Compiz using 8% - 25% CPU continually

Solution 1:

I also had compiz constantly taking around 10-12% CPU. I installed ccsm using

sudo apt-get install compizconfig-settings-manager

launched CCSM and under the OpenGL unticked sync to vblank. Now compiz is only taking up 2-4% CPU.

This website also suggests setting Texture Filter to fast.

Solution 2:

Had the same problem. Compiz constantly at around 40% (AMD CPU, ATI 58xx, 12.04). Then i followed the instructions in this answer and CPU utilization dropped below 10%. Hope it helps.

Solution 3:

For me in 12.10, removing the compiz settings on ~/.compiz and rebooting solved the problem. I just renamed the folder, it might help if you want to recover your settings after all.