Windows 11 has been a contentious operating system from the beginning. In many cases, users felt that it was a downgrade from Windows 10. Now, with the shift to AI, the company hasn’t inspired a lot of confidence, stuffing Copilot into every nook and cranny of the OS. It got so ridiculous that the president of Windows recently promised to focus less on unnecessary AI and more on improving outstanding issues.
That’s certainly good news, but with Windows 10 no longer supported with regular security updates, Windows 11 is the only game in town on PC. Until actual changes are made and user complaints addressed, you'll still have to grapple with the operating system's many issues. Fortunately, you can tweak, remove, or even replace some of the features you hate—which is exactly what I’ve done on my main laptop and desktop.
As a few examples, I replaced the built-in Start menu with Start11, enhanced the taskbar with a free tool called ExplorerPatcher, improved the right-click menu in File Explorer with ContextMenuManager, and tweaked the annoying Widgets app to be less intrusive. Here are five features I hate in Windows 11, how I’ve dealt with them, and how you can do the same.
With each new version of Windows, we get a redesigned Start menu as if Microsoft is still struggling to get it right. After all the different flavors, my least favorite is the Windows 11 Start menu. Even after a recent revamp, it's still not as usable as it should be. That’s why I decided to replace it. Of the various third-party Start menu alternatives, I prefer Start11 from Stardock. Free to try and $15 for a permanent license, Start11 lets you choose the layout you want, from a Windows 7 two-column menu to a Windows 11-style (but much improved) option. My favorite is the Modern menu, which spruces up the standard two-column format.
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After you select your preferred menu, you can leave it as is or tweak it using a number of settings to change the color, texture, and other visual elements, and to choose which programs and shortcuts appear in the menu and how they’re accessed. By directly editing the menu, you can create folders to store shortcuts, then move them from one place to another.
Start11 also helps you customize other features beyond the Start menu. Move the taskbar to any position and even pin folders and documents to it. You can also replace Windows search with the Start11 search tool to more easily and effectively find files and other items.
2. Replace the Taskbar
Microsoft limits your ability to customize the Windows 11 taskbar. For example, you can’t move it to the top or sides of the screen as you could in Windows 10. You can use Start11 to tweak it, but I turn to a free program called ExplorerPatcher. It lets you configure several features in Windows 11, but I primarily use it to adjust the taskbar.
To get it, open the GitHub download page and scroll to the Assets section. Download the ep_setup.exe file for Intel-based PCs or the ep_setup_arm64.exe file for ARM-based systems. Install the program, then right-click the taskbar and choose Properties > Taskbar to explore the various settings. You'll be able to position the taskbar on the top, bottom, left, or right side of the screen. You can also display the Search tool as an icon or box, or hide it completely. ExplorerPatcher also allows you to change the alignment of the taskbar, not just between centered and left, but based on how you want it to appear when it’s overflowing with icons.
(Credit: PCMag / Microsoft)
3. Use a Local Account During Setup
For years, Windows has been pushing the use of a Microsoft account to set up the OS and track your activities. While a local account still technically exists in Windows 11, the company has made it increasingly difficult to choose one during initial setup, especially with the latest Windows 11 25H2 builds. Last I checked, there's still one trick that works. Yes, you can switch to a local account after you’ve used a Microsoft account to set up your system, but most folks who have issues with the process don't want to give Microsoft their data in the first place.
To get around this problem, I like to use a third-party utility called Rufus to set up Windows with a local account. With this free tool, you configure a USB-based Windows 11 installation so you can move to the latest version on any licensed PC. After you choose the USB drive and the Windows 11 ISO file, you’re able to select a local account. By then running the customized installation from your USB stick, the local account is automatically applied.
I keep my Rufus USB stick handy so that I can install Windows with a local account on any PC or virtual machine. Rufus can also bypass some Windows 11 security requirements, making it a handy tool overall.
(Credit: PCMag / Microsoft)
The context menu that appears when you right-click a file, folder, or empty area in File Explorer is supposed to provide a helpful way to access various commands, apps, and features. But the more applications you install, the more crowded the menu becomes. To resolve this dilemma, Microsoft pared down the menu in Windows 11 so that it shows only the most basic commands. To view all available commands and features, you now have to choose the Show more options command, which brings you back to that cluttered menu.
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Though I appreciate Microsoft’s attempt to streamline the right-click menu, there are still times when I need to access the full menu, and that extra step is a nuisance. The good news is that you can still open the full menu directly by holding down the Shift key while you right-click the item in File Explorer. Another option is to use ExplorerPatcher. In the program, right-click on the taskbar and choose Properties > File Explorer > Disable the Windows 11 context menu. A third method is through a Registry hack, but I prefer to use ExplorerPatcher as it’s easier to apply the change and then reverse it if you wish.
(Credit: PCMag / Microsoft)
But bypassing the pared-down Windows 11 menu still leaves you with the older and potentially more cluttered menu. Ideally, you should be able to edit the full menu to remove the commands and apps you don’t want. Windows provides no way to do that, but many third-party utilities do. One tool I like is called ContextMenuManager. Though the default interface is in Chinese, you can easily add a language pack of your preferred language.
Freely available for download from the developer’s GitHub page, this tool is effective and easy to use. Just run the downloaded EXE file; no installation needed. Once you've added your language and restarted the program, select the type of item you want to edit on the left, e.g., file, folder, or directory. You’ll then see all the existing context menu entries on the right. Simply turn off any you don’t want cluttering up the menu. You can easily turn the switch back on to restore any that you removed.
(Credit: PCMag / Microsoft)
The widgets feature in Windows 11 is another area of contention. Though the widget screen can provide useful information, it's too easy to trigger it by accident. All it takes is a hover over the widgets taskbar icon. And then you have to move your mouse to make the screen disappear. However, you can control this behavior. If you don’t find the widgets useful, just disable them completely. Right-click on the taskbar, choose Taskbar Settings, and then turn off Widgets.
(Credit: PCMag / Microsoft)
But I do sometimes like to check the widgets to quickly get the latest weather forecast, news stories, and other information. In that case, I just turn off the option that opens the widgets screen by hovering over the icon. To do that, launch the widgets pane and click Settings > More Settings, then turn off Open on Hover. Now, when you intentionally want to view the widgets, you can just click on their taskbar icon.
(Credit: PCMag / Microsoft)
About Our Expert
Lance Whitney
Contributor
Experience
I've been working for PCMag since early 2016 writing tutorials, how-to pieces, and other articles on consumer technology. Beyond PCMag, I've written news stories and tutorials for a variety of other websites and publications, including CNET, ZDNet, TechRepublic, Macworld, PC World, Time, US News & World Report, and AARP Magazine. I spent seven years writing breaking news for CNET as one of the site’s East Coast reporters. I've also written two books for Wiley & Sons—Windows 8: Five Minutes at a Time and Teach Yourself Visually LinkedIn.
I've used Windows, Office, and other Microsoft products for years so I'm well versed in that world. I also know the Mac quite well. I'm always working with iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, and Android on my various mobile devices. And these days, I write a lot about AI, so that's become another key area for me.
My wife always jokes about all the tech products we have around the house, but I manage to put them to good use for my articles. I like Lenovo computers, so I own a couple of Lenovo desktops and several laptops. I have three MacBooks and a Mac mini. For my mobile life and work, I use an iPhone 16 Pro, iPad Pro, and iPad mini as well as an Apple Watch. But since I write about Android, I own several Android phones and tablets. Like any tech person, I have a cabinet full of cables, wires, and assorted mysterious gadgets. And when it's time to take a break from writing, I have an old Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii, both of which I use for exercise and fitness games.
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