How to Hide or Show Unplugged Sound Devices in Settings on Windows 11
Hiding or showing unplugged sound devices in Windows 11 cleans up your audio list so it only lists the speakers, microphones and headphones that are connected to your PC right now. Starting with Windows 11 build 26340.9354 (Experimental 26H2) for Insiders, Microsoft adds a simple toggle for this on the All sound devices page in the Settings app.
If you have swapped headsets, docks or USB speakers over the years, the old entries pile up. Turning off the display of disconnected gear keeps your sound settings tidy and makes it quicker to pick the device that actually works. You can switch the setting back at any time, and nothing is uninstalled or deleted either way. The devices are only hidden from the list.
Open Settings System Sound, scroll to Advanced, click All sound devices, expand Show devices for flow, then toggle Show unplugged audio devices on or off. When off, only connected devices appear in your audio list.
Option One
Hide or Show Unplugged Sound Devices in Settings
- Press the Win+I keys to open Settings . You should see the Settings window with a list of categories on the left.
- Click System on the left side, then click Sound on the right side. You should now see your output and input devices, volume sliders and the other sound options.
It only exists on builds that include the new toggle, which is build 26340.9354 (Experimental 26H2) or later in the Insider channel. If you cannot find the option in the steps below, check your build with Settings System About. A build older than this one will not have the toggle, and you can use the Registry method further down instead.
- Scroll down to the Advanced section on the Sound page and click All sound devices. You should now see a page listing all your sound devices, split into output and input.
Open “All sound devices” Settings
- Under System defaults, click Show devices for flow on this page to expand it. The toggle for unplugged devices should now be visible.
- Turn Show unplugged audio devices on this page on or off, depending on what you want:
- On (show, the default): disconnected devices stay in the list.
- Off (hide): only devices that are currently connected are listed.
With the toggle on, any unplugged audio devices appear grayed out at the bottom of the page. That makes them easy to tell apart from the working ones. With the toggle off, they disappear from the list. If you plug the device back in, it should show up again as a normal, active device.
- Close the Settings app. The change is saved as soon as you flip the toggle, and no restart is needed. To undo it, go back to the same page and flip the toggle the other way.
Option Two
Hide or Show Unplugged Sound Devices in Settings using Registry
Advanced users can control the same behavior in the Registry by changing the ShowDisconnectedDevices value in the Registry Editor. The value lives under 🗝️HKEY_CURRENT_USER\
Editing it works the same on Home and Pro. Before you change anything, it is a good idea to back up the Registry or create a restore point, so you can roll back if something goes wrong. If the new setting does not seem to take effect straight away, close and reopen Settings, or sign out and back in.
Show Unplugged Sound Devices in Settings
This is the default setting. Disconnected devices are shown.
Set the value data for "ShowDisconnectedDevices" to 1.
Hide Unplugged Sound Devices in Settings
This hides disconnected devices.
Set the value data for "ShowDisconnectedDevices" to 0.
Summary
This guide showed you how to control the visibility of unplugged sound devices on Windows 11. You can switch between showing and hiding these disconnected audio items using either the Settings app or the Windows Registry Editor. The Settings toggle is the easier route if your build has it. To reverse either method, turn the toggle back on, or set the "ShowDisconnectedDevices" value back to 1.
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About the Author
Richard
Tech Writer, IT Professional
Richard is a writer at Geek Rewind who turns complex IT tasks into clear, step-by-step guides. He draws on years of hands-on experience in system administration and enterprise IT operations, focusing on Windows, Linux and WordPress: the problems people actually run into, and the fixes that work. His server and WordPress guides come from systems he runs himself. Richard builds and maintains the platform behind Geek Rewind, from its Ubuntu servers and Nginx configuration to its custom WordPress plugins. Many new tutorials start with readers' questions, and he's always glad to answer them in the comments.
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