How to pair a PS4 or Xbox One controller to your Windows 10 PC


We’re at a point where we can switch on a PC, and have it configured in a way that it can boot into a front end, where you can select a game to play, almost instantly.

But when you don't want to use a keyboard and mouse, having a controller work with it all could prove to be a challenge.

With that, here’s a handy how-to in making sure that your controller works.

How to pair a DualShock 4 controller with a Windows 10 PC

If you’re a PS4 player, you may have a couple of DualShock 4 controllers laying around, especially if you’re online most of the time. So let's use one of them for the PC.

DS4Windows is a great tool where you can easily install the DualShock 4 driver, and customise it to your bidding.

Do you want it to flash red when it’s at low battery? Done.

Do you want the light bar to be a certain colour to match the hat you’re wearing for the day? Done.

The tool works by downloading it from here

And once it’s installed, let it do its thing of installing the driver, and a confirmation should appear and tell you that it's ready for a controller. To note: always leave the tool running, as it will be making sure that any DualShock connected will work with any game running.

There’s a couple of methods of making the PC recognise the controller, but we have found that plugging the controller in first, works best.

Through plugging it in with a micro-USB cable, it helps the PC recognise the controller much faster.

Once DS4Windows recognises this going on, let it do its thing, and a ‘profile’ will be installed, allowing the DualShock to be used.

Next, make sure Bluetooth is switched on, and hold down the ‘PS’ & ‘Share’ buttons. The light bar will start flashing, and all of a sudden, it will appear in the Bluetooth list.

Press connect, and you are ready to go!

How to pair an Xbox One controller with a Windows PC

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You’d think that pairing an Xbox Controller to a PC would be simple. And you would be right!

There’s a good chance that if you’ve been ‘all-in’ with Xbox, you probably have a spare controller lying around. So why not use that as the go-to controller for all your gaming needs?

Make sure that you have an Xbox Wireless Controller ready, and one of these methods will have it paired up to your PC.

1. Make sure the controller is switched on, and press the ‘pair’ button which is located near the LB button. After a few seconds, the Xbox Button will flash randomly.

2. Go to the Bluetooth Settings on your PC, found through using the Search Bar on the Taskbar, and once it’s switched on, it should find the controller.

3. Once the controller is showing on the menu, press connect, and you're done!

The second option is just plugging in the controller to the PC using the micro-USB cable, and a notification should appear, confirming that the controller is now connected!

Of course, things may change as we may see official support for DualShock on PC soon, but in the meantime, if you have one of the two above, you can easily play through Steam, Epic, Origin, and many more games through other means with a controller of your choosing.

Steam may be confused at times, with it showing an Xbox Controller when a DualShock is connected, but everything will work as intended, as many matches of Dragon Ball FighterZ have proved for this writer.

For more articles like this, take a look at our Gaming, How To, and PC Building pages.