How to Fix "Illustrator Performance is Slow When Using Brushes"

Adobe Illustrator’s performance can significantly slow down when using brushes, especially when working on complex artwork or large files.

This issue is often caused by excessive brush effects, large document sizes, or system resource limitations.

To fix this, first check the brush settings.

Open the Brushes panel and try using simpler brushes.

Complex brushes with too many detailed effects (e.g., art brushes or scatter brushes) can slow down Illustrator’s performance.

Instead, consider simplifying your brush design or switching to a basic round brush if performance is an issue.

Another solution is to adjust the document's resolution.

If you’re working with a high-resolution file, Illustrator might struggle with rendering the brush effects.

Try lowering the resolution of the artwork or converting raster-based brushes into vector paths.

If you are working with multiple layers or artboards, try flattening some of the artwork to reduce complexity.

Additionally, ensure that your computer meets the minimum system requirements for Illustrator, especially in terms of RAM and GPU.

If Illustrator’s performance is slow overall, consider disabling GPU performance by going to Edit > Preferences > Performance and unchecking GPU Performance.

This will allow Illustrator to rely solely on the CPU, which might be more stable for certain operations.

If you’re still experiencing performance issues, check the size of your scratch disk.

Illustrator uses disk space for temporary files, so ensure you have plenty of free space on your primary hard drive.

You can change the scratch disk settings in Illustrator under Edit > Preferences > Plugins & Scratch Disk.

If Illustrator continues to lag or freeze, consider optimizing your system’s performance by closing unnecessary applications and ensuring that your graphics card drivers are up to date.