How to Turn off Notifications on Windows 11
Knowing how to turn off Windows notifications can save you from constant distractions, especially when alerts from apps and Windows services add no real value to your workflow. Notifications help keep us updated on everything happening within the installed set of apps and Windows services on a computer. They’re a core feature of any Windows device, to be frank, but when these notifications come in an endless stream, there can be a big problem.
I, for one, get distracted a lot by them, particularly when the said notifications add no value to my work life. If you’re looking to disable notifications you’re better off without, you’re not alone.
Here, I highlight simple steps you can follow to disable notifications on your Windows PC, be it Microsoft services or individual app notifications.
How to Turn Off Windows Notifications from Microsoft Services
Windows 11 constantly pushes suggested notifications to promote and help users imbibe new features. While this is essential for newbies, it feels redundant and forced for someone who just wants to get into the nitty-gritty without being told what to do.
When you get a suggested notification banner on the bottom-right corner of your desktop, right-click on the horizontal three-dots to open the notification’s options, which are:
- Turn off all notifications for suggested
- Go to notification settings
- Focus assist settings
The first option is what we’re interested in to stop getting future suggested notifications.
If you’d rather not wait for a banner to appear, you can also turn off Microsoft’s promotional notifications directly from Settings. Open Settings with Windows key + I, go to System > Notifications, and scroll to the bottom of the page. Click Additional settings and you’ll find three options you can uncheck:
- Show the Windows welcome experience after updates and when signed in to show what’s new and suggested
- Suggest ways to get the most out of Windows and finish setting up this device
- Get tips and suggestions when using Windows
Unchecking all three stops Windows from pushing its own promotional content at you.
Note that on Windows 11 24H2 and newer builds, you can also disable Notification Suggestions directly from Settings or by clicking the ellipsis (three-dot) menu on a suggestion banner. On older builds, this behavior was handled less consistently, so the Additional settings route above is the most reliable method regardless of your build.
How to Turn Off Windows Notifications for an Individual App on Windows 11
If you want to turn off all notifications at once on Windows 11, the quickest way is to use the master toggle:
- Open Windows Settings with Windows key + I
- Go to System > Notifications
- Toggle the main Notifications switch to Off at the top of the page
This silences every app and system notification in one step. Keep in mind that in Windows 11, notifications are accessed from the date & time area in the Notification Center (bottom-right corner of the taskbar). In Windows 10, the equivalent is the Action Center.
If you only want to stop notifications from a specific app rather than learning how to turn off Windows notifications globally, click on the horizontal three-dots menu at the edge of a notification from that app and select turn off notifications for (app name).
If you want to turn off notifications for many apps in one go, try the following:
- Launch Windows settings with a combination of Windows key + I
- Navigate to or search for Notifications from the ‘Find a Setting’ search bar
- Once in the notifications panel, you’ll see a list of all frontend system apps and installed apps
- Use the toggle bar in front of each app to disable notifications
How to Disable Notification Banners on Windows 11
Notification banners are those little rectangular pop-ups on the bottom-right corner of your desktop when you have a notification. I recommend that you disable them for an app rather than disabling notifications entirely.
To disable notification banners:
- Launch Windows settings by pressing the Windows key + I
- Again, navigate to or search for notifications using the ‘Find a Setting’ search bar.
- Under Notifications from Apps and Other Senders, click on the target app rather than using the toggle bar
- Once you’re in the notifications window of the target app, you’ll find the ‘Show Notification Banners’ option
- Disable it to stop getting notification banners from the app
While you’re in that per-app notifications window, you’ll also find a few other controls worth knowing about:
- Notification sound — uncheck this to stop the app from playing an audio alert every time it notifies you, without hiding the notification itself
- Show notifications on lock screen — turn this off if you don’t want notification content visible when your PC is locked
- Show notification content on lock screen — if lock-screen notifications are still on, this option lets you hide the message preview so only the app name appears
You can also manage these controls globally from the main Notifications settings page rather than per-app. On the main System > Notifications page, look for the options just below the master toggle to turn off notification sounds system-wide, hide all notifications on the lock screen, or prevent notification previews from showing on the lock screen.
These global switches are useful if you want to silence pop-ups or protect your privacy on the lock screen without individually editing every app. According to Microsoft’s official support documentation, managing notifications from the Settings app is the recommended approach for most users.
How to Use Do Not Disturb to Temporarily Turn Off Windows Notifications
If you don’t want to permanently disable notifications — you just need uninterrupted time while working, gaming, presenting, or in a meeting — Do Not Disturb is the right tool. It mutes notification banners and sounds for as long as you need, without changing any of your per-app settings.
To enable Do Not Disturb manually:
- Open Settings with Windows key + I
- Go to System > Notifications
- Toggle Do not disturb to On
While Do Not Disturb is active, notifications are still collected and will be waiting in Notification Center when you’re ready to check them — they just won’t interrupt you with banners or sounds.
You can also allow certain high-priority alerts to come through even when Do Not Disturb is on. On the same Notifications page, click Set priority notifications to specify which apps (such as phone calls, reminders, or alarms) are allowed to bypass the mute.
If you’d like Do Not Disturb to turn on automatically, scroll down on the same page to find the scheduling options. You can set it to activate during specific hours (for example, overnight), and Windows 11 also offers automatic triggers, including:
- When duplicating your display (useful during presentations)
- When playing a game
- When using an app in full-screen mode
- For the first hour after a Windows feature update
Enabling the relevant triggers means Do Not Disturb activates in context without you needing to remember to turn it on. This is one of the most convenient ways to manage how to turn off Windows notifications temporarily without losing your settings.
Final Notes
With Windows 11, Microsoft introduced subtle changes in the notification systems of the operating system. While you can disable banners and or notifications in the notifications panel, you can dive even deeper by setting notifications priority right in the notification settings window. Eventually, if you feel you’ve messed with your notifications, you can always reverse the changes by enabling “Restore Default Settings” in the notifications window.
