I made Home windows 11 completely ad-free by disabling these settings

If you boot up Windows 11 for the primary time, you are greeted with tons of recent options and customization choices. Whether or not it is the redesigned Begin Menu, Microsoft Copilot, Phone Link, Widgets, or Snap Layouts, to call a number of. Nonetheless, one factor that actually bothers me about Home windows 11 is the variety of adverts and suggestions that Microsoft sneaks into totally different elements of the working system.

Though the adverts are delicate, they’re noticeable and, in my view, closely detract from the Windows experience. In the event you simply booted up a laptop that value you lots of of {dollars}, lately upgraded to Home windows 11, or paid $140 for Home windows 11 House or $200 for Home windows 11 Professional, the very last thing you most likely wish to see is adverts being displayed on the working system itself.

Fortuitously, eradicating these adverts is easy, and you do not have to obtain any sketchy software program from the web to do it, as Microsoft permits you to disable all of them by way of numerous choices buried within the Settings menu. Here is how I simply made my Home windows 11 PC ad-free, and the way you are able to do it too.

The primary place I ever seen adverts on Home windows 11 was the Begin Menu, and since I continuously use the Begin Menu to open numerous apps on my PC and seek for information, that is the place I first sought to take away them.

When Home windows 11 first launched, the Begin Menu did not even have this drawback, however again in 2024, with its KB5036980 update, Microsoft determined to start out together with really useful apps from the Microsoft Retailer into the Begin Menu “from a small set of curated builders.”

To do away with these stealthy app suggestions, you may have to open the Settings menu, which you are able to do by looking for Settings or by urgent Win + I in your keyboard. Upon getting Settings open, go to Personalization > Begin. Within the listing of choices below Begin, you may see one that claims “Present really useful information in Begin, latest information in File Explorer, and gadgets in Leap Lists” and another choice that claims “Present suggestions for suggestions, shortcuts, new apps, and extra.” Toggle each of these off, restart your PC, and your Begin Menu will look quite a bit cleaner and ad-free.

Flip off lock display screen adverts

Home windows Highlight is sweet, however it sadly has adverts

If you flip in your PC, you are greeted with the Home windows 11 lock display screen, which by default makes use of the Home windows Highlight function. I am truly fairly a fan of this, and I like the way it dynamically adjustments the lock display screen picture to totally different elements of the world. It makes the expertise of utilizing Home windows really feel totally different each time you boot up your PC, and also you would possibly even uncover one thing new concerning the world when you’re doing it.

Nonetheless, not all good issues are excellent, as Microsoft has built-in adverts and suggestions into the Home windows 11 lock display screen with Home windows Highlight. The one approach to take away them is to, sadly, disable the Home windows Highlight function and choose your individual background picture.

To do that, head to Settings > Personalization > Lock display screen. From there, you may have to vary the “Personalize your lock display screen” choice from “Home windows Highlight” to both your individual image or a slideshow. As soon as you have executed that, you may see an choice to toggle off “Get enjoyable information, suggestions, tips, and extra in your lock display screen,” which is able to successfully make your lock display screen ad-free.

Clear adverts out of Home windows Search and File Explorer

You should not should see adverts when organizing information

Microsoft additionally has adverts hiding in Home windows Search and File Explorer, and whereas they’re delicate, they’re nonetheless a nuisance and never one thing I wish to see whereas looking for and organizing information.

To cover adverts in Home windows Search, open Settings once more and go to Privateness & safety > Search. Within the listing of choices, you may discover one referred to as “Present search highlights,” which provides “content material strategies” to Home windows Search, which is only a fancy approach of claiming its sharing adverts. Toggle off “Present search highlights,” and your Home windows Search expertise shall be rather more seamless and ad-free.

Transferring on to File Explorer, I have not personally seen adverts or suggestions displayed in mine, however some users have reported encountering them. To take away these adverts, open File Explorer and click on the ellipsis icon (the three dots) close to the highest of the menu, to the proper of the Kind and View. From there, within the menu that pops up, click on Choices. A brand new menu referred to as Folder Choices will seem. Change to the “View tab” in that menu, scroll down, and toggle off the “Present sync supplier notifications” choice. Then click on “Apply” and “OK” to save lots of your adjustments.

Even the place the place you flip off adverts has adverts

Sarcastically, Microsoft additionally reveals adverts within the very place you go to show them off: the Settings menu. As soon as once more, these adverts are delicate and sometimes function product suggestions and gives, and you may most likely see them on the prime of various pages within the Settings app.

To stop adverts from exhibiting up in your Home windows Settings menu, open the Settings app and navigate to Privateness & Safety > Suggestions gives. On that web page, you may discover an choice referred to as “Suggestions and gives in Settings” that you will wish to flip off. This may cease adverts or promotions from showing in your Settings menu.

Moreover, in that very same menu (Suggestions & gives), you’ll be able to disable “Promoting ID,” which blocks third-party apps from exhibiting you personalised adverts based mostly in your Home windows Exercise. Another choice that’s undoubtedly price disabling is “Personalised gives,” which reveals you personalised suggestions, adverts, and proposals.

Flip off suggestions and strategies from Home windows

In the event you’re already skilled with Home windows, its suggestions are pointless

Lastly, in addition to Microsoft pushing adverts into the Home windows 11 expertise, it has additionally added many suggestions and strategies. In the event you’re new to Home windows 11, these can genuinely be useful, however in case you’re an skilled Home windows consumer who simply received a brand new PC or carried out a contemporary set up of Home windows, the flood of suggestions that Microsoft sends can shortly change into annoying, similar to the adverts may be.

To cease receiving suggestions and strategies from Home windows, go to Settings > System > Notifications, and scroll all the way down to the underside of the web page the place you may discover “Extra Settings.” Click on that, and you may see three totally different choices seem. I like to recommend toggling off “Recommend methods to get probably the most out of Home windows and ending settings up this machine” and “Get suggestions and strategies when utilizing Home windows.” I have been utilizing Home windows 11 for years, but sporadically, I nonetheless get a “End organising Home windows 11” pop-up, which may be fairly annoying since I accomplished that course of about two years in the past. Disabling these choices will forestall that.

Moreover, there’s one final choice you’ll be able to disable referred to as “Present the Home windows welcome expertise after updates and when signed in to indicate what’s new and urged.” If you wish to keep knowledgeable concerning the newest options added to Home windows 11 after an replace, it is most likely price holding this on. Nonetheless, in case you do not care or already know what Home windows is including, toggling this off is one other helpful approach to declutter your Home windows expertise.