Have you noticed new ads popping up in your Windows 11 Start menu after installing KB5037771 (or the preview update KB5036980)? These new ads appear under the Recommended section, blending in with your frequently opened & newly installed apps and files. If you don’t like them or want to keep your Start menu clean, you can easily disable them by toggling a single option in the Settings app. In this tutorial, I’ll show you how to disable Start menu ads and recommendations in Windows 11. Let’s get started.
Steps to Disable Ads & Recommendations in Windows 11 Start menu
- Open Settings by pressing “Start + I.”
- Go to “Personalization” > “Start.”
- Toggle OFF the “Show More Pinned Items Than Recommendations” option to turn off Start menu ads.
- Close the Settings window.
- Restart Windows 11.
Detailed Steps (With Screenshots)
First, open the Settings app in Windows 11. You can either press the “Start + I” keyboard shortcut or press the Start button and then click on the “gear” icon.
Once the Settings window opens, go to the Personalization > Start page. This is where you can manage and customize your Windows 11 Start menu.
Toggle OFF the “Show More Pinned Items Than Recommendations” option on this page to remove ads from the Start menu.
Close the Settings window by clicking the X button on the title bar. Finally, restart your computer. To restart, press the Start button, click the Power icon, and select Restart.
After restarting, you will not see ads or unwanted recommendations in the Start menu. You will still see the Recommended section, but it only shows recommendations for your installed apps and files.
Show More Pinned Items Than Recommendations
If you seldom use the Recommendation section to access your frequently used apps and files, there is a way to minimize that section so that you can pin more apps in the Start menu. For example, I pin all my favorite apps to the Start menu and never use the Recommended section because it is dynamic and constantly changes depending on your usage patterns. To do that, you must change the Start menu layout to show more pins. Here’s how.
- Open “Settings” in Windows 11.
- Go to the “Personalization” > “Start” page.
- Select the “More Pins” option under the Layout section to customize the Start menu.
That’s it. The Recommended section is shrieked down to just one row, and you will have a larger area to pin your favorite apps. Unfortunately, there is currently no way to completely get rid of the Recommended section in the Start menu but this is the next best thing you have. Give it a try.
Wrapping Up — Stop Unwanted Ads in the Start menu
If you don’t like ads or unwanted app recommendations, following the steps I’ve shown above will get rid of them. Simply turn off the “Show More Pinned Items Than Recommendations” option, and you are good to go. Optionally, you can also try shrinking the Recommended section so that you can pin more apps of your choice not rely on the dynamic recommendations. Additionally, you can modify the Start menu to show All Apps by default instead of the pinned apps or recommendations. This will enhance your Windows 11 Start menu experience and privacy.
