How to Opt Out of Targeted Offers in Windows 11 Privacy Settings

Disable Recommendations in the Start Menu

The Start menu ⊞ is the most visible place for suggestions. It can show recently added apps, most used apps, and a Recommended section with tips and promoted apps. Turning off these toggles (on/off switches) clears most of the clutter and sponsored apps at once.

1. Press Win+I to open Settings. The Settings ⚙️ window should appear.

2. Select Personalization from the left sidebar.

3. Click Start in the list of options.

4. Turn off the toggles next to Show recently added apps, Show most used apps, and Show recommendations for tips, shortcuts, new apps, and more. Each switch should now read Off.
5. Open the Start menu ⊞ and check it. The lists should be shorter, and the Recommended area should show fewer promoted items or none.

If you cannot find the recommendations toggle, your build may word it differently, for example as a setting for recommended files or websites. Turn off any toggle in that area that suggests content. To undo any of this, return to the same page and switch the toggle back on.

Windows also tailors tips and ads to the way you say you use your PC. That choice lives on a separate page, so turn it off too.

1. Go to Settings › Personalization › Device usage
2. Turn off every toggle on the page, such as gaming, family, creativity, schoolwork, entertainment and business. Each should read Off.

When these are on, Microsoft uses them to tailor tips, ads and recommendations. If your build does not show a Device usage page, skip this part. The suggestion cards on the Settings ⚙️ home page are covered by a toggle in the Privacy & security section further down.

Turn Off Promotional Notifications in Settings

Windows also sends tips, suggestions and “what’s new” screens through its notification system. These sit in a collapsed section at the bottom of the Notifications page, so they are hard to spot.

1. Open Settings.
2. Select System from the left menu.
3. Click Notifications.

4. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Additional settings to expand it. Several checkboxes should appear.
5. Uncheck Show me the welcome experience after updates and occasionally when I sign in to highlight what’s new and suggested.
6. Uncheck Get tips and suggestions when using Windows.

Your build may show other similar boxes here, such as one about getting the most out of Windows. If it does, uncheck those too. No restart is needed. To undo the change, tick the boxes again.

Stop Suggested Content on the Lock Screen

The default lock screen background, Windows Spotlight, can show tips, trivia and sponsored images. Switching to a fixed picture or a slideshow removes them.

1. Open Settings.
2. Select Personalization.
3. Click Lock screen.

4. Open the dropdown menu next to Personalize your lock screen and change it from Windows spotlight to Picture or Slideshow. The preview at the top of the page should change to match.
5. If the box for Get fun facts, tips, tricks, and more on your lock screen is still visible, uncheck it.

Press Win+L to lock the PC and confirm that the tips are gone. To go back, set the dropdown to Windows spotlight again.

Block Content Delivery Manager Suggestions via Settings

Windows can use your diagnostic data, which is information about how your PC and apps behave, to tailor the tips, ads and recommendations you see. The Tailored experiences setting controls this. Turning it off cuts one of the main sources of targeted suggestions.

1. Open Settings.
2. Select Privacy & security.

3. Click Diagnostics & feedback.

4. Find Tailored experiences. You may need to expand its section first.
5. Turn the toggle Off. This stops Microsoft from using your diagnostic data to offer personalized tips and recommendations.

This does not turn off diagnostic data collection itself. It only stops that data from being used for tailored suggestions. To undo it, switch the toggle back on.

The main advertising switches are on a different page: Privacy & security › General. Three of them matter most for targeted offers.

1. Go to Settings › Privacy & security › General
2. Turn off Let apps show me personalized ads by using my advertising ID. The advertising ID is a number Windows gives your account so apps can match ads to your interests.
3. Turn off Show me suggested content in the Settings ⚙️ app. This removes suggested content from Settings, including the suggestions on its home page.
4. Turn off Let Windows improve Start and search results 🔍 by tracking app launches. Windows then stops using the apps you open to shape Start and search results 🔍.

Each switch should now read Off. The exact wording can vary between builds, and the page may list other toggles, such as one for locally relevant content based on your language list. No restart is needed. To undo any of these, switch the toggle back on.

Remove Tailored Offers via Registry Editor

To turn these off, you edit the registry, the database where Windows stores its settings. This works on both Home and Pro, but a wrong change can cause problems. Back up the registry before you start.

This method modifies system behavior using Registry Editor. Before you open it, create a system restore point. A restore point is a saved snapshot of your Windows system files and settings that you can roll back to if something goes wrong.

1. Click Start, type Create a restore point, and open the result. The System Properties window should open on the System Protection tab.
2. Under Protection Settings, select your Windows drive, usually C:. If protection shows as Off, click Configure, choose Turn on system protection, and click OK.
3. Click Create, type a short description such as “Before registry changes”, and click Create again. Wait for the message that says the restore point was created, then close the window.
4. Press Win+R to open the Run dialog box.
5. Type regedit and press Enter to open Registry Editor. When the User Account Control prompt appears, click Yes.
6. Back up the registry. In Registry Editor, click File, then Export. Choose All as the export range, give the file a name, and save it somewhere safe. To restore it later, double-click the saved file and confirm.
7. Navigate to the following location using the left sidebar: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ContentDeliveryManager
8. Look for the DWORD value named SubscribedContent-338389Enabled in the right pane. If it does not exist, right-click an empty space, select New, click DWORD (32-bit) Value, and name it SubscribedContent-338389Enabled.
9. Double-click SubscribedContent-338389Enabled, change its value data to 0, then click OK.
10. Locate or create additional DWORD values such as SubscribedContent-338388Enabled and SubscribedContent-338389Enabled (depending on your exact build) and set their data to 0 as well.
11. Close Registry Editor, then sign out and back in, or restart the 🔄 PC, so the changes take effect.

If a value you expect is missing, that is normal. Which values exist depends on your build, so creating the value as described above is fine. To reverse a change, set the value back to its previous data, delete the value you created, or import your backup file.

If something else breaks, open System Properties again, click System Restore on the System Protection tab, and pick the restore point you made.

Stop Suggested Apps in File Explorer

File Explorer can show banners that promote cloud storage and other sync services. The setting that controls them sits in Folder Options.

1. Open File Explorer.
2. Click the three horizontal dots on the command bar at the top and select Options. The Folder Options window should open.
3. Click the View tab.
4. Scroll down the Advanced settings list and uncheck Show sync provider notifications.
5. Click Apply and then OK.

The change applies right away to open File Explorer windows in most cases. If a banner is still showing, close and reopen File Explorer. To undo it, tick the box again.

What to do next

With these suggestions turned off, you should see a cleaner, quieter Windows 11 interface with far fewer marketing prompts. Major Windows updates can reset a few of these options. After a big update, check the Start, Notifications, General and Diagnostics & feedback pages again. You may also want to tidy your taskbar layout or manage your startup applications next to improve performance and usability.