How to Enable or Disable ‘Add Profile’ in Microsoft Edge

Before You Get Started

You need Microsoft Edge installed on Windows 10 or Windows 11 alongside administrator rights to change Microsoft Edge add profile settings. Log into an administrator account before you begin so you can make these changes stick and successfully update your browser configuration.

• Microsoft Edge must be installed on your Windows computer.
• You need administrator rights on your PC to make these changes. (Admin Rights Required)
• These steps work on all editions of Windows 11 and Windows 10, including Windows Home.

Follow the steps carefully, because modifying the wrong registry keys can cause system instability.

Method 1Use the Registry Editor to Hide the Add Profile Button

You can use the Registry Editor (a database for core system and app settings) to hide the Microsoft Edge add profile button by adding a specific entry. This forces the browser to remove the profile creation option entirely from the user interface.

Open the Run command box by pressing the Windows Key + R on your keyboard simultaneously. A small box appears in the bottom-left corner of the screen. Tip: You can also right-click the Windows Start button ⊞ and select “Run” from the menu that appears.

Launch the Registry Editor. Type regedit into the search field inside the Run box and press Enter on your keyboard. Windows asks if you want to allow the app to make changes to your device. Click "Yes" to proceed.

Navigate to the Edge policy folder. Look at the left-hand sidebar of the Registry Editor window. Click the small arrows next to the folders to expand them in this exact order: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, then SOFTWARE, then Policies, then Microsoft, and finally click on Edge. Note: If you do not see a folder named Edge inside the Microsoft folder, create one. Right-click the Microsoft folder, hover over "New," select "Key," and type Edge as the name.

Create the profile control setting. Right-click any empty space in the main white pane on the right side of the screen while you have the Edge folder selected. Hover your mouse over "New" and click on "DWORD (32-bit) Value."

Name your new value. Type BrowserAddProfileEnabled as the name for the new item and press Enter. Spell it exactly like that, paying close attention to the capital letters.

Disable the profile creation feature. Double-click your newly created BrowserAddProfileEnabled item. A small window pops up asking for a value data number. Type 0 into that box and click the "OK" button. Tip: Setting this value to 0 turns the feature off completely. If you want to turn it back on later, return to this spot and change that number to 1 instead.

Restart your browser. Close the Registry Editor window completely. Shut down Microsoft Edge and open it back up. You can also restart your computer to ensure the new rule takes effect immediately.

Method 2Use PowerShell for Quick Configuration

You can manage Microsoft Edge add profile settings using PowerShell (a task automation and configuration management framework) if you prefer running commands instead of clicking through menus. This command-line method updates your browser configuration in seconds across one or many computers.

Open PowerShell with administrator rights. (Admin Rights Required) Click the Windows Start button, type PowerShell into the search bar, right-click "Windows PowerShell" in the search results, and choose "Run as administrator." Click "Yes" on the security prompt.

Disable the profile button with a command. Copy and paste the following command into your PowerShell window, then press Enter:

New-Item -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Edge" -Force
New-ItemProperty -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Edge" -Name "BrowserAddProfileEnabled" -PropertyType DWord -Value 0 -Force

Explanation: The first command makes sure the Edge policy folder exists on your system, and the second command creates the disabling rule and sets its value to zero.

Verify the change worked. You should see a status readout in PowerShell confirming the property was created successfully. Close the PowerShell window when you finish.

Re-enable the feature if needed later. If you change your mind down the road and want to let users add profiles again, open PowerShell as an administrator and run this command instead: Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Edge" -Name "BrowserAddProfileEnabled" -Value 1

Summary

Microsoft Edge add profile restrictions help you keep your browser locked down and stop unwanted profile clutter on shared computers. This guide walked you through two ways to get the job done by using either the Windows Registry Editor or a command in PowerShell with administrator privileges.