How to Enable or Disable Notification Suggestions in Windows 11

Change settings in the Settings App

The Settings app is the fastest and safest way to switch notification suggestions on or off. It needs no registry editing and works the same on Windows 11 Home and Pro. The steps below take you from opening Settings to the toggle, which sits on the Notifications page under the System category.

1. Open the Windows Settings app. Open the Start menu and select it, or press the Windows key + I to launch the Settings app. The Settings window opens with a list of categories down the left side.
2. Click the System button on the left sidebar. The System page opens on the right, showing tiles such as Display, Sound and Notifications.

3. Select the Notifications tile on the right. The Notifications page opens. You should see the main notifications switch at the top and a list of apps further down.

4. Find the section labeled "Notifications from apps and other senders." Scroll down if you can't see it yet. If part of the page is collapsed, expand it. Exact wording and layout can differ slightly between Windows 11 builds.
5. Click the toggle switch for Notification Suggestions to turn it on or off. When the switch is on, Windows can show prompts offering to mute apps you ignore. When it is off, those prompts stop. To undo the change, return here and flip the switch back.
6. Close the settings window when finished. The change is saved as soon as you flip the switch. You don't need to restart.

Change settings using the Registry Editor

You can also turn off notification suggestions by editing the registry. This is the method to use if you manage several PCs or prefer to set the value directly. Registry Editor changes a specific key so the suggestions stay off for your user account. Because a wrong edit can cause problems, export the key first (File › Export in Registry Editor) so you can restore it later. Then open the tool from the Start menu and go to the right path to update the correct value.

1. Open the Windows Registry by searching for it in the Start menu. Select the result, and approve the User Account Control prompt if one appears. The Registry Editor window opens with a folder tree on the left.
2. Navigate to the following path: Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Notifications\Settings\Windows.ActionCenter.SmartOptOut. You can paste it into the address bar at the top of Registry Editor, or expand the folders one by one. The values for that key then appear in the right pane.
3. Look for the Enabled (REG_DWORD) item in the right pane. If it is not there, right-click a blank space, select New › DWORD (32-bit) Value, and name it Enabled. The new item appears in the list, ready for you to rename it, so type the name exactly as shown and press Enter.
4. Double-click Enabled and change the value to 0 to turn the feature off. Enter the number in the Value data box and click OK. The right pane should now show the new value next to Enabled.
5. To turn the feature back on in the future, delete the Enabled item you created. Right-click it, select Delete, and confirm. Windows then goes back to its default behavior.
6. Restart your computer to apply the changes. Do this after turning the feature off, and again after deleting the item to turn it back on.

Summary

Windows 11 lets you control whether it suggests muting apps you rarely use. For most people the Settings toggle is the right choice. It takes seconds and is easy to reverse. Use the Registry Editor method if you want to set the value directly, and remember to export the key first and restart afterward. Whichever you pick, you decide how many notifications reach your screen.