Alex Ruben
How To Turn Off Web Search in Windows 11 Start Menu
If you’re tired of Windows 11 throwing web search results every time you tap the Start Menu, you’re not the only one. It can be annoying, especially if you just want quick local results or, better yet, do your searches without sharing data with Microsoft. Disabling those web links isn’t super complicated, but the process isn’t always very obvious — especially because Windows tends to hide or change things around with updates. So here’s a straightforward way that often works, and some tips if it doesn’t. Expect to gain a cleaner, faster, more private search experience after this.
Prerequisites
Before diving in, make sure you’re logged in with an account that has admin rights. Also, getting familiar with the Registry Editor or the Group Policy Editor (especially on Windows 11 Pro) helps — sometimes reactions differ between editions. And definitely, back up your registry or set a restore point — because Windows registry isn’t exactly the most forgiving thing if you mess up.
How to Disable Web Search in Windows 11 Start Menu
Open the Registry Editor as Administrator
- Hit Windows + S to open search, then type
regedit. - When it pops up, right-click and select Run as Administrator. Yes, you need elevated privileges for this — Windows doesn’t make it totally easy.
On some setups, this might throw a UAC prompt — just accept. If it doesn’t open right away, double-check you’re running it as admin. Sometimes it’s weird and needs a couple tries, but it’s usually straightforward.
Navigate to the Registry Path
- In the Registry Editor, drill down to: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows
- If the Policies folder isn’t there, you’ll have to create it (right-click on Windows and pick New > Key named
Policies). Same goes for the subfolders if needed. - Inside Windows, create or find a folder called Explorer. Right-click, choose New > Key, and call it
Explorerif it’s not there already.
This path is crucial — it’s where Windows stores settings related to the Explorer and Search stuff. Because of course, Windows has to make it harder than it needs to be.
Create a New DWORD (32-bit) Value
- Right-click in the right pane inside
Explorerand select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value. - Name it
DisableSearchBoxSuggestions. The naming is weird, but that’s what the system looks for.
This value controls whether web results are shown in the Start Menu search. If it’s missing, you can create it; if it’s there, you just modify it.
Set the Value to Disable Web Search
- Double-click
DisableSearchBoxSuggestions. - In the dialog, set the Value data to
1. This tells Windows to shut down the web search feature. - Hit OK. Yeah, it’s that simple, but not necessarily intuitive if you’re new to registry tinkering.
Not sure why it works, but on some machines, you might need to log off and log back in or restart Explorer (via Task Manager) before it takes effect. The good news is that it generally works, but don’t be surprised if you need a reboot at the end.
Restart Your PC or Restart Windows Explorer
- If a reboot isn’t an option, you can restart Windows Explorer. Open Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc), find Windows Explorer, right-click, and choose Restart.
- This step often makes changes appear faster and helps avoid full reboot cycles.
After restarting or rebooting, your Start Menu should no longer display web search results. Be prepared for a slightly cleaner experience, although sometimes the change takes a second to settle in.
Extra Tips & Common Issues
- Always back up your registry before making any changes — even a bad key can mess up your system.
- If nothing’s changing, double-check if the
DisableSearchBoxSuggestionsvalue exists and is set to1. Sometimes, Windows resets or ignores custom settings in certain updates. - For folks on Windows 11 Pro, you might prefer to go through the Group Policy Editor (gpedit.msc) for a more centralized control. Look under Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Search and disable “Bing Search” or similar settings.
- Another thing that kinda helps is turning off “Show web results” in the Search Settings (Settings > Privacy & security > Searching Windows), but note this mostly affects the UI, not registry keys. If it doesn’t work, the registry method usually does.
Wrap-up
Disabling web search results in Windows 11 is a bit of a hack — not fully official, and sometimes you need to do things twice. But once it’s done, searching in the Start Menu feels snappier and, best of all, keeps your searches more private. Just remember, if you mess things up, restoring your registry backup will save the day. This change has been reliable for me on different PCs, so fingers crossed it works for you too.
Summary
- Back up your registry or create a restore point.
- Run
regedit as administrator. - Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows.
- If missing, create the Policies and Explorer keys.
- Create a DWORD named
DisableSearchBoxSuggestions. - Set it to
1to disable web search in the Start Menu. - Restart your PC or restart Explorer from Task Manager.
Final thoughts
Hopefully, this shaves off a few hours of frustration for someone. Extra tweak or registry hack, sure, but it’s usually worth it for a tidier, more private search experience in Windows 11. Good luck, and don’t forget to back up before messing with the registry.