Controller Tester — Check Every Button, Stick and Trigger

Reading your results

Buttons. Each button on the diagram lights up while pressed, and the raw list below the diagram shows its exact value from 0.00 to 1.00. “Buttons tested” counts how many have registered at least once — press each one and you have a complete checklist in under a minute.

Sticks. Each axis runs from −1 (left / up) to +1 (right / down). The plot shows the live position, a short trail and the dead-zone circle. When you let go, a healthy stick settles close to 0 on both axes; the “at rest” reading turns that into a percentage of full travel:

Many games ignore small movements near the center (the dead zone) — often somewhere between 5% and 25% of travel depending on the game, and many let you adjust it. For a precise, hands-off measurement use the stick drift test.

Circularity. Press “Test circularity” and roll the stick slowly around its outer edge two or three times. The blue outline traces the furthest point reached in every direction and the average error tells you how far it is from a perfect circle. Values under roughly 10% are typical of a healthy stick; a flat spot, or one stick scoring far worse than the other, is the clearer warning sign.

Triggers. Squeeze slowly: the value should rise smoothly from 0.00 to 1.00 with no jumps and return fully to 0.00 when released.

Update rate. How many fresh readings per second the browser receives. Pages read controllers once per display frame, so on a 60 Hz screen this tops out near 60 even if the controller itself reports faster. It is useful for spotting stutter or a weak Bluetooth link, not for measuring the controller's own polling rate.

How to use the controller tester

1. Connect the controller with a USB cable or pair it over Bluetooth in your system settings.
2. Press any button — the diagram switches to your controller and detects whether it is an Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo or generic layout.
3. Press every button and pull both triggers until “Buttons tested” is complete.
4. Let go of the sticks and check the “at rest” reading, then run “Test circularity” on each stick.
5. Try the vibration buttons, then use “Copy test report” if you need to share the results with a repair shop or support.

No controller nearby? Turn on the virtual controller to drive the whole tester with your mouse, touchscreen or keyboard — including a simulated stick drift to see what a faulty reading looks like.

Model-specific testers

Method and limits

The tester uses the W3C Gamepad API, the same interface browser games use. Every display frame it reads each connected controller's buttons (with analog values) and axes, and the timestamp of the latest report. Controllers that use the standard mapping are drawn on the diagram; others still appear in the raw lists with exact values. Everything runs locally — no input leaves your device.

What a web page cannot see:

• Motion sensors (gyroscope, accelerometer), touchpad finger position, battery level and light-bar color.
• DualSense adaptive-trigger resistance and fine haptics — only standard rumble is available to web pages.
• Extra buttons outside the standard layout (for example the Xbox Share button, the DualSense mute button or Elite paddles) appear only in some browsers, if at all.

Browser and device support

Troubleshooting

• Not detected? Press a face button — browsers hide controllers until you do. Then try another USB port or cable (many cables are charge-only), or re-pair over Bluetooth.
• Close remapping tools. Steam (with Steam Input), DS4Windows, reWASD or x360ce can hide or rename the controller. Quit them, then reload the page.
• Wrong buttons lighting up? The controller may be using a non-standard mapping; the raw button list shows exactly what the browser receives.
• A button never lights up? Test it in a second browser. If it fails everywhere, the switch or ribbon cable is faulty — update the firmware, then consider repair or a warranty claim.

Last updated October 1, 2026