5 Home windows 11 apps I uninstall for a cleaner, smoother expertise

Everybody personalizes their Windows PC in their very own approach, and I favor to maintain mine as clear and minimal as attainable. I disguise all my desktop icons, so my desktop at all times appears tidy, and my taskbar solely has essentially the most important apps pinned. In terms of apps, I solely preserve those I truly use put in to maintain my PC as clutter-free as attainable.

That mentioned, for those who’ve simply gotten a brand new Home windows 11 PC, upgraded from Windows 10, or carried out a recent set up, there are a lot of apps that Microsoft robotically installs that you simply would possibly by no means use or just don’t need. I would not go as far as to name them bloatware, however I feel it is honest to say that not everybody wants among the default apps that include Home windows 11. In the event you’re not utilizing them, I like to recommend uninstalling them to avoid wasting space for storing and assist preserve your PC clear. Listed here are 5 default Home windows 11 apps I at all times uninstall, which you will wish to take into account too.

Microsoft Copilot

I like my Home windows expertise AI-free

Over the previous yr, I’ve needed to arrange a number of new Home windows PCs, and one of many first issues I at all times do is uninstall Copilot, Microsoft’s AI chatbot. Whereas it could be helpful relying in your workflow, I by no means discover myself utilizing it, because it simply takes up pointless house. Fortunately, Microsoft has made uninstalling Copilot surprisingly simple. All you must do is go to Settings > Apps > Copilot > then click on the three dots subsequent to Copilot and choose Uninstall. The identical uninstall course of applies to the remainder of the apps talked about on this story as nicely.

If you seek for Copilot in your app listing, you might also discover one other model referred to as Microsoft 365 Copilot, which you too can uninstall if you would like. That is primarily a model of Copilot built-in with apps like Microsoft Phrase and Excel. If you wish to use AI in these apps, by all means, preserve it. Nonetheless, for those who do not use any Microsoft Workplace apps and as an alternative use alternate options like Google Docs and Google Sheets, it is price eliminating it. In the event you ever wish to reinstall Copilot, you may simply accomplish that from the Microsoft Retailer.

Microsoft Groups

In the event you use another like Slack, you most likely do not want it

Microsoft Groups is a messaging and video conferencing app that many firms use to deal with communication between staff. Personally, the corporate I work for does not use Microsoft Groups and depends on alternate options like Slack and Google Meet, so I’ve by no means had to make use of it.

Moreover, for private video calls and messaging with associates or household, I normally use different apps like Discord, WhatsApp, or FaceTime, so Groups is simply pointless. In the event you’re in an identical scenario and haven’t got a use case for Groups, uninstalling it’s a straightforward solution to liberate house and tidy up your PC’s app listing.

The Xbox app

Sorry Microsoft, Steam is the house of PC gaming

I like taking part in video games on my PC in my free time, however the Xbox app is not the best way I do it. Like many PC players, I depend on Steam, which I have been utilizing for over a decade. I’ve solely ever used the Xbox app a few times, and that was when Microsoft was providing these $1 PC Recreation Go trials.

Since then, I have never had a compelling use case for it, and with the latest increase in the cost of Xbox Recreation Go Final and PC Recreation Go, it does not appear to be I’ll within the close to future both. In the event you do not play video games in your PC or rely solely on different platforms like Steam and Epic Video games for all of your gaming wants, the Xbox app is one other simple uninstall.

Sound Recorder

Audacity is healthier and free

Sound Recorder is a pre-installed app in Home windows 11, and because the title suggests, you need to use it to file audio in your PC, equivalent to for a podcast or voice-over. Nonetheless, I consider that Sound Recorder has very restricted options for audio recording, and there are different apps that deal with each recording and enhancing audio significantly better. Audacity is my private favourite, and it is free. With that in thoughts, uninstalling Sound Recorder was an apparent alternative for me, and it is perhaps for you too, particularly for those who need not file your personal voice for something.

Outlook for Home windows

I favor to examine my e mail utilizing an online browser

I examine my e mail consistently whereas utilizing my PC, however I do not use the Outlook app for Home windows for that. The Outlook app for Home windows presents the identical inbox expertise you are conversant in in your net browser, simply in a devoted app. When you’ve got an Outlook or an previous Hotmail e mail, you would possibly discover it helpful. Nonetheless, I normally entry my e mail on my telephone or by way of Google Chrome; subsequently, I by no means felt the necessity to use the devoted Outlook app. In the event you’re in the identical boat, uninstalling Outlook might be worthwhile for you too.

Moreover, for those who put in Home windows 11 some time in the past, you may need one other mail app price eliminating. After I went to uninstall Outlook, I observed I additionally had an older Home windows e mail app referred to as Mail and Calendar put in. Microsoft truly discontinued this app final yr in favor of the Outlook for Home windows app, so you would have two mail apps to uninstall, not only one, relying on how lengthy you have been utilizing Home windows 11.