The Windows 11 taskbar is one of the most-touched parts of the interface and one of the least-configured. Microsoft moved the Start button and icons to the centre in Windows 11, removed some features from the Windows 10 taskbar, and added a few new ones. The result is a taskbar that works fine but is meaningfully improvable with about 10 minutes of intentional configuration. For a broader walkthrough, our Windows 11 How-To Guides is a good next read.
Taskbar settings — the main access point
Right-click any blank area of the taskbar → “Taskbar settings” — or Settings → Personalisation → Taskbar. This opens the taskbar configuration page with four main sections: Taskbar items, System tray icons, Other system tray icons, and Taskbar behaviours.
Taskbar items — what appears in the bar
Four toggles control which system buttons appear in the taskbar:
- Search: shows a search box or icon in the taskbar. Win+S opens search anyway, so this can be hidden if you prefer a cleaner bar.
- Task View: the virtual desktop switcher button. Win+Tab does the same thing; hide the button if you use the shortcut.
- Widgets: the news and weather panel. Most users find this adds clutter without proportional value — hiding it is reasonable unless you actively use the weather widget.
- Chat: Microsoft Teams integration button. If you use Teams from the standalone app rather than this button: hide it.
Hiding all four of these buttons gives the taskbar considerably more room for actual application icons without removing any functionality — all four features remain accessible through keyboard shortcuts or Start menu.
Pinning and unpinning applications
Right-click any application in the Start menu or taskbar → “Pin to taskbar” (or “Unpin from taskbar”). The pinned app stays in the taskbar even when not running — clicking it launches it, clicking it again when running focuses or minimises it.
Right-click any running application’s taskbar button → “Pin to taskbar” saves it permanently even after you close the app. Dragging taskbar icons left or right rearranges them. The order matters practically: your most-used applications should be nearest the Start button (or the left edge on a left-aligned taskbar) where they’re fastest to reach.
A lean, intentional pinned apps list — 5-8 applications you open most days — is more useful than a comprehensive one. Applications opened occasionally are faster to find via Win+S than to locate in a densely-populated taskbar.
Taskbar alignment — centre vs left
Settings → Personalisation → Taskbar → Taskbar behaviours → Taskbar alignment → Left or Centre. The default is Centre (Start button in the middle). Left alignment brings the Start button to the bottom-left corner — the traditional Windows position that many users prefer by muscle memory.
Left alignment also has a practical advantage on ultrawide monitors: with apps open, the pinned icons remain at the left edge rather than shifting position as more apps are opened (centred alignment keeps everything dynamically centred as the number of open apps changes, which means the Start button moves). Left alignment is more predictable for users who click Start by muscle memory.
System tray icons
Settings → Personalisation → Taskbar → expand “System tray icons” to control which system icons appear: Network, Volume, Battery, Location, and Accessibility. Below that: “Other system tray icons” shows third-party applications that have added themselves to the system tray. Toggle off any that you don’t need visible — hidden tray icons are still accessible through the up-arrow (^) overflow area.
The system tray overflow (the ^ icon that expands hidden tray icons) fills up quickly on a well-used machine. For applications that clutter the tray but you want running in the background: keep them in the overflow. For applications you’ve disabled in startup and don’t want cluttering the tray at all: access through the application’s own settings to disable the tray icon option.
Taskbar on multiple monitors
Settings → Personalisation → Taskbar → Taskbar behaviours → “Show my taskbar on all displays” → when Off, the taskbar only appears on the primary monitor. When On, it appears on all connected displays — useful on multi-monitor setups where you want application switching available without moving the mouse to the primary screen.
“When using multiple displays, show my taskbar apps on” — options: All taskbars, Taskbar where window is open, Main taskbar and taskbar where window is open. “Taskbar where window is open” shows each application’s button only on the monitor where that application’s window is — the cleanest configuration for multi-monitor setups where you want each monitor’s taskbar to reflect its own windows rather than all windows.
Our guide on Windows 11 Snap Layouts covers the window-tiling system that works alongside a well-configured taskbar, and our Windows 11 virtual desktops covers the desktop organisation that complements taskbar management. For advanced taskbar configuration available through Group Policy (enterprise) and Registry tweaks for features not exposed in Settings, Microsoft’s taskbar configuration documentation covers the full range of available settings.
Features removed from the Windows 11 taskbar vs Windows 10
If you’re coming from Windows 10, some taskbar customisations are no longer available in Windows 11:
- Moving the taskbar to the top or sides of the screen (it’s fixed at the bottom in Windows 11 without third-party tools)
- Toolbars (Desktop, custom folder toolbars)
- Combining taskbar buttons option — in Windows 11, buttons are always combined when multiple windows of the same app are open
- Right-click taskbar for properties (only “Taskbar settings” option available)
Third-party tools like StartAllBack or ExplorerPatcher restore some of these capabilities for users who want the Windows 10 taskbar experience on Windows 11. These modify system files and need to be updated when Windows 11 updates sometimes breaks compatibility. Useful if you need specific features, but introduces maintenance overhead.
Notification badges and taskbar previews
Settings → Personalisation → Taskbar → Taskbar behaviours → “Show badges on taskbar apps” — the small count indicators showing unread notifications on app icons. Toggle off globally for a cleaner taskbar if notification badges cause more distraction than value.
“Show flashing on taskbar apps” — when apps flash their taskbar button to request attention. Disabling this prevents applications from flashing to interrupt you, while still showing a highlight colour on the button when something needs attention (just without the animated flash).
Taskbar preview windows (the small thumbnail that appears when hovering over a taskbar button) are controlled separately: right-click Start → Search → “visual effects” → Adjust the appearance and performance of Windows → uncheck “Show thumbnails instead of icons” to disable previews. Or: the classic path is System Properties → Advanced → Performance → Settings → Visual Effects.
| Taskbar goal | Setting location |
| Remove Search/Task View/Widget buttons | Personalisation → Taskbar → Taskbar items |
| Move Start button to left corner | Personalisation → Taskbar → Taskbar behaviours → Alignment |
| Hide system tray icons | Personalisation → Taskbar → System tray icons |
| Show taskbar on all monitors | Personalisation → Taskbar → Taskbar behaviours → Multiple displays |
| Remove app badges | Personalisation → Taskbar → Taskbar behaviours → Show badges |
| Rearrange pinned apps | Drag taskbar icons left or right |
A well-configured taskbar reduces the amount of attention it demands from you during the day — the apps you need are where you expect them, the noise is removed, and the bar doesn’t shift around unexpectedly as you work. Ten minutes of deliberate configuration produces a taskbar that works exactly the way you want it to indefinitely, without further thought.
Jump lists — the underused right-click power
Right-clicking a pinned or running application’s taskbar icon opens a jump list — a context menu showing recently-opened files, frequent actions, and pinnable shortcuts for that application. Examples:
- Right-clicking Edge: shows recently-visited sites, can open a new InPrivate window directly
- Right-clicking File Explorer: shows recently-accessed folders and pinned Quick Access locations
- Right-clicking Word or Excel: shows recently-opened documents that can be pinned to the jump list for one-click access
- Right-clicking VS Code: shows recently-opened project folders
Pinning items in jump lists (the pin icon that appears on hover) keeps specific files or actions permanently available regardless of how recently they were accessed. This is the most efficient access method for documents or project folders you open regularly — faster than navigating File Explorer or the Recent files menu within the application.
Task Manager from the taskbar
Right-clicking any blank area of the taskbar → “Task Manager” opens Task Manager directly from the taskbar context menu. This is faster than Ctrl+Shift+Esc and often quicker when a specific application is frozen and you want to kill it by right-clicking the taskbar button.
The taskbar right-click menu in Windows 11 is more minimal than Windows 10 — it primarily shows Taskbar settings and Task Manager now, whereas Windows 10 had more options. This is a deliberate Microsoft simplification that most power users find limiting. Third-party taskbar tools restore the fuller context menu if you need it.
Quick Settings (Action Center) and the taskbar
The bottom-right cluster of icons — Wi-Fi, Volume, Battery — is the Quick Settings area (Win+A to open it). This is separate from the taskbar in configuration terms but visually part of it. Quick Settings is customisable: click the pencil (edit) icon when the Quick Settings panel is open → add/remove tiles. Useful tiles to add if not present: Bluetooth (for quick toggling), Accessibility, VPN status, Mobile hotspot. Remove any that you never use.
The Quick Settings panel also contains the Notifications button (which opens the notification panel at Win+N) and the clock (which opens the calendar). These are separate panels triggered from the same area of the taskbar but contain different content.
Auto-hide taskbar
Settings → Personalisation → Taskbar → Taskbar behaviours → “Automatically hide the taskbar” → when enabled, the taskbar disappears when the cursor moves away from the bottom edge of the screen and reappears when the cursor returns. This reclaims the 40-50px of vertical screen space the taskbar permanently occupies, which is meaningful on small or 16:9 displays used primarily for reading or video.
The trade-off: there’s a brief delay when the taskbar slides into view, which some users find disruptive to workflow. Auto-hide works best for users who primarily interact with the taskbar for launching apps (not for checking running app status throughout the day). If you frequently glance at the taskbar’s running apps for context, auto-hide’s disappearance becomes an interruption rather than a convenience.
The taskbar in Windows 11 is simpler and less customisable than its Windows 10 predecessor, which is both a criticism (power users lost features) and a benefit (the defaults are less cluttered and the settings menu is less overwhelming). Working within the available settings while accepting what can’t be changed without third-party tools produces a functional, clean taskbar that serves everyday use well. The Widgets removal, the taskbar button changes, and the Start alignment setting together cover the changes that matter most to most users’ daily experience.
Start menu pinning and the taskbar relationship
Apps pinned to the Start menu and apps pinned to the taskbar are separate lists. Pinning to the taskbar provides one-click launch from the desktop at all times; pinning to Start requires opening the Start menu first. The practical decision: taskbar pins for apps opened multiple times per day; Start menu pins for apps opened less frequently that you still want fast access to.
Start menu also has a “Recommended” section showing recently-opened files and newly-installed apps. This section can be reduced: Settings → Personalisation → Start → “Show recently opened items in Start, Jump Lists, and File Explorer” → toggle off to disable the recent items. The Start menu becomes smaller and more focused on pinned items. Whether this is better depends on whether you use the recent files list — some users find it the fastest way to pick up where they left off; others find it clutter that obscures their pinned apps.
Taskbar clock and calendar customisation
The clock in the taskbar’s bottom-right corner can show additional time zones: right-click the clock → “Adjust date/time” → “Additional clocks” tab → enable up to two additional clocks that appear when hovering over the taskbar clock or in the date/time flyout. Useful for anyone working across time zones — a quick hover shows the time in the relevant cities simultaneously.
The date format shown in the clock follows the system regional settings: Settings → Time & language → Language & region → Regional format → change the format (Day, Month, Year ordering; 12h vs 24h). This affects how dates appear throughout Windows, not just in the taskbar clock. If you prefer 24-hour clock display or want the date to show the day of week abbreviation: these settings control it.
The final practical point about taskbar customisation: the best taskbar configuration is the one you don’t consciously notice during the day. When the pinned apps are right, the notifications aren’t intrusive, the alignment feels natural, and the tray isn’t cluttered — the taskbar disappears from your awareness and just works. That state of frictionless background-tool is what the 10-minute configuration investment produces, and why it’s worth doing early on any new or recently-reinstalled Windows 11 machine. You might also run into Windows 11 Start Menu.
