How to Speed Up Windows 11: 15 Tweaks That Actually Work

Fifteen changes that make a slow Windows 11 machine feel new again, ordered from the two-minute wins to the ones that need a reboot.

Most slow-PC complaints come down to three things: too much starting automatically, too little free disk space, and background apps that never sleep. Work through this list in order. The first five tweaks take about ten minutes and usually deliver the biggest jump.

Start with the free wins

1. Open Task Manager, go to the Startup apps tab and disable everything you do not need at logon. Leave audio, input devices and your security software alone.
2. In Settings, turn off Background apps so store apps stop running when you never open them.
3. Enable Storage Sense to clear temporary files on a schedule instead of by hand.
4. Set the power mode to Best performance while plugged in. Balanced costs real speed on older laptops.
5. Trim visual effects you will not miss: transparency, animations and menu shadows under Accessibility settings.

Reclaim disk space

Windows wants roughly 15% of the system drive free. Run Disk Cleanup as administrator, remove the old Windows installation folder if you upgraded recently, and move large video projects to a second drive. Once the system disk sits above 90% full, nothing else on this list makes much difference.

Cut the background noise

• Turn off Search highlights and web results in the taskbar settings; search gets faster and quieter.
• Disable tips, suggestions and the advertising ID in the Privacy section.
• Uninstall preinstalled apps you never open: maps, news, trial games, vendor utilities.
• Pause cloud sync for folders you rarely touch. A sync engine costs disk time on every save.
• Disable the Game Bar and Game DVR overlay if you do not record gameplay.
• Defer feature updates so a large Windows build does not land in the middle of your workday.

What actually moves the needle

Tweaks help, but hardware sets the ceiling. A solid-state drive instead of a mechanical disk, more RAM, and current chipset and GPU drivers are worth more than every setting above combined. A tool such as Driver Easy Pro covers that last part in one pass and creates a restore point before it changes anything, which matters if you would rather not chase downloads by hand.