Plug in a gamepad and control your Windows desktop from the couch. Move the cursor, click, scroll, type arrow keys — all from your controller.
Most people search for 'controller as mouse and keyboard' when they want to step away from the desk. Maybe you're watching media from the couch and need to pause a video. Maybe you're giving a presentation and want to click slides without holding a mouse. Maybe you use one hand, or your hands get tired reaching for a keyboard and mouse.
Controller as Mouse solves this by letting your gamepad do both jobs: the left stick moves the cursor, the right stick scrolls, buttons become clicks, and the D-pad becomes arrow keys. No jumping between devices. No reaching for a keyboard across the room.
It works everywhere on Windows — in any window, any browser, any media player. The controller becomes your input device for the entire desktop, not just games.
Controller as Mouse **does** let you move the cursor, left-click, right-click, middle-click, scroll, and press arrow keys or Esc from your pad. The D-pad sends arrow keys; the A button (or right trigger) clicks; the left trigger adds precision mode to slow the cursor down when you need accuracy.
It **doesn't** remap every button on your controller to every key on a keyboard. This is a desktop control tool for living rooms, media centers, and accessibility — not a keyboard replacement for typing full documents. If you need dozens of custom key bindings, this isn't the right fit.
The software is 100% offline, runs locally, and never needs an account. It starts with Windows if you enable that option, minimizes to the system tray, and you toggle it on or off with Start + Back on the pad, or Ctrl + Alt + M on the keyboard.
Out of the box, Controller as Mouse works well for most people. But if the cursor feels too fast or too slow, you don't have to edit a text file — just open the app and drag sliders. Adjust **Cursor speed** for how quickly the cursor moves, **Scroll speed** for vertical and horizontal scrolling, **Deadzone** to ignore small stick movements, and **Acceleration** to make the cursor smooth near the center but faster at the edges.
The app includes presets: *Couch / Media* for relaxed living-room use, *Precision* for fine control, and *Left-handed* to swap the sticks so you can use the right stick to move the cursor and the left to scroll. You can save your own profiles, duplicate them, rename them, or delete them.
Everything is stored locally in your Windows user folder. No cloud, no account, no sync.
**Watching video from the couch:** Plug in a controller. Use the right stick to scroll through a playlist, the A button to play, X to go back. Leave the mouse and keyboard on the desk.
**Presentations:** Stand next to the projector with a controller instead of a laser pointer. Click through slides, scroll if needed, press Esc to exit. The left trigger lets you slow down the cursor for precise clicks on small buttons.
**Accessibility:** If reaching for a keyboard or mouse is difficult, a controller held at chest level or in both hands gives you full desktop control. The left trigger's precision mode means you can target small UI elements without hand tremor causing misclicks.
**HTPC / media center:** Control your entire living room setup — TV apps, streaming, file browsing — from your couch with one device.
No. Every setting is in the app's UI — sliders, dropdowns, and buttons. No .ini files, no text editing.
Xbox controllers, PlayStation DualShock 4 and DualSense, and most XInput or DirectInput gamepads. No drivers needed; the app uses SDL2.
The software moves the mouse and keyboard exactly as a human would, so it emulates standard input. Whether a game allows it depends on the game's rules — some allow controllers mapped to mouse input, others don't. Check the game's terms of service.
No, only Windows 10 and 11.
Yes. Press Start + Back on the controller, or Ctrl + Alt + M on the keyboard. The tray icon also has a menu.
Download Controller as Mouse free, run the .msi installer, plug in your controller, and start using it as a mouse and keyboard on Windows.
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