In our tests, it’s not quite as bullet-proof at redirecting Cortana as Firefox is, but it’ll get the job done the vast majority of the time.įinally, why you’re clearing house, consider turning off the unique advertising ID that Microsoft assigns you so it can track your movement across Windows Store apps, and then serve you targeted ads. High-five, Mozilla! Chrome users will want to install the Chrometana extension to perform the same switcheroo. By default, that browser will show the results for any web searches you launch from Cortana in the taskbar in the search engine of your choice. Pick DuckDuckGo for maximum privacy, if you’d like.įirefox users have it the best.

If you want to be more proactive, head to Settings > Personalization > Start and disable “Occasionally show suggestions in Start.”Ĭhrometana’s search engine options. The easiest way to disable Start menu ads is to right-click one when you see it, then select “Turn off all suggestions” from the options that appear. The option to disable Windows 10’s Start menu ads… er, suggested apps. Either way, you might not want to see them. They’re not technically ads, as the developers aren’t paying for inclusion in your Start menu rather, it’s a program created by Microsoft to suggest further app installations based on your Windows Store history. I never thought I’d be writing “How to turn off ads in the Windows Start menu,” but here we are.Īs you’re scrolling through your Start menu, you’ll occasionally see “Suggested” listings for Windows Store apps that you don’t actually own. If you’re pulling in Bing images from the Windows Spotlight setting, you won’t be able to disable that setting.

To do so, simply head to Settings > Personalization > Lock Screen and turn off the box that reads “Get fun facts, tips, tricks, and more on your lock screen.” That option only appears if you have a Picture or Slideshow selected as the Background option, though.

The option to disable Windows 10 lock screen ads.

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