You may not have realized, but Windows 10 and 11 have a ton of ads built into them. Microsoft doesn’t formally classify them as ads; instead, it labels them as suggestions, recommendations, tips, and offers. Though they serve the same purpose: to draw attention to services and features such as Microsoft Store apps, OneDrive cloud services, and Microsoft 365 subscriptions.
You’ll see different types of these on the Start Menu, Lock Screen, File Explorer, and the Settings app. The notification center can also deliver “tips and suggestions” as toast notifications, recommending actions like trying a specific service. If you’re like me and are tired of this promotional content, here’s how I disabled everything. The good thing is that you don’t need any software for this; you just need to tinker with some Windows settings.
Someone got Doom running on a touchscreen pot for those extra-long cooking times
Table of Contents
Ragu has never been this exciting.
In recent versions of Windows 10 and 11, you’ll find suggested apps and promotional content in the Start Menu, usually under the Recommended or Suggested sections. They are promoting apps you haven’t installed and link to the Microsoft Store, so they are classified as ads. Here’s how to turn these off:
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Open Settings (Windows + I).
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Go to Personalization.
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Choose Start from the sidebar.
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Windows 11: Locate the toggle for “Show recommendations, tips, shortcuts, new apps, and more” and turn it off.
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Windows 10: Look for “Show suggestions occasionally in Start” and toggle it off.
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This should remove recommended apps, tips, and such.
I don’t miss them at all.
File Explorer ads
Windows File Explorer sometimes displays promotional content, such as banners and notifications, urging you to use cloud services (notably OneDrive) or Microsoft 365. These are delivered through what Microsoft calls sync provider notifications. You can disable them using built-in settings, so Explorer remains focused on local files and folders without additional prompts.
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Open File Explorer (press Windows + E).
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Click the three-dot menu (⋯) in the toolbar
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Select Options.
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In the Folder Options dialog, go to the View tab.
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Uncheck “Show sync provider notifications.”
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Click Apply.
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Click OK.
Now the thin banners that recommend backing up files to OneDrive or suggest Microsoft 365 subscription features will no longer appear in Explorer. Real sync status icons and conflict messages may still appear in the OneDrive client’s system tray if the service is running, but you won’t see promotional prompts.
Settings app ads
In recent Windows releases, Microsoft may surface promotional suggestions and content directly within the Settings app. These can appear as banners, tips, or recommendations for services such as Microsoft 365, OneDrive, Copilot, or other Microsoft products. Disabling them is relatively simple:
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Open Settings (Windows + I).
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Navigate to Privacy & security.
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Select General (sometimes labeled “Recommendations & Offers”).
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Turn off the option labelled “Show me suggested content in the Settings app” or “Recommendations and offers in Settings.”
This will disable the promotional ads that appear at the top of Settings pages (like prompts to sign in or subscribe).
Personalization or tailored ads
Under Privacy & Security, some options affect personalized suggestions across the OS, including within Settings. First off, uncheck “Personalized offers.” Then, turn off the “Advertising ID” option; it prevents apps from using your unique advertising identifier to track activity and surface personalized content within Windows. This also reduces the personalized nature of some Settings suggestions.
Windows displays a notification screen or banner that says “Let’s finish setting up your device” or suggests ways to get the most out of Windows on your PC. These will include signing in, enabling features, or linking services. These are part of the Windows welcome and setup experience, which is separate from regular apps. To disable these:
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Open Settings (Windows + I).
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Navigate to System > Notifications.
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Scroll to Additional settings.
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Uncheck “Suggest ways I can finish setting up my device” (or similar wording) and “Show the Windows welcome experience after updates and when signed in to show what’s new and suggested.”
These settings suppress the setup-style prompts that appear after a fresh installation or a major update, and generally any prompts you may get if Windows thinks there are steps you haven’t completed yet in the setup process.
Windows will also use notifications to remind you to sign in with or re-link your Microsoft account, or to promote services like OneDrive or Microsoft 365. These are delivered through system notifications and are controlled by the same Notifications settings.
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Go to Settings > System > Notifications.
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Review the list of notifications from apps and other senders.
I only had OneDrive here (I get OneDrive prompts on startup), and so I disabled that.
Lock screen and background ads
When Windows Spotlight is enabled, Microsoft rotates high-resolution images from the internet and overlays tips, fun facts, promotional content, and recommendations on top of those images–on the lock screen. These overlays may include service suggestions, usage tips, or sometimes promotional content. If you feel like that content is intrusive, here’s how to get rid of it.
First off, you can prefer your own stored images over internet-pulled ones. For that, you need to switch off Windows Spotlight:
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Open Settings (Windows + I).
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Go to Personalization > Lock screen.
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In the Background dropdown menuchange from Windows Spotlight to Picture or Slideshow.
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Just below on the same page, disable “Get fun facts, tips, tricks, and more on your lock screen.”
Next, go back to Personalization and select “Background,” then disable Windows Spotlight there too to get rid of the “Learn more about this picture” ad on the desktop.
A good Windows is an ad-free Windows
Following these simple steps helped me get rid of most ads on Windows. There are still some promotional elements that cannot be disabled in the settings, and I did not want to use more “advanced” methods like third-party software or registry edits. Also, it’s important to note that major Windows updates can reset some or all of the settings you apply, so you’ll have to go through them again in that case.
