How to Remove ‘Pin to Taskbar’ and ‘Unpin from Taskbar’ Options in Windows

Learn how to remove both the ‘Pin to Taskbar‘ and ‘Unpin from Taskbar‘ options to disallow or stop users from pinning or unpinning apps in the Windows 11 and Windows 10 taskbar.

One of the best features of the taskbar is that it lets you pin your most frequently used apps directly to it with just two clicks. All you have to do is right-click the app icon and select the “Pin to Taskbar” option. When you no longer need an app on the taskbar, you can unpin it by right-clicking on it and selecting the “Unpin from Taskbar” option.

While pinning and unpinning apps from the Taskbar is pretty useful, there might be situations where you want to restrict users from performing those actions. For instance, an administrator might want to prevent users from unpinning essential applications like browsers or VPN clients, or conversely, stop them from pinning non-work-related apps such as games. Whatever your specific user case is, Windows can be configured to hide both the ‘Pin to Taskbar’ and ‘Unpin from Taskbar’ options from an app’s taskbar context menu.

In this quick and straightforward guide, let me show you the steps to remove ‘Pin to Taskbar’ and ‘Unpin from Taskbar’ options in both Windows 11 and Windows 10. Let’s get started.

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Before You Start

• Administrator rights are required to remove or hide the ‘Pin to Taskbar’ and ‘Unpin from Taskbar’ options.

Remove ‘Pin to Taskbar’ and ‘Unpin from Taskbar’ Options Using Group Policy Editor

You can modify the “Do not allow pinning programs to the Taskbar” policy using the Group Policy Editor to hide the ‘Pin to Taskbar’ and ‘Unpin from Taskbar’ options. Here’s how.

1. Press “Windows key + R” to open the Run dialog.
2. Type “gpedit.msc” and click “OK” to open the Group Policy Editor.
   
3. Open the “User Configuration” > “Administrative Templates” > “Start Menu and Taskbar” folder.
4. Double-click on the “Do not allow pinning programs to the Taskbar” policy on the right page.
5. Select the “Enabled” option and click “OK“.
   
6. Close the Group Policy Editor.
7. Restart your computer.

After restarting, you will no longer see either the ‘Pin to Taskbar’ or ‘Unpin from Taskbar’ options when you right-click on an app icon on the taskbar.

To show the options again, follow the same steps but select “Not configured” in step 5.

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Remove ‘Pin to Taskbar’ and ‘Unpin from Taskbar’ Options Using Registry Editor

If you don’t have access to the Group Policy Editor, you can use the Registry Editor to remove the ‘Pin to Taskbar’ and ‘Unpin from Taskbar’ options. Here’s how to do it.

Note: Before proceeding, back up the registry.

1. Press “Windows key + R” to open the Run dialog.
2. Type “regedit” in the blank field and click “OK“.
   
3. In the registry window, go to the following folder on the left sidebar. HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows
4. Right-click the “Windows” folder and select “New” > “Key“.
   
5. Name the folder as “Explorer“.
   
6. Right-click the “Explorer” folder and select “New” > “DWORD (32-bit) Value“.
   
7. Name the new value as “NoPinningToTaskbar“.
   
8. Double-click the newly created value.
9. Type “1” in the “Value Data” field and click “OK“.
   
10. Close the Registry Editor and restart your computer.

After restarting the system, both the ‘Pin to Taskbar’ and ‘Unpin from Taskbar’ options are no longer available.

To make those options appear again, navigate to the “HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer” folder in the registry editor and delete the “NoPinningToTaskbar” value by right-clicking on the value and selecting “Delete”.

Wrapping Up — Hiding the ‘Pin to Taskbar’ and ‘Unpin from Taskbar’ Options in Windows

As you can see, if you don’t want Windows to display ‘Pin to Taskbar’ and ‘Unpin from Taskbar’ options when you right-click on an app icon on the taskbar, you have two ways to get rid of them. If you are using the Pro or Enterprise edition, follow the Group Policy Method. Otherwise, follow the Registry Editor method. No matter which method you follow, the end result is the same.

If you have any questions or need help, comment below. I’ll be happy to assist.

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Update: This guide has been updated to reflect the changes in Windows 11 and to further simplify and condense the steps.