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Change a Program's Priority with PowerShell

Raise a process's priority class via (Get-Process).PriorityClass to make it snappier.

WindowsProcessesprioritysystempowershellLow risk
Run `(Get-Process -Name "chrome").PriorityClass = "High"` to boost the process, or set it back to "Normal" to undo.

01Command

Command
$ (Get-Process -Name "chrome").PriorityClass = "High"

02What it does

Windows schedules CPU time by priority class; a process at High gets preference over Normal-priority work. Assigning to (Get-Process -Name).PriorityClass changes it instantly for all processes with that name, without Task Manager. Valid values include Idle, BelowNormal, Normal, AboveNormal, High and RealTime.

03Risk

RiskLow risk
RequirementsSetting High priority on other users' processes requires an elevated prompt; the change lasts only until the process exits.
!Warning: The change is temporary — it resets when the app restarts — and setting RealTime on a normal app can make the whole system unresponsive.

04Undo

Undo
$ (Get-Process -Name "chrome").PriorityClass = "Normal"

05Sources

  • Process.PriorityClass Property (System.Diagnostics)
    Microsoft Learn · vendor-doc · 2026-09-17
    Evidence: Documents the PriorityClass property of Process objects and its values including Idle, Normal, High and RealTime.
  • Get-Process — List running processes
    SS64 · technical · 2026-09-17
    Evidence: Shows Get-Process returning Process objects (with -Name/-Id selection) whose properties such as PriorityClass and CPU can be read or set in PowerShell.

Last verified: 2026-09-19 · Category: System & Settings

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