How to Find and Download Drivers From Manufacturer Websites

Downloading drivers direct from the hardware maker is best

Updated on February 6, 2022

What to Know

Identify specific hardware (make, model, etc.).
Visit manufacturer's site and locate downloads for your hardware,
Download and install proper driver for your operating system.

The best place to download a driver is direct from the hardware manufacturer. Before you can update a driver, you'll need to find and download the latest version.

Drivers downloaded from the manufacturer will be the most tested and up to date available. The manufacturer is almost always the original source of any driver you find anywhere else, so why not download it from the source?

If downloading drivers direct from the manufacturer isn't possible there are several other driver download sources available. Free driver updater programs are another option, too, and are often quicker and easier to use than going the manual route.

Follow the steps below to find and download drivers direct from hardware manufacturer websites:

How to Find and Download Drivers From Manufacturer Websites

Identify the make and model of the specific hardware you need drivers for. You'll need this information so you know what company to contact and then what specific drivers to download from their website.

A great way to do this, short of opening your computer, is to use a free system information tool. For example, We were able to use Speccy to find details on our video card, which turned out to be an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 745.

If you're trying to find drivers for a branded computer system (like a Dell desktop, a Toshiba laptop, etc.), all you need is the exact model number of your complete system. You shouldn't need to identify the specifics of any individual piece of hardware in your computer unless you've upgraded it yourself.
Find the hardware manufacturer's support website. Nearly every hardware manufacturer in the world has a website with detailed support information including driver downloads, manuals, troubleshooting information, etc.

To continue with the example from above, we were able to research that information online to reach the NVIDIA GeForce Drivers page to download the driver we needed.

How to Find Tech Support Information
Locate the driver download area of the manufacturer's support site.

The driver download area could be called by any of several different names including Downloads, Software Downloads, Driver Downloads, Drivers, Drivers and Firmware, Drivers and Software, etc. If you visit a website's home page first, look for a Support area. Any driver download options will probably be located within that area.
Using the website's navigation or search abilities, choose the specific hardware you need drivers for.

Every website is different, so it's hard to give precise instructions on how to navigate through a catalog of driver downloads, but most support sites that we've seen are fairly easy to use. If you have trouble finding your way around a specific website, your best bet is to contact the company directly.
Choose the drivers designed for your operating system. For example, you'd pick the Windows 11 drivers if you're using that operating system. See What Version of Windows Do I Have? if you're not sure.

Some websites can even auto-suggest these options for you by quickly scanning your computer for that information.

You must also choose between 32-bit and 64-bit drivers. If you're running a 32-bit version of Windows, you must install 32-bit drivers. If you're running a 64-bit version of Windows, you must install 64-bit drivers. See Am I Running a 32-bit or 64-bit Version of Windows? for instructions on finding that out.
Download the drivers to your computer. Save the downloaded file to your desktop or to another familiar location.

Many drivers available today are configured for automatic installation. This means that all you have to do is run the downloaded file and the drivers will be updated automatically. The instructions given on the manufacturer's website should tell you if the drivers you're downloading are configured this way. If so, there's no reason to continue with these steps.
Extract the downloaded drivers. Instructions provided on the driver download page on the hardware manufacturer's website should provide detailed instructions on doing this.

Usually, this involves decompressing the many driver files located in the compressed file you downloaded. There are free file extractor programs that will handle this job for you. Most compressed files have a file extension of ZIP or maybe RAR, but most of the programs in that list will handle either, like 7-Zip.

Sometimes the compressed files are in a self-extracting format with an EXE file extension, making the install process very easy.
The downloaded drivers for your hardware are now ready for updating in Device Manager.

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