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How to Fix CapCut Export Stuck at 99% on Low-End PC

CapCut export stuck at 99% is a common issue, especially on low-end PCs with 4GB RAM or less
Fix CapCut Export Stuck at 99% on Low-End PC

(What Finally Worked on My Old Laptop)

If you’re using CapCut on an old or low-end PC, you may already know this situation too well.

The export runs fine.
The progress bar reaches 99%.
Then it just sits there.

No error message. No crash. Just waiting.

This didn’t happen to me once. It happened several times.
The first time, I waited. Five minutes. Ten minutes. I honestly thought the video was still processing.

It wasn’t. CapCut was stuck.

After dealing with this on multiple projects, I started testing things one by one on my old laptop. Some fixes helped a little. Others did absolutely nothing. Eventually, a clear pattern showed up.

My Laptop Setup (So You Know This Is a Low-End Case)

To avoid confusion, here’s the exact type of machine I was using:

  • CPU: Older Intel Core i3

  • RAM: 4GB

  • GPU: Integrated Intel HD Graphics

  • Storage: HDD (not SSD)

  • OS: Windows 10 64-bit

This matters, because many CapCut guides online assume you’re working with newer hardware. On low-end systems, CapCut behaves very differently — especially during export.

Why CapCut Gets Stuck at 99% on Low-End PCs

At first, I thought the problem was random. It wasn’t.

On low-spec machines, CapCut tends to hit a wall near the final stage of export. By that point, RAM usage is high, GPU acceleration kicks in, and temporary files pile up.

On better hardware, this finishes quietly.
On older laptops, it often doesn’t.

At some point, I started wondering if my laptop was simply too weak for CapCut. I didn’t want to believe that, but the pattern was hard to ignore.

Fix #1: Turn Off Hardware Acceleration (This Was the Real Breakthrough)

This was the fix that made the biggest difference.

CapCut tries to use GPU acceleration by default. On integrated graphics, that can cause the export to freeze right at the end — without warning.

What I did:

  1. Open CapCut

  2. Go to Settings

  3. Turn off Hardware Acceleration (encoding and decoding if available)

  4. Close CapCut completely

  5. Open it again, then export

After doing this, a video that had been stuck at 99% for over 15 minutes finished almost immediately.

Fix #2: Lower the Export Settings (Don’t Push the Hardware)

On a low-end PC, maxing out export settings is risky.

What worked best for me:

  • Resolution: 1080p (avoid 4K entirely)

  • Frame rate: 30fps

  • Bitrate: Medium or slightly lower

  • Format: MP4

Every time I tried exporting at 60fps, the export stalled. Switching back to 30fps stopped the issue completely.

Fix #3: Clear CapCut Cache (Simple, but Often Ignored)

CapCut stores a lot of temporary files while exporting.

On a low-end PC, those files don’t always behave well — especially after a failed export.

Steps:

  1. Open CapCut

  2. Go to Settings → Cache

  3. Clear all cache files

  4. Restart your PC

This fixed one project where nothing else worked, including reinstalling the app.

Fix #4: Remove Heavy Effects Near the End of the Timeline

This took me a while to notice.

Most of my failed exports had something in common: the last few seconds of the video used heavier effects.

Things like:

  • Motion blur

  • Complex transitions

  • Animated text with shadows

  • Multiple adjustment layers

CapCut seems to struggle when finalizing these effects on low RAM systems.

What helped was removing those effects temporarily, exporting the video, and only adding them back if absolutely necessary.

Fix #5: Close Everything Else Before Exporting

On a 4GB RAM system, background apps matter more than you think.

Before exporting, I now:

  • Close the browser completely

  • Stop background apps

  • Wait until disk usage calms down

It sounds basic, but skipping this step caused more failed exports than I expected.

Fix #6: Export the Video in Parts (Last Resort, but Reliable)

If a project refuses to export no matter what, this method still works.

Split the timeline into two or three sections. Export each part separately. Then combine them afterward.

It’s not elegant, but it avoids pushing your system to its absolute limit in one go.

What Didn’t Work for Me (Saving You Time)

Some fixes are recommended everywhere, but they didn’t solve the issue on my laptop:

  • Reinstalling CapCut (I even did it twice)

  • Updating GPU drivers

  • Waiting longer at 99%

Looking back, reinstalling was probably unnecessary. I was just running out of ideas.

When You Should Consider an Alternative Editor

If CapCut keeps struggling even after all this, the limitation may simply be hardware-related.

On very old systems, lighter editors with fewer effects can be more stable. Sometimes, using simpler tools is the only realistic option.

Final Thoughts (From Real Use)

CapCut can work on low-end PCs.

But honestly, it doesn’t make it easy.

Once I stopped treating it like a high-end editor and adjusted my settings to match my hardware, the crashes stopped. The exports finished. And I stopped wasting time staring at a frozen progress bar.

If you’re dealing with similar problems on an old laptop, this fix list isn’t theory. It’s what finally worked for me.