Microsoft isn't holding back with all the new features they're adding to Windows 11. While some are genuinely useful, others just make the OS look rather cluttered. Remember when the taskbar used to be all about cycling through windows? Not anymore. Now we've got a weather widget, a Copilot icon, a large search bar with quirky cartoon characters - the list goes on. More recently, the Start menu has even started showing ads. But don't worry, there are ways to clean up that sloppy look on your PC. Here's how. Get rid of that wide search bar Perhaps the biggest annoyance is the new super-wide search bar taking up a significant portion of the taskbar. Worse, it occasionally shows distracting little cartoon illustrations that mess up the taskbar's look. While there's a method to disable those illustrations, you'd be better off removing that wide search bar entirely. Just right-click the taskbar, click Taskbar settings, go to Taskbar items, and change Search to 'Search icon only'. Alternatively, you can hide it completely - the search bar in the Start menu launches the same dialog anyway. Disable search recommendations The new taskbar widgets may be annoying enough, but Microsoft has also found a way to sneak random content suggestions into search too - game recommendations you don't need, travel tips for places you’ll probably never visit, and so on. Thankfully, you can get rid of this too. Launch search, click the three-dot icon to the right of your profile picture, and open Search settings. Scroll down to "Show search highlights" and toggle that off. Disable widgets It's time to remove those widgets. These are enabled by default and can be accessed from the weather icon on the far left of the taskbar, displaying content like news, sports, stocks, traffic, and entertainment. To disable them, launch those same Taskbar settings and turn off the widgets toggle. Ditch desktop icons If you want that clean macOS-like look on Windows 11, you can remove all icons from your desktop. And no, there’s no need to delete them manually - all it takes is a couple of clicks on your desktop. Instead, pin frequently used apps to the taskbar and infrequently used ones to the Start menu. If you need to access those icons again, simply unhide the desktop icons. To hide desktop icons, right-click on the desktop > View > Uncheck "Show desktop icons". Remove Start menu ads, recommendations The Start menu can sometimes feel overloaded with tips, recommended apps, recently added apps, recently opened files, and more - all crammed into a small window. And as if that wasn't enough, newer Windows 11 updates are even showing ads in the menu. For people who just want access to pinned apps or view installed programs, everything else may seem like clutter. To reduce the noise in Start, right-click it and open Start settings. Here, turn off things like "Show most used apps," "Show recommendations for tips, shortcuts, new apps, and more," or any other unused features. Hide Copilot Microsoft has been trying to push its newfound love for generative AI onto unsuspecting users. And one of the most obvious ways it’s doing this is the new Copilot icon that sits on the far right of the taskbar. Now don’t get me wrong - Copilot is great for summarising and generating new content. But if you don’t use it, why let it eat precious taskbar space? To hide Copilot, launch Taskbar settings and turn off the toggle for it.
