching them.

Can I run an Xbox controller vibration test in the browser?

Yes — an Xbox Series or Xbox One pad answers the standard dual-rumble command, and both main motors fire in the guided test. One result worth knowing before you blame your pad: on our Mac they didn't. Wired over USB in Chrome, our Xbox pad reported a vibration interface and sat through all four steps, which fits the fact that Xbox pads speak GIP over USB and macOS ships no driver for it. The Xbox One's trigger-rumble motors are a separate matter: the standard web command doesn't address them, so this test never reaches those.

Does the PS5 DualSense work with this vibration tester?

The DualSense's two main rumble motors fire, so you can confirm basic vibration. The high-definition haptics and adaptive triggers can't be reached from a standard web page, so this test checks that rumble is alive — not those advanced features.

My controller rumbles in games but not here — why?

Games reach the pad through drivers a web page can't use, so a pad that rumbles in a game is telling you about the game's route to it, not the route a controller vibration test has to take. Three common causes: some controllers only rumble over USB in the browser even when wireless input works; Firefox provides no gamepad vibration at all; and our own Xbox pad, wired to a Mac, stayed still in Chrome regardless of what it does in games. Plug in a cable and use Chrome, Edge or Safari 16.4+ before concluding anything.

One motor buzzes and the other doesn't. Is that drift?

No — drift is a stick problem, not a rumble one. A single dead motor is a vibration fault. The per-step test names which motor didn't respond so you can decide whether to repair or replace.

Does my controller data get uploaded?

No. The whole controller vibration test runs locally using the Gamepad API. Nothing about your controller leaves your device.

How often should I test controller vibration?

Whenever rumble starts to feel weak or one-sided, and as a quick check after a controller has had heavy use or a knock. Catching a fading motor early makes the repair-or-replace call easier.

Check the rest of your pad.

Rumble is one part. The comprehensive controller tester checks every button, stick, trigger and bumper — and the stick drift test gives a decimal-exact drift verdict.

Open the full controller tester

Controller Vibration Test

What this test can & can't do