Free Driver Download Managers & driver queries

Are any of the free ones any good?
I have used a few and DriverMax for years but every time the program updates suddenly there are 10+ drivers that are out of date which seems like it is trying to justify its existence and I'm kinda getting sick of it locking up. IObit Driver Booster running in parallel says they are all cool and just occaisionally finds a driver worth updating.
Does Windows update drivers automatically coz it has never found a newer driver if I have done a manual check?
Or should I just wait for the display to go wonky to alert me that the driver is out of date?

 

Greetings, LesCM19, and welcome to MajorGeeks.

There are several free or shareware programs available here - I've seen many good reports about SlimDrivers.

I personally don't use them. Drivers are usually written by hardware developers to address specific problems. I take the time to visit the various hardware sites to peruse their driver update information, but for the most part if it ain't broke, yada yada.

Windows will only update drivers (or any other software) if you tell it to or allow it to. Check your Windows Update settings.

Be advised: Windows device driver support has gotten much better over the years but I still advise using the OEM software if possible, especially for complex or high-end equipment.