Windows 11: How to Disable Ads

In recent weeks, many Windows 11 users have complained about the appearance of different ads in the operating system’s notification tray. From offers to buy Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 , to suggestions to use the new Defender app that is part of Microsoft 365.

xMicrosoft Defends Windows 11 Ads as Notifications

The case generated a lot of discontent among the public, and those from Redmond acknowledged to Windows Latest that they had begun sending such notices to owners of computers with Windows 11. The company avoided calling it a publicity stunt, instead classifying the ads as simple notifications. Disable Windows 11 Notification Ads The ads were not your typical notifications. Microsoft has been testing ads as “suggestions” on the lock screen, file explorer, widgets, and Start menu in Windows 11.

In the case of the ads that were displayed in the notification tray, Windows 11 users had the option to dismiss them with a click. However, within a few hours they would reappear. For many, this may not be a big deal, but injecting ads by disguising them as push notifications is far from a nice practice. The good news is that there is a simple method to disable them, in theory, permanently.

How to stop Windows 11 from showing you ads in notifications

Whether you’ve personally encountered Black Ops 6 and Defender ads in your notifications, if you don’t want that kind of content to sneak into your PC, you’ll need to follow a few steps. The first thing you need to do is head to the Start menu and open Settings > System. Once you’re there, you need to go to the Notifications section.
The most drastic option to prevent ads from reaching your notification tray would be to disable them entirely. However, we do not entirely recommend this. If you mute all notifications, you might miss important alerts from apps like Slack or Teams.

To stop hidden ads, scroll to the bottom of the Notifications list and select Additional Settings. There, you need to disable the option that says “Get recommendations and suggestions as you use Windows.” On paper, Microsoft promises that this is enough to stop seeing commercial content in Windows 11, at least among notifications.
As an extra tip, also disable the option that says “Suggest ways to get the most out of Windows and finish setting up this device.”

Conclusion

Ads in Windows 11 notifications can be easily turned off by adjusting settings. By turning off specific notification options, you can prevent these ads from reappearing.

Remain alert for any new advertising methods in upcoming updates, and be sure to reach out to us if you need further assistance.