Really bad flickering/flashing when moving around with new graphics engine

Technical Problems
1

I’m on Sketchup 2026 and I get absolutely terrible (but very subtle) flickering/flashing anytime I move around any of my models. The model itself is not flickering, but basically the entire viewport (including the horizon). If I stay still and don’t rotate, everything is fine. This only happens on the new graphics engine and goes away completely if I switch to the old engine. I’ve tried various things such as turning off fast feedback, maximum texture size, etc. I’ve also tried to turn HDR on/off and switching the refresh rate of my monitor but nothing seems to work. I’m on a modern Windows desktop with 64GB of memory and an RTX 4070, so I don’t think it’s anything to do with the computer. Please let me know how I can fix this issue.

2

When we’ve seen this in other models it turned out that at least part of it was at a huge distance from the origin. You could first reset the axes to make sure they cross at the origin and then check to make sure the entire model if close to the origin.

Share the .skp file if you can’t get it yourself.

3

@DaveR thanks for the suggestion, but my models are right on the origin point. HOWEVER, I finally figured out how to get rid of it - if I turn off Adaptive Sync on my Samsung monitor, the problem goes away. Sketchup with the new graphics engine is the only application I’ve ever seen have a problem like that (Adaptive Sync is on by default). Any idea why the new graphics engine is struggling with that?

1 Like
4

I haven’t had any experience with Adaptive Sync and have never seen anyone else report any problems related to it.

5

A quick forum search on this term, results in:

Black screen flickers often when using new graphics engine and certain Nvidia settings - Technical Problems / SketchUp - SketchUp Community

What Gemini says about the cause and solutions ... (click to expand) ...

The flickering is happening because your Samsung monitor is trying to sync its refresh rate to SketchUp’s window, but since SketchUp only renders frames when you move the mouse or an object, the monitor’s refresh rate is constantly “yo-yoing,” causing the brightness to pulse.

1. The Samsung Firmware Fix

This is the most direct solution for Samsung’s “Adaptive Sync” flicker. It addresses the hardware’s voltage fluctuations.

  1. Open your monitor’s physical Menu (the joystick/button on the display).
  2. Go to System.
  3. Set VRR Control to ON.
  • Note: If your monitor doesn’t have this specific menu item, proceed to the driver fix below.

2. The Graphics Driver Fix (Targeting the App)

Since SketchUp runs in a window, you need to tell your GPU to stop trying to use G-Sync or FreeSync for this specific application.

For NVIDIA Users:

  1. Open the NVIDIA Control Panel.
  2. Navigate to Manage 3D Settings → Program Settings.
  3. Select SketchUp (if it’s not there, click Add and find sketchup.exe).
  4. Find Monitor Technology and change it to Fixed Refresh.
  5. Click Apply.

For AMD Users:

  1. Open AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition.
  2. Go to Gaming → Games and select SketchUp.
  3. Set AMD FreeSync to Off.

Why this should solve it

SketchUp is a “passive” renderer; it doesn’t push a constant stream of frames like a game does. When the screen isn’t moving, the frame rate drops to near zero. Adaptive Sync sees this drop and tries to adjust the monitor’s physical refresh rate instantly, which causes the backlight flicker. Disabling it for the specific app forces the monitor to stay at a steady frequency (e.g., 144Hz) regardless of what SketchUp is doing.

1 Like
6

@TedVitale_SU

The Help Center Troubleshooting page Graphics and Performance

Has a dedicated page SketchUp and OpenGL which still explicitly says SketchUp require OpenGL support, and says nothing of DirectX or Metal.

There is also no subpage concerning sync issues or flickering.