9 Most Annoying Features of Windows 11

Windows 11 offers a great overall computing experience, but there are a few quirks that can really test your patience. Thankfully, it only takes a few minutes to smooth out the rough edges and get Windows 11 working the way you want it to.

 

9. Solve notification overload

That feeling when you're trying to get something done and the buzzer—another pop-up in the corner—is annoying. Maybe it's the weather app telling you it might rain. Or, it's a random app you completely forgot you had installed and now wants your attention. It's distracting, unnecessary, and happens way too often.

Luckily, controlling everything is easier than you might think. All you have to do is open the Settings app and go to System > Notifications . There, you'll see a list of apps with toggle switches. Just turn off notifications for the apps you never want to see again. If you don't want to disable them completely, it's best to just mute them.

 

8. Turn off Microsoft tips and pop-ups

It's not just new apps that can be distracting. If you've spent more than five minutes doing a clean install of Windows 11, chances are you've been bombarded with 'helpful tips,' setup suggestions, and pop-ups urging you to use Edge. While some of these tips may be helpful to new users, for the rest of us, they're just plain annoying.

To fix this, open Settings > System > Notifications and scroll down to expand Additional settings . Then, simply uncheck the three boxes for tips and suggestions related to optimizing your Windows experience.

7. Set default applications

 

Remember when changing your default browser or photo viewer in Windows 10 was as easy as a single click? In Windows 11, Microsoft has made it a process more like filing taxes.

Instead of just letting you pick a default app, Windows 11 asks you to set that app for each individual file type. For example, if you want to change the default photo viewer, you'll need to adjust the settings for JPG , PNG , TIFF , and more. To make these changes, go to Settings > Apps > Default Apps .

6. Speed ​​up by disabling startup applications

Even a brand new Windows 11 PC can start to slow down strangely after a few days. The main cause is often too many startup applications.

By default, Windows tends to let a bunch of apps launch automatically when you log in—some of which you probably don't need to run right away (or ever). Apps like Microsoft Teams , OneDrive , Spotify , or other random apps sneak into the startup list and silently eat up system resources in the background. All of this can add up and significantly slow down your computer's boot time.

5. Clean up the Start menu and Taskbar

 

Windows 11's Start menu and Taskbar look great, but when you actually start using them, you'll realize how cluttered and distracting they can be. Luckily, you can tame the chaos in just a few minutes.

Start with the Start menu. Go to Settings > Personalization > Start . From here, you can prevent it from showing recently added apps or suggested content (which is basically advertising). You can also go into the Folders section to pin useful shortcuts, like File Explorer or Downloads, right below the power button.

Now for the Taskbar. Go to Settings > Personalization > Taskbar and start toggling those toggles. You can hide things like the search box, the Chat icon, and even Copilot. For a more hands-on setup, scroll down to Taskbar behaviors and choose to ungroup taskbar buttons. This makes each window appear separately on the Taskbar, like in older versions of Windows.

4. Remove ads on lock screen permanently

There's nothing more annoying than turning on your computer, only to be greeted by an ad for a Microsoft product you didn't ask for. Windows 11 has a habit of sneaking "suggestions" and promotions onto the lock screen, dressing them up as helpful tips or pretty images. But in reality, they're just ads.

Getting rid of these lock screen ads is pretty easy. Just go to Settings > Personalization > Lock screen , tap Personalize your lock screen menu and select Picture or Slideshow . Then, uncheck the Get fun facts, tips, tricks, and more on your lock screen box .

3. Disable Widgets Panel You Never Use

Windows 11 has a built-in Widgets panel that slides out from the left side of the screen. It shows information like weather, news, traffic updates, stocks, and sports scores. If you get tired of accidentally activating the Widgets panel or seeing news headlines you didn't ask for, you can hide it. Right-click the Taskbar and select Taskbar settings . Then, find the Widgets toggle and turn it off.

 

2. Remove web results and featured items from Search

Windows 11's search bar is something you probably use every day to launch apps, locate files, or search through settings. But here's the thing: Instead of just showing you what's on your PC, it also likes to include web results. So when you accidentally type 'word' as 'wrd' or 'paint' as 'painet,' it'll try to help out and open a Bing search in Edge.

Worse still, Microsoft doesn't provide a simple toggle to turn this feature off. However, if you're comfortable editing the Windows Registry, you can disable Bing search in Windows 11. Otherwise, you can also use a third-party tool like Winaero Tweaker to do the same thing.

1. Restore classic right-click menu

With Windows 11, Microsoft tried to clean up the right-click menu by hiding a bunch of options behind a "Show more options" button . But it also added an unnecessary click every time you wanted to access familiar options or integrate third-party apps.

If this drives you crazy, you can restore the classic right-click menu. Again, this requires you to modify the registry file. Before you do this, make sure to create a restore point, just in case. It only takes a minute and can save you a lot of trouble if something goes wrong.