PC Booting Slowly? Speed It Up by Turning Off Startup Apps

A new PC feels fast, but a few months later it can take ages to start. The most common reason is startup apps: programs that register themselves to launch with Windows every time you install something. Turning off just a few of them can make the first minutes after boot much smoother.

Step 1: Open startup apps in Task Manager

• Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager directly.
• Click Startup apps in the left menu (on Windows 10, the "Startup" tab at the top).
• Click the "Startup impact" column to sort it so the "High" items come first. Start with those.

Step 2: Turn off what you don't need

• Right-click an app and choose Disable.
• This does not uninstall anything. It only stops the app from starting automatically, so you can still open it yourself when you need it.
• You can also toggle the same list in Settings → Apps → Startup.

What's usually safe to disable and what to keep

• Usually safe to disable: game launchers (Steam, Epic and others), music and video apps, cloud sync apps you rarely use, update helpers, and messengers you don't need right at startup.
• Keep enabled: antivirus and security software (including the Windows Security notification icon), audio, touchpad and graphics driver items, and Bluetooth, keyboard or mouse utilities.
• If you can't tell what something is, right-click it and choose "Search online" before deciding.

Still slow?

• In Settings → System → Storage, make sure at least 10% of the C: drive is free.
• Install all pending Windows updates and choose Restart once (restart finishes updates more reliably than shutting down).
• On an older PC with a hard disk drive (HDD), switching to an SSD gives the biggest boost.