How to Pin Recycle Bin to Taskbar Windows 10 The Easy Way ♻

With a simple action, you can easily pin the recycle bin for quick access. Here are the steps to follow to pin the recycle bin to Windows 10 taskbar.

By removing all the icons from the desktop, you can keep the desktop clean with no clutter whatsoever. Yes, you can even remove the recycle bin from the desktop. Once you remove or hide the recycle bin, it would be nice to have a quick and easy way to open the recycle bin as and when needed. In those cases, you can pin the recycle bin to the taskbar in Windows 10.

The easiest way to pin a file to the taskbar is to drag and drop. However, if you drag and drop the recycle bin, Windows will add it to the File Explorer’s jumplist rather than as a sperate icon. This is because the recycle bin is just a part of the File Explorer. As such, Windows adds it to the jump list.

To show the recycle bin icon on the taskbar, you have to manually add a recycle bin shortcut to the taskbar. The good thing is there are several ways to achieve what we want. In this quick guide, let me show you the best steps to pin recycle bin to the taskbar in Windows 10.

Steps to Pin Recycle Bin to Taskbar in Windows 10

To pin the recycle bin, we first need to create a new shortcut and then add it to the taskbar. Follow the below steps.

1. On the desktop, right-click and select “New” and then “Shortcut“.
   
2. Here, add “%SystemRoot%\explorer.exe shell:RecycleBinFolder” in the blank field and click “Next“.
   
3. Type “Recycle Bin” in the name field and click “Finish“.
   
4. Since the recycle bin is part of the Windows explorer, it uses to the default File Explorer icon. To change that, right-click on the shortcut and select “Properties“.
   
5. Here, click on the “Change icon” button.
   
6. Add “%SystemRoot%\system32\imageres.dll” in the “Look for icons in this file” field and press “Enter“.
   
7. Find the recycle bin icon, select it, and click “Ok“.
   
8. You can see the new icon in the properties window. Click “Apply” and “Ok” buttons to save changes.
   
9. Now, drag and drop the recycle bin shortcut on to the taskbar.
10. This action will pin the recycle bin to the taskbar.
    

That is all. As you can see, though not as straightforward as pin an application, it is pretty easy. Once you are done pinning the recycle bin, you can delete the desktop shortcut. Just as with the recycle bin, you can pin almost any folder to the taskbar. I’ve already written about it. Do check it out if needed.

I hope that helps. If you are stuck or need some help, comment below and I will try to help as much as possible. If you want to, you can also change the recycle bin icon to anything you want. Do check out that article if you are interested in customizing the look and feel of Windows.