How to Turn Off Windows 10’s Built-in Advertising (Windows 10 & 11 Guide)

Switch on a fresh Windows 10 PC and you’ll often find a few apps you never asked for, a nudge to buy Microsoft 365, and a lock screen that sounds more like a sales pitch than a wallpaper. Microsoft labels these ‘suggestions’, ‘tips’ and ‘consumer experiences’. Most people simply call them Windows 10 ads, and they’re switched on by default.

The good news is that you can turn off almost all of them yourself. This guide covers every place Windows 10 shows advertising, the exact Settings path to switch each one off, what changes in Windows 11, and how to tell a harmless Microsoft promo from adware. It’s written by the technicians at Computer Cures, who set up and clean Windows PCs for homes and businesses across Melbourne every week.

Why does Windows 10 show ads in the first place?

Microsoft treats the operating system as a marketing channel, using it to promote its own products (Microsoft 365, OneDrive, Edge, Xbox Game Pass) and partner apps. Internally this is handled by a feature called ‘Windows consumer experiences’, which pushes promotional content into the lock screen, Start menu, notifications and Settings app.

These promotions are annoying rather than dangerous. They are not viruses, and they don’t mean your PC has been hacked. They can, however, slow down a new computer, clutter Start with junk, and train people to click prompts without reading them, which is exactly what scammers count on. If you’re seeing pop-ups outside Windows features, skip ahead to Windows ads or malware?.

Where Windows 10 ads appear (quick reference)

Use this table to find the ad you’re seeing, then follow the matching numbered step further down.

Before you start

• Check your version. Press Windows key + I, then go to System > About. The steps below match Windows 10 version 22H2, and menu wording can differ slightly on older builds.
• Repeat for each user account. Most of these settings are saved per user, so a family PC with three logins needs three passes.
• Give yourself ten minutes. Nothing here touches your files or programs, and every change can be reversed by flipping the same switch back on.

How to turn off Windows 10 ads: 12 steps

Step 1: Remove lock screen ads (Windows Spotlight)

Windows Spotlight rotates beautiful photos, but it also slips in promotions for games and Microsoft services. Swapping it for your own picture is the quickest win.

1. Go to Settings > Personalisation > Lock screen.
2. Under Background, change ‘Windows Spotlight’ to Picture or Slideshow.
3. Switch off Get fun facts, tips, tricks, and more from Windows and Cortana on your lock screen.

Step 2: Stop Start menu suggestions

This is the ad most people notice first, and it’s the one older guides forget. Windows quietly adds ‘suggested’ apps to the Start menu, often with a small ‘Promoted’ or ‘Sponsored’ tag.

1. Open Settings > Personalisation > Start.
2. Turn off Show suggestions occasionally in Start.
3. Right-click any promoted tile that’s already there and choose Uninstall or Unpin from Start.

Step 3: Turn off tips, tricks and ‘suggested’ notifications

Microsoft describes these pop-ups as helpful hints. In practice they’re prompts to try Edge, sign in with a Microsoft account or subscribe to something. To silence them:

1. Go to Settings > System > Notifications & actions.
2. Switch off Get tips, tricks, and suggestions as you use Windows.
3. Switch off Suggest ways I can finish setting up my device to get the most out of Windows.
4. Switch off Show me the Windows welcome experience after updates and occasionally when I sign in to highlight what’s new and suggested.

Step 4: Disable the advertising ID and suggested content

Behind the scenes, Windows assigns your account an advertising ID so apps can show ‘relevant’ ads. Turning it off won’t remove every ad, but it stops the personalisation and trims the promos inside the Settings app.

1. Open Settings > Privacy > General.
2. Turn off Let apps use advertising ID to make ads more interesting to you based on your app activity.
3. Turn off Show me suggested content in the Settings app.
4. Optional: under Privacy > Diagnostics & feedback, switch off Tailored experiences.

Want to go further with data collection? Our guide on how to stop the internet tracking you covers browser-level protection, and can websites see your location? explains what your PC shares by default.

Step 5: Hide OneDrive and Microsoft 365 banners in File Explorer

Sync provider notifications are File Explorer’s way of advertising OneDrive and Microsoft 365. They appear as a banner across the top of your folders.

1. Open File Explorer, click the View tab, then Options (far right).
2. In the Folder Options window, choose the View tab and scroll through Advanced settings.
3. Untick Show sync provider notifications, then click Apply.

Step 6: Switch off ‘Get Office’ and Microsoft 365 prompts

If you keep being offered a one-month Office trial, the prompt comes from the Office hub app’s notification permission.

1. Go to Settings > System > Notifications & actions.
2. Scroll to Get notifications from these senders.
3. Set Get Office (or Microsoft 365 (Office) on newer builds) to Off.

Step 7: Uninstall pre-installed promotional apps

Some PCs arrive with, or later receive, apps such as Candy Crush Saga, Twitter and other sponsored titles. Removing them takes seconds:

1. Open the Start menu and find the app you don’t want.
2. Right-click it and choose Uninstall.
3. For tiles that show a small download arrow (not installed yet), right-click and choose Unpin from Start instead.

If the list of unwanted software is long, especially on a new laptop from a big-box retailer, read our guide to removing bloatware or book a PC tune-up and we’ll do a proper clean-out for you.

Step 8: Turn off ad-carrying live tiles

Store, Xbox and a few other built-in apps can’t be uninstalled, but you can stop their tiles from animating with promotions.

1. Right-click the tile in Start.
2. Choose More > Turn live tile off.
3. Optional: right-click again and choose Unpin from Start to remove it altogether.

Step 9: Hide app suggestions in the Share pane

1. In File Explorer, select a file, click the Share tab, then the Share button.
2. When the list of apps appears, right-click inside it.
3. Untick Show app suggestions.

Step 10: Remove ‘recommended apps’ from Windows Ink Workspace

Even if you never use a stylus, the Ink Workspace can still show app recommendations.

1. Go to Settings > Devices > Pen & Windows Ink.
2. Switch Show recommended app suggestions to Off.

Step 11: Clean up the taskbar (News and interests, search highlights, Cortana)

Older versions of this guide told you to disable Cortana’s ‘Taskbar Tidbits’. Microsoft has since been retiring Cortana in Windows, and the same job is now done by the News and interests widget and search highlights. To remove them:

1. Right-click an empty part of the taskbar, choose News and interests, then Turn off.
2. Right-click the taskbar again, choose Search, and untick Show search highlights.

Step 12: Deal with Solitaire’s video ads

The Microsoft Solitaire Collection plays video ads between games. The only official way to remove them is a paid Premium subscription. If you’d rather not pay, uninstall the app and play a free browser version (searching ‘solitaire’ in Google gives you an ad-free game in the results) or install an offline card-game app you trust.

Windows 11 ads: what’s different?

Upgrading doesn’t make the ads disappear. Windows 11 drops live tiles but adds new places for promotions: the Start menu’s Recommended area, the Widgets feed, Settings homepage banners and account prompts. These are the switches to check:

• Start recommendations: Settings > Personalisation > Start. Turn off ‘Show recommendations for tips, shortcuts, new apps, and more’ and ‘Show account-related notifications’.
• Lock screen: Settings > Personalisation > Lock screen. Choose Picture or Slideshow and turn off ‘Get fun facts, tips, tricks, and more on your lock screen’.
• Notifications: Settings > System > Notifications > Additional settings. Untick the welcome experience, ‘Suggest ways to get the most out of Windows’ and ‘Get tips and suggestions when using Windows’.
• Advertising ID and suggested content: Settings > Privacy & security > General. Turn off personalised ads and ‘Show me suggested content in the Settings app’.
• Widgets: right-click the taskbar, choose Taskbar settings and switch Widgets off.
• File Explorer: the ‘Show sync provider notifications’ option in Folder Options works the same way as Step 5.

Wondering whether your PC can make the jump at all? Read our Windows 11 upgrade guide and what to expect when you upgrade to Windows 11, or let us handle it with our Windows 11 upgrade service. If a recent update has caused trouble, see Windows 11 24H2 update issues.

Why do Windows ads keep coming back?

If you’ve switched everything off and the ads return, the usual causes are:

• A major Windows update re-enabled defaults or introduced a brand-new prompt. Repeat the checks above after each big update.
• A new user profile starts with Microsoft’s defaults, so every new login needs the same treatment.
• A reinstalled or reset PC wipes your choices. Keep a note of the steps, or ask us to configure the PC once and document it.
• A stalled or failing update can leave settings in a half-applied state. See how to fix Windows Update problems and why Windows updates slow down your PC.

For businesses: control Windows ads with policy

Manually clicking through every laptop doesn’t scale. On Windows Enterprise and Education editions, IT teams can block promotional content centrally with the Group Policy setting Turn off Microsoft consumer experiences (Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Cloud Content), or by pushing equivalent settings through Intune. Windows Home and Pro devices rely on the per-user toggles above, which is why a standard, pre-configured build is worth setting up for any office. Our managed IT services and small business IT support teams roll out clean, ad-free, consistent Windows setups across every device.

Windows ads or malware? How to tell the difference

Built-in Windows ads only appear inside Windows: the lock screen, Start, Settings, File Explorer or a notification labelled with a Microsoft app. Adware and scams behave differently. Warning signs include:

• Full-screen pop-ups in your web browser, or ads that appear when no browser is open.
• Fake alerts claiming ‘Your PC is infected’ with a phone number to call.
• A changed browser homepage or search engine you didn’t choose.
• Programs you don’t remember installing, or a PC that has suddenly become very slow.

If any of those sound familiar, don’t click or call the number. Run a full scan in Windows Security (Settings > Update & Security > Windows Security > Virus & threat protection), then read our guides on potentially unwanted programs and the 8 warning signs of malware. If you’ve already called a number or let someone connect to your PC, follow what to do if a scammer got remote access straight away.

Our technicians offer fast, often same-day virus, spyware and malware removal in Melbourne, plus antivirus installation and setup so you’re protected afterwards.

Windows 10 end of support: should you keep using it?

Microsoft ended regular Windows 10 support on 14 October 2025. Since then, the safest options are:

1. Stay on Windows 10 with Extended Security Updates (ESU). Microsoft’s consumer ESU page currently lists 12 October 2027 as the end of the program, but terms can vary by region, so confirm the details before you rely on them.
2. Upgrade to Windows 11 if your PC meets the requirements. It’s free on compatible hardware, and our Windows 11 upgrade service keeps your files, apps and settings intact.
3. Replace or upgrade the hardware. If your computer is too old, a RAM, SSD or component upgrade can sometimes extend its life; otherwise it’s time for a new machine (see is your computer ready for AI?).

Ads shouldn’t drive that decision, because Windows 11 has them too. Security and hardware compatibility should. For a plain-English plan, start with our Windows 10 end-of-support guide or ask about a computer health check for your office.

More ways to make Windows 10 cleaner and faster

Once the ads are gone, a few extra tweaks make a noticeable difference to speed and privacy:

• Work through our 10 changes to make on a new Windows 10 computer.
• Free up resources with 6 ways to speed up Windows 10 and our step-by-step Windows 10 clean-up guide.
• Take back control of your browser with our guide to replacing Edge as the default browser.
• Install only what you need from our list of the top 10 must-have Windows programs.
• Still sluggish? Check the 5 reasons your PC is slow or book a PC tune-up and computer cleaning.

Need a hand? Windows 10 & 11 help across Melbourne

If you’d rather not click through Settings yourself, Computer Cures can do it for you, at home, at the office or remotely. Our technicians have looked after PCs, laptops and small business networks across Melbourne for over 15 years, and we’re open 24/7 on 13 0055 3166. Here’s how we can help:

We service homes and businesses right across the city, from Brighton, South Yarra and Hawthorn to Box Hill, Point Cook and beyond. See all Melbourne locations, or check our eastern suburbs, inner city, bayside, western and northern suburbs pages. Not sure what a visit costs? Our Melbourne computer repair cost guide explains typical pricing. Prefer a person over a website? Our home IT support and IT support for seniors services are friendly, patient and jargon-free.

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