Home windows 11 might look fairly, however Microsoft’s design decisions usually frustrate somewhat than make your life simpler. These free mods deal with these shortcomings, turning a barely practical system right into a productive powerhouse.
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Fences
Stardock
A cluttered desktop can sluggish you down and make your pc really feel overwhelming to make use of. Whereas organizing information into folders is an effective begin, there’s an excellent higher resolution that may enhance desktop administration.
Fences is a desktop group device that creates shaded, labeled containers in your desktop the place you may group associated information, folders, and shortcuts. I’ve a Present Tasks fence for energetic work information, a Instruments fence for often used apps, and a Downloads fence that routinely captures new downloads.
I like that double-clicking anyplace on the desktop immediately hides all icons—good for display screen recordings or displays. The roll-up characteristic can be a pleasant contact. Hover over a fence title, and it collapses to provide you extra desktop house with out shedding group. For anybody juggling a number of tasks or coping with desktop muddle, Fences turns your messy desktop right into a clear, practical workspace.
Whereas Fences provides a 30-day free trial, it’s a premium app that prices $29.99 for a lifetime license, $9.99 per 12 months for a single system, or $19.99 per 12 months for as much as 5 units.
Obtain: Fences ($9.99/12 months, free trial obtainable)
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Start11
Start11 turns Home windows 11’s pretty-but-sluggish Begin menu into one thing that truly works—and works your approach. Click on Begin and it opens immediately, with no half-second delays to interrupt your stream. Searches really feel simply as quick: sort any filename and it seems straight away, as an alternative of getting buried below Bing outcomes and internet muddle.
However Start11 doesn’t cease at fixing the Begin menu: it brings again the taskbar customization that Microsoft eliminated. I maintain my taskbar on the left aspect of my ultrawide monitor with ungrouped buttons, so I can see precisely which information and apps are open. I’ve additionally pinned venture folders on to the Begin menu for fast entry to my present work with out opening File Explorer.
For those who choose the outdated look, you may change again to a Home windows 7- or 10-style Begin menu. For me, the upgraded Home windows 11 type with Start11’s efficiency increase strikes one of the best stability between fashionable design and actual productiveness.
Start11 comes from Stardock, the identical workforce behind Fences. Like the corporate’s desktop organizer, it provides a 30-day trial earlier than you’ll want a license: $7.49 per 12 months for one system or $11.24 per 12 months for as much as 5.
Obtain: Start11 ($7.49/12 months, free trial obtainable)
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Windhawk
Windhawk is a free, open-source device that works like an app retailer for Home windows modifications. With one-click set up, these mods repair Home windows 11’s minor annoyances whereas including quality-of-life enhancements.
A few of my favourite Windhawk mods embrace the traditional taskbar labels (so I can see which Phrase paperwork are open), middle-click to shut on the taskbar, and the flexibility to disable the Home windows 11 context menu utterly in favor of the traditional one. The browser tab scrolling mod is one other intelligent trick—hover over Chrome or Edge on the taskbar and scroll by means of tabs along with your mouse wheel.
For non-technical of us, it is the most secure approach so as to add power-user options. Simply browse the mod library, set up on what you need, and luxuriate in a extra practical Home windows. Every mod clearly explains what it adjustments, contains consumer evaluations and scores, and could be toggled off immediately in the event you do not just like the end result.
Obtain: Windhawk (Free)
5
WinToys
Home windows has a whole lot of settings scattered throughout the Management Panel, Settings app, and registry/Group Coverage. WinToys consolidates them into one clear interface. As a substitute of going by means of infinite menus looking for that one privateness toggle, you may change all of the important settings from a centralized dashboard.
Whereas the Dwelling tab exhibits your system specs and real-time utilization stats at a look, the Apps tab lists all put in packages with sizes and dates, making bloatware straightforward to identify. Within the Companies tab, you may view what’s operating within the background with out having to open the Job Supervisor.
The Efficiency tab permits you to handle settings to enhance system efficiency. It provides easy toggles to activate the Final efficiency energy plan to squeeze most efficiency by permitting the PC to attract mandatory energy, cut back graphics job latency with hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling, change recreation settings, and disable startup apps.
Within the Well being tab, you might have instruments to examine disk well being and repair corrupted information. Shifting to the Tweaks tab, you will discover privateness enhancements like disabling telemetry and eradicating Home windows advertisements. You may as well configure what seems in your desktop, clear up the Begin menu, and restore the traditional context menu in File Explorer, amongst different nifty customizations.
Obtain: WinToys (Free)
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PowerToys
Microsoft’s personal PowerToys appears like an apology for Home windows 11’s lacking options. Whereas PowerToys features a hidden suite of productiveness instruments, a number of stand out as an important for Home windows 11 particularly.
Among the many standout utilities, Awake prevents your system from coming into sleep mode throughout important duties like massive file downloads or prolonged video exports. FancyZones takes window administration to the following degree with customized display screen layouts the place you may outline particular zones for various purposes and snap home windows into place with a easy drag movement.
One among my favorites is the Peek utility (Ctrl+House), which provides on the spot file previews for photos and paperwork with out opening them first. All the time on Prime enhances this by letting you pin any window above all different purposes, stopping necessary home windows from disappearing behind no matter you are actively utilizing.
Obtain: PowerToys (Free)
3
Ditto
Home windows 11 has a clipboard historical past characteristic that permits you to entry as much as 25 of your most up-to-date copied gadgets (utilizing Win + V), however it’s fairly restricted. I’ve switched to Ditto as an alternative, which remembers all the pieces (textual content, photos, and information) with no arbitrary limits. It even retains your clipboard historical past after system restarts.
Hit Ctrl + Accent (`) (a customizable shortcut) to see your total clipboard historical past. Seek for that SQL question from yesterday, discover that buyer e mail from this morning, or seize that hex shade code from final week. Ditto saves all the pieces with full textual content search, and you’ll sync your clipboard throughout a number of computer systems.
Obtain: Ditto (Free)
2
Rainmeter
Rainmeter transforms your desktop from a static wallpaper into an info dashboard. Sure, it could actually get difficult, however beginning with pre-made skins makes it accessible to everybody.
I take advantage of a minimal setup: system stats within the nook (CPU, RAM, and disk utilization), a greater clock with calendar, and climate that truly updates. The Spotify integration exhibits what’s taking part in with controls proper on the desktop.
For learners, seize a pores and skin like Mond or Enigma and customise from there. Superior customers can create something—I’ve seen all the pieces from desktops that seem like Iron Man’s interface to minimalist productiveness dashboards.
If Rainmeter feels too advanced, there are different glorious desktop customization instruments value exploring. The group shares 1000’s of skins, so that you need not code something your self.
Obtain: Rainmeter (Free)
1
Monitorian
Monitorian lets you management the brightness of your exterior displays with hotkeys or the mouse. No extra reaching behind the monitor trying to find tiny buttons.
The free model handles most wants completely: you get brightness management, massive sliders for straightforward adjustment, and automated begin with Home windows. The app exhibits your adjusted brightness share and maintains the order of your monitor association.
For energy customers, there is a premium subscription that provides customizable hotkeys, command-line choices, brightness sync throughout displays, and management for greater than 4 shows. However the free model does all the pieces most individuals want.
Obtain: Monitorian (Free, subscription obtainable)
Every device on this listing tackles a selected Home windows 11 frustration—whether or not it’s Start11’s on the spot search that truly finds your information, or Ditto’s limitless clipboard historical past that remembers all the pieces you copy. Most are utterly free, and the paid ones supply beneficiant trials, so you may take a look at them totally earlier than deciding to purchase.
