Android Studio freeze until I resize the window - Mac

Question

I am using Android Studio Narwhal 3 Feature Drop 2025.1.3. On my Mac, I am using Tahoe version 26.0.1. It also has 16GB of RAM and an M1 Pro, so power is not an issue. The thing is, when I work with the programme for an indefinite amount of time, it freezes, but if you change the size of the window, it unfreezes.

Why does this happen?

I have tried other more recent versions and the problem is the same.

Answer 1

This workaround worked for me.

Workaround: Disable Metal Rendering on macOS

If Android Studio freezes randomly on macOS (but unfreezes when resizing the window), this is likely caused by a Metal/JBR rendering issue.

Steps to fix:

1. Go to Android Studio → Help → Edit Custom VM Options…

2. Add the following line on a new line:

   -Dsun.java2d.metal=false  
   
   

3. Save and restart Android Studio.

Disabling Metal forces the IDE to repaint using a more stable rendering path. The “resize to unfreeze” behavior is a classic sign of this Metal/JBR bug.