How to Turn On or Off the Notifications Bell Icon in Windows 11

What is the Notifications Bell Icon?

The notifications bell icon appears on the taskbar (bottom of your screen) when you get new notifications, like messages or reminders. When there are no notifications, the bell looks empty and you can still see the clock next to it.

How to Enable or Disable the Notifications Bell Icon (Easy Way)

You can turn the Windows 11 notifications bell icon on or off easily using a free tool called ViVeTool.

1. Go to this page and download ViVeTool.
2. Open the Command Prompt as an administrator:

   • Click the ⊞ Start button, type cmd, right-click Command Prompt, and select Run as administrator. ⚠️ Admin privileges required
3. In the Command Prompt, type this command and press Enter:
   
   vivetool /enable /id:49082522
4. 🔄 Restart your computer to apply the change.
5. Now, ⚙️ open Settings by pressing ⊞ Win+I.
6. Click Personalization on the left, then choose Taskbar on the right.
7. Click Taskbar behaviors to open more options.
8. Check or uncheck the box for Show notifications bell icon to turn it on or off.
9. Close Settings when done.

How to Show or Hide Notifications Bell Using Windows Registry (Advanced Users)

For advanced users who don’t want to use ViVeTool, you can show or hide the Windows 11 notifications bell by changing a setting in the Windows Registry.

Warning: Be careful when editing the Registry. Making wrong changes can cause problems with your computer.

1. Open the Registry Editor:

   • Press ⊞ Win+R, type regedit, and press Enter. ⚠️ Admin privileges required
   • If asked for permission, click Yes.
2. Go to this folder (key): Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced
3. Look for a setting named ShowNotificationIcon in the right pane.
4. If it exists, double-click it and set its value to:

   • 1 to show the notifications bell
   • 0 to hide the notifications bell
5. If it doesn’t exist:

   • 🖱️ Right-click on a blank spot in the right pane.
   • Choose New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.
   • Name it ShowNotificationIcon.
   • Double-click it and set the value to 1 or 0 as above.
6. Close the Registry Editor and 🔄 restart your PC to see the changes.

Summary

The Windows 11 notifications bell icon is useful for quickly seeing alerts and messages right on your taskbar.

What happens after you make the change? Once you enable it, the bell will show your notifications and a shorter clock on the taskbar.

• You can turn the notifications bell icon on or off on your Windows 11 taskbar.
• The easiest way is by using the free ViVeTool app and then adjusting Taskbar settings.
• If you’re comfortable with advanced tools, you can also enable or disable it using the Windows Registry Editor.
• That’s all! Enjoy customizing your Windows 11 experience.