Make your Windows PC faster.

A slow computer is rarely broken. Usually it's doing too much at once: apps starting with Windows, a nearly full drive, or settings that favour battery over speed. These steps fix the common causes, from quickest to most involved. They're written for Windows 11; Windows 10 has most of the same options in similar places.

1. Stop apps from starting with Windows

Every app that opens when you sign in slows the start-up and keeps using memory in the background.

1. Right-click the Start button and open Task Manager.
2. Go to Startup apps.
3. Look at the Startup impact column. For apps you don't need right away, select them and choose Disable.

Disabling only stops an app from opening on its own. You can still open it whenever you like.

2. Free up disk space

Windows slows down when the system drive (usually C:) is almost full. Aim to keep at least 15–20% of it free.

1. Open Settings → System → Storage.
2. Open Cleanup recommendations and remove what you don't need: temporary files, old downloads and large unused files.
3. Turn on Storage Sense, so Windows clears temporary files and the Recycle Bin for you.

3. Uninstall apps you don't use

Old apps take up space and some keep running background services.

1. Open Settings → Apps → Installed apps.
2. Sort by Size or Install date.
3. Select ⋯ next to an app you no longer use and choose Uninstall.

4. Install updates and restart

Updates fix bugs that can slow things down, and a restart clears memory that builds up over days of sleep.

1. Open Settings → Windows Update and select Check for updates.
2. Install everything offered, including Optional updates for drivers.
3. Restart. Choose Restart, not just Shut down, at least once a week.

5. Choose the right power mode

On a laptop, Windows often saves battery at the cost of speed.

1. Open Settings → System → Power & battery.
2. Set Power mode to Best performance while you're plugged in.

6. Turn off visual effects

Animations and transparency look nice, but they use resources on older or low-end computers.

1. Open Settings → Accessibility → Visual effects.
2. Turn off Transparency effects and Animation effects.

7. Scan for malware

Unwanted software running in the background is a common cause of a sudden slowdown.

1. Open Windows Security → Virus & threat protection.
2. Select Quick scan. If it finds anything, follow its steps, then run a Full scan from Scan options.

For the curious: list your start-up apps

This PowerShell command lists the apps that start with Windows and where each one is set up. It only reads; it doesn't change anything.

Get-CimInstance Win32_StartupCommand | Select-Object Name, Command, Location

Still slow?

If your computer is still slow after all seven steps, the hardware is probably the limit. The two upgrades that help most are moving from a hard disk (HDD) to a solid-state drive (SSD), and adding memory if you have 8 GB of RAM or less. You can check both in Task Manager → Performance.