Tool

PS5 controller tester

Connect a DualSense by USB-C cable or Bluetooth, press any button on it, and this page lights every control under its PlayStation name: Cross, Circle, Square, Triangle, L1, R1, L2, R2, L3, R3, Create, Options, the PS button and the touchpad click. A DualSense Edge and a PS4 DualShock 4 use the same layout here.

Check a DualSense in this order

  1. Connect it. A USB-C cable is the quickest start. To pair instead, hold the PS button and Create until the light bar flashes, then pick the controller in the computer's Bluetooth list.
  2. Press any button, so the browser shows the controller to this page.
  3. Press every button once and watch the checklist turn green.
  4. Let go of both sticks and press Record 5 seconds at rest, then run the circle test.
  5. Pull L2 and R2 slowly. Each should climb from 0 to 1 without a jump.
  6. Press Both motors, then each motor on its own.

Test on the cable first. A cable rules out a weak Bluetooth link, so anything that fails on it is the controller itself.

If the controller does not show up

Climb this ladder, smallest step first:

  1. Press a button. A browser hides every controller from a page until a button is pressed while that page is in front.
  2. Click the page, then press again. The tab has to be the active one when you press.
  3. Reconnect it. Unplug the cable and plug it back in, or turn the controller off and on so it pairs again.
  4. Check that the computer sees it. On a Mac, a connected PlayStation, Xbox or Switch controller is listed in System Settings under Game Controllers. If it is missing there, the fix is pairing: controller connected but not working on a Mac has every step.
  5. Try a second browser. Browsers read controllers in different ways, so one that is missing in one browser can show up in another.

What this page cannot test on a DualSense

The page reads the controller through the browser's Gamepad API, which carries buttons, sticks, triggers and rumble. It does not carry the touchpad surface, the motion sensors, the adaptive triggers, the light bar, the microphone or the mute button, so those are not tested here. On a Mac, the PS5 controller tester on Mac covers them with InputConfig. On some systems the PS button also does a job of its own when pressed. A control that stays dark here is not proof it is broken, so check it once outside the browser.

It works. Now give it a job

A tester tells you the controller is fine. On a Mac, InputConfig is the app I make for the next step: it turns the buttons and sticks you just tested into keys, the mouse pointer, clicks and scrolling, in any app or game. It is free, and its Live Visualizer draws the same live picture inside the app, with the touchpad and motion sensors a browser does not pass to a page. Test it here, then put it to work there.

Questions

How do I test a PS5 controller on a PC or a Mac?

Connect it by USB-C or Bluetooth, open this page and press any button on it. Every button, stick and trigger then shows live, the same way in a browser on Windows and on a Mac.

How do I check a PS5 controller for stick drift?

Let go of both sticks and press Record 5 seconds at rest. A healthy DualSense stick reads close to 0. The result is a number and a deadzone that would hide it.

Can I test the DualSense touchpad and adaptive triggers online?

Not on this page. It reads the controller through the browser's Gamepad API, which carries the touchpad click as a button but not finger position, motion or adaptive triggers.

Does this work with a PS4 controller?

Yes. A DualShock 4 uses the same layout here, with Share where the DualSense has Create.

Related

Download InputConfig on the Mac App StoreFree. macOS 14 or later. No account, nothing leaves your Mac. Open source on GitHub.