Windows 10 Taskbar Not Working – Fix It With Our Guide

Are you clicking on icons at the taskbar but nothing happens?
Or are the icons not shown on your taskbar? Or even worse, is the taskbar not there at all?

Follow one of the 5 simple methods below to fix your issues if your Windows 10 taskbar is not working, and get right back to doing more enjoyable things 🙂

Quick Jump

• Method 1: Restart Windows Explorer using Task Manager
• Method 2: Restart Windows Explorer using CMD
• Method 3: Disable some startup programs
• Method 4: Make sure you have the latest Windows 10 version
• Method 5: Check for old restore points

Method I: Restart Windows Explorer using Task Manager

Windows explorer is responsible for all the Windows User Interface, and since your taskbar is a part of it, then restarting Windows Explorer solves the problem in most cases. Follow me in order to do it:

1. Press Ctrl + Shift + ESC buttons or right-click on your task bar and select Task manager to launch it.
2. Click More details if you’re not seeing the big panel (see picture).
3. In the Processes tab, right-click on Windows Explorer and then select Restart.

Once your screen refreshes, try to your taskbar again and see if it works. If you can’t restart it using Task manager, here is another method to restart it using CMD.

Method II: Restart Windows Explorer using CMD

All process can be killed and run using CMD, we will do this to Explorer.exe which is Windows Explorer’s process. Here is how to do it:

1. Press Windows logo key + X and then choose Command Prompt (Admin).
2. Click Yes to give permissions to it.
3. Once CMD is launched, type this command to terminate the Windows Explorer process: taskkill /f /im explorer.exe and then press Enter.
4. The taskbar, the background and the desktop icons are gone, right? It’s time to get them back, type explorer.exe and then press Enter.

Everything should be okay now, check it now and if you’re still facing some troubles, continue reading for more methods.

Explorer” Method III: Disable some startup programs

Maybe the reason behind the issue is an outsider app that launches at startup. Therefore, we will have to disable all non-Microsoft programs from startup.

Luckily, we have a full guide about disabling and enabling startup programs right here, follow it to disable all non-Microsoft apps as we said and restart your computer and see if it works.

Method IV: Make sure you have the latest Windows 10 version

Checking for updates is one of the greatest keys to solve any Windows problem. Every update comes with tons of solutions for bugs that show up. Some users reported having the taskbar issue from time to time until they updated their Windows to the latest version. It’s then recommended to give it a shot:

1. Open Settings from your start menu.
2. Click on Updates & Security.
3. Click on the Check for updates button, your computer will then check for, download and install any updates found.

After downloading and installing the new updates (click here if you want to read about what the latest update changed in your computer), your computer should restart. Now, see if the taskbar is back to work and if it doesn’t, here’s another method to fix it.

Method V: Check for old restore points

A good solution is to go back in time and avoid the reason behind a problem, no? That’s why if all the solutions above fail, you got to try this one:

1. Open Control Panel and search for recovery.
2. Open System restore.
3. Click Next.
4. Choose a previous restore point at a time where the problem wasn’t there yet and click Next.
5. Click Finish.

And that’s it!

How do I fix the taskbar in Windows 11?

Rightfully so, many of our readers have asked us how they can get back to a previous version of the famous taskbar because the one found in Windows 11 had a lot of missing features that people actually used.

To do this, there are two methods that have been tested successfully up until the point of writing this section.

Use a registry hack

To switch back to the Windows 10 taskbar instead of the new Windows 11 version, the earliest known hack – and the one that seems to work most of the time – is a mere registry hack.

1. Click on the search button and type “regedit.”
2. Double-click on the Registry Editor.
3. Navigate to the following path: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced
4. Then right-click on Advanced and select New → DWORD (32-bit) Value.
5. Name the new value Start_ShowClassicMode.windows-11-enable-old-start-menu
6. Double-click on Start_ShowClassicMode and set the value data to 1.
7. Restart your computer and check if the Start menu is aligned to the left now.

The Alternate Solution

If you’re not so keen on using the registry editor, then there are also a few other solutions that should provide the similar thing that the registry hack already does on its own.

First off, you can move the start button and taskbar buttons to the left by using the default Windows Personalization Settings that you can find in the Settings App. Just click Windows + I to access it directly via the keyboard.

Or, even better, you can use a tool for this exact reason. Our friends at PC Gamer have a detailed article on how to perform multiple hacks for your Windows 11 taskbar.

Final Thoughts

Did these methods solve your Window 10 taskbar not working issue? Did you find another way to fix your taskbar? We’d love to hear from you in the comment section below! Feel free to write anything related to this subject, as your readers’ opinions always share a priority with us. We will answer as soon as possible if you’ve also got other questions regarding this topic.