Windows 11’s Start menu has been redesigned to make it look more modern and with a greater focus on a simpler layout, pinning apps, and recommendations. To see all your applications, you must click on the All Apps button in the top right corner of the Start menu. However, if you are someone who prefers an overview of all your applications upon opening the Start menu, you might find the default layout a bit limiting.
In this tutorial, we’ll show you a simple way to make the Start menu show all apps by default. Let’s get started.
Show All Apps By Default in Windows 11 Start Menu
There’s no native option in Windows 11 to show all apps by default. So, we will use a free program called ExplorerPatcher to achieve it. ExplorerPatcher is a simple yet powerful Windows UI customization software. Here’s how.
1. First, download ExplorerPatcher from its official GitHub page.
2. After downloading, double-click the installer file and click Yes in the UAC prompt. This will install the program.
Note: As soon as you install the application, you might notice that the taskbar has been changed to Windows 10 style. Don’t worry we’ll revert it to Windows 11 style.
3. Right-click on the taskbar and select Properties.
4. In the Properties window, select Taskbar on the left pane, and select Windows 11 (default) from the Taskbar Style menu.
5. Next, select Start Menu on the sidebar. Select the Open Start in All app by default option to enable it. Once enabled, you will see a small checkbox next to it.
6. Finally, click on the Restart File Explorer option in the bottom left corner. This will restart the explorer process.
7. Once the process has been restarted, your Windows 11 Start menu will show all apps as soon as you open it.
And there you have it! It’s that simple to make the Windows 11 Start menu display all apps by default. If you have any questions, comment below and we’ll answer. If you like this article, please subscribe to our newsletter to get more tips like to your inbox. You will find the signup link at the top of the sidebar of this page.
I shouldn’t have to download a 3rd party app to do this. Microsoft needs to put a property setting that’s easily changed in the settings.